Ben Patrick (born August 23, 1984) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

. He was selected by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

in the seventh round of the

2007 NFL draft The 2007 NFL draft was the 72nd annual meeting of National Football League franchises to select newly eligible American football players. It took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 28 and April 29, 2007. The draf ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Duke and

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

Early life

Patrick attended Herschel V. Jenkins High School in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...

, and was a letterman in football, basketball, and baseball.

College career

Patrick began his college career at

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

, where he red shirted his first year and then went on to play three seasons. After earning a degree in African American studies, he transferred to the University of Delaware for his final season of college eligibility in 2006. With the Blue Hens, Ben went on to lead Division I-AA tight ends in receiving with 64 catches for 639 yards and six touchdowns. He was an all

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I. The A-10's member schools are located most ...

first-team pick and was named a first-team All-America, He also became the first Blue Hens player invited to the

Hula Bowl The Hula Bowl is a post-season college football all-star game held annually, usually in January. From inception through the 2021 playing, it was held in Hawaii; since the 2022 edition, it has been played in Orlando, Florida. The game was first s ...

. Patrick was a semi-finalist for the

John Mackey Award The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's most outstanding tight end. Established in 2000 by the Nassau County Sports Commission, the award is given annually to the tight end who best exemplifies the play, sportsmanship, ac ...

given to the top tight end position player in the nation. At the end of the season, he was rated the best tight end prospect in the NCAA Division I-AA ranks by The NFL Draft Report in his senior season.

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

Patrick was selected by the Cardinals with the 25th pick in the seventh round of the

. On September 4, 2007, Patrick was signed to the Arizona Cardinals practice squad after being cut from the roster less than a week earlier. He was promoted to the active roster on October 29. Patrick finished the 2007 season playing in 8 games with 3 games started with 7 receptions for 73 yards, including a long of 21 yards, for two touchdowns. During the 2008 regular season Patrick caught 11 passes for 104 yards, but no touchdowns. In

Super Bowl XLIII Super Bowl XLIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champions Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champions Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...

, against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

, Patrick caught a 1-yard touchdown pass from quarterback

Kurt Warner Kurtis Eugene Warner (born June 22, 1971) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the St. Louis Rams and Arizona Cardinals. His career, whi ...

in the second quarter. It made him the first 7th round pick to score a touchdown in the Super Bowl since 2005.

New York Giants

On August 1, 2011, Patrick signed a one-year contract with the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. He announced his retirement on August 6. On September 16, Patrick un-retired and was reinstated by the NFL. He became a free agent, since the Giants released him.

Virginia Destroyers

Patrick played for the

Virginia Destroyers The Virginia Destroyers were a professional American football team based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. They began play in the United Football League (UFL) in the 2011 season. They played their home games at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex. The t ...

in 2012.

Coaching career

He is currently a coach at Gilbert high school in

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patrick, Ben 1984 births Living people American football tight ends Arizona Cardinals players Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football players Duke Blue Devils football players New York Giants players Virginia Destroyers players High school football coaches in Arizona Players of American football from Savannah, Georgia