Demetress Bell is a former offensive tackle for the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League. He began playing softball while attending Summerfield High School because the school did not have its own football team. Aside from softball, he tried his hand at basketball and did well enough to receive a scholarship to play for Northwestern State University. He competed and competed for Northwestern State University in collegiate basketball contests and meets for three seasons, appearing in a total of 88 games. Demetress was one of four National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) players that competed in both football and basketball in Division I during the 2006-2007 season. Following the conclusion of the 2006-07 season, Bell made the decision to focus solely on a ‘gridiron football’ career and, as a result, retired from basketball. When he was selected by the Buffalo Bills, the team representing the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area, his professional football career took off. He was a four-year starter with the Buffalo Bills, but due to a knee injury, he was forced to retire from the active roster. Following that, he played for the Philadelphia Eagles for one season before joining the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad.
His Childhood and Adolescence
Demetress Bell was born on May 3rd, 1984, in Summerfield, Louisiana, and spent his childhood in the unincorporated town of northeast Claiborne Parish.
Gloria Bell Williams, Demetress’ mother, was just 13 years old when she gave birth to him. Demetress Bell’s biological father, according to her, is Karl Anthony Malone, a well-known former American basketball player who is now retired.
He went to Summerfield High School, which is run by the Claiborne Parish School Board, and his natural love of athletics led him to play softball. He was initially more interested in softball than basketball or American football.
As he approached the end of his high school years, he progressively began to play more basketball. His abilities and talent were recognized, and he was offered a basketball scholarship at Louisiana’s Northwestern State University.
For three seasons, he played in 88 college-level games, matches, and contests for Northwestern State University: 2003-2004, 2004-2005, and 2006-2007.
Demetress was one of four renowned NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) athletes that competed in Division I football and basketball in the 2006-2007 season.
At the end of the 2006-07 season, he made the decision to focus his efforts on pursuing a football-related job.
Career Opportunities in College
Demetress Bell never had the opportunity to play American football until transferring to Northwestern State University on a scholarship because his high school, Summerfield High School, did not have a football team. It wasn’t until the later half of 2005, when his university’s sports coach redshirted him, that he was able to skip the basketball season and join the football squad. Demetress began by playing one of the two DE (defensive end) positions on the field.
In 2006, he was given the task of supervising the ‘left tackle’ position because most of the offensive line members were injured and forced to sit on the bench. As a reserve team member that season, he was named to the All-Louisiana team. He was named to the All-Louisiana and All-Southland Conference first teams the following season after playing a more active role in the offensive position.
A Professional Life of Demetress Bell
Demetress Bill was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draft after getting a master’s degree in ‘general studies’ from Northwestern State University. Despite the fact that he had only three seasons of organized football under his belt, the Buffalo Bills did not relegate him to the practice squad and instead kept him in their active lineup due to his natural abilities.
Bill did not play a single game during the 2007-08 season because the Buffalo Bills’ management thought he was better suited for future ventures.
Dick Jauron, the current head coach of the Buffalo Bills, selected Demetress for the active team, assigning him to the left tackle position for the 2008-09 season, based on his performance in training camp.
His first-half performance on the field was marred by a slew of penalties that earned him mixed evaluations. He suffered a significant knee injury while playing against the Tennessee Titans, which rendered him ineffective for the remainder of the season and resulted to his departure from the Buffalo Bills.
On April 4, 2012, the Philadelphia Eagles signed Demetress to a five-year contract worth around $34.5 million. Regrettably, he was released by the squad less than a year later, on February 6, 2013.
Six months later, the Dallas Cowboys signed him, albeit just as an offseason/practice squad member.
Personal History and Legacy
From the day he was born, the issue of Demetress Bell’s paternity has been an albatross around his neck, and it has also plagued his entire professional career. Karl Malone, the alleged father of Demetress, as confirmed by his mother Gloria Bell, has been silent on the subject until now. Nonetheless, a paternity suit brought by Gloria’s family in 1996, which required the testing of Malone’s blood samples, nearly proved that he or one of his brothers was Demetress’ biological father.
Karl Malone ignored the paternity case and did not appear in court throughout the hearings, but later settled with the plaintiff out of court. Malone paid the Bell family an undisclosed one-time payment and did not offer any monies for ongoing child support. Gloria’s family avoided exposing Karl, despite the fact that he was an adult when he impregnated her, because he was a neighbor and incarceration would eliminate any chance of him providing financial assistance to Demetress Bell.
Bell discovered his father’s identity only after graduating from high school. Bell’s mother has stated on the record that he did not want to hear anything about Karl Malone. Bell’s refusal to recognise his father was due to his father’s failure to accept Bell as his son.
He recalls only communicating with Karl Malone once, when he was an 18-year-old adolescent.
Estimated Net Worth
During his time in the National Football League, the football player earned the most of his money. Although Bell’s actual net worth is unknown, some claims claim he is worth more than $4 million.
Trivia
Bell continued to write his first name as “Demetrius” for over 29 years after his birth, but eventually learned that the actual spelling of his name was “Demetress.”