Byron Wesley Parker (born March 7, 1981) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

. He was signed by the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager 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 a contract at present ...

in 2004. 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 ...

and

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

at Tulane. Parker was also a member of the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The E ...

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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

, and

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

College career

Parker initially enrolled in Tulane on a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

and played on their team from 2001 to 2003. It was also in 2003 that Parker won the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

slam dunk A slam dunk, also simply known as a dunk, is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air, controls the ball above the horizontal plane of the rim, and scores by shoving the ball directly through the basket with on ...

competition. Winning the slam dunk competition drew the attention of Tulane's football head coach Chris Scelfo, as well as football scouts in the NFL. Later that same year, his senior year, Parker accepted Scelfo's invitation to play on the school's football team. His slam dunking abilities were showcased in a

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

CFL game at

Molson Stadium Percival Molson Memorial Stadium (also known in French language, French as ''Stade Percival-Molson''; commonly referred to as Molson Stadium in English or Stade Molson in French) is an outdoor Canadian football, football and multi-purpose stadium ...

against the

. Lined up as a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

, Parker caught a 42-yard touchdown reception and celebrated by dunking the ball over the cross bar uprights. He also has a 43"

vertical leap A vertical jump or vertical leap is the act of jumping upwards into the air. It can be an exercise for building both endurance and strength, and is also a standard test for measuring athletic performance. It may also be referred to as a ''Sargent ...

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

On April 26, 2004, Parker was signed as an

by the

. He was waived by the team following training camp on August 1.

Toronto Argonauts

After being cut by the Jaguars during training camp, Parker signed with the Argonauts on January 24, 2005, but played in only six games.

Dallas Cowboys

In 2006, Parker signed a one-year contract with the

of the NFL but was cut by the team on July 31.

Toronto Argonauts (II)

Parker re-joined the Argonauts a week after being released by Dallas. Upon his return, he became their starting cornerback. On October 14, 2006, Parker broke a CFL record for most

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...

return yardage in a single season with a 75-yard interception return for a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

. He ended the season with a CFL record 348 interception return yards, surpassing Eric Carter's 2003 record of 300 yards. Parker was selected as a CFL All-Star in 2006 and 2007.

Philadelphia Eagles

On January 27, 2009, Parker was reported to have signed a reserve/future contract with the

. The signing was officially confirmed by the Eagles on February 3, 2009. He was waived on August 14, thereby creating a roster spot for the signing of quarterback

Michael Vick Michael Dwayne Vick (born June 26, 1980) is an American college football coach and former player who is the Head coach, head football coach at Norfolk State Spartans football, Norfolk State University. He played quarterback in the National F ...

Toronto Argonauts (III)

After his release from the Eagles, Parker returned to Toronto as the Argonauts deferred his contract when he signed with Philadelphia. The Eagles had him on a weight gain program and he bulked from his 2008 CFL weight of 193 to 227 and he found he had to re-adjust to the Canadian game; reducing his weight to 210 by the time he reported to practice on August 20, 2009, but still finding himself tired out by the longer, wider field. Parker reported that the Eagles offered him another opportunity to return on August 20 but he refused, feeling more comfortable with the Argonauts.

Edmonton Eskimos

Parker was traded to the

on September 28, 2009, for future considerations.

Toronto Argonauts (IV)

On February 16, 2010, Parker re-signed with the Argonauts as a free agent. On October 28, 2011, Parker scored his 9th career interception return for a touchdown against the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

Canad Inns Stadium Winnipeg Stadium (also known as Canad Inns Stadium) was a Multi-purpose stadium, multipurpose stadium in Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The stadium was located at the corner of St. James Street (Winnipeg), St. James Street and Maroons Road ...

, setting a new CFL record.

BC Lions

Parker entered free agency on February 15, 2012, and was signed by the

on February 16, 2012. Parker played one season with the BC Lions. On January 18, 2013, Parker was released by the BC Lions.

Montreal Alouettes

Two days following his release by the Lions, Parker signed with the

for a contract worth one year plus an option. On January 30, 2014, Parker was released from the Alouettes. On July 11, 2014, Parker signed a 1-day contract to retire with

References

External links

*
Montreal Alouettes bio
(archived)

(archived)

(archived)
Byron Parker at NFL.com
(archived) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Byron 1981 births American football cornerbacks American football safeties BC Lions players Canadian football defensive backs Dallas Cowboys players Edmonton Elks players Jacksonville Jaguars players Living people Montreal Alouettes players People from Madisonville, Kentucky Philadelphia Eagles players Players of American football from DeKalb County, Georgia Players of Canadian football from Georgia (U.S. state) Players of American football from Kentucky Players of Canadian football from Kentucky Sportspeople from DeKalb County, Georgia Toronto Argonauts players Tulane Green Wave men's basketball players Tulane Green Wave football players American men's basketball players