Dee Ford

Considered a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, he was ranked as the 62nd best outside linebacker prospect in the nation.

Donald “Dee” Ford (born March 19, 1991) is a former American football defensive end.

Ford attended Auburn University from 2009 to 2013.

During his career, he had 19.5 sacks.

He received an invitation to the NFL combine, but did not perform any physical drills after doctors recommended him sit out after issues stemming from a back injury he suffered in 2011.

As a senior in 2013, he was an All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection.

He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft.

He played college football at Auburn.

Ford attended St. Clair County High School in Odenville, Alabama.

While there, he played high school football.

As a senior, Ford recorded 90 tackles, including 38 tackles for loss and 18 sacks, intercepted a pass, and broke up three while being named to the Class 4A All-State team by the Alabama Sports Writers Association.

As a junior, he posted 87 total tackles with 16 tackles for a loss and 12 sacks.

On January 25, 2014, Ford attended the Reese's Senior Bowl and had an impressive performance after recording two combined tackles, two tackles for a loss, a pass deflection, and sacked Virginia Tech's Logan Thomas twice to help the South defeat the North 20–10.

His Senior Bowl performance helped him raise his draft stock.

NFL draft experts and analysts projected Ford to be a first or second round.

On March 4, 2014, Ford participated at Auburn's pro day and was able to complete all of the combine and positional drills for team representatives and scouts.

All 32 NFL teams had representatives present at Auburn's pro day to scout Ford, Greg Robinson, and ten other prospects.

He was ranked the second best defensive end prospect in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com and Sports Illustrated and was ranked the third best defensive end by NFL analyst Mike Mayock.

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Ford in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2014 NFL draft.

Ford competed with Dezman Moses, Frank Zombo, and Josh Mauga throughout training camp for a job as the backup linebacker.

Head coach Andy Reid named him the backup right outside linebacker to Tamba Hali to begin the regular season.

Ford made his NFL debut during the 10–26 season-opening loss to the Tennessee Titans.

Two weeks later, he recorded his first NFL tackle and deflected a pass during a 34–15 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

During Week 8, Ford made a season-high three combined tackles and was credited a half a sack making it the first of his career during a 34–7 victory over the St. Louis Rams.

Ford joined a highly-touted linebacking corps as a rookie, that consisted of Justin Houston, Derrick Johnson, and Hali.

With Houston and Hali already staples in the defense, Ford received no starts in 16 game appearances and was limited to only seven combined tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Ford returned to his role as the backup outside linebacker in 2015, behind key veteran Hali and Houston.

Ford missed Weeks 11–12 after suffering a back injury.

During Week 13, Ford earned his first NFL start against the Oakland Raiders after Houston suffered a knee injury that caused him to miss the rest of the season.

Ford finished the 34–20 victory over the Raiders with a solo tackle.

In the next game against the San Diego Chargers, he made a season-high seven solo tackles, defended a pass, and sacked quarterback Philip Rivers thrice in a 10–3 victory.

Ford made his first career solo sack and marked a career-high with his three-sack performance.

Ford finished his second professional season with 23 combined tackles (21 solo), two pass deflections, and four sacks in 14 games and five starts.

Ford began the 2016 season as the starting right outside linebacker, in place of Houston, who was recovering from surgery in February to repair a torn ACL.

Ford started in the season-opener against the San Diego Chargers and recorded four solo tackles and a sack on Philip Rivers during the 33–27 overtime victory.

During Week 6, Ford made five combined tackles and sacked Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr twice in a 26–10 road victory.

He did not record a sack in the next game against the New Orleans Saints and only recorded one tackle total on a down effort/ However, the Chiefs still won 27–21.

The following week against the Indianapolis Colts, Ford collected five combined tackles and was credited with a career-high 3.5 sacks on quarterback Andrew Luck during a 30–14 victory.

During Week 9, he had his second consecutive game with multiple sacks after he sacked quarterback Blake Bortles twice during a 19–14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In the next game, Ford collected three combined tackles, deflected a pass, and recorded a sack on Cam Newton, as the Chiefs defeated the Carolina Panthers by a score 20–17.