Darren Perry ranks in the all-time elite tier for defensive backs β a career that places Perry in the top 10% of all players at the position. The Knox value model assigns Perry a career score of 74, reflecting sustained impact that most players at the position never approach.
Darren Perry
Top 6% all-time defensive backsIron Man
Height5'11"
Weight200 lb
BornDec 29, 1968
Age57
CollegePenn StateSee College Stats
Rookie yr1992
Draft1992 Β· Rd 8, Pick 203 Β· PIT
All-Time Rank & Honors
career ranks, postseason ranks, awards, title contextRegular-season all-time ranks
A high-end defensive back defined as much by exceptional availability β almost never missed time as by their on-field impact (top 10% all-time). Coaches and teammates could count on them being available.
Career Value Β· VORP
VORP 176 Β· #479 Β· EliteWorth 176 points of value above a freely-available replacement safety β top 11% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 8 of 8 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +22 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
8 cleared
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it β adds 0, never a debit
48
Replacement
the KC-H bar
β
8
Seasons over
cleared the bar
Γ
+22
Avg surplus
peak +39
8 seasons Γ ~22 surplus β VORP 176
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
1 grid split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1992 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 49 | 43 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6 | 10 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1993 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 69 | 54 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 11 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1994 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 70 | 54 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7 | 18 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1995 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 78 | 68 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 10 | 0 | β | β | β |
| 1996 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 78 | 60 | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | 5 | 10 | 2 | β | β | β |
| 1997 | β | PIT | 16 | β | 77 | 68 | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | 4 | 8 | 1 | β | β | β |
| 1998 | β | PIT | 14 | β | 67 | 53 | β | β | β | 0.5 | 0.5 | 2 | 8 | 1 | β | β | β |
| 2000 | β | NO | 16 | β | 64 | 43 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3 | 9 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | 126 | β | 552 | 443 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 35 | 84 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Defense
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 24 | PIT | 16 | β | 49 | 43 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 6 | 10 | 0 | β | β | β | 10.5 |
| 1993 | 25 | PIT | 16 | β | 69 | 54 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 11 | 0 | β | β | β | 9.2 |
| 1994 | 26 | PIT | 16 | β | 70 | 54 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7 | 18 | 0 | β | β | β | 13.2 |
| 1995 | 27 | PIT | 16 | β | 78 | 68 | β | β | β | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 10 | 0 | β | β | β | 9 |
| 1996 | 28 | PIT | 16 | β | 78 | 60 | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | 5 | 10 | 2 | β | β | β | 11.5 |
| 1997 | 29 | PIT | 16 | β | 77 | 68 | β | β | β | 1.0 | 1.0 | 4 | 8 | 1 | β | β | β | 9.7 |
| 1998 | 30 | PIT | 14 | β | 67 | 53 | β | β | β | 0.5 | 0.5 | 2 | 8 | 1 | β | β | β | 8 |
| 2000 | 32 | NO | 16 | β | 64 | 43 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3 | 9 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 8.8 |
| Career | 126 | 552 | 443 | 21 | 0 | 0 | β | β | 35 | 84 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 79.9 |
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 74 Β· GreatA great career by KV-H: a peak-driven profile that scores 74 of 100, era-normalized against int/g peers across 8 scored seasons.
70
Sustained
career value
Γ.6
79
Peak
best 3 seasons
Γ.4
Γ1
Longevity
career length
Blend 73.6 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 74Β· confidence 100%
What builds the career mark of 70
On-field 50.3
Availability 19.7
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative int/g)
1992bestavg 70elite 702000
All-Time Standing
how this career measures against the all-time greats at the position14
Depth
of 100
Reached 16% of the all-time Interceptions leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
16% of the all-time Interceptions leader16
0 categories β₯25% of the all-time leader0
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 90%.
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average Β· KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average defensive backs aging curve. Group peak age: 21. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
Postseason Career
2 playoff gamesDefense
Tkl7Solo7
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Penn State), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Carnell LakeDB7yLevon KirklandMLB7yJoel SteedNT7yFred McAfeeRB6yKevin HenryDE6yYancey ThigpenWR6yRod WoodsonFS5yJason GildonLB5yChris OldhamDB5yCharles JohnsonWR5yErnie MillsWR5yMike TomczakQB4yOliver GibsonDT4yMark BruenerTE4yNeil O'DonnellQB4yLee FlowersDB4yMyron BellDB4yAndre HastingsWR4yKordell StewartQB4yTim LesterRB4yGary AndersonK3yJonathan HayesTE3yDwight StoneWR3yJerome BettisRB3y
1992 Draft ClassΒ· this player went #203
Franchise Succession
the room, before and afterDarren inherited the Pittsburgh Steelers DB room from Carnell Lake (1989β1998), and handed it to Myron Bell (1994β2001).
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2000team change
Joined NO (from PIT)
- 2000final season
Last recorded season with NO
- 1992draft
Drafted by PIT β Round 8, Pick 203
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts5'11" / 200 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Historical Knox Β· KV-H
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 8-season peers. See all β
74
peak 79
Season Report CardsΒ· KV-H era-normalized per season
B+1992
B1993
A1994
B1995
B+1996
B1997
C+1998
B2000
Availability
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 8 seasons.
98%
Era Translator
INT translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual INT | INT/G | β 2025 INT | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 6 | 0.4 | 4-2 | 0.2 |
| 1993 | 4 | 0.3 | 2-2 | 0.1 |
| 1994 | 7 | 0.4 | 5-2 | 0.3 |
| 1995 | 4 | 0.3 | 2-2 | 0.1 |
| 1996 | 5 | 0.3 | 3-2 | 0.2 |
| 1997 | 4 | 0.3 | 2-2 | 0.1 |
| 1998 | 2 | 0.1 | 1-1 | 0.1 |
| 2000 | 3 | 0.2 | 2-1 | 0.1 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), espn.com:stats-api (games-played, facts-only reference) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
176 career value over replacement β #479 all-time of 4,642. 22/season above a replacement-level S.
Draft OutcomeSteal β
Pick #203 (Rd 8) Β· PIT Β· 1992 Β· +49.6 vs expected KV-H
74actual
24.4 expected Β· Ξ+49.6
Fan Rating
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