 Essex with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2012 | |||||||||
| No. 66, 79 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Offensive guard | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1982-12-05)December 5, 1982 (age 42) Fort Wayne, Indiana, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 324 lb (147 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Paul Harding(Fort Wayne) | ||||||||
| College: | Northwestern | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2005: 3rd round, 93rd pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Trai Jamar Essex (born December 5, 1982) is an American former professionalfootball player who was anoffensive guard for eight seasons in theNational Football League (NFL) with thePittsburgh Steelers andIndianapolis Colts. He playedcollege football for theNorthwestern Wildcats.
Essex grew up inFort Wayne, Indiana where he attendedPaul Harding High School andlettered infootball andbasketball.[1] In football, he was a standouttight end. He played in the first everU.S. Army All-American Bowl (a high school football nationalall-star game) on December 30, 2000.[2]
In basketball, he was a member of the 2001 class 2A Indiana boys high school championship team.[3] His 14 rebounds ties for 3rd best ever in the class 2A championship game.[4] Essex was an All-Conference honoree as a junior.
Essex attendedNorthwestern University, where he majored in African-American studies and was a letterman infootball. He started every game as a true freshman at tight end, catching three passes for 24 yards and a touchdown. He was named to theBig Ten All-Freshman team byThe Sporting News magazine.[1] He was moved from tight end tooffensive tackle prior to his sophomore season and started 37 consecutive games at left tackle for theWildcats in his final three seasons. He was named toESPN's All-Bowl team following his performance in the2003 Motor City Bowl.[1]
Essex was selected in the third round of the2005 NFL draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers.[5] He signed a $1.385 million three-year contract which included a $460,000 signing bonus.[6] After being held out of action through the first nine games of his rookie season,[7] he started atleft tackle in four games in place of an injuredMarvel Smith.[8] TheSteelers' 2005 season ended with a victory inSuper Bowl XL.
Essex did not make a start in the next two seasons, though he did suit up for 18 games. After the2007 season he signed arestricted free agent tender which bound him to the team through2008 for just over $900,000.[9]
Essex's fifth career start came when he again subbed for Smith at left tackle in aplayoff game on January 5, 2008, which was a narrow loss to theJacksonville Jaguars.[8]
Essex showed promise in2008 with strong performances in place of startingright guardDarnell Stapleton against theChicago Bears andMinnesota Vikings. Once again the team finished the season asSuper Bowl champions, making Essex one of 21 players who were members of both of the Steelers' championship teams in the 2000s.[8]
Following the Steelers' victory inSuper Bowl XLIII, Essex signed a $1.92 million, two-year contract with the team, which included a $500,000 signing bonus.[10] Before re-signing with Pittsburgh he fielded offers from theNew York Jets andTennessee Titans but was persuaded to return to the Steelers when he received assurances from the team that he would be given the opportunity to win a starting spot.[8]
Essex started atright guard for the entire2009 season. He picked up where he left off in2010 as the starting right guard. However, he was sidelined in the second game of the year with a high-ankle sprain. He eventually returned as the starter at right guard, but was replaced byRamon Foster after getting three more starts.[11] The Steelers once again earned a trip to theSuper Bowl XLV where they fell to theGreen Bay Packers.
Essex was an unrestricted free agent following the2010 NFL season. He was unable to sign a new contract due to the2011 NFL lockout which canceled normal off-season team activities. During the lockout, Essex ballooned to 380 pounds, fifty pounds over his playing weight. Team personnel saw Essex at quarterbackBen Roethlisberger's wedding in July 2011, and were hesitant to extend a contract or invite Essex to training camp due to his lack of conditioning.[12] The team eventually re-signed him toward the end of camp at Roethlisberger's urging after Essex had worked on his own to bring his weight under control. He said at the time that he had lost an amount equivalent to the weight of "a couple newborn babies."[13] He was signed for the veteran minimum[14] of $810,000.[15]
Essex's "position flexibility" (i.e. the ability to play more than one role on the team) was key to his re-signing and was pressed to new heights in the2011 season during which he played at all five offensive line positions. He played a good portion of the team's third game at right tackle when the starter, rookieMarcus Gilbert, was injured. He started the team's next game at left tackle in place ofJonathan Scott, who had also been injured in week three. He spent some time over the next few weeks at left guard because of yet more injuries. In week 13 he spent significant time at left guard and started at that position in week 15.[16]
When backup centerDoug Legursky (who was starting due to an injury toMaurkice Pouncey) was injured early in the team'sweek 16 game against theSt. Louis Rams Essex was forced to playcenter for the first time in his career. The Steelers shut out the Rams 27–0 in that game and coachMike Tomlin presented Essex with a game ball as recognition of the magnitude of his contributions.[12]
Essex was released by the Steelers at the end of the 2012 training camp.[17][18][19]
Media related toTrai Essex at Wikimedia Commons