Dominique Easley facts for kids

Dominique Earl Easley (born April 28, 1992) is a former American football player. He played as a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). Before joining the NFL, he played college football for the Florida Gators. The New England Patriots chose him in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft.

Early Life and High School Football

Dominique Easley grew up in Staten Island, New York. He went to Curtis High School, where he was a star in both football and track. In football, he was picked to play in the Under Armour All-America Game in 2010. This is a special game for the best high school players in the country. At this game, he announced he would go to the University of Florida for college.

Dominique also showed his athletic skills in track and field. He was good at the shot put, which is an event where you throw a heavy ball as far as you can. In 2009, he won the shot put at a local championship. He also ran in the 55-meter dash.

Experts at ESPN.com thought very highly of Easley. They called him a "five-star recruit." This means he was considered one of the top high school defensive tackles in the whole country in 2010.

College Football Career

Dominique Easley earned a scholarship to play football at the University of Florida. He played for the Florida Gators football team from 2010 to 2013. His coaches were Urban Meyer and Will Muschamp.

In his first year, 2010, he played in six games and made four tackles. In 2011, he became a starter and played in all 12 regular-season games. However, he suffered a serious knee injury called a torn ACL during a game against Florida State. Even with the injury, he made 37 tackles that season. He was tied for fifth on the team in tackles for a loss, which means stopping opponents behind their starting line.

In 2012, he played in eleven games, missing two due to injury. He had 26 tackles and led his team with four quarterback sacks. A sack is when a defensive player tackles the opposing team's quarterback. He also recovered a fumble, which is when a player drops the ball and another player picks it up.

His senior season in 2013 was cut short by another torn ACL in practice. He had five tackles before his season ended. On September 30, 2013, Easley decided to leave college early to enter the NFL draft. This meant he would give up his last year of college eligibility to try and play professionally.

Professional NFL Career

New England Patriots

The New England Patriots picked Dominique Easley in the first round of the 2014 NFL draft. He was the 29th player chosen overall. On June 23, 2014, he signed a four-year contract with the team. This contract was worth about $7.3 million.

Easley played his first NFL game on September 7, 2014. It was a game against the Miami Dolphins. The next week, he made his first career interception against the Minnesota Vikings. An interception is when a defensive player catches a pass meant for an offensive player. On December 17, the Patriots put Easley on injured reserve because of a knee injury. This meant he couldn't play for the rest of the season. In his first year, he played in 11 games. He had 9 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass defended, and 1 interception.

Even without Easley playing, the Patriots went on to win Super Bowl XLIX. They beat the Seattle Seahawks 28–24.

In 2015, Easley started the season as one of the Patriots' main defensive tackles. This was after a long-time player, Vince Wilfork, left the team. On December 15, 2015, Easley was again placed on injured reserve. This time, it was due to a quadricep injury, which ended his season. He finished that season with 15 tackles and two sacks.

The Patriots made a surprising decision on April 13, 2016. They released Dominique Easley from the team.

Los Angeles Rams

On May 17, 2016, Easley signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Rams. He played in all 16 games for the Rams in 2016. He recorded 35 tackles, 3.5 sacks, one pass deflected, and two forced fumbles.

On March 7, 2017, the Rams offered Easley a special contract called an "original round tender." This meant they wanted to keep him. He signed this contract on May 4, 2017. However, during training camp, Easley suffered another torn ACL. This was his third major knee injury. He was not able to play during the entire 2017 season.

On March 19, 2018, Easley signed another one-year contract to stay with the Rams. But on October 3, 2018, he was again placed on injured reserve after having another knee surgery. Without Easley, the Rams made it to Super Bowl LIII. They lost the game 13–3 to Easley's old team, the New England Patriots.

About Dominique Easley

Dominique Easley's mother is from Haiti. He has an older brother named David and a younger sister named Destinee. His sister is a student at the New York Film Academy in Burbank, California.

Dominique Easley is a Muslim. He shared on his Twitter account that he became a Muslim on March 13, 2015. In February 2022, Easley and his family appeared on the TV show Family Feud.

See also

• List of Florida Gators in the NFL draft
• List of Los Angeles Rams players
• List of New England Patriots players