Derrick James Mason (born January 17, 1974 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American football wide receiver who played for theBaltimore Ravens and went to Michigan State. On July 13th 2009, he announced he would be retiring, but he has not officially retired.

Tennessee Oilers/Titans

Mason started his career with the Oilers/Titans after being drafted in the 4th round (98th overall) in the 1997 NFL Draft. In his rookie season he played in 16 games recording 14 catches for 186 yards. He made his NFL debut versus the Oakland Raiders on August 31. The following season he again played in all 16 games and this time recording 25 catches for 333 yards and three touchdowns, the first of his career came versus the Chicago Bears on October 25. He also returned 31 punts for 228 yards. In the 1999 season,Mason gained 1,030 yards returning punts and kickoffs, assisting the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV where he returned 5 kickoffs for 122 yards and caught 2 passes for 18 yards in Tennessee's 23–16 loss. He also returned a kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown in the Titans 33-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC title game. In the 2000 season, he led the NFL in punt return yards (662) while also catching 63 passes for 895 yards and returning 41 kickoffs for 1,132 yards (an NFL leading 27 yards per return average), giving him 2,659 combined receiving and special teams yards, an NFL record for highest total of all-purpose yards in a single season. He is only the second player in Titans history to pass the 2,000 yard mark. He earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl. In 2001, he started 15 games and scored 9 touchdowns, a career high. Just as he had done the previous season, he went past the 2,000 all purpose yards mark, the first Titan to do this in consecutive seasons. The following season he started in 14 games and led the team in a number of categories including receptions, reception yards and touchdowns. In 2003, he started all 15 games and finished the season with 1,303 receiving yards and 95 receptions which was the 5th highest in the NFL. The following season, in 2004, he again started all 16 games and was ranked 2nd in the NFL with 96 receptions for 1,168 yards and seven touchdowns.^{[citation needed]}

[edit]Baltimore Ravens

Mason signed with the Baltimore Ravens as an unrestricted free agent on March 7, 2005. In his first year with the team, he started in all 16 games and recorded 86 receptions, a Ravens franchise season record. In 2006, he played in 16 games with 15 starts and finished the campaign with 68 receptions for 750 yards and two touchdowns. Mason caught the pass that gaveSteve McNair 30,000 passing yards for his career in the 19-7 win in the season finale against the Buffalo Bills. The following year, Mason had 103 receptions for 1087 yards and five touchdowns. Mason became the first player in Ravens history to record 100 receptions^[1]. In 2008, Mason was selected as a third alternate wide receiver for the Pro Bowl.In 2008, he had 80 receptions for 1037 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns. He was the primary target for rookie quarterback Joe Flacco.Mason dislocated the shoulder when he fell after a catch in the game against the Houston Texans coming back to finish the contest. Mason also played with a shoulder he separated against the Giants^[2],Mason re-aggravated of his injury against Dallas^[3],but he finished the game with with six catches for 66 yards and one touchdown. He led the team with a postseason career- high 12 receptions for 190 yards, including a postseason career long 48 yard touchdown reception.^{[citation needed]}

He is said to have retired from the NFL on July 13, 2009.^[4]