Markquese Bell
| No. 14 – Dallas Cowboys | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Safety | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | January 6, 1999 Bridgeton, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 205 lb (93 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Bridgeton | ||||||
| College: | Florida A&M | ||||||
| Undrafted: | 2022 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
| Roster status: | Active | ||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Player stats at PFR | |||||||
Markquese Bell (born January 6, 1999) is an American football safety for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida A&M Rattlers.
Early years
Bell grew up in Bridgeton, New Jersey and attended Bridgeton High School.[1] As a senior, he was the starter at quarterback and defensive back, tallying 885 rushing yards, 7 touchdowns, 76 tackles, 2 interceptions, 3 pass breakups and one forced fumble. He was a two-time second-team all-state selection and the 2015 South Jersey Times Offensive Player of the Year.
He was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play college football at Maryland over offers from Ohio State, Rutgers, and Virginia.[2]
College career
Bell accepted a football scholarship from the University of Maryland. He was suspended entering his freshman season due to a violation of the team's code of conduct.[3] He was ultimately expelled from the school before ever playing in a game for the Terrapins.[4]
He transferred to Coffeyville Community College for the 2018 season and made 52 tackles with two interceptions. After the season, Bell transferred to Florida A&M University.[5]
As a sophomore in 2019, he started 11 games at safety, posting 61 tackles (5 for loss), 5 interceptions (tied for the conference lead), 9 pass breakups and 2 forced fumbles.
In 2020, he was not able to play, as the school opted to cancel its football games due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a senior in 2021, he started 12 games, registering 95 tackles (led the team), 6.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, one interception, one pass breakup and 5 forced fumbles. He had 15 tackles (one for loss), one sack and one forced fumble against the University of South Florida.
College statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Season | Team | GP | Solo | Ast | Tot | Int | Avg | Yds | TD | PD | FF | FR | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Florida A&M | 11 | 39 | 24 | 63 | 4 | 9.7 | 39 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2020 | Florida A&M | Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||||||||
| 2021 | Florida A&M | 12 | 71 | 24 | 95 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 23 | 110 | 48 | 158 | 5 | 4.8 | 39 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
Professional career
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+1⁄8 in (1.88 m) |
212 lb (96 kg) |
32+3⁄8 in (0.82 m) |
9+3⁄8 in (0.24 m) |
4.41 s | 1.51 s | 2.56 s | 4.37 s | 7.25 s | 36.5 in (0.93 m) |
10 ft 3 in (3.12 m) | ||
| Sources:[6][7] | ||||||||||||
Bell was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys after the 2022 NFL draft on May 1.[8][9] He was declared inactive in 12 games. He appeared in 5 games as a backup and compiled one tackle on defense.
In 2023, after rookie DeMarvion Overshown suffered a season-ending injury, Bell passed Devin Harper on the depth chart for the strongside linebacker job. By the end of the season, the effectiveness of camouflaging safeties as hybrid linebackers eventually caught up with the Cowboys and the team was exposed defending the run game. Bell appeared in 17 games with 8 starts, registering 103 tackles (second on the team), 3 tackles for loss and 4 pass breakups. He had 8 tackles (one for loss) and one forced fumble in the season opener against the New York Giants. He made 7 tackles and one pass breakup against the Los Angeles Chargers. He had 10 tackles against the Detroit Lions. He made 9 tackles and one quarterback pressure in the 32–48 Wildcard Playoff loss against the Green Bay Packers. His efforts earned him the NFL's HBCU Spotlight Player of the Year award.
NFL career statistics
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
Regular season
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Fumbles | Interceptions | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | TD | PD | ||
| 2022 | DAL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | DAL | 17 | 12 | 94 | 61 | 33 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Career | 22 | 12 | 95 | 62 | 33 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
Postseason
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Fumbles | Interceptions | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | TD | PD | ||
| 2022 | DAL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | DAL | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
References
- ^ McGarry, Mike (May 1, 2022). "Bo Melton, Isiah Pacheco and Markquese Bell celebrate the start of their NFL careers". Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ Wasserman, Ari (January 1, 2017). "Markquese Bell, a four-star athlete and Ohio State target, commits to Maryland". Cleveland.com. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ Wells, Adam (August 25, 2017). "Markquese Bell, Alex Woods Suspended by Maryland for Violating Code of Conduct". Bleacher Report. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ Markus, Don (November 7, 2017). "Suspended safety Markquese Bell announces he will be leaving Maryland". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ Henry, Jim (March 27, 2019). "FAMU four-star transfer Markquese Bell shines in spring camp". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ "Markquese Bell Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Draft Scout Markquese Bell, Florida AM NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
- ^ Gehlken, Michael (May 2, 2022). "Cowboys S Markquese Bell one of 20 undrafted free agents to reach terms". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
- ^ Henry, Jim (August 30, 2022). "Undrafted in April, ex-FAMU star Markquese Bell makes Dallas Cowboys". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved August 31, 2022.