Dovonte Edwards (born October 17, 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 ...

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

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

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 2005. 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 ...

North Carolina State North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina sy ...

. Edwards was also a member of the

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

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

and

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 ...

. He later played for the

Omaha Nighthawks The Omaha Nighthawks were a professional American football team based in Omaha, Nebraska, which played in the United Football League (2009–2012), United Football League, joining the league as an expansion team in 2010 UFL season, 2010. During ...

of the United Football League (UFL). He was the defensive coordinator at Elon through the 2024 season and had previously been the defensive coordinator at

Morehead State Morehead State University (MSU) is a public university in Morehead, Kentucky, United States. The university began as Morehead Normal School, which opened its doors in 1887. The Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics, a two-yea ...

Early life

As a senior at Chapel Hill High School in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, Orange and Durham County, North Carolina, Durham counties, North Carolina, United States. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 United States census, making Chapel Hill the List of municipa ...

, Edwards had 14 receiving, 2 punt returns and 1 kickoff returns for touchdowns in football. He was also a 3-time all-conference selection in basketball.

College career

Edwards was a four-year player at NC State, where he played Cornerback,

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 ...

and returned punts. He was named Most Outstanding Defensive Player after the 2004 season. He started all 11 games at cornerback as a senior and led the team with 3 interceptions. He also played basketball as a freshman and sophomore.

Professional career

2005

Edwards first national exposure came on

Monday Night Football ''Monday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''MNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that air on Monday nights. It originally ran on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from 1970 NFL season, 1970 t ...

when he intercepted a

Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 cons ...

pass and returned it 51 yards for a touchdown. Edwards was a possible reason the Vikings were able to release Ken Irvin and sign a third

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

, J. T. O'Sullivan, when

Daunte Culpepper Daunte Rachard Culpepper (born January 28, 1977) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the U ...

was lost for the season.

2006

Edwards' second NFL season ended prematurely after suffering a season-ending arm injury against Dallas in the preseason while battling with rookie

Cedric Griffin Cedric Leonard Griffin (born November 11, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the second round of the 2006 NFL draft. H ...

for the nickelback spot.

2007

Edwards looked to make a comeback in 2007 and battle for the nickel and dime spot on the team along with Charles Gordon and Ronyell Whittaker. However, he appeared to be the odd man out, as he was cut during the finals roster cuts and claimed by Giants on the same day. However, he was released by Giants just six days later. Edwards was signed by the Lions to the active roster on October 17. Was inactive vs. 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 ...

, at 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 vs. 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 ...

. Made two

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

tackles at Arizona in his first action since signing with the Lions. Was inactive vs. the

, against the Packers and at Minnesota. Edwards recorded a career-high in tackles with 10 against 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

. Had three tackles and a pass defensed at 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 ...

. Made one tackle and two passes defensed against 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 ...

, also had two special teams tackles. Had three tackles (two solo) to finish the season at Green Bay.

2008

Edwards was released by the

during the 2008 preseason and spent the rest of the year out of football.

2009

Edwards was signed by the

on May 12, 2009. During the

2009 CFL season The 2009 CFL season was the 56th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it was the 52nd season of the Canadian Football League. The Montreal Alouettes won the 97th Grey Cup on November 29, 2009 with a last second 28–27 win over ...

, Edwards served as the Argonauts' primary kick returner.

2010

Due to a leg injury, Edwards was unable to play football for the upcoming season. He was released by the Argonauts on June 1, 2010.

2011

On May 27, 2011, Edwards re-signed with the Toronto Argonauts. He was released by the Argonauts on June 24, 2011.

Professional career stats

References

External links

Elon profile

Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Dovonte 1982 births Living people American football cornerbacks Canadian football defensive backs Detroit Lions players Elon Phoenix football coaches Furman Paladins football coaches Minnesota Vikings players Morehead State Eagles football coaches Kentucky Christian Knights football coaches NC State Wolfpack football players New York Giants players North Carolina Central Eagles football coaches Omaha Nighthawks players Toronto Argonauts players Chapel Hill High School (North Carolina) alumni Sportspeople from Chapel Hill, North Carolina Coaches of American football from North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina African-American coaches of American football 21st-century African-American sportsmen