From Undrafted to Rookie Sensation: The Underdog Story of Dell Pettus

On Sunday afternoon during Week 10 of the 2024 NFL regular season, the Chicago Bears are facing 90 yards down the field on 3rd & 9 in the fourth quarter, trying to cut into the Patriots’ lead to get its season back on track.

New England lines up in a cover-5 dime package on defense; undrafted safety Dell Pettus is showing blitz on the left edge of the line of scrimmage next to veteran edge rusher Anfernee Jennings. Next to Jennings is defensive captain Deatrich Wise Jr.

The pair of Jennings and Wise perfectly execute a stunt as Bears quarterback Caleb Williams drops back to pass. This leaves Pettus with an open lane to make a crucial play and record his first career sack on Williams to shut down the Chicago drive. New England’s offense returns to the field to close out a Patriots win at the historic Soldier Field.

On April 28th of the 2024 off-season, the Patriots signed Pettus as an undrafted free agent out of Troy, where he played safety. The Alabama native would face an uphill battle throughout the summer in an attempt to make the Patriots final roster as an undrafted rookie. Fortunately for Pettus, he’s used to making a name for himself.

Pettus started playing football at just six years old, starting on the offensive side of the ball. He knew he had a passion for the sport at a very young age; his father played football in college, and watching football on Sundays was one of his favorite things to do as a kid. He was also very active in the sports world, growing up playing baseball and soccer, complementing his time on the football field.

In high school, Pettus was a multi-sport athlete at Sparkman High School in Harvest, Alabama, playing football and baseball and also being a part of the track & field team. Nonetheless, he knew football was what he wanted to focus on, having dreams of making it to the NFL since he was a kid.

However, by the end of his junior year at Sparkman High, Pettus had yet to receive a scholarship offer from a school.

“I was very disappointed and didn’t understand why,” said Pettus. “I knew I was good enough. Other guys in the area were getting offers—I thought I was good enough to get those offers too. It was one of those times where you just have to be patient.”

This led to a lot of internal frustration for Pettus, especially following his strong showing on the field during his junior season. In 2017, Pettus’ junior year of high school, he played a crucial role in Sparkman’s return to the Alabama High School A7 playoffs. It was the school’s first time returning to the playoffs in eleven years.

Pettus’ father was a very important figure throughout his football career, aiding him with whatever obstacle was thrown in his way.

“In those moments, I lean on my parents a lot,” said Pettus. “[My dad] has always been honest with me. I lean on him at those times. He was very supportive and would say, ‘Hey, be patient. Everything happens for a reason. Your time will come. You just have to wait.'”

Patience has been a significant factor for Pettus. His father continuously stressed the importance of patience, and it has been a common theme throughout his career.

With the beginning of summer and his senior year quickly approaching, Pettus knew he needed to find a way to stand out. Playing primarily as a cornerback in high school, in a zone-heavy defensive scheme, several coaches reached out to him, asking to see him play man coverage in camps over the summer.

Pettus showed out, and following his camp attendance, he began to garner attention from schools, receiving his first two scholarship offers. One of the offers was from Troy University. However, he was not done yet. He knew he had more to show his senior year.

By the end of his senior year at Sparkman High, Pettus was one of the top high school recruits in Alabama. He was named a top-50 player in the state and was a second-team all-state selection in 2018. He finished his high school career with 132 tackles, 10 interceptions, 17 tackles for loss, and two forced fumbles.

Ranking as a three-star recruit out of high school, Pettus decided to accept his scholarship offer from Troy University.

Pettus, at only 18 years of age, was an immediate contributor at Troy during his true freshman season in 2019, officially moving to safety. Pettus played in all 12 games, starting in 10 of them, and was the program’s freshman leader in tackles with 63 total. At the end of the season, Pettus was named as an honorable mention to the All-Sun Belt team.

“I think my freshman year was a great way to start. That was a very pivotal year for me just because it got the ball rolling the right way. I got my name out there. It definitely helped me going forward because I had accomplished something, and it gave me something to keep striving and reaching for.”

However, despite his immediate success at the collegiate level, Pettus faced another mental hurdle that he had to overcome.

“I’ve always been considered undersized. Even now I’m still undersized for my position. I think it was the same thing in high school; that’s something I can’t change. It was really hard for me to come to grips with that just because this was something out of my control.”

Again, Pettus’ father was an immediate positive influence that helped guide him past that hurdle.

“[My dad] kept me as calm as I could be in those moments just because I’m the type of person where I get really fixated on things, and I was really stressing about it… I had a lot of good male figures in my life when it comes to coaches who encouraged me, outside of my father. I was very fortunate for that.”

In order to combat the narrative that he was undersized and potentially too small to play at the next level, Pettus made sure to have one quality trait that coaches at any level cannot resist: availability.

“He made sure he stayed healthy,” said David Mackie, a former Troy defensive assistant. “He was constantly doing recovery work… because he knew he had to add as much body armor as he could without slowing himself down. He worked his tail off.”

Pettus played in every single game of his five-year collegiate career, starting on defense in all but two matchups.

During his time at Troy, Pettus worked very closely with current Stephen F. Austin outside linebackers coach David Mackie, who joined the Troy football program as a defensive analyst in 2022. Mackie has been one of Pettus’ biggest supporters throughout his football career.

“There were a lot of good people in that facility who were very supportive,” said Pettus. “They’re honest and real with you, and they want to see you get better as a man and as an athlete… I’m very supportive of my coaching staff, who did help me and continued to push me and found ways to help me get better, not only as a ballplayer but also as a man and a leader.”

When he joined the program, Mackie was incredibly impressed with Pettus’ work on and off the field, immediately taking note of how sharp Pettus was.

“He took incredible notes,” said Mackie. “It was like having a coach out there on the field. He not only knew his job in and out; he knew everybody else’s. If a ball hit, he knew exactly where and why according to the call… He really was a coach’s dream.”

Mackie described Pettus’ notebook as an Atlantic phone book because he took so many notes. He was like a sponge that always tried to soak up as much information as possible. He knew everybody’s job on defense, and, as the shot caller and main communicator on the defense at the safety position, Pettus needed to ensure everyone was doing their job.

“Dell is such a competitor,” said Mackie. “He’s going to show up early for workouts. He’s going to stay late. For younger guys when they first came in there, he was quick to let them know, ‘Hey, this isn’t how we do things here. You’re expected to show up early. This voluntary list isn’t voluntary. Have your ass here by this time.'”

Pettus’ teammates looked up to him. His competitiveness and work ethic were contagious, and others followed him because of that.

“It was like having a coach out there as far as the competitive fire that he has. If he made a mistake, he was quick to take accountability, like, ‘That won’t happen again. Here’s why I did this. My eyes were in the wrong place.’ Guys gravitated toward him… That type of leadership encouraged others to follow him.”

As far as his work ethic goes, Pettus retained that competitive fire when working on his own craft. During the 2022 collegiate season, Pettus dropped an interception in a team practice. Frustrated with himself, he asked Mackie to throw him extra ball drills after practice to ensure he did not drop another ball. From that point forward, every day after practice for the rest of the season, Pettus would stay behind with Mackie and work on extra ball drills.

Outside of practice, Pettus was always trying to find a competitive edge on his opponents.

“He wants to know tight ends’ individual work and what receivers are taught so he can cover them better,” said Mackie. “That’s the level of thinking he’s at, where everybody else is essentially playing checkers… Dell’s going to be an outstanding coach one day when his football days are behind him. I always jokingly said that I’m going to hire him and not take no for an answer.”

Pettus and Mackie have a very close relationship. They’ll always reach out to each other, and Pettus will constantly check up on Mackie’s son, who’s a Patriots fan because he’s a Dell Pettus fan.

“As good as a football player Dell is, he’s an even better person. You can’t say enough good things about him.”

Despite the narrative that he was undersized, Pettus proved himself to be an impact player, making a name for himself during his freshman year. He would then go on to have an outstanding collegiate career with the Troy Trojans.

Throughout his five seasons at Troy, Pettus totaled 315 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 13 pass breakups, one sack, and a pick-6 to top it all off. Pettus was also named to the Third-team All-Sun Belt in 2020 and the Second-team All-Sun Belt in 2023. In 2022, he helped lead Troy to its first FBS top-25 ranking in program history at No. 19.

Shortly after declaring for the NFL Draft following his final collegiate season, Pettus accepted an invite to the Tropical Bowl all-star game. During practices and the game itself, Pettus continued to boost his draft stock in front of NFL scouts and coaches.

However, when draft night came in late April of 2024, Pettus’ name was not called. Instead, he received a phone call from the Patriots, notifying him of their plans to send him a free-agent offer following the draft.

“I remember on draft day when I got the call; all of my family was celebrating, and I walked out of the house,” said Pettus. “I was angry. I was pissed off.”

Going undrafted was a bittersweet moment for Pettus. His name was not called, but his dreams to play in the NFL were alive and well.

“Everything about me is that I expect myself to do things, so when I do them, I’m not surprised. I just expect that out of myself… With that being said, there is a part of me that, if you don’t see what I see in myself, then I take it personally. I feel as if it’s a shot at me. That chip is always going to be on my shoulder because I believe that I was good enough to be drafted, but that didn’t happen, and it just fueled the fire a little bit more.”

Nonetheless, it was a tough, humbling experience for Pettus. Fortunately for him, his mental toughness pushed him to prove himself even further.

“It was very humbling for me,” said Pettus. “When you go from being a guy that everybody knows how good you are, values you, and tells you how good you are—and you go through the process where you’re not getting a lot of phone calls from agents—it’s easy for you to go downhill and start to spiral. But I have the faith and the confidence in myself that when I did get my agents and started training, I felt like I had to prove once again how good I am to everybody.”

Pettus’ competitive fire kept him motivated during the spring. The chip on his shoulder was not leaving anytime soon.

“I got my foot in the door, and I told myself at a very young age that if I go to college, then I’m going to the NFL. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about it. All of my motivation is really internally rooted, just because it’s my passion, it’s my drive, it’s my desire and goal… Now I have to show why I have to stay here, why I belong here. Every day I came to the facility, it was about proving why I need to be here and why I should be a part of this organization—not only to myself, but to my peers and my coaches. I still feel that to this day. Every day I come to the facility, I feel like I’m just trying to show everybody why I should be here.”

Pettus actually had two offers on the table after the draft. One from the Patriots and another from the Green Bay Packers—he met with both organizations on a top-30 visit during the pre-draft process. However, he felt that New England saw something in him that other organizations didn’t.

“It’s kind of just a feeling,” said Pettus. “New England was the place for me because I just felt more at home with them. I felt like I was more wanted by New England, like they were more serious about seeing the potential in my future. And I wasn’t going to just come in and be another guy, like another UDFA that will maybe make the team, maybe not. I felt like I really had an opportunity to make the team. I think that speaks volumes to this organization.”

It was from this point on that Pettus would face his biggest obstacle yet in his football career: making the Patriots final roster as an undrafted free agent.

An undermined obstacle of the process that all NFL rookies have to deal with is the schedule change compared to college. You have to spend substantial time learning the playbook, learning the new scheme, and asking your body to do more physically demanding tasks than it ever has before.

“The biggest challenge was adjusting to the new daily schedule and the physical strain that is put on your body. The playbook was also something that I really dove into deep when I first got here, just because it’s very complex and new to me. As a safety, we have responsibilities, especially with communication, making sure everybody’s in line and doing the right assignment. It’s very meticulous and something I had to get used to.”

Heading into the summer, Pettus was on the outside looking in. Kyle Dugger and Jabrill Peppers were coming off of multi-year contract extensions; Brenden Schooler was a core special teamer ready to make his mark on the defensive side of the ball; Jaylinn Hawkins was brought in as a veteran depth piece; and before being placed on temporary injured reserve, Marte Mapu was poised to be a quality contributor. It’s not very often you see a team carry five or six safeties on the 53-man roster.

However, by the time training camp arrived in late July, Pettus was ready to make his mark and prove why he belonged in New England. Great veterans around him on defense also significantly helped him in his transition to the NFL and his overall development as a player.

“Dug and Pep: two guys that have played in this league at a very high level for a long time. They were very helpful. Especially with the knowledge aspect. We can talk about technique and form and how we’re supposed to do things all day, but if you don’t understand why you’re doing it and how you’re supposed to do it, you’re going to be lost. They’re tough guys because they care. I learned quickly that if they’re not talking to you, then they don’t expect anything from you. Anytime that I would make any mistake or error, they were quick to correct me on it. I knew it wasn’t personal because I knew that they wanted what’s best for me and the team. Having guys like them around was definitely helpful.”

Pettus also spent considerable time with recently elected All-Pro special teamer Brenden Schooler. Schooler, being a player who has found much success after signing in New England as an undrafted free agent in 2022, was a great source of information for Pettus. He constantly asked Schooler for advice during the summer.

“He was a guy I was very close to early on just because he was undrafted. I knew that he knew what the process was like, and he’s still finding ways to increase his production, which is crazy because he’s already been such a key player for our team. He’s still finding new ways to continue to soar and find other ways to get better.”

Schooler was a great teacher to Pettus and played a significant role in helping him adjust to the NFL.

“Dell and I hit it off right off the bat because with both of us being undrafted guys, I think he leaned on my experience and just how the process was for me,” said Schooler. “You could tell that Dell was really eager to learn and willing to go out there and do whatever the team asks of him to be successful. Seeing the development that he had from OTAs and through the season, it was pretty cool to get to see that in front of my eyes.”

Schooler also had first-hand experience with Pettus’ competitiveness and unique work ethic when the two would host friendly competitions with each other in the weight room. The work ethic that David Mackie attributed to.

“Dell is a hard worker, man. He’s got that chip on his shoulder, and that’s exactly what you need in this league. You need to have that chip on your shoulder because every year you have to hit the reset button… The fact that he already has that mindset is huge, and I think going forward it’s going to be able to let him grow more as a player on and off the field.”

The quality and continuous help from teammates and coaches helped Pettus start off strong in training camp, making notable plays almost every day. He credits the coaching staff and veterans on the defensive side of the ball for helping him learn the new everyday process of his football career.

“I put in enough time into it, and I spent enough time with my coaches and my peers, and like one day it kind of just clicked early into training camp. That was definitely a helpful moment for me because now I’m not thinking as much while I play. I’m playing a little more freely and playing ball naturally.”

Nearing the end of training camp, Pettus was written all over writers’ 53-man roster projections. Numerous sports journalists covering the team wrote that it was too difficult to find ways to leave him off of the roster because of the productive summer that he had. Even the Patriots head coach at the time, Jerod Mayo, knew he had a very tough decision ahead of him.

Several days before roster cutdowns, Mayo was asked about Pettus possibly making the final roster: “He’s making a case for himself, not only defensively but on special teams. It’s going to be a tough decision there.”

On August 27th, Pettus officially made the Patriots final roster. He impressed on defense, but he also showed promise on special teams and became an immediate contributor on Jeremey Springer’s unit to start the season.

“[Dell] getting thrown into the fire from Week 1 and being the personal protector—that’s not an easy job,” said Schooler. “Coordinators look for stuff like that. They look for guys who they can try to expose on whatever unit that you’re on. Having a rookie as a personal protector and taking command of that punt unit is not an easy job… For him to be a rookie and having to come in and learn a new protection system, I really tip my hat off to Dell.”

In Week 5, during a game against the Miami Dolphins, Pettus saw his first major workload on the defensive end with the absence of Dugger and Peppers. Pettus played 69% of the team’s defensive snaps during the game, recording 9 total tackles and filling in for the veterans noticeably well, especially as a box safety.

From Weeks 8-11, he played 55-65% of the defensive snaps, contributing to two wins against the New York Jets and the Bears. It was in the game in Chicago where Pettus recorded his first career sack on 2024 first overall pick, Caleb Williams, as the New England defense dominated the Bears offense.

Although New England couldn’t cement a win against the Buffalo Bills in Week 16, Pettus made a drive-saving play on special teams in the second quarter. Back at their own 18-yard line, the Patriots offense lined up to punt on 4th & 1. Being the personal protector, Pettus called the shot, took a direct snap, and followed his blockers, converting the attempt for a new set of downs.

“He was one of those rookies that we had this year that, if he wasn’t on our team, I don’t know how successful we would have been,” said Schooler. “Especially on that punt unit. The way he took command of that unit helped us tremendously with all of the injuries that we had… The fact he was able to take command and control was a huge testament to how he approached each and every day… It was pretty cool for him to ask me questions and try to lean on me for whatever advice he needed. I felt honored that I was able to be a small part of his success.”

Pettus finished his rookie season with 34 total tackles, two pass breakups, one sack, one tackle for loss, and being a core leader on the special teams unit.

Pro Football Focus, a sports analytics-driven rankings system, awarded Pettus a 73.9 season grade. He was the highest-graded rookie safety in the NFL last season and was the second-highest graded undrafted rookie. That grade also ranked him as the 17th-best safety in the NFL.

Even though going undrafted was a bittersweet moment, Pettus is grateful for his journey to the NFL.

“It’s something I’m very appreciative of,” said Pettus. “It was hard for me to come to terms with it when it first happened. It was such a bittersweet moment knowing that I’m going to the NFL, but I didn’t get drafted. But everything happens for a reason because I think I’ve grown a lot since then, not just as a person, but as a ballplayer. I think it continues to help me grow and savor every moment because, just being real with yourself, UDFAs are close to being done playing football and never getting to play again. I’m very humble about it, and I feel very blessed and grateful to have this opportunity.”

Looking towards next season, Pettus is focused on making a year-two jump. With that chip on his shoulder, he’s continuously finding ways to improve his game and prove why he belongs in the NFL.

“I think one concept that will transfer over to next season is the mindset to continue going each day and earn another day in the building. I feel like as long as I have that mindset, I’ll always be trying to find a way to critique myself and find ways to get better… I never want to be in a mindset where I feel like I let my foot off the gas.”