Darren Russell Carrington (born October 10, 1966) 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 ...

player who was a

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

for eight seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) for five different teams. 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 ...

for the

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks The NAU Lumberjacks are the varsity athletic teams representing Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona in intercollegiate athletics. The school's mascot was adopted in 1946. The Lumberjacks compete in NCAA Division I and are full membe ...

, averaging over 27 yards per kickoff return, with a career best of 99 yards. As a senior in 1988, he had 39 tackles, two

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 ...

s and two forced

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful h ...

s, which was enough to get him selected in the fifth round of the

1989 NFL draft The 1989 NFL draft (also known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting) was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. The draft was held April 23–24, 1989, at the Marriott Marquis in Ne ...

Career

Carrington was drafted by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

in the fifth round, with the 134th overall selection, of the

. Carrington started in

Super Bowl XXIX Super Bowl XXIX was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion San Diego Chargers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...

for the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

and was the

kick returner A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

Super Bowl XXIV Super Bowl XXIV was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion fo ...

, which he finished with a franchise-record 6 kickoff returns (now shared with Glyn Milburn and

Reuben Droughns Reuben Droughns (; born August 21, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for the Oregon Ducks, he was selected by the Detroit Lions i ...

) for 146 yards, including a 39-yard return that set up the Broncos only touchdown of the game. His best season was in 1993, when he intercepted 7 passes and returned them for 104 yards. He was selected 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 ...

in the 1995 NFL expansion draft. In his eight NFL seasons, Carrington intercepted 22 passes and returned them for 377 yards and a touchdown. He also returned 6 kickoffs for 176 yards. 's NFL off-season, he held the Broncos franchise record for most kick returns in a playoff game (6 in

; with Glyn Milburn and

), and average yards per return in a single post-season (24.63 in 1989).

Personal life

Darren Carrington is a 1984 graduate of James Monroe High School. He has a son, also named Darren, who played wide receiver for the

Oregon Ducks The Oregon Ducks are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Oregon, located in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene. The Ducks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCA ...

until he was dismissed following a DUI arrest. He played his senior year for the

Utah Utes The Utah Utes are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams that represent the University of Utah, located in Salt Lake City. The athletic department is named after the Ute tribe of Native Americans in the Unite ...

. Carrington lives in San Diego with his wife and three children. He works as the marriage and parenting pastor for the

Rock Church Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

. His daughter Daria is the head coach of the West Coast Breeze of

The Basketball League The Basketball League (TBL), formerly North America Premier Basketball (NAPB), is a professional basketball league. The league began operating in North America in 2018 with eight teams, and has since expanded. TBL's regular season runs from Feb ...

. Another daughter, DiJonai Carrington, plays for the

Dallas Wings The Dallas Wings are an American professional basketball team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Wings compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. The team is owned by a group ...

of the WNBA and

Mist BC Mist Basketball Club, also known as Mist BC, is an American professional basketball team. They are a member of the Unrivaled basketball league, and made their debut in January 2025. The teams are based in Miami, Florida and Phil Handy is the Mist ...

of the

Unrivaled Unrivaled may refer to: * Unrivaled (basketball) Unrivaled is a women's professional three-on-three basketball league in the United States. History The league was founded in 2023 by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, in part to allow WN ...

league after previously playing for the

Baylor Bears The Baylor Bears are the athletic teams that represent Baylor University. The teams participate in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as one of only three private school members of the Big 12 Conference. Prior t ...

and

Stanford Cardinal women's basketball The Stanford Cardinal women's basketball team represents Stanford University, located in Stanford, California. The school's team currently competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Cardinal are led by head coach Kate Paye, who previously s ...

teams.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carrington, Darren 1966 births Living people American football safeties Denver Broncos players Detroit Lions players San Diego Chargers players Jacksonville Jaguars players Oakland Raiders players Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football players James Monroe High School (New York City) alumni