Saturday, July 27th, 2024

Jerry Gray | 1979-1981 | Estacado High School | Football

Jerry Gray played football at Estacado High School from 1979-1981. At Estacado High School, Gray lettered in football, basketball and track and was inducted into the Texas High School Hall of Fame in 1995. He was recently named to the All-Time Texas High School team. He was named All-City Player of the Year as a quarterback, MVP football player for Estacado, and All-District Quarterback and Defensive Back.

Gray holds a Bachelor of Science degree in speech communications from the University of Texas. He was a two-time consensus All-America and two-time Southwest Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a safety at Texas in 1983 and ’84 and was a first-round draft pick (21st overall) of the Los Angeles Rams in 1985. Gray was a member of the University of Texas’s All-Time Team and All-Decade Team for the 1980s.

Gray played nine seasons in the NFL, earning All-Pro honors four times. He played with the Los Angeles Rams (1985-91), Houston Oilers (1992), and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1993) before retiring. He was a four-time Pro Bowler at cornerback (1986-89) with the Rams, finishing with 28 career interceptions during his nine seasons in the NFL. He posted a season-high eight interceptions in 1986, just his second year in the NFL. He was also named the NFL’s Defensive Back of the Year in 1989 and earned MVP honors in the 1990 Pro Bowl.

Gray originally started with the Titans as the defensive assistant/quality control coach in 1997 before being elevated to the defensive backs position. He broke into the coaching ranks in 1995 as the defensive backs coach at Southern Methodist University. He helped Tennessee finish as the NFL’s No. 1 ranked pass defense and total defense in 2000 and also guided two All-Pro starters at each position in the Titans secondary.

In 2004, Gray led a defense that finished second in the NFL in total defense and top five in the NFL in touchdowns allowed (29), yards allowed per game (264.2), passing yards allowed per game (164.0), sacks registered (45) and led the league with 39 turnovers forced. He orchestrated a major defensive turnaround in 2003 when his defense finished the year ranked second in the NFL in total defense (second against the pass, eighth against the run). His defense also ranked fifth overall in points allowed in 2003.

Gray is currently the Defensive Backs coach for the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL.
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