Peria Jerry

Peria Edward Jerry (/pəˈreɪ/; born August 23, 1984) is a former American football defensive tackle. He was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football for the University of Mississippi. Jerry retired from football in 2014 after five seasons with the Falcons. He is the older brother of Cincinnati Bengals guard John Jerry.

Peria Jerry
Jerry with the Atlanta Falcons in 2009
No. 94, 96, 97
Position:Defensive tackle
Personal information
Born: (1984-08-23) August 23, 1984
Memphis, Tennessee
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:295 lb (134 kg)
Career information
High school:South Panola
(Batesville, Mississippi)
College:Mississippi
NFL Draft:2009 / Round: 1 / Pick: 24
Career history
Career highlights and awards
  • First Team All-American (2008)
  • First Team All-SEC (2008)
  • Second Team All-SEC (2007)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:67
Sacks:5.5
Forced fumbles:1
Fumble recoveries:2
Player stats at NFL.com

High school career

While playing for South Panola High School in Batesville, Mississippi, Jerry was selected first team All-State and Class 5A Defensive Player of the Year by the Mississippi Association of Coaches. He was also named first team All-State by The Clarion-Ledger.

Jerry signed with Ole Miss in the 2004 recruiting class, but decided to attend Hargrave Military Academy. There, he was rated as the No. 15 prep school player in the country by Rivals.com. He played in eight games at Hargrave during the 2004 season and was credited with 30 tackles, including five quarterback sacks.

College career

The 2005 season was Jerry's true freshman season at Ole Miss. After missing the first four games due to injury, he played in six of the final seven games. He finished the season with three total tackles.

In 2006, Jerry battled through injuries to play in eight games, making six starts along the defensive line. He made starts at end, tackle and nose tackle. He totaled 22 tackles on the season with 1 tackle for a loss and 1 QB sack. In the Spring, he received the Jeff Hamm Memorial Award for the most improved defensive player of spring drills. He moved from tackle to end and promptly emerged as the starter. Jerry was rated an "Emerging Star" at Ole Miss by Lindy’s magazine.

In 2007, Jerry was named to the Second Team All-SEC by the Associated Press and Rivals.com. He started all 12 games at defensive tackle and was ranked sixth in the SEC in tackles for losses (TFLs) with 14. He finished second on the team in TFLs, 3 and a half QB sacks, 4 QB hurries and 58 total tackles.

In 2008, Jerry was named to the All-SEC First Team by the leagues coaches and to the All-SEC First Team by the nation's news media. Additionally, he was named to the Associated Press All-America First Team.

Professional career

Drawing comparisons to Vonnie Holliday and Cory Redding,[1][2] Jerry was commonly ranked as the second-best defensive tackle available in the 2009 NFL Draft, behind only Boston College′s B. J. Raji.[3][4][5] He was drafted in the first round with the 24th overall pick by the Atlanta Falcons.[6][7]

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 1 7⁄8 in
(1.88 m)		 290 lb
(132 kg)		 4.98 s 4.64 s 7.30 s 31 in
(0.79 m)		 9 ft 6 in
(2.90 m)		 28 reps
All values from NFL Combine[1]

Jerry was signed to a five-year contract by the Falcons on July 30, 2009.[8] He competed with Trey Lewis to replace Grady Jackson, who was not re-signed by the Falcons, at defensive tackle.[9]

Peria Jerry suffered a major knee injury on September 20, 2009, which caused him to miss the remainder of the 2009 season.

In 2010, he came back from injury, and played in all 16 games. However, he lost his starting job to rookie DT Corey Peters.

On July 31, 2014, Jerry announced his retirement from the NFL.[10]

NFL statistics
YearTeamGPCOMBTOTALASTSACKFFFRFR YDSINTIR YDSAVG IRLNGTDPD
2009ATL21010.0000000000
2010ATL169812.0000000001
2011ATL1610730.0100000001
2012ATL14141130.0010000000
2013ATL16332583.5010000001
Career646751165.5120000003

[11]

Personal

Peria Jerry is the older brother of former NFL player John Jerry. [12]

References
  1. "Pro Football War Room: Peria Jerry", SportingNews.com, April 25, 2009
  2. McGuire, Matt, "2009 NFL Draft Prospects: Peria Jerry Profile", WalterFootball.com
  3. Fiutak, Pete (April 21, 2009), "2009 NFL Draft - The Defensive Tackles", College Football News
  4. Needell, Paul (April 24, 2009), "2009 NFL Draft Analysis: Defensive ends/defensive tackles", The Star-Ledger
  5. Abromowitz, Michael, "2009 NFL Draft Rankings - Defensive Tackles", NFL Draft Director, archived from the original on April 30, 2009, retrieved August 16, 2009
  6. Ledbetter, D. Orlando (April 26, 2009), "Falcons opt for defense", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
  7. "2009 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
  8. Ledbetter, D. Orlando (July 30, 2009), "Falcons, first-round pick Jerry reach deal", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
  9. Devitt, Dawson (July 29, 2009), "The Fight for D-Tackle: Jerry or Lewis?", The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, archived from the original on October 6, 2011, retrieved August 16, 2009
  10. Rosenthal, Gregg (July 31, 2014). "Peria Jerry, former Falcons first-round pick, retiring". NFL.com. Retrieved July 31, 2014.
  11. "Peria Jerry Stats". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  12. Fialkov, Harvey (April 23, 2010), "Dolphins draft Ole Miss OG John Jerry in third round", South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
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