 Morgan with the Titans in 2018 | |||||||||||||
| No. 90, 91 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||
| Born | (1989-01-06)January 6, 1989 (age 36) Lancaster, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||
| Weight | 261 lb (118 kg) | ||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||
| High school | Coatesville (PA) Area | ||||||||||||
| College | Georgia Tech (2007–2009) | ||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2010: 1st round, 16th overall pick | ||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||
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Derrick Lee Morgan (born January 6, 1989) is an American former professionalfootballlinebacker who played in theNational Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with theTennessee Titans. He was selected 16th overall by the Titans in the2010 NFL draft after playingcollege football atGeorgia Tech.
Morgan was born inLancaster, Pennsylvania. He attendedCoatesville Area High School inCoatesville, Pennsylvania, where he played for the Red Raiders football team. As a senior he was named league Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-State after recording 47 tackles and 7 sacks at thedefensive end position. He also rushed for 523 yards and 8 touchdowns as arunning back.[1]
Morgan attended theGeorgia Institute of Technology from 2007 to 2009, playing for theGeorgia Tech Yellow Jackets of theAtlantic Coast Conference. As atrue freshman in 2007 he appeared in 12 of 13 games, recording 9 tackles as a reserve defensive end. The following year as a sophomore he started all 13 games, contributing 51 tackles and 7 sacks while earning an honorable mention All-ACC selection. As a junior in 2009, Morgan was namedACC Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-teamAll-American honors fromAssociated Press,Pro Football Weekly, andScout.com. He finished the season with 55 tackles (including 18.5 for a loss) and 12.5 sacks while helping his team to a conference championship.[1][2] After his junior year, Morgan decided to enter the 2010 NFL draft.[3]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | Vertical jump | Broad jump |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 266 lb (121 kg) | 34+1⁄2 in (0.88 m) | 9+3⁄4 in (0.25 m) | 34 in (0.86 m) | 9 ft 4 in (2.84 m) |
| !40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4.77 s | 1.60 s | 2.70 s | 4.43 s | 7.12 s |
All values fromNFL Combine.[4]
Morgan was selected 16th overall by theTennessee Titans in the2010 NFL draft.[5][6] He signed a six-year contract on July 31, 2010, which also included playing time incentives that later voided the final year.[7] He signed a second contract (4-year, $30 million) with the Titans on March 13, 2015, after fielding interest from multiple teams as a free agent.[8]
Morgan played at the4–3 defensive end position his first four seasons with the Titans, then switched tooutside linebacker in 2014 as part of the team's transition to a3–4 defense.[9] Morgan became a starter on the Titans defense during the 2011 season.
Morgan wore the uniform number 90 until changing to 91 prior to the start of the 2012 season.[2]
Morgan played in the 2010 season opener, registering a sack in his first NFL game.[2] He suffered a torn leftACL during the fourth game, however, ending his rookie season.[10]
Morgan made his first NFL start on the seventh game of the 2011 season and remained a starter for the rest of the year. He led the team with 20 quarterback pressures.[2] During the preseason he hadarthroscopic surgery on his left knee but missed only the first regular season game.[11]
In 2012, Morgan led the Titans with 6.5 sacks and 19 quarterback pressures while starting all 16 games.[2]Pro Football Focus ranked him as the league's fourth best4-3 defensive end.[12]
Morgan was second on the Titans with 6 sacks in 2013.[13]
During his first year at linebacker in 2014, Morgan led the Titans with 6.5 sacks while starting all 16 games. He also set career highs in tackles (82), quarterback pressures (26), tackles for loss (13), passes defensed (9), and forced fumbles (2).[2] He was rated as the eighth-best 3-4 outside linebacker by Pro Football Focus.[14]
Morgan had a notable start to the 2015 season, recording 4.5 sacks in the first four games. During the sixth game he suffered a shoulder injury, however. He played through the injury the next four games, then was shut down for the rest of the season. He had surgery on December 15 to repair a torn leftlabrum.[15]
Morgan registered a team-high 56 quarterback pressures and career-high 9.0 sacks in 2016. The 9.0 sacks tied him for ninth highest in theAFC.[2]
Morgan tallied a career-high 59 quarterback pressures in 2017. His 7.5 sacks was the second-best season total of his career.[2]
In 2018, Morgan played in 13 games with 12 starts, recording 25 tackles, three pass deflections, and a career-low 0.5 sacks. He missed three games due to knee and shoulder injuries.[16]
On July 15, 2019, Morgan announced his retirement from the NFL after nine seasons. He finished his career with 44.5 sacks, sixth all-time in Titans history (including theHouston Oilers era) at the time of his retirement.[16]
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Comb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | ||
| 2010 | TEN | 4 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 | TEN | 15 | 10 | 30 | 22 | 8 | 2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | TEN | 16 | 16 | 59 | 35 | 24 | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| 2013 | TEN | 15 | 14 | 34 | 28 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 2014 | TEN | 16 | 16 | 63 | 43 | 20 | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 |
| 2015 | TEN | 10 | 9 | 24 | 17 | 7 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | TEN | 15 | 15 | 33 | 24 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | TEN | 14 | 14 | 32 | 16 | 16 | 7.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 2018 | TEN | 13 | 12 | 25 | 19 | 6 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Career | 118 | 106 | 306 | 208 | 98 | 44.5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 5 | 5 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Comb | Total | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | FF | FR | ||
| 2017 | TEN | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Morgan has spoken publicly about the medicinal properties ofcannabis that he believes could benefit NFL players, particularly in treating and preventing the serious brain injuries and diseases that have afflicted many players.[17] Morgan has called on the NFL to conduct research on theneuroprotective benefits of cannabis, as part of the league's stated commitment to making player health and safety issues a top priority.[18] Morgan has also donated money to help fund medical cannabis research.[17]
Morgan follows the lead ofEugene Monroe, who in March 2016 became the first active NFL player to openly advocate for the league to change its cannabis policy.[19] Morgan and Monroe appeared together in a June 2016 interview withKatie Couric, the first time Morgan had spoken on the subject.[20]
In November 2016, theNFL Player's Association announced the formation of a committee to study issues ofpain management among players, including the use of cannabis as treatment.[21] Morgan was named as a founding member of the committee.[22]
Also in November 2016, Morgan was among the signatories of anopen letter addressed to the NFL, urging a change in the league's policy towards cannabis.[23] The letter was penned byDoctors for Cannabis Regulation and signed by several other NFL players.[24]
Morgan is a board member of Athletes for Care,[25] a group that advocates for athletes on various issues of health and safety including the use of cannabis as medicine.[26][27] Morgan is also co-chair of the Doctors for Cannabis Regulation NFL steering committee.[28]
During a 2017 game against theHouston Texans, Morgan wore a pair of cannabis-themed cleats as part of the NFL's "My Cause, My Cleats" campaign.[29] The cleats promoted Realm of Caring Foundation, a non-profit organization supporting medical cannabis research.
Having already began a career as a real estate investor during his playing career, Morgan created the KNGDM Impact Fund, anOpportunity Zone fund to help investment in marginalized communities. He is also a brand ambassador forBeyond Meat.[30]
Morgan graduated from Georgia Tech with a degree inbusiness management.[31] In 2016 he graduated from theUniversity of Miami's ExecutiveMBA for Artists and Athletes program. Morgan is also a member of theKappa Alpha Psi fraternity.[2][32]
After Morgan's wife, ChefCharity Morgan, helped him to transition to aplant-based diet in early 2017, the couple convinced several other Tennessee Titans into making the change as well.[33] Both Derrick and Charity appeared in the 2018 documentary about athletes who turn to a plant-based diet,The Game Changers.[34] Morgan delivered his second child at home in April 2015.[35]
In 2011, Morgan participated in a 24-day charity mission to deliver 22,000 hearing aids to children and adults in need across Africa.[36][37]
