Boss Bailey


Rodney "Boss" Bailey is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League. He was originally drafted by the Detroit Lions in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Georgia. He is the brother of former NFL cornerback Champ Bailey.

Early life

Bailey was born in Folkston, Georgia. He received honorable mention All-America honors from USA Today at Charlton County High School in Folkston Georgia.

College career

Bailey was a three-year starter at Georgia. As a senior, he was a first-team All-SEC selection as well as a semifinalist for the Butkus and Lombardi Awards.

Professional career

Bailey appeared in 58 career games, posting 265 tackles, seven sacks and two interceptions. He also registered 13 pass breakups, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and seven special-teams tackles for his career.

Detroit Lions

He was named All-Rookie by ESPN.com and Football Digest with Detroit in 2003 when he set a career-high with 88 tackles as a 16-game starter. After missing the 2004 season with a knee injury, Bailey started all 11 games played in 2005 and had 58 tackles, one sack and one interception, which he returned 34 yards for a touchdown. He started eight games at strongside linebacker and four contests at middle linebacker for the Lions in 2006, appearing in all 16 games and totaling 67 tackles with one sack that year. In 2007, Bailey posted a career-high 3.5 sacks while adding 51 tackles, two pass breakups and one forced fumble in 15 games at strongside linebacker for Detroit.

Denver Broncos

On March 6, 2008, Boss signed a five-year contract worth $17.5 million that included $8 million in guarantees over the first two seasons. Bailey was released on June 17, 2009.

Career statistics