The NFL Draft is something I get very excited about, and this year was no exception. I spent pretty much the entire weekend glued to either a TV or my web-enable phone, eagerly awaiting my belvoed Browns first pick in the late part of the fourth round. After the draft is finished up, NFL teams then offer smaller contracts to undrafted players (undrafted free agents, or UDFAs). Drafted and undrafted players then attend a rookie minicamp, and they are accompanied with several other UDFAs that are offered a tryout with the team. Tryouts are longshots to make the team, but somethimes they might stick with a practice squad or another team. Enter Todd DeLamielleure (#68 in the photo; sorry-couldn't find any other pics).
Browns fans may recognize the last name DeLamielleure from the Cardiac Kids era in the early 80s. Todd's father, Joe D, is a Hall of Fame offensive guard whoplayed for the Browns from 1980-84; previously, he blocked for OJ Simpson in Buffalo. Even though Joe D went to a Pro Bowl as a Brown, he is most remembered as a Bill. I then googled 'Todd DeLamielleure', to find a truly epic story about his journey to the NFL....
Todd DeLamielleure was a standout three-yeara starter at Duke in the late 90s, and then finished his NCAA career with a year at Hofstra in 2001. He was signed as an UDFA to the Colts; however, he hurt his shoulder before the season began. He was then sent to NFL Europe the next spring, but his shoulder wasn't quite football-ready. Another injury followed, and he then surgically reparied the shoulder. Tryouts with the Panthers and his father's Bills squad yielded nothing, so he decided to try another career.
In 2004, he became a firefighter in Charleston, South Carolina. He never stopped working out, and kept himself in football shape during his firefighting career. Three years later, on June 18, 2007, four of Todd's closest friends died in a fire at a furniture store blaze. It was a national news story, and my FD actually sent about 10-15 guys up to S.C. for the funerals. A total of nine firefighters were lost that day, and I can only imagine how he must still feel. Charleston is a department of about 250 guys, spread out over three shifts. Realizing how fleeting life can be, DeLamielleure decided to give pro football one more try.
A fledgling pro football league formed in 2007, the now-defunct All-American Football League. It was a second-chance football league that would only allow players with college degrees. Todd D ended up making the Arkansas team; howver, the league folded due to $$$$ problems (I was pumped up for the Florida team, too). DeLamielleure then sent out DVDs and letters to NFL, AFL, and AF2 franchises. Luckily, the Browns' defensive assistant coach Bob Trott coached him at Duke, and now the 29 yea-rold DeLamielleure is among 22 year-olds here at the Browns' rookie minicamp.
Athletically, this guy is tough. He ran the 40 in 4.6, and recently pushed out 37 reps of 225 lbs on the bench press. I guess that shoulder is healed. The question is, can he still play? If this guy gets a spot on the Browns', he will INSTANTLY become a team favorite-right up there with Joe J. I have been scouring the web, sirius radio, and the NFL Network for mincamp news on him. Realistically speaking, the guy has a ghost of a chance of making the Browns. I can only hope that he fights through the decked stacked against him, and triumphs, FireFighter-Style.
Todd D!
1 comment:
Nice story, made me all warm and fuzzy in my crotch area...
Seriously, I hope that he at least makes the team, and finds a place to make an impact.
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