Brian Demond Waters (born February 18, 1977) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wit ...

guard. He was signed by the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divis ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 1999 out of the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal Schoo ...

. He played most of his career for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...

, and also played for the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

. He earned six

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

selections during his career.

Early years

Waters was born in

Waxahachie, Texas Waxahachie ( ) is the seat of government of Ellis County, Texas, United States. Its population was 41,140 in 2020. Etymology Some sources state that the name means "cow" or "buffalo" in an unspecified Native American language. One possibl ...

, and attended

Waxahachie High School Waxahachie High School is a public high school in the city of Waxahachie, Texas, United States and classified as a 6A school by the University Interscholastic League (UIL). It is a part of the Waxahachie Independent School District located in ...

. He lettered in football. As a senior, he was an All-District honoree as both a

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense (sports), offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide ...

and

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is p ...

. He made 16 receptions for 380 yards on offense, and made five sacks and 66 tackles on defense.

College career

Waters attended the

where he played for the

North Texas Mean Green football The North Texas Mean Green football program is the intercollegiate team that represents the University of North Texas in the sport of American football. The Mean Green compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athl ...

team. He started his first three years at

, while recording 86 receptions for 975 yards and nine

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

s. As a senior, he was moved to

, but also played as a backup fullback and

. On defense, he had 45 tackles (32 solo) and 5 sacks.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys (first stint)

The

signed him as an

after the

1999 NFL draft The 1999 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17–18, 1999, at the Theater a ...

to play

and fullback. He was released during

training camp A training camp is an organized period in which military personnel or athletes participate in a rigorous and focused schedule of training in order to learn or improve skills. Athletes typically utilise training camps to prepare for upcoming events, ...

Kansas City Chiefs

The

signed him as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

during the 2000 offseason and sent him to play with the

Berlin Thunder The Berlin Thunder were a professional American football team in NFL Europe. History The Thunder came into existence as an expansion team, after the London/England Monarchs franchise shut down operations, prior to the 1999 season. Home games f ...

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa League) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally f ...

, with the plan of converting him to center. Waters was named an

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...

twice and was selected to the

five times in his 11-year career with the

. In 2003, he was a part of a 13-3 Chiefs team. During the 2004 season, Waters was selected as the

AFC AFC may stand for: Organizations * Action for Children, a UK children's charity * AFC Enterprises, the franchisor of Popeye's Chicken and Biscuits * Africa Finance Corporation, a pan-African multilateral development finance institution * A ...

Offensive Player of the Week for his play during a game against the Atlanta Falcons on October 24, 2004. The Chiefs scored an NFL-record eight rushing touchdowns during that game. Waters is the only

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numb ...

in the AFC to have received the award, and the only lineman in the NFL to win since 1992. Waters was recognized as the recipient of the 2009 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award which honors a player's contribution on the field as well as off. After 11 seasons in Kansas City, he was released on July 28, 2011.

New England Patriots

On September 4, 2011, Waters signed with the

. Waters, who started every game at right guard for the Patriots, was voted a starter for the

. After never having won a playoff game before the 2011 season, Waters played for the Patriots in

Super Bowl XLVI Super Bowl XLVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

. Prior to the start of the 2012 season, Waters refused to report to the Patriots. Waters said that if he were to play in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, it would be for a team close to his family in Texas. The Patriots finally released Waters from his contract on April 30,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

Dallas Cowboys (second stint)

The

signed Waters to a one-year contract worth $3 million on September 3, 2013.

Retirement

Waters announced his retirement on September 2, 2014.

References

External links

New England Patriots bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waters, Brian 1977 births Living people American football offensive guards African-American players of American football People from Waxahachie, Texas Waxahachie High School alumni Players of American football from Texas North Texas Mean Green football players Berlin Thunder players Dallas Cowboys players Kansas City Chiefs players New England Patriots players American Conference Pro Bowl players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople