Shaquil Barrett

Shaquil Akeem Barrett (born November 17, 1992) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent.

Barrett started playing college football at Nebraska-Omaha in 2010.

After the school eliminated its football program after the 2010 season, he transferred to Colorado State.

Since Barrett was transferring from a school that cut its program, he was eligible to play immediately instead of having to sit out a year.

Barrett played three seasons (2011–13) for Colorado State University.

He started 35-of-38 games for CSU and totaled 246 tackles (116 solos), 18 sacks, 32.5 tackles for a loss, three interceptions, six passes defended, seven forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, and three blocked kicks.

Barrett was named Mountain West Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2013 after ranking fifth in the nation with 12 sacks and 20.5 tackles for a loss.

He played college football at the University of Nebraska Omaha before transferring to Colorado State University, and was signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2014.

After five seasons with the Broncos, including winning Super Bowl 50, Barrett signed with the Buccaneers.

Barrett went undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft and received interest from the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent.

On May 10, 2014, the Denver Broncos signed Barrett to a three-year, $1.53 million contract that included a signing bonus of $3,500.

Barrett stated that his decision to choose to sign with the Denver Broncos was due to their willingness to look past draft rankings.

Throughout training camp, Barrett competed for a roster spot as a backup linebacker against Steven Johnson, L. J. Fort, Jamar Chaney, Jerrell Harris, and Corey Nelson.

On August 30, 2014, the Denver Broncos waived Barrett as part of their final roster cuts.

He was subsequently signed to their practice squad after clearing waivers the following day.

On October 14, 2014, the Broncos promoted Barrett to their active roster after an injury to starting linebacker Danny Trevathan.

Barrett was signed to the 53-man roster for the Week 7 game against the San Francisco 49ers.

He was once again signed to the 53-man roster for the American Football Conference Divisional Playoff Game against the Indianapolis Colts, but did not play.

Barrett did not appear in any games as a rookie in 2014.

Barrett switched to jersey No. 56, but subsequently sold it to rookie linebacker and 2015 first round Shane Ray for $2,000 a few weeks later.

He reverted back to his rookie No. 48.

After finishing the 2015 NFL preseason with the most sacks of any player on the team, Barrett made the final 53-man roster.

Head coach Gary Kubiak named Barrett the third string strongside linebacker to begin the regular season, behind Von Miller and Lerentee McCray.

Barrett made his NFL debut in the season-opener against the Baltimore Ravens.

He recorded a tackle and a special teams stop in the 19–13 victory.

During a Week 6 26–23 overtime road victory over the Cleveland Browns, Barrett made his first NFL start after DeMarcus Ware suffered a back injury.

He finished the game with nine tackles (six solo), 1.5 sacks, three tackles for loss, a pass defensed, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.

Barrett finished his second professional season with 50 tackles, 5.5 sacks, four passes defensed, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and nine special-teams tackles in 16 games and six starts.

The Broncos finished atop the AFC West with a 12–4 record and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Barrett tallied two tackles and one special-teams stop in Denver's three postseason games.

On February 7, 2016, Barrett played in Super Bowl 50, but left the game to be evaluated with a concussion.

He returned to finish the game and the Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers by a score of 24–10.

In 2016, Barrett played all 16 games and totaled 36 tackles (20 solo), 1.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and two passes defensed.

In 2017, Barrett appeared in 16 games (nine starts), totaling 37 tackles (30 solo), four sacks, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and a blocked punt.

On March 12, 2018, the Broncos placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Barrett.

On April 23, 2018, he signed his exclusive rights tender.

Barrett finished the season with 28 tackles, three sacks, and a pass defended in 13 games.

His level of play increased, making the Pro Bowl and All-Pro teams in 2019 after leading the league in sacks, and in 2021 won Super Bowl LV.

On March 15, 2019, Barrett signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

During a Week 2 20–14 road victory over the Panthers, Barrett sacked Cam Newton thrice.