Why did Danny McCray retire?
Danny McCray is one of many former NFL players to find success on other mediums like the reality TV show Survivor. The former LSU player played safety and linebacker in college and went undrafted in 2010. McCray joined the Dallas Cowboys that year and played for them from 2010 to 2013 and again in 2015. For one year in 2014, Danny McCray also played for the Chicago Bears. The former NFL safety recently made headlines for his work on the reality TV show.
#Survivor's Danny McCray (@dannydmac44) explains his final words, why nobody is targeting Xander and what REALLY happened on the Shan vote. ew.com/tv/survivor-41…
Upon being voted out of Survivor’s 41st season, Danny McCray bid farewell and said, “Go Cowboys” when he left five players vying for the $1 million prize. The former Cowboys player apparently hid his NFL past from his competitors on the show to avoid being a target. Instead, he disclosed to them that he played college football.
Before the show in Fiji aired on television, he spoke to The Dallas Morning News’ Michael Gehlken:
“Basketball players, baseball players, they would say, ‘I played whatever sport.’ And then they would get voted out or they would get looked down upon because the assumption is you already made enough money, so why would we give it to you if you make it to the end of the game?”
“My idea was to hide that [NFL career] as much as possible and not let anybody know what I did in my previous career. I was hoping that would work. We’ll have to see how it plays out.”
Danny McCray's NFL record and retirement
It’s not clear exactly why Danny McCray retired in 2015 after six years in the NFL. Known as a special teams specialist (he also served as the special teams’ captain), perhaps McCray could not expand his role, or he and the Cowboys decided to part ways. By the end of his career, McCray had played 91 total games, starting 10 of them, and had registered two interceptions, one sack and 107 solo tackles for the Dallas Cowboys between 2010-2015 and during one season in 2014 for the Chicago Bears. Considering the average NFL career is three years, McCray certainly made the most of his chance over six years.
I had a really great conversation with @dannydmac44 this morning. We talk about how he compared his #Survivor game to Deshawn's, how the hourglass twist temporarily took away his competitive spirit, and many, many things we didn't see on the show:
parade.com/1306457/mikebl…
Currently, Danny McCray serves as the Cowboys’ Youth Academies manager, where he helps run clinics and camps in his native Dallas, Texas area. McCray is the fourth former Cowboys player or coach to go on Survivor. The list includes former quarterback Gary Hogeboom (2011 season), former head coach Jimmy Johnson (2010) and former cornerback Alan Ball (2017).
Survivor airs on CBS every Wednesday at 8pm EST. Episode 12 aired on December 28, 2021.