Darius Butler was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round (41st overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft.
 

2009 (7/2/0/1): Played in his first NFL game versus the Buffalo Bills (9/14) ... Registered his first career interception, picking off a Kerry Collins pass in the Patriots' 59-0 victory over the Tennessee Titans (10/18).

Buffalo (9/14): Made his NFL debut, playing in a reserve role at cornerback in the Patriots' 25-24 victory over the Bills ... Credited with a pass defensed and one solo tackle ... Broke up a Trent Edwards pass intended for Roscoe Parrish in the fourth quarter. at N.Y. Jets (9/20): Played in reserve at cornerback and on special teams coverage units ... Tallied one solo tackle. Atlanta (9/27): Inactive. Baltimore (10/4): Played in reserve at cornerback and on special teams punt return and coverage units ... Hit Derrick Mason to break up a pass on third and four in the final minute of the game, forcing Baltimore into a last-chance, fourth-down try ... Broke up a Joe Flacco pass intended for Mason in the end zone in the second quarter ... Made one solo tackle. at Denver (10/11): Played in reserve at cornerback and tallied one solo tackle. Tennessee (10/18): Made his first NFL start, playing at cornerback as the Patriots tied the largest margin of victory by team since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger with a 59-0 shutout over the Titans ... Scooped up his first NFL interception, grabbing a Kerry Collins pass that was intended for Nate Washington, setting up a drive that would yield the third of five record-setting Tom Brady touchdown passes in the second quarter. at Tampa Bay (10/25): Played in reserve at cornerback in the Patriots' 35-7 victory over the Buccaneers at Wembley Stadium ... Registered an interception for the second straight week, picking off Josh Johnson' Hail Mary attempt at the end of the first half. Miami (11/8): Made his second career start, playing at cornerback in the Patriots' 27-17 win over the Dolphins ... Registered four tackles (3 solo).

Butler started 43 of 45 games he played in at Connecticut, recording 180 tackles (125 solos) with 7.5 stops for losses of 20 yards and three forced fumbles... Deflected 26 passes and ranked tied for eighth in school history with 10 interceptions... His 213 return yards on those pass thefts rank third on the school career-record list behind Darrell Wilson (243 yards; 1976, 78-80) and Dave Korponai (218; 1961-63)... His two interception returns for touchdowns tied a school career-record... His 140 yards via interception returns in 2005 rank fourth on the Huskies' season-record list behind Korponai (184 in 1962), Rich Fenton (163 in 1973) and Lenny King (163 in 1956)... His average of 35.0 yards per interception return in 2005 rank sixth on the Big East annual record chart... Tied the school and conference game-record with three interceptions vs. Army in 2005... He gained 122 yards on those three pass thefts in the 2005 Army clash, breaking the old school game-record of 104 yards by Korponai vs. Rhode Island in 1962, and rank second on the Big East Conference game chart behind the 172 yards gained by Vann Washington of West Virginia vs. Louisiana Tech (10/29/94)... His 90-yard kickoff return vs. South Florida in 2005 is the 10th-longest runback in school history... His 86-yard gain on an interception vs. Army in 2005 is the second-longest pass theft return in school annals behind Korponai (100 vs. Rhode Island, 1962) and Pheno Tombari (93 vs.Wesleyan, 1928).

2008:
Played in 10 games and had 40 tackles, including three for a loss … A two-year team captain who started all of his 45 career games played at cornerback…earned the team’s Kendall Madison Award for being a strong team player…was a First Team All-BIG EAST pick at cornerback… had seven tackles against Rutgers (Oct. 18) and six vs. Temple (Sept. 6)…also saw his first time on offense as a wide receiver…had nine receptions on the year for 123 yards and a TD…earned the offensive game ball in the win over Louisville (Sept. 26) as he had three receptions for 40 yards and the first TD reception of his career…had a touchdown run of 13 yards against Virginia (Sept. 13)…earned the team defensive game ball in the Temple win.

2007:
Team captain ... Started all 13 games in 2007and has missed just one start in his three-year UConn career ... Made 54 tackles this year, intercepted two passes and broke up seven more though most teams do not throw his way ... Also had 2.5 tackles for loss, one each against Maine (Sept. 8) and Pittsburgh (Sept. 22) ... Had either four or five tackles in nine of UConn's 12 games ... Forced a fumble and had seven tackles, including a half of a TFL, in the Meineke Car Care Bowl against Wake Forest (Dec. 29) ... Forced a fumble and made three solo stops against Syracuse (Nov. 17) ... Intercepted a pass, broke up two more and made three tackles against Louisville (Oct. 19), a game in which he helped hold Harry Douglas to just 19 receiving yards, his lowest total since 2005 ... Returned an interception 36 yards for a touchdown in the season-opener at Duke (Sept. 1) while making four stops.

2006:
Started every game except for Syracuse (Nov. 18) which he missed with a sore hamstring ... Made 50 tackles on the year, 36 of them solos, and a pair of TFLs ... Intercepted four passes, tying teammate Danny Lansanah for third in the BIG EAST ... Also broke up seven passes ... Made a career-high nine tackles, eight of them solos in the season finale at Louisville (Dec. 2) ... At Rutgers (Oct. 29), had six tackles, including a half of a TFL, and one pass break-up ... Picked up UConn's defensive game ball after the win over Army (Oct. 14) in which he picked off two passes, broke up two more and made two tackles ... Had seven tackles against Navy (Sept. 30) including a TFL ... Intercepted a pass and made four stops in the win at Indiana (Sept. 23) ... Intercepted a pass in the season opener against Rhode Island (Aug. 31), making two tackles.

2005:
Started all 11 games at cornerback, the only defensive back to start every contest ... Perhaps UConn's best freshman performer in 2005 ... Proved to be a top cover corner as the year progressed while also making an impact on special teams, earning BIG EAST weekly honors in both disciplines during the season ... Recorded 36 tackles on the year (24 solo) with four interceptions, eight break-ups and one forced fumble ... Returned 10 kickoffs for 338 yards with one touchdown ... Became the first Husky to score both a defensive and a special teams touchdown in the same season ... Returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown against USF (Nov. 26) to earn the special teams game ball while also intercepting a pass in the game. Named the BIG EAST Special Teams Player of the Week for his efforts against the Bulls ... Nearly broke a kickoff return free for a touchdown at Pittsburgh (Nov. 12), returning three in the game for 102 yards (34.0 avg.), including a 65-yard scamper ... Broke up three passes against Rutgers (Oct. 22) and made five stops ... Forced a fumble, broke up a pass and had four tackles in the win over Syracuse (Oct. 7) ... Had a landmark game at Army (Oct. 1) as he intercepted three passes, which he returned for a school-record 122 yards, including an 86-yard touchdown. That run back was the third longest in school history and UConn's longest interception return since Dave Korponai ran one back 100 yards against Rhode Island on Nov. 17, 1962. The 122 return yards set both UConn and Michie Stadium records while ranking second-best in BIG EAST annals ... Earned UConn's defensive game ball after the Army game and was named the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week.

2004: Redshirted
Named the Defensive Scout Team Player of the Week prior to the Duke game (Sept. 11).

High School:
The first student-athlete to ever sign a national letter of intent from Coral Springs Charter ... Listed amongst the top 20 recruits in talent-rich Broward County by the Miami Herald despite not playing football until his junior year ... Named All-County by both the Herald and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel ... An honorable mention All-State selection ... Playing quarterback in an option offense, he both rushed and passed for over 1,000 yards in 2003 while also starting at safety on defense ... Totaled 2,491 total yards as a senior and was responsible for 25 touchdowns ... Finished third in Broward County in rushing yards in 2003 and was second in completions, attempts and passing yards ... Selected for the Dade-Broward All-Star Game ... Team captain ... Named preseason All-County in basketball and scored over 1,000 career points.
 

Darius J. Butler was born on March 18, 1986 ... One of eight siblings ... The first student-athlete to ever sign a national letter of intent from Coral Springs Charter ... Listed amongst the top 20 recruits in talent-rich Broward County by the Miami Herald despite not playing football until his junior year ... Playing quarterback in an option offense, he both rushed and passed for over 1,000 yards in 2003 while also starting at safety on defense ... Totaled 2,491 total yards as a senior and was responsible for 25 touchdowns ... Also played basketball and scored over 1,000 points ... Uncle, Gene Atkins, played in the NFL from 1987-96 with the New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins ... Cousin of Baltimore Ravens running back Willis McGahee, an All-American at Miami in 2002 ... Majored in sociology at Connecticut.