Brock Vereen (born August 17, 1992) is an American former professional football safety. He was selected by the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs. He played college football at University of Minnesota. He is currently doing broadcasting work on Big Ten Network on their onsite pre-game show and on CBS Sports Network's That Other Pregame Show as a studio commentator.
 Vereen at Chicago Bears training camp in 2015 | |||||||||
| No. 45 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Safety | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | August 17, 1992 Santa Clarita, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 199 lb (90 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Valencia (Santa Clarita, CA) | ||||||||
| College: | Minnesota | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2014 / round: 4 / pick: 131 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Early life
editVereen attended Valencia High School in Santa Clarita, California, where he was a two-time All-California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) selection. He led his team to a 12–1 record in 2009. As a senior, he recorded 51 tackles, eight interceptions, two pass break-ups and one sack, while offensively, playing wide receiver, he caught 20 receptions for 474 yards and seven touchdowns.
Vereen was also a standout track & field athlete at Valencia, where he posted a personal best-time of 10.89 seconds in the 100-meter dash and participated in the 4x100.
Regarded as a three-star recruit by Rivals.com, Vereen was rated as the 66th best cornerback prospect of his class.[1] Scout.com considered Vereen a two-star recruit and ranked him as the No. 166 cornerback in the nation, while ESPN.com had him as the No. 57 cornerback.
College career
editVereen attended the University of Minnesota from 2010 to 2013.[2] He played both safety and cornerback. As a true freshman in 2010, he appeared in nine games with four starts and recorded 10 total tackles. In 2011, he started all 12 games at cornerback, recording 67 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble and five pass break-ups. In 2012, he played in all 13 games, with seven starts at safety. He recorded 64 tackles, nine pass break-ups and two interceptions. In 2013, as a senior, he started all 13 games at safety, recording 59 tackles, one forced fumble, one interception and six pass break-ups. He was named first-team All-Big Ten Conference by the coaches.[3]
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 11+5⁄8 in (1.82 m) |
199 lb (90 kg) |
30 in (0.76 m) |
8+1⁄4 in (0.21 m) |
4.47 s | 1.58 s | 2.63 s | 4.07 s | 6.90 s | 34 in (0.86 m) |
9 ft 9 in (2.97 m) |
25 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine[4][5] | ||||||||||||
Chicago Bears
editVereen was selected in the fourth round (131st overall) of the 2014 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears.[6] He signed a four-year deal with the Bears on May 12, 2014. Vereen and fellow draft class quarterback David Fales were the NFL's first two draft picks to agree to terms.[7]
He was released by the Bears on September 29, 2015.[8]
Minnesota Vikings
editVereen was signed to the practice squad of the Minnesota Vikings on October 1, 2015, after being unclaimed on waivers.[9] He was waived by the Vikings on November 13.[10]
New England Patriots
editThe New England Patriots signed Vereen to their practice squad on November 18, 2015.[11] On January 26, 2016, Vereen signed a futures contract with the Patriots.[12] The Patriots released Vereen.
Kansas City Chiefs
editOn August 17, 2016, Vereen was claimed off waivers by the Kansas City Chiefs.[13] On September 3, 2016, he was released by the Chiefs.[14] The next day, he was signed to the Chiefs' practice squad.[15] He was released from the practice squad two days later.
Personal life
editHis father, Henry Vereen, was a ninth round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1979 NFL draft,[16] and played wide receiver in the Canadian Football League for the BC Lions in the early 1980s.[17] Vereen is a first cousin once removed of stage actor and dancer Ben Vereen.[18] His brother, Shane Vereen, was a second-round pick of the New England Patriots in the 2011 NFL draft.[19][20][21]
Vereen is currently doing broadcasting work on Big Ten Network on their onsite pre-game show and on CBS Sports Network's That Other Pregame Show as a studio commentator.
References
edit- ^ Brock Vereen – Yahoo Sports
- ^ Gophers football: Brock Vereen's play and leadership have been key for U
- ^ Gophers' Hageman, Vereen make all-Big Ten first-team
- ^ "Brock Vereen Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
- ^ "Brock Vereen, Minnesota, SS, 2014 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved February 23, 2022.
- ^ "2014 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
- ^ "Vereen, Fales agree to 4-year deals". Archived from the original on May 29, 2014. Retrieved June 3, 2014.
- ^ Dickerson, Jeff (September 29, 2015). "Bears waive former fourth-round pick Brock Vereen". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
- ^ Florio, Mike (October 1, 2015). "Brock Vereen lands on Minnesota's practice squad". NBCSports.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ "Vikings Sign Chase Ford to Practice Squad, Release Brock Vereen". Vikings.com. November 13, 2015. Archived from the original on November 21, 2015. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ Alper, Josh (November 18, 2015). "Patriots add Joseph Fauria, Brock Vereen to practice squad". NBCSports.com. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ "Patriots officially announce signing of eight to future contracts". It Is What It Is. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
- ^ Florio, Mike (August 17, 2016). "Chiefs claim Brock Vereen on waivers". NBCSports.com.
- ^ "Chiefs Down to NFL Mandated Roster Limit". Chiefs.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2016. Retrieved September 4, 2016.
- ^ "Chiefs Announce Additional Roster Moves". Chiefs.com. September 4, 2016. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017.
- ^ "New England Patriots: Shane Vereen". Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
- ^ "Powerful Lions improve lineup". The Montreal Gazette. June 30, 1984. Retrieved October 23, 2012.
- ^ Berry, Zuri (April 29, 2011). "Patriots select RB Shane Vereen with the 56th pick". NY Times Co. Retrieved October 7, 2011.
- ^ Brock Vereen hopes to follow in his brother's NFL footsteps
- ^ Yates, Field (February 23, 2014). "Brock Vereen follows brother's footsteps". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
- ^ Gophers football: Sibling rivalry has been a driving force for safety Brock Vereen