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.

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. He was once clocked at 4.38-4.41 range at the 40-yard dash at a soft indoor surface at a high school Combine.

Track and field

Berry was also a standout athlete for the Creekside High School track team. He set school records in long jump, with a leap of 6.95 meters, and 200 meters, with a time of 21.76 seconds.

Berry was the anchor leg of the 2006 Class 4A state championship 4 × 400 metres relay team. Individually, he was the 2005 Class 4A state champion in the 200 meters.

He had career-bests of 10.66 seconds in the 100 meters and 21.44 seconds in the 200 meters.

College career

Berry received an football scholarship to attend the University of Tennessee.

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, Berry 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

Year	GP-GS	Tackles		Sacks	Pass Defense				Fumbles
		Tackles	Loss-Yards	No-Yards	Int-Yards	TD	PD	QBH	Yards	FF
2007	14-14	86	2-3	0-0	5-222	1	4	0	55	2
2008	12-12	72	9-21	3-11	7-265	2	6	0	0	0
2009	12-12	83	7-15	0-0	2-7	0	7	3	46	1
Total		241	18-39	3-11	14-494	3	17	3	0-0	0

Professional career

2010 NFL Draft

"As a rule, safeties aren't talked about going that high. But this guy I think in everybody's mind impacts the game. You try to get impact players, and Berry's certainly one."

St. Louis Rams GM Billy Devaney.

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 scouted 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, Georgia, and the main road U.S. Route 29.

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	Arm length	Hand size	40-yd dash	10-yd split	20-yd split	20-ss	3-cone	Vert	Broad	BP
6 ft 0 in	211 lb	33 1⁄4 in	9 5⁄8 in	4.47 s	1.54 s	2.51 s	4.23 s	6.80 s	43 in	10 ft 10 in	19 reps

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 returned for the start of the 2012 NFL season. Berry has been named to four Pro Bowls, in 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2015.

2014 season

On September 14, 2014, Berry sustained a high ankle sprain against the Denver Broncos, with the injury keeping him off the field until Week 8.

During a loss against the Oakland Raiders on November 20, 2014, Berry began to complain of chest pain. A mass was soon discovered in his chest, with him eventually being diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma on December 8, 2014. Berry was placed on the Chiefs' non-football illness list, ending his season. Berry's doctor, Dr. Christopher Flowers, a lymphoma specialist at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, said of Berry's diagnosis, "This is a diagnosis that is very treatable and potentially curable with standard chemotherapy approaches. The goal of Mr. Berry's treatment is to cure his lymphoma and we are beginning that treatment now."

2015 season

On July 28, 2015, the Chiefs announced through their official Twitter account that Berry had been cleared to resume football activities after he was declared clear of cancer nearly nine months after his initial diagnosis. Berry returned to the field gradually, but earned back his starting job and had a phenomenal season. He was selected to another Pro Bowl as the starting safety and many experts and coaches around the league remarked that he was the best safety in the entire NFL. He was named Comeback Player of the Year, as he helped the Chiefs to an 11-5 record and Wild Card berth, after overcoming Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

NFL stats

Year	Team	GP	COMB	TOTAL	AST	SACK	FF	FR	FR YDS	INT	IR YDS	AVG IR	LNG	TD	PD
2010	KC	16	92	77	15	2.0	1	0	0	4	102	26	54	1	9
2012	KC	16	86	73	13	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	10
2013	KC	15	74	66	8	3.5	1	2	24	3	134	45	49	2	10
2014	KC	6	37	32	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
2015	KC	16	61	55	6	0	0	0	0	2	40	20	25	0	10
Career		69	350	303	47	5.5	2	2	24	10	276	30	54	3	41

Key

• GP: games played
• COMB: combined tackles
• TOTAL: total tackles
• AST: assisted tackles
• SACK: sacks
• FF: forced fumbles
• FR: fumble recoveries
• FR YDS: fumble return yards
• INT: interceptions
• IR YDS: interception return yards
• AVG IR: average interception return
• LNG: longest interception return
• TD: interceptions returned for touchdown
• PD: passes defensed

Personal life

Berry's father, James, played running back for the University of Tennessee from 1978 to 1981, and was a captain of the 1981 squad. Berry's younger brothers, twins Elliott and Evan, currently play football at Tennessee. Berry is the first cousin once removed of former All-Pro Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Hugh Green.

Berry suffers from equinophobia, a fear of horses, frequently brought on by the Kansas City Chiefs' mascot, Warpaint.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]