Robert "Rocky" Eugene Bernard Jr. (born April 19, 1979) 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 ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

. He was selected by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

in the fifth round of the

2002 NFL draft The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted ...

. 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 ...

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

Professional career

Seattle Seahawks

Bernard was selected by the Seahawks in the fifth round of the

with the 146th overall pick. Bernard was mostly used as a backup in his first three seasons in the league before becoming the starting right defensive tackle in 2005, earning 8.5

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), ...

s with two more in the NFC Championship Game against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

. Bernard amassed a total of forty-two tackles in the 2005 season. On August 30, 2008, 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 ...

suspended Bernard for the Seahawks' 2008 season opener for violating the league's personal conduct policy. Bernard was arrested in April on investigation of domestic violence. He allegedly punched his ex-girlfriend in the forehead. He lost $235,000 in salary for the suspension.

New York Giants

On February 28, 2009, Bernard signed a four-year, $16 million contract with 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 ...

. The deal contains $6.9 million guaranteed, including a $5 million signing bonus and his first-year base salary. Bernard was released on July 28, 2011. He was re-signed by the Giants on August 4. He earned a Super Bowl ring when the Giants 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 ...

Super Bowl XLVI Super Bowl XLVI was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

. Following the season, he became an unrestricted free agent.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, Rocky 1979 births Living people American football defensive tackles New York Giants players Players of American football from Baytown, Texas Seattle Seahawks players Players of American football from Harris County, Texas Texas A&M Aggies football players