Derrick Dewan Brooks (born April 18, 1973) is an American former professionalfootball player who was alinebacker for his entire 14-year career in theNational Football League (NFL) with theTampa Bay Buccaneers. Brooks playedcollege football for theFlorida State Seminoles, earning consensusAll-American honors twice. He was selected by the Buccaneers in the first round of the1995 NFL draft. An 11-timePro Bowl selection and five-time first-teamAll-Pro, Brooks was theNFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2002 en route to winning the franchise's firstSuper Bowl title inSuper Bowl XXXVII. He was inducted to thePro Football Hall of Fame in 2014 and theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 2016.
Following his retirement, Brooks served as co-owner and president of theTampa Bay Storm in theArena Football League (AFL) from 2011 to 2017. In 2025, he became thechief operating officer for theSouth Florida Bulls athletics program.
Brooks attendedWashington High School inPensacola, Florida.[1] In his senior season in 1991, Brooks carried Pensacola to the state playoff semifinals, where they lost to the eventual champion Manatee Hurricanes ofBradenton, Florida. In 2007, he was named to theFlorida High School Athletic Association All-Century Team, which selected the Top 33 players in the 100-year history of high school football in the state of Florida's history.[2]
While attendingFlorida State University, he played for theSeminoles from 1991 to 1994. He was a four-year letterman, a consensus first-team All-American his junior and senior years, and a three-time first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) selection.[3][4] After playing assafety as a freshman he switched to linebacker as a sophomore. He was a member of the1993 Seminoles National Championship team.[3][4] He finished his career with 274tackles, fiveinterceptions, 8.5sacks, 13 passes defensed, four forcedfumbles, and three fumble recoveries.[4]
In November 2010, Florida State retired Seminoles jersey number 10 in honor of Brooks.[5]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft0+1⁄4 in (1.84 m) | 229 lb (104 kg) | 32+1⁄2 in (0.83 m) | 10+3⁄4 in (0.27 m) | 4.71 s | 1.70 s | 2.72 s | ||||||
| All values fromNFL Combine[6] | ||||||||||||
TheTampa Bay Buccaneers selected Brooks in the first round (28th overall) of the1995 NFL draft.[7] The Buccaneers traded both of their second-round picks (46th overall and 63rd overall) to theDallas Cowboys for their first-round pick (28th overall) and used the pick to draft Brooks.[4] Brooks was the second linebacker drafted in 1995 NFL Draft, behindWashington State'sMark Fields (13th overall).
Brooks played 14 years for the Buccaneers and is widely considered one of the best players in franchise history and one of the best linebackers in NFL history.[8][9] From 1995 to 2008, Brooks started 221 of 224 games, recording 1,698 tackles, 13.5 sacks, 25 interceptions, and six touchdowns (tied for the most in NFL history by a linebacker withBobby Bell).[10] He was selected to thePro Bowl 11 times, including 10 straight from1997 to2006, was anAll-Pro nine times, was theAP NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2002, and led the team to the franchise's firstSuper Bowl win inSuper Bowl XXXVII.[11]
As a rookie in 1995, Brooks started 13 of 16 games. He finished the season with 78 tackles with a sack and earned first-team all-rookie honors fromPro Football Weekly andPro Football Writers Association. During his second season 1996, he started all 16 games and finished with a team-leading 132 tackles and his first careerinterception. In 1997, Brooks earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl after recording 144 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and two interceptions in 16 games. In 1998, Brooks had another Pro Bowl season after recording 156 tackles and an interception.
In 1999, Brooks made the Pro Bowl for the third time and was a first-team All-Pro selection for the first time in his career. For the season, he had 153 tackles, two sacks, and four interceptions. In 2000, Brooks earned his fourth consecutive trip to the Pro Bowl and his second consecutive first-team All-Pro selection. He finished the season with 140 tackles, a sack, and had his first careertouchdown on a 34-yard interception fromMinnesota VikingsquarterbackDaunte Culpepper. Brooks was also, along withJim Flanigan of theChicago Bears, the winner of theWalter Payton Man of the Year Award, given to a National Football League player for his community service activities as well as his excellence on the field.[12] Brooks made his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl in 2001 after recording 112 tackles and three interceptions.
Brooks' best season came in 2002. During that year he was namedNFL Defensive Player of the Year by theAssociated Press and helped the Buccaneers win the franchise's firstSuper Bowl. He also made his sixth consecutive Pro Bowl and was a first-team All-Pro selection for the third time. For the season he had 117 tackles, a sack, five interceptions, and returned an NFL record, for a linebacker, four touchdowns (one off a fumble and three off interceptions).[13] During the Buccaneers 48–21 victory over theOakland Raiders inSuper Bowl XXXVII, he returned an interception off of Raiders quarterbackRich Gannon 44 yards for the clinching touchdown.[14]
In 2003, Brooks brokeLee Roy Selmon's team record for most consecutive Pro Bowl appearances with seven. He finished the season with 101 tackles, a sack, two interceptions, and returned an interception for a touchdown. In 2004, Brooks made his eighth consecutive Pro Bowl and fifth- first-team All-Pro selection after recording 137 tackles, three sacks, and an interception. In 2005, Brooks made his ninth consecutive Pro Bowl and earned his sixth first-team All-Pro selection. He finished the season with 125 tackles, three sacks, and an interception.
In Brooks' 10th consecutive Pro Bowl in 2006, he was named theMVP after returning aTrent Green interception 59 yards for a touchdown to secure the victory for the NFC.[15] During the regular season he had 121 tackles, three interceptions and a touchdown. In 2007, Brooks had 109 tackles and was not voted to the Pro Bowl for the first time since 1996. In Brooks' last year with the Buccaneers in 2008, he recorded 73 tackles and an interception and was selected to his 11th Pro Bowl. The 11 Pro Bowls are tied for second-most by a linebacker in NFL history.
On February 25, 2009, the Buccaneers released Brooks.[16] He was one of five veterans that the Bucs released on that day. The others were wide receiversJoey Galloway andIke Hilliard, running backWarrick Dunn and linebackerCato June.[17] The Bucs had previously fired head coachJon Gruden and general managerBruce Allen and were looking to build a younger team under the likes ofRaheem Morris andMark Dominik. Brooks never missed a game in his 14 years in Tampa Bay, a total of224 consecutive games. He was the starting weakside linebacker for the last 208 of those games, anNFL record for that position and the second-longest consecutive start streak for any linebacker in NFL history.
After spending all of the 2009 season as afree agent, Brooks officially announced his retirement on August 11, 2010.[18]
On January 10, 2014, Brooks was named among the 15 modern-eraPro Football Hall of Fame finalists. Former Buccaneers safetyJohn Lynch (who was Brooks's teammate from 1995 to 2003) and former Buccaneers head coachTony Dungy (who coached Brooks from 1996 to 2001) were also finalists.[19] On February 1, Brooks was elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.[20] He is the third Hall of Famer to have earned his credentials primarily as a Buccaneer, the others beingLee Roy Selmon andWarren Sapp (Brooks's teammate from 1995 to 2003).
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| APNFL Defensive Player of the Year | |
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Underline | Incomplete data |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBH | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Y/I | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | Y/F | TD | ||
| 1995 | TB | 16 | 13 | 79 | 60 | 19 | — | — | 1.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 1996 | TB | 16 | 16 | 133 | 92 | 41 | — | — | 0.0 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 1997 | TB | 16 | 16 | 145 | 102 | 43 | — | — | 1.5 | 12 | 2 | 13 | 6.5 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 1998 | TB | 16 | 16 | 158 | 123 | 35 | — | — | 0.0 | 6 | 1 | 25 | 25.0 | 25 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 1999 | TB | 16 | 16 | 153 | 119 | 34 | 14 | — | 2.0 | 18 | 4 | 61 | 15.3 | 38 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2.0 | 0 |
| 2000 | TB | 16 | 16 | 146 | 123 | 23 | 13 | — | 1.0 | 6 | 1 | 34 | 34.0 | 34 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2001 | TB | 16 | 16 | 113 | 80 | 33 | 4 | — | 0.0 | 11 | 3 | 65 | 21.7 | 53 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2002 | TB | 16 | 16 | 118 | 88 | 30 | 7 | — | 1.0 | 11 | 5 | 218 | 43.6 | 97 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 11.0 | 1 |
| 2003 | TB | 16 | 16 | 103 | 73 | 30 | 3 | — | 1.0 | 9 | 2 | 56 | 28.0 | 44 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2004 | TB | 16 | 16 | 137 | 109 | 28 | 4 | — | 3.0 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2005 | TB | 16 | 16 | 125 | 93 | 32 | 10 | — | 3.0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2006 | TB | 16 | 16 | 121 | 96 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 4 | 3 | 51 | 17.0 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2007 | TB | 16 | 16 | 109 | 84 | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2008 | TB | 16 | 16 | 73 | 58 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | –2 | –2.0 | –2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Career[21][22] | 224 | 221 | 1,713 | 1,300 | 413 | 68 | 1 | 13.5 | 112 | 25 | 530 | 21.2 | 97 | 6 | 24 | 4 | 15 | 3.8 | 1 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | TFL | Sck | PD | Int | Yds | Y/I | Lng | TD | FF | FR | Yds | Y/F | TD | ||
| 1997 | TB | 2 | 2 | 14 | 13 | 1 | — | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 1999 | TB | 2 | 2 | 24 | 21 | 3 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2000 | TB | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2001 | TB | 1 | 1 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2002 | TB | 3 | 3 | 17 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 3 | 2 | 44 | 22.0 | 44 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
| 2005 | TB | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2007 | TB | 1 | 1 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Career | 11 | 11 | 90 | 70 | 20 | 10 | 0.5 | 3 | 2 | 44 | 22.0 | 44 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | |
Brooks previously was a football analyst for ESPN and co-host of The Red Zone onSirius NFL Radio and as an analyst onESPN First Take.[23]
In 2011, Brooks became a part owner and the team president for theTampa Bay Storm of theArena Football League.[24] The team folded in December 2017.[25]
Since 2014, Brooks has served as a jointly-appointed appeals officer for the NFL and NFL Players Association, charged with reviewing discipline for in-game misconduct.[26]
On October 30, 2025, theSouth Florida Bulls announced Brooks' appointment as chief operating officer for the school's athletic program.[27]
Brooks is married and has four children. Brooks is aChristian.[28]
Brooks is the founder of Derrick Brooks Charities. He has taken local youth across the nation and South Africa with the objective of presenting a first-hand experience, or a "mobile classroom," this group is known as the Brooks Bunch. Brooks also headed the founding of theBrooks-DeBartolo Collegiate High School in Tampa with fellowPro Football Hall of Fame memberEdward J. DeBartolo Jr.
Brooks is well known for his charity work and his advocacy of the importance of education. He was the co-recipient of the 2000Walter Payton Man of the Year Award and was named to theFlorida State University Board of Trustees in 2003 by GovernorJeb Bush.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
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