Marcus Spears Biography

Marcus Spears born Marcus Raishon Spears is an American former college and professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons. He played college football for Louisiana State University (LSU) and earned consensus All-American honors. The Dallas Cowboys drafted him in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, and he also played for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens.

Marcus Spears Age

Marcus Raishon Spears was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on March 8, 1983. As of 2019, he is 36 years.

Marcus Spears Family

Spears was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was a highly sought-after two-sport athlete in the country following his senior season at Southern University Laboratory School in Baton Rouge. On the high school football field, he was rated as the No. 1 tight end prospect in America and the third-best overall prospect after earning high school All-America honors.

He was named first-team Class 1A all-state selection on both offense and defense following his senior season, becoming the first player to be honored on both in Louisiana since 1991. He finished his final prep season with 28 receptions for 435 yards and three touchdowns and 245 rushing yards and six touchdowns on offense and 22 tackles for losses, 11.5 quarterback sacks and four fumble recoveries on defense. Spears was also one of the nation’s top basketball prospects. He played in the first ever U.S. Army All-American Bowl game on December 30, 2000.

Marcus Spears Wife

Spears is a married man. He and his wife, Aiysha Kenya Smith,( played for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA.) have two daughters, Macaria Reagan (born 2/23/07) and Miko Reign Spears (born 1/3/2013), and one son, Marcus Rayshon Spears (born 4/8/09).

Marcus Spears Height

Marcus has a height of 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) and weight of 315 lb (143 kg)

Marcus Spears Career

College career

Spears attended Louisiana State University, where he played for coach Nick Saban’s LSU Tigers football team from 2001 to 2004. He was initially recruited by LSU as a tight end but was soon moved to the defensive line. Spears played tight end, fullback and defensive end as a freshman in 2001. Recording two catches for 20 yards on offense and eight tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss on defense. His play earned him freshman All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) honors as a tight end.

The 2002 season marked his first as a full-time defensive player, in which he recorded 46 tackles, 16 quarterback pressures, 3.5 tackles for losses and three sacks. In 2003, during LSU’s national championship season, he contributed 49 tackles, 23 quarterback pressures, 13 tackles for losses, six sacks and six passes defended to earn First-team All-SEC honors. Playing against the Oklahoma Sooners for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl, he returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown to give the Tigers a 21-7 advantage in their 21-14 victory.

During his 2004 senior season, Spears put together a career year, earning first-team All-America honors from the Walter Camp Foundation, American Football Coaches Association, and AP, and second-team All-America honors from Sports Illustrated, first-team All-SEC honors, and was a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award and Lombardi Award.

He finished the year tying his career-high in tackles (49) while setting career-highs for tackles for losses (17) and sacks (nine, a figure that ranks fourth in the LSU single-season records). He also recorded 21 quarterback pressures to help the Tigers finish the year third in the country in total defense.

Professional Career

Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys entered the 2005 NFL Draft with two first-round draft choices. Spears was considered by head coach Bill Parcells to be the key to the team’s eventual move to a 3-4 defense and wanted to take him with the first selection (11th overall pick). Owner/GM Jerry Jones overruled Parcells and drafted DeMarcus Ware instead, who the team thought would not be available later in the draft. Spears was eventually selected by the Cowboys with the 20th overall pick.

2008

Marcus Spears started 15 games of the 16 games he played in the 2008 season. He registered 35 tackles (with 23 being solo, and 12 being assisted tackles), a sack, and a forced fumble.

2009

In 2009, he started 14 games and recorded 50 tackles (2 for losses), a career-high 2.5 sacks and a career-high tying 16 quarterback pressures and 2 pass breakups.

Spears played a key role in the playoffs, registering a tackle and three pressures in the wildcard playoff win against the Philadelphia Eagles, as the defense did not allow a rushing first down for the first time in postseason team history. He had a postseason career-high six tackles and pressure in the divisional game against the Minnesota Vikings.

2010

After playing in only eight games (7 starts), his streak of 88 consecutive games played ended on November 10, when he was placed on the injured reserve list, with a left calf injury. Playing mostly in running downs, he registered 24 tackles (1 for loss) and 3 quarterback pressures.

2011

Spears signed a 5-year, $19.2 million contracts during the off-season. He injured his groin in the second preseason game and missed the rest of the preseason.

New defensive coordinator Rob Ryan selected Kenyon Coleman and Jason Hatcher as the starters at defensive end, relegating Spears into a reserve role for the first time in his career. He was used mostly on running downs and registered 29 tackles (one for loss), 15th on the team and fifth among defensive linemen, one sack, two pass deflections, and one quarterback pressure.

2012

In 2012, he again had a reserve role but got a chance to start in six games because of injuries. Spears finished the season with 35 tackles (2 for loss) and 1 sack. He missed one game with a knee injury.

On March 13, 2013, Spears was released because of a degenerative knee condition and he was not seen as a good fit in the team’s plan to change to a 4-3 defense. While he never developed into a Pro Bowl player like fellow 2005 first-round pick DeMarcus Ware, he was durable, an excellent locker room presence and fulfilled his primary responsibility in the 3-4 defense, which was to create rushing lanes for the outside linebackers.

Baltimore Ravens

On March 15, 2013, Spears signed a two-year, $3.55 million deal with the Baltimore Ravens. On October 30, 2013, he was waived after registering 10 tackles as a reserve defensive end.

TV career

In 2015 he began hosting a TV show called DFW Outdoorsman The show covers hunting, fishing, and other similar activities in the North Texas area. He is a regular contributor to the Paul Finebaum Show, broadcast daily on the SEC Network. Also, he is affectionately referred to as “The Big Swagu”.

In August 2014, he started as co-host of SEC Nation, the SEC/ESPN Network’s flagship show. SEC Nation is a weekly college football preview show offering insight into upcoming national and SEC football games. Beginning with the 2017 College Football season, Spears began hosting Thinking Out Loud on the SEC Network with former University of Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy.

Marcus Spears Net Worth

He has an estimated net worth of over $10 million dollars and receives a salary of ‎$1,375,000.

Marcus Spears Instagram

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Marcus Spears Twitter

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