Dave Merritt

David Merritt (born September 8, 1971) is an American professional football coach for the Kansas City Chiefs for the National Football League (NFL) and former linebacker who served as the defensive backs coach for the Arizona Cardinals of the NFL. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the seventh round of the 1993 NFL draft.^[1] He played college football at North Carolina State.

David Merritt

Kansas City Chiefs
Position:	Secondary coach
Personal information
Born:	(1971-09-08) September 8, 1971 (age 53) Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:	237 lb (108 kg)
Career information
High school:	Raleigh (NC) Millbrook
College:	North Carolina State
NFL draft:	1993 / round: 7 / pick: 191
Career history
As a player:
Miami Dolphins (1993) Phoenix / Arizona Cardinals (1993–1995) Rhein Fire (1997)
As a coach:
Tennessee-Chattanooga (1997) Outside linebackers Virginia Military Institute (1998) Defensive ends & outside linebackers coach Virginia Military Institute (1999–2000) Defensive line coach New York Jets (2001–2003) Defensive assistant & linebackers coach New York Giants (2004) Defensive assistant & quality control coach New York Giants (2005) Defensive assistant New York Giants (2006–2017) Secondary coach & safeties coach Arizona Cardinals (2018) Defensive backs coach Kansas City Chiefs (2019–present) Defensive backs coach
Career highlights and awards
5× Super Bowl champion (XLII, XLVI, LIV, LVII, LVIII) First-team All-ACC (1992)
Career NFL statistics
Tackles: 1 Fumble recoveries: 1 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Merritt also played for the Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals and has been a coach at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Virginia Military Institute and for the New York Jets.

Early life

Merritt was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. He attended Millbrook High School (Raleigh, North Carolina). Merritt was a member of the Millbrook High School inaugural Hall of Fame class in 2012

Coaching career

New York Jets

In 2001, Merritt joined the New York Jets as a defensive assistant and linebackers coach.^[2]

New York Giants

Merritt was hired by the New York Giants as a defensive assistant and quality control coach in 2004. In 2006, he was promoted to secondary and safeties coach. Merritt won Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI with the Giants, both times defeating the New England Patriots.^[3][4]

Arizona Cardinals

On February 21, 2018, Merritt was hired by the Arizona Cardinals as their new defensive backs coach.^[5]

Kansas City Chiefs

On February 8, 2019, Merritt was hired by the Kansas City Chiefs as their new defensive backs coach. Merritt won his third Super Bowl ring when the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV.^[6] Merritt got his fourth championship ring with the Chiefs as they defeated the Eagles in Super Bowl LVII.^[7] Merritt won his fifth Super Bowl when the Chiefs defeated the 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII.^[8]

References

1. "1993 NFL Draft Listing". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
2. Trezevant IV, Ezekiel (February 12, 2024). "Former Giants Assistant Coach Wouldn't Mind Returning to New York One Day". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
3. Battista, Judy (February 4, 2008). "Giants Stun Patriots in Super Bowl XLII". The New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
4. Battista, Judy (February 6, 2012). "Giants Beat Patriots in Final Rally". The New York Times. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
5. Alper, Josh (January 24, 2018). "Cardinals to hire Dave Merritt as secondary coach". NBC Sports. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
6. "Super Bowl LIV - San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs - February 2nd, 2020". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
7. "Super Bowl LVII - Philadelphia Eagles vs. Kansas City Chiefs - February 12th, 2023". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
8. Maaddi, Rob (February 12, 2024). "Patrick Mahomes rallies the Chiefs to second straight Super Bowl title, 25-22 over 49ers in overtime". AP News. Retrieved February 14, 2024.

External links

• Kansas City Chiefs coaching bio