Colorado University Athletics
Football
Vonn Bell
- Title:
- Defensive Analyst/Safeties
Vonn Bell joined the Colorado Buffaloes football staff in February 2026 as a defensive analyst working with the safeties.
Bell arrived in Boulder following a nine-year career in the National Football League. A second-round selection by the New Orleans Saints in the 2016 NFL Draft, Bell also played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Carolina Panthers during his professional career.
Over nine NFL seasons, Bell appeared in 139 games with 107 starts, recording 760 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles, 12 fumble recoveries and eight interceptions, along with 39 passes defended and one defensive touchdown. His most productive season came in 2020 with Cincinnati, when he recorded a career-high 114 tackles. In 2022, he posted a career-best four interceptions while helping anchor one of the AFC’s top defenses.
Bell was a key member of the Bengals team that advanced to Super Bowl LVI following the 2021 season. In the AFC Championship Game that year, he intercepted Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes in overtime to help secure Cincinnati’s victory.
Prior to his NFL career, Bell played at Ohio State, where he became a full-time starter as a sophomore in 2014. That season he recorded 91 tackles and a Big Ten-leading six interceptions while helping lead the Buckeyes to the College Football Playoff National Championship. He declared for the NFL Draft following the 2015 season.
A highly regarded recruit out of Ridgeland High School in Rossville, Georgia, Bell was rated as a five-star prospect and one of the top safeties in the country.
Bell was born December 12, 1994, in Chattanooga, Tenn., and grew up in Rossville, Ga. He attended Ridgeland High School.
Bell arrived in Boulder following a nine-year career in the National Football League. A second-round selection by the New Orleans Saints in the 2016 NFL Draft, Bell also played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Carolina Panthers during his professional career.
Over nine NFL seasons, Bell appeared in 139 games with 107 starts, recording 760 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 16 forced fumbles, 12 fumble recoveries and eight interceptions, along with 39 passes defended and one defensive touchdown. His most productive season came in 2020 with Cincinnati, when he recorded a career-high 114 tackles. In 2022, he posted a career-best four interceptions while helping anchor one of the AFC’s top defenses.
Bell was a key member of the Bengals team that advanced to Super Bowl LVI following the 2021 season. In the AFC Championship Game that year, he intercepted Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes in overtime to help secure Cincinnati’s victory.
Prior to his NFL career, Bell played at Ohio State, where he became a full-time starter as a sophomore in 2014. That season he recorded 91 tackles and a Big Ten-leading six interceptions while helping lead the Buckeyes to the College Football Playoff National Championship. He declared for the NFL Draft following the 2015 season.
A highly regarded recruit out of Ridgeland High School in Rossville, Georgia, Bell was rated as a five-star prospect and one of the top safeties in the country.
Bell was born December 12, 1994, in Chattanooga, Tenn., and grew up in Rossville, Ga. He attended Ridgeland High School.
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