De'Vante Bausby (born January 15, 1993) is an

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

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 ...

who is a free agent. 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 Pittsburg State Gorillas and has been a member of several teams 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),

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan area ...

(AAF),

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

(USFL), and XFL.

Early life

Bausby was born in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, to Hosea Bausby and Tasha Word. He played

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 ...

at Hogan Preparatory Academy where he earned All-State honors in both

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

and

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 ...

positions between 2008 and 2010. Bausby's career totals included 88 caught passes and 15

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 ...

s. He recorded a defensive career total of 178

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

and 22

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.Team Profile
on Pitt State Gorillas.com Retrieved September 13, 2023. He credits his father and uncle for nurturing his lifelong love for football.
on Kansas City.com Retrieved September 13, 2023.

College career

As a

, Bausby played in all 14 games for Pittsburg State University, starting his freshman season in 2011. On November 12, Bausby scored his first and only touchdown while returning a blocked punt against Missouri Southern. During his freshman season, Bausby recorded 20 tackles and one interception. On December 10, Bausby recorded five tackles and an interception during the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

semifinals against

Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...

. He played all 10 games during his sophomore season in 2012, recording 21 tackles. Of his 21-season tackles, Bausby made eight tackles, a

sack A sack usually refers to a rectangular-shaped bag. Sack may also refer to: Bags * Flour sack * Gunny sack * Hacky sack, sport * Money sack * Paper sack * Sleeping bag * Stuff sack * Knapsack Other uses * Bed, a slang term * Sack (band), ...

and an interception during the September 8 game against

Central Oklahoma Central Oklahoma is the geographical name for the central region of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is also known by the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation, Oklahoma Department of Tourism designation, Frontier Country, defined as the 12 ...

. By his junior season, Bausby started 11 of the total 12 games of the 2013 season, recording 39 tackles and earning third-team All-

Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. Its fourteen me ...

(MIAA) honors. By 2015, Bausby earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA).Business Profile
on Linkedin.com Retrieved September 13, 2023.

Professional career

Kansas City Chiefs (first stint)

Bausby signed with 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

as an undrafted free agent. He broke his collarbone during mini-camp in June 2015 and was released by the Chiefs with an injury designation.

Chicago Bears

On December 22, 2015, after completing the rehab from his collarbone injury, Bausby was signed to the Bears'

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

and signed a reserve/futures contract with the team on January 4. He was released on September 3, 2016, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on October 10, 2016. He was released on November 19, 2016, but was re-signed three days later. He was released again on December 13, 2016, and re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Bears on January 3, 2017. On May 1, 2017, Bausby was waived by the Bears.

Kansas City Chiefs (second stint)

On May 3, 2017, Bausby signed with the Chiefs. Bausby was waived on September 2, 2017.

Philadelphia Eagles

On September 12, 2017, Bausby was signed to the

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 ...

' practice squad. With Bausby on the practice squad, the Eagles defeated the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

in Super Bowl LII. On February 13, 2018, Bausby re-signed with the Eagles. On September 1, 2018, Bausby was waived by the Eagles and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was released on September 11, 2018. He was re-signed to the practice squad on November 5, 2018. He was promoted to the active roster on November 17, 2018. On December 24, 2018, he was waived by the Eagles.

San Antonio Commanders

On January 9, 2019, Bausby signed with the San Antonio Commanders of the

(AAF). In the season opener against the San Diego Fleet, Bausby picked off quarterback Mike Bercovici in the third quarter. At the time of the league's suspension, Bausby was leading the AAF in pass breakups and interceptions, a number which did not include a highlight 99-yard "pick 2" play that helped seal his team's win in week 7.

Denver Broncos (first stint)

After the AAF suspended football operations, Bausby signed with 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 ...

on April 8, 2019. He earned a spot on the Broncos roster as the fourth cornerback on the depth chart. In week 5 versus the Chargers, Bausby suffered a neck injury that left him immobile for a short period of time after an accidental collision with Alexander Johnson. He was placed on

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 ...

on October 8, 2019. Bausby re-signed with the Broncos on March 19, 2020. He was released on September 5, 2020, but was signed to the practice squad the following day. He was promoted to the active roster on September 16, 2020, and was named the fourth cornerback behind Michael Ojemudia, Bryce Callahan, and Essang Bassey. He was released on October 24 when A. J. Bouye came off injured reserve.

Arizona Cardinals

On October 30, 2020, Bausby signed with 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 ...

. After playing one game versus the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

, he was waived by the Cardinals who planned to place him on their practice squad.

Denver Broncos (second stint)

On November 10, 2020, Bausby was claimed off waivers by the Broncos.

Las Vegas Raiders

On June 17, 2021, Bausby signed with the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West ...

. On August 16, 2021, Bausby was released by the Raiders.

New England Patriots

On October 27, 2021, Bausby was signed to the

practice squad.

New Jersey Generals

Bausby was selected by the

New Jersey Generals The New Jersey Generals were a franchise of the United States Football League (USFL) established in 1982 to begin play in the spring and summer of 1983. The team played three seasons from 1983 to 1985, winning 31 regular season games and losing ...

of the

(USFL) with the third pick of the eighth round of the

2022 USFL draft The 2022 USFL draft, also known as the 2022 USFL player selection meeting, was the player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams for the 2022 USFL season. The draft was held on February 22–23, 2022, with results released thro ...

Washington Commanders

Bausby signed with the

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

on August 4, 2022, but was released on August 16.

Arlington Renegades

On November 17, 2022, Bausby was drafted by the Arlington Renegades of the XFL. Against the Vegas Vipers in week one, he recorded a pick six with almost four minutes left in the game to put the Renegades up 22–14. That score and the team's eventual stop on the 2-point conversion attempt by Luis Perez propelled them to a 22–20 win. He was not part of the roster after the 2024 UFL dispersal draft on January 15, 2024.

References

External links

Pittsburg State Gorillas bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bausby, De'Vante 1993 births Living people American football cornerbacks Arizona Cardinals players Arlington Renegades players Chicago Bears players Denver Broncos players Kansas City Chiefs players Las Vegas Raiders players New England Patriots players Philadelphia Eagles players Pittsburg State Gorillas football players Players of American football from Kansas City, Missouri San Antonio Commanders players New Jersey Generals (2022) players Washington Commanders players