Clayton Geathers

Clayton Geathers (born June 1, 1992) is a former American football strong safety. He played college football at UCF, and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft.

Clayton Geathers
refer to caption
Geathers with the Indianapolis Colts in 2015
UCF Knights
Position:Assistant director of personnel/defensive backs assistant
Personal information
Born: (1992-06-01) June 1, 1992
Georgetown, South Carolina, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:216 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:Carvers Bay
(Hemingway, South Carolina)
College:UCF
NFL Draft:2015 / Round: 4 / Pick: 109
Career history
As a player:
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
As a coach:
  • UCF (2022-present)
    Assistant director of personnel/defensive backs assistant
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2021
Total tackles:244
Forced fumbles:2
Fumble recoveries:1
Pass deflections:10
Interceptions:1
Player stats at NFL.com

High school career

Geathers attended and played at Carvers Bay High School and help them advance to the Lower State Championship two consecutive years (2007-2008).[2] Geathers was selected to the all-state team twice as a defensive back in 2009 and as a running back in 2008.

College career

Geathers was selected to the All-American Athletic Conference Second-team, Sporting News All-American Athletic Conference Team and Phil Steele's Postseason All-American Athletic Conference Second-team in his junior season.[2]

Geathers finished third in tackles in University of Central Florida football history with 383 tackles. As a redshirt freshman in 2011, Geather had 67 tackles, the following year as a sophomore had 117 tackles, then as a redshirt junior 100 tackles, and then in his last season Geathers tallied 97 tackles. Geathers also started in 52 games out of a total of 53 games he played in college.

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

On December 15, 2014, it was announced that Geathers had accepted his invitation to play in the 2015 Senior Bowl.[3] On January 24, 2015, Geathers attended the Senior Bowl and played for Jacksonville Jaguars' head coach Gus Bradley's South team. He recorded four solo tackles as the South lost 34–13 to the North.[4] Geathers attended the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana and performed all of the combine drills. He finished second among his position group in the bench press, eighth in the broad jump, and 12th in the short and long shuttle.

External video
video icon Clayton Geathers' NFL Combine Workout

On March 25, 2015, Geathers attended UCF's pro day, but opted to stand on his combine numbers and only run positional drills. Team representatives and scouts from all 32 NFL teams attended his pro day, including New England Patriots' head coach Bill Belichick.[5] At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Geathers was projected to be a fourth to seventh round pick or a priority undrafted free agent. He was ranked as the fifth best strong safety prospect in the draft by DraftScout.com and was ranked the 11th best safety by Scouts Inc.[6][7]

Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand span40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench press
6 ft 1+5⁄8 in
(1.87 m)		 218 lb
(99 kg)		 31+5⁄8 in
(0.80 m)		 9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		4.55 s1.58 s2.63 s4.27 s7.21 s37 in
(0.94 m)		10 ft 0 in
(3.05 m)		22 reps
All values from NFL Combine[8][9]

2015
Geathers (far left) in a game against the Tennessee Titans in November 2018.

The Indianapolis Colts selected Geathers in the fourth round (109th overall) of the 2015 NFL Draft.[10] Geathers was the sixth safety drafted in 2015.[11]

External video
video icon Colts draft Clayton Geathers 109th overall
video icon NFL Draft Profile: Clayton Geathers

On May 6, 2015, the Indianapolis Colts signed Geathers to a four-year, $2.81 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $533,930.[12]

Throughout training camp, he competed to be the starting free safety against Dwight Lowery after it was vacant due to the release of Sergio Brown.[13] Head coach Chuck Pagano named Geathers the backup free safety, behind Dwight Lowery, to begin the regular season.[14]

He made his professional regular season debut in the Indianapolis Colts' season-opener at the Buffalo Bills and recorded two solo tackles and deflected a pass in their 27–14 loss. Geathers was inactive for the Colts' Week 7 loss to the New Orleans Saints due to a knee injury.[15][16] On November 22, 2015, Geathers earned his first career start after Mike Adams was unable to play due to a hamstring injury. Geathers finished the Colts' 24–21 win at the Atlanta Falcons with a season-high nine combined tackles in Week 11.[17] He finished his rookie season in 2015 with 34 combined tackles (27 solo) and a pass deflection in 15 games and two starts.[18]

2016

On January 5, 2016, the Indianapolis Colts announced their decision to fire defensive coordinator Greg Manusky.[19] On January 7, 2016, the Indianapolis Colts hired former Baltimore Ravens' linebackers coach Ted Monachino as their new defensive coordinator.[20] Geathers entered training camp slated as the starting free safety.[21] On July 26, 2016, it was reported that Geathers fractured a bone in his foot during training camp.[22] Head coach Chuck Pagano named Geathers the starting free safety to start the regular season, alongside strong safety Mike Adams.[23]

External video
video icon Clayton Geathers tackles Demarco Murray
video icon Geathers forces fumble to clinch win

Geathers remained inactive for the Colts' season-opening 39–35 loss to the Detroit Lions due to his foot injury. On September 25, 2016, Geathers recorded six combined tackles and forced a fumble in a 26–22 win against the San Diego Chargers in Week 3. Geathers forced a key fumble by Chargers' tight end Hunter Henry, which was recovered by Colts' teammate Mike Adams, in the fourth quarter.[24] In Week 5, he collected a season-high nine combined tackles during a 29-23 win against the Chicago Bears. On November 20, 2016, Geathers tied his season-high of nine combined tackles and deflected a pass in the Colts' 24–17 victory against the Tennessee Titans in Week 11. He exited in the fourth quarter of the game after sustaining a concussion and neck injury while tackling Titans' running back Demarco Murray during a crucial fourth and one-yard attempt with less than three minutes remaining.[25][26] On December 12, 2016, the Indianapolis Colts officially placed Geathers on injured reserve due to his neck injury.[27] He finished the season with 59 combined tackles (50 solo) and five pass deflections in nine games and nine starts.[18]

2017

During the offseason, Geathers underwent surgery to repair a bulging herniated disc in his neck in March 2017.[28] On September 2, 2017, the Indianapolis Colts placed Geathers on their physically unable to perform list to start the season as he recovered from neck surgery.[29] On November 14, 2017, the Indianapolis Colts activated Geathers off of their PUP list.[30] Upon returning from injury, Geathers was named the backup free safety behind Darius Butler.[31] Geathers was inactive for the Colts' Week 16 loss at the Baltimore Ravens due to personal reasons.[32] In Week 17, he collected a season-high three combined tackles during a 22–13 victory against the Houston Texans.[33] Geathers was limited to five games and one start in 2017 and finished the season with eight combined tackles (five solo).[18]

2018
Geathers pursuing Adrian Peterson in a game against the Washington Redskins in 2018.

On January 1, 2018, the Indianapolis Colts fired head coach Chuck Pagano after they finished with a 4–12 record in 2017.[34] On February 11, 2018, the Indianapolis Colts announced their decision to hire former Philadelphia Eagles' offensive coordinator Frank Reich to be their next head coach.[35] Reich and defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus switched the defense from a base 3-4 defense to a base 4-3 defense. Throughout training camp, Geathers competed against Matthias Farley to be the starting strong safety.[36] He was named the Colts starting strong safety to begin the season.

He started in the Indianapolis Colts' season-opener against the Cincinnati Bengals and recorded seven solo tackles and forced a fumble in their 34–23 loss. On September 23, 2018, Geathers collected 13 combined tackles (11 solo) and deflected a pass during a 20–16 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3.[37]

2019

On March 20, 2019, Geathers re-signed with the Colts.[38] In week 3 against the Atlanta Falcons, Geathers intercepted Matt Ryan in the 27-24 win.[39]

Tennessee Titans

On August 16, 2021, Geathers signed with the Tennessee Titans.[40] He was released on August 29, 2021.[41]

Coaching career

In April 2022, Geathers returned home to UCF to join Gus Malzahn's coaching staff as assistant director of personnel and defensive backs assistant. [42]

Personal life

Geathers is the nephew of retired NFL defensive end Jumpy Geathers, cousin of Orlando Predators defensive end Jeremy Geathers, free agent defensive end Clifton Geathers, free agent nose tackle Kwame Geathers, former Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Robert Geathers, and former UCF defensive end Jarvis Geathers.[43]

References
  1. "American Announces Fifth Anniversary Football Team". American Athletic Conference. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  2. "UCF Profile". ucfknights.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2015.
  3. Ryan Gillespie (December 15, 2014). "UCF football: Clayton Geathers accepts Senior Bowl invite". centralfloridafuture.com. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  4. "2015 Senior Bowl: North vs. South | PFF News & Analysis | Pro Football Focus › news › refocused". profootballfocus.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  5. "UCF Football Pro Day 2015". UCFKnights.com. March 26, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  6. "Clayton Geathers, DS #5 SS, UCF". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
  7. "NFL Clayton Geathers -ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  8. "NFL Draft Profile: Clayton Geathers". NFL.com. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  9. "Clayton Geathers, Central Florida, SS, 2015 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  10. "2015 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  11. Brady, James (May 2, 2015). "NFL Draft picks 2015: Clayton Geathers to Colts in 4th round". sbnation.com. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
  12. "Spotrac.com: Clayton Geathers contract". spotrac.com. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  13. Wells, Mike (July 15, 2015). "Colts players with most to prove: No. 6 Dwight Lowery". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  14. Keefer, Zac (September 9, 2015). "Insider: Breaking down the Colts' depth chart". indystar.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  15. Wilson, Josh (October 25, 2015). "Mike Adams, Jonathan Newsome among Colts inactives vs. Saints". StampedeBlue.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  16. "Colts, Saints release inactives for week seven". 247sports.com. October 25, 2015. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  17. "NFL Player stats: Clayton Geathers (2015)". NFL.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  18. "NFL Player stats: Clayton Geathers (career)". NFL.com. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  19. "Colts fire defensive coordinator Greg Manusky". NFL.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  20. Wesseling, Chris (January 7, 2016). "Colts hiring Ted Monachino as defensive coordinator". NFL.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  21. Wells, Mike (June 11, 2016). "Will Clayton Geathers start at safety and also play linebacker for the Colts?". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  22. Wilson, Josh (July 26, 2016). "Report: Clayton Geathers has broken foot, Colts "hopeful" for return by week one". stampedeblue.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  23. Wilson, Josh (September 3, 2016). "Indianapolis Colts' initial 53-man depth chart following final cuts". stampedeblue.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  24. "Luck, Hilton hook up to rally Colts past Chargers 26-22". Foxsports.com. September 25, 2016. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  25. "Colts' Clayton Geathers should complete comeback circle versus Titans". fox59.com. November 20, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  26. Wilson, Josh (December 7, 2016). "Colts safety Clayton Geathers week-to-week with neck injury". stampedeblue.com. Archived from the original on October 6, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  27. "Indianapolis Colts Make Roster Moves". Blogs.Colts.com. December 12, 2016. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  28. "Colts' Clayton Geathers returns to practice field following neck surgery". Fox59.com. October 25, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  29. Walker, Andrew (September 2, 2017). "Colts Announce Final 2017 Roster Cuts". Colts.com. Archived from the original on November 9, 2017.
  30. "Colts Activate Safety Clayton Geathers From PUP". Colts.com. November 14, 2017. Archived from the original on December 24, 2017.
  31. "Ourlads.com: Indianapolis Colts Depth Chart: 12/01/2017". Ourlads.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2018. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  32. "Week 16 Colts Inactives at Baltimore Ravens: Safety Clayton Geathers Ruled Out". indianasportscoverage.com. December 23, 2017. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  33. "NFL Player stats: Clayton Geathers (2017)". NFL.com. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  34. "Colts fire Chuck Pagano after six seasons, three missed playoffs". ESPN.com. January 1, 2018. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  35. "Indianapolis Colts hire Frank Reich to be next coach". NFL.com. February 11, 2018. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  36. Arthur, Jake (July 2, 2018). "Matthias Farley: Getting Reps For Transition To New Defense Has Been 'Huge'". Colts.com. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  37. "NFL Player stats: Clayton Geathers (2018)". NFL.com. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  38. Walker, Andrew (March 20, 2019). "Colts Re-Sign Top Strong Safety Clayton Geathers". Colts.com.
  39. "Brissett's fast start helps Colts hold off Falcons 27-24". www.espn.com. September 22, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  40. Wyatt, Jim (August 16, 2021). "Titans Add Veteran Safeties Clayton Geathers and Bradley McDougald, Part Ways With Four Others, in a Flurry of Roster Moves". TennesseeTitans.com. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  41. Wyatt, Jim (August 29, 2021). "Roster Moves: Titans Part Ways With Five Players While Placing One on Injured Reserve, Another on Reserve/COVID-19 List". TennesseeTitans.com.
  42. "Clayton Geathers bio". www.ucfknights.com. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  43. "UCF safety Clayton Geathers hopes to follow his family path to the NFL". orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
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