Dan Connolly (American football)

Dan Connolly

Connolly with the Patriots in 2014
No. 61, 63
Position:	Guard / Center
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1982-09-02) September 2, 1982
Place of birth:	Chesterfield, Missouri
Height:	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:	305 lb (138 kg)
Career information
High school:	Chesterfield (MO) Marquette
College:	Southeast Missouri State
Undrafted:	2005
Career history
Jacksonville Jaguars (2005–2006) New England Patriots (2007–2014)
Career highlights and awards
Super Bowl champion (XLIX) Madden Most Valuable Protectors Award (2010) 4× Second-team All-OVC (2001–2004) longest kickoff return by an offensive lineman
Career NFL statistics
Games played: 89 Games started: 71 Player stats at NFL.com

Daniel Paul Connolly (born September 2, 1982) is a former American football player. He was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in 2005. He played college football at Southeast Missouri State. He played eight seasons for the New England Patriots, winning a Super Bowl ring in his final season.

Early years

Connolly was born in Chesterfield, Missouri. He attended Marquette High School in Chesterfield, Missouri and was a letterman in football and track. In football, he was a three-time All-District selection and a three-time All-Conference selection. In track & field, he threw the shot put (top-throw of 49 ft, 7 in).

College career

He was a four-year starting offensive tackle for Southeast Missouri State University who was All-Conference four consecutive seasons and finished his collegiate career with 46 consecutive starts.

Professional career

2005 NFL Combine

Jacksonville Jaguars (2005–2007)

Connolly was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent on April 24, 2005. He made the team's 53-man roster and spent the rest of the season on it. He was placed on injured reserve by the Jaguars on September 2, 2006. Connolly was waived by the Jaguars on September 1, 2007.

New England Patriots (2007–2014)

Connolly was signed to the New England Patriots' practice squad on September 13, 2007, where he spent the remainder of the season before being re-signed to a future contract on February 5, 2008. He was then waived by the Patriots on October 20, 2008. He was re-signed to the team's practice squad on October 22. He was promoted to the active roster on December 13, 2008.

Connolly made the 53-man roster in 2009 and started four games at right guard in place of an injured Stephen Neal. During the season, he received a contract extension through the 2011 season.^[1]

With veteran starter Logan Mankins missing from the first seven games of the 2010 season due to a contract situation, Connolly started all of those games in his place at left guard. He was a reserve for the team's Week 9 game, but returned to the starting lineup at right guard following a season-ending injury to Neal.

In a December 19, 2010 game against the Green Bay Packers, Connolly set the record for the longest kickoff return by an offensive lineman in NFL history, returning a squib kick 71 yards to set up a Patriots touchdown (the previous record was 48 yards by Mal Snider in 1969).^[2] Connolly was named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the feat. Connolly suffered a concussion in the game and missed the final two games of the regular season. He finished the 2010 season with 13 starts in 14 games played.

On September 3, 2014, Connolly was named one of the Patriots' six team captains, replacing guard Logan Mankins who had been traded the week before.^[3] On February 1, 2015, the Patriots won Super Bowl XLIX.

Retirement

A free agent after the 2014 season, Connolly fielded interest from multiple NFL teams. However, on July 16, 2015, Connolly retired, citing family stability, concussion injuries and winning the Super Bowl as contributing factors.^[4]

References

External links

• New England Patriots bio
• Southeast Missouri Redhawks bio