Calais Campbell

Calais Malik Campbell (/kɑːˈleɪɪs/ kah-LAY-iss; born September 1, 1986) is an American professional football defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes and was selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2008 NFL draft.

Campbell played his high school football at South High School in Denver, Colorado. Widely regarded as one of the nation's top defensive end prospects, he was ranked as the tenth-best strongside defensive end by Rivals.com and the seventh-best defensive end by Scout.com. He amassed a state-record total of 57 sacks in his career at South High School.

In addition to football, Campbell also starred on the school's basketball team; averaging 22.7 points (fourth best in Colorado), 16.0 rebounds per game (led the state) and 3.3 blocks per game, he was an All-State basketball selection as a junior. ^{[citation needed]} Campbell also competed in track and field at South, qualifying for the state meet in the discus and shot put in 2003. His track and field personal bests: 21 feet (6.4 m) in the long jump, 48 feet (15 m) in the shot put, 135 feet (41 m) in the discus and 44 feet 2 inches (13.46 m) in the triple jump.

Campbell chose Miami over Colorado State, Nebraska, Louisiana State, Michigan, Oklahoma, and San Diego State.

After redshirting his first season in 2004, Campbell became a starter at Miami in the 2005 season. In 11 games, he recorded 24 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, and three passes defensed. In the 2006 season, he had 55 total tackles, 10.5 sacks, four passes defensed, and three forced fumbles. He recorded at least three sacks in a single game on three occasions in the 2006 season. In his final season with the Hurricanes in 2007, he had 50 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, three passes defensed, and one interception, which came against Marshall in the season opener.

The Arizona Cardinals selected Campbell in the second round (50th overall) of the 2008 NFL draft. Campbell was the sixth defensive end drafted in 2008. The Cardinals had no immediate need for a starting-caliber defensive end, but chose to make a value pick and draft Campbell after he unexpectedly fell out of the first round and was considered the top player available at the time of their selection.

On July 24, 2008, the Cardinals signed Campbell to a four-year, $3.40 million contract with $1.68 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $484,500.

Campbell entered training camp slated as a backup defensive end and competed against Bryan Robinson and fellow rookie Kenny Iwebema for a spot in the rotation. Head coach Ken Whisenhunt officially named Campbell a backup defensive end to start the regular season, behind veterans Darnell Dockett and Antonio Smith.