Eric Berry

James Eric Berry (born December 29, 1988), nicknamed "The Fifth Dimension," is an American football safety for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Tennessee, was a two-time unanimous All-American, and was recognized as the best college defensive back in the country. The Kansas City Chiefs chose him with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, and he was selected for the Pro Bowl following his rookie season.

Early years
Berry was born in Fairburn, Georgia. He attended Creekside High School in Fairburn, and was a standout athlete for the Creekside Seminoles track and football teams. In track, Berry was the anchor leg of the 2006 Class 4A state championship 4x400-meters relay team. Individually, he was the 2005 Class 4A state champion in the 200-meters run.

Berry played cornerback and quarterback, earning a 37-5 record as a starter at Creekside. He was teammates with Rokevious Watkins and Terrance Parks. Following his stellar high school career, Berry was invited to play in the 2007 U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Berry was considered the top player in Georgia and the top cornerback prospect by every recruiting service, and Rivals.com ranked him the #3 player in the nation.

College career
Berry received an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Tennessee, where he played for the Tennessee Volunteers football team from 2007 to 2009.

2007 season
As a freshman, Berry replaced fifth year senior Jarod Parrish after a strong showing in his first collegiate game against California. Berry turned in several big plays during his freshman season en route to being named the SEC Defensive Freshman of the Year by the Sporting News. His 222 return yards(on five interceptions) broke the 37 year-old Tennessee record by 43 yards. Berry led all SEC freshmen in tackles with 86. He twice was named SEC Freshman of the Week for his play over the regular season’s final three games. After the season, he was also named 1st team Freshman All-American by Rivals.

2008 season
Prior to the season, despite being a sophomore, Berry was named a team captain.

For the year, Berry tied for the national lead in interceptions with 7 and returned them for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns, breaking the record he set the year earlier. Combined with the yards he accumulated as a Freshman, Berry set the all-time career SEC record for interception return yards with 487 yards, only 14 yards shy of the NCAA record for interception return yards, set by Terrell Buckley during his time at Florida State. He also finished the regular season with 72 tackles, 6 pass break-ups and 3 sacks.

Berry also took snaps on offense at quarterback and wide receiver, gaining 44 rushing yards on 7 carries. In addition, he gained 32 yards on 2 kick-off returns.

His early success had some journalists speculating that he could end up being the best defensive player in Tennessee history. He was nominated as a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award, the Lott Trophy, and the Chuck Bednarik Award.

Berry was named the SEC Defensive Player of the year and was a first-team All-SEC pick. He was also a unanimous first-team All American. The Touchdown Club of Columbus also named him their winner of the 2008 Jack Tatum Award as well.

2009 season
Following his junior season in 2009, Barry was a first-team All-SEC selection, and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American for the second consecutive season. He won the Jim Thorpe Award and also was the recipient of The Touchdown Club of Columbus's Jack Tatum Award for the second straight year.

He would forgo his last year of eligibility at the University of Tennessee and enter the NFL draft.

College awards and honors

 * 2009 Unanimous All-American
 * 2000s ESPN All-Decade High School Football Team
 * 2000s RivalsHigh.com Team Of The Decade First Team
 * 2000s Sports Illustrated All-Decade Team
 * 2009 Jim Thorpe Award
 * 2009 Bronko Nagurski Award Finalist
 * 2009 Lott Award Finalist
 * 2009 Jack Tatum Award Winner
 * 2009 First-team All-SEC (Coaches, AP)
 * 2008 Unanimous All-American
 * 2008 National Defensive Sophomore of the Year (Collegefootballnews.com)
 * 2008 SEC Defensive Player of the Year
 * 2008 Jack Tatum Award Winner
 * 2008 First-team All-SEC (Coaches, AP)
 * 2008 Vince Dooley Award


 * 2008 Jim Thorpe Award Finalist
 * Unanimous 2007 First-team Freshman All-American
 * 2007 National Defensive Freshman of the Year (Collegefootballnews.com)
 * 2007 SEC Freshman Defensive Player of the Year (Sporting News)
 * 2007 Second-team All-SEC (Coaches, AP)
 * 2007 All-SEC Freshmen Team
 * 2007 All-SEC Freshmen Academic Honor Roll
 * 2006 Georgia High School Player of the Year (Gatorade)

College statistics

 * Correct as of 2008 season end.

2010 NFL Draft
Following Tennessee's 37–14 loss to Virginia Tech in the 2009 Chick-fil-A Bowl, Berry announced his decision to forgo his final year of college football eligibility, entering the 2010 NFL Draft. At the NFL combine, Berry officially ran a 4.47 40-yard dash time.

Berry was regarded as the highest touted safety since Sean Taylor, whom Berry idolized prior to Taylor's death,  and was expected to be selected no lower than No. 7, the Cleveland Browns pick.

The Kansas City Chiefs selected Berry with the fifth overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft, making him the highest drafted defensive back since Taylor, and the highest drafted Tennessee Volunteer since Jamal Lewis. Berry selected number 29 as his jersey number in honor of former Tennessee defensive back standout Inky Johnson, whose career was cut short due to an injury and also as a tribute to his hometown Fairburn, GA and the main road Highway 29.

He and the Chiefs agreed to a six-year, $60 million contract on July 30, 2010 making Berry the highest-paid safety in NFL history.

Berry also signed a multi-year endorsement deal with Adidas.

Kansas City Chiefs
In his first season, Berry started all 16 games and became the first Chiefs rookie to be selected to the Pro Bowl since linebacker great Derrick Thomas. Berry had a big impact on the team's defense, helping to improve it from 29th best unit in 2009 in terms of points allowed to 11th in 2010, In addition to starting every game, Berry was on the field for almost half of Kansas City's special teams plays and was the only Chiefs defender to play every defensive snap.

He led the team in interceptions (4), and was second only to Derrick Johnson in tackles (92) and solo tackles(77). On December 26, 2010, Berry scored his first NFL touchdown on a 54-yard interception return against the Tennessee Titans.

In his first playoff game, he recorded a career-high in solo tackles with 9 and passes defended with 4.

On September 11, 2011, Berry suffered a torn ACL, and was placed on injured reserve on September 14, ending his season. Berry had surgery on September 29, 2011, and intends to return for the start of the 2012 NFL season.