Daven Holly (born August 8, 1982) 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

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 ...

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). 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

Cincinnati Bearcats The Cincinnati Bearcats are the college sports, athletic teams that represent the University of Cincinnati. The teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and the Football Bowl Subdivision as members of the Big 12 Conference. The Bearcats were pr ...

and was selected by the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

in the seventh round of the

2005 NFL draft The 2005 NFL draft, the 70th in league history, took place on April 23 and 24, 2005 NFL season, 2005. The draft was held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City and was televised for the 26th consecutive year, with coverage on E ...

. Holly was also a member of the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

and the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

Early life

Holly attended Clairton High School where in his senior year made 45 receptions for 900 yards and seven touchdowns.

College career

Holly played

at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

. During his time there he played in 49 games making 85 tackles, nine interceptions and one touchdown on defense. He majored in communications.

Professional career

San Francisco 49ers

Holly was selected by the

in the seventh round (215th overall) in the

. On September 3, he was waived by the 49ers.

Chicago Bears

Holly was then claimed by the

on September 4. In his rookie season, he played in three games making seven tackles. He made his NFL debut at 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 ...

on December 11. He was waived by Chicago on June 15, 2006.

Cleveland Browns

Holly was signed by the

as a free agent on July 13. He proved to be a valuable addition to a position that was decimated with injury. In his first season with the Browns he made 14 appearances and 12 starts during which he made 56 tackles and five interceptions which led the team, (one of his interceptions was returned for a touchdown versus the

on November 19). He also recorded his first fumble for a touchdown against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

on December 24. In the 2007 season, Holly appeared in 15 games with six starts. He made 47 tackles. In the 2008 offseason, Holly was tendered a one-year, $2 million contract. Despite tearing two knee ligaments during offseason workouts on May 21, the Browns did not rescind their tender and Holly signed it the day after his injury. He was subsequently waived/injured and reverted to season-ending

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Cleveland Browns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holly, Daven 1982 births Living people People from Clairton, Pennsylvania Players of American football from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania American football cornerbacks Cincinnati Bearcats football players San Francisco 49ers players Chicago Bears players Cleveland Browns players