At Aliquippa High School, Darrelle ran track and led his basketball team in scoring on the way to two WPIAL championships and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Fabulous Five as a junior and senior. On the gridiron, Darrelle lined up as quarterback, tailback, receiver, cornerback, and kick returner. In 2001, Darrelle led the Quips to a 14-1 season, a WPIAL Class AA Title, and a PIAA Class AA Championship, with one of the greatest performances in PIAA Championship history, scoring a record-tying five touchdowns: three rushing touchdowns (1, 2, and 64 yards), a 69-yard blocked field goal return touchdown, and an 89-yard punt return touchdown. In his senior year in 2003, Darrelle was named Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Football Player of the Year, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Football Player of the Year, and Associated Press Pennsylvania Class AA Football Player of the Year, and was named to the Associated Press Pennsylvania Class AA All-State Team.

At the University of Pittsburgh, Darrelle lived up to the hype, becoming All-American as a freshman. Darrelle earned first team Big East his sophomore and junior years, and, during his final year at Pitt, in 2006, Darrelle solidified his position on the national stage, as a semifinalist for the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back.

The New York Jets traded up to select Darrelle in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft, and Darrelle went on to gain worldwide acclaim as "Revis Island", the NFL's best shutdown corner. Darrelle was assigned to cover the opposing team's best receiver and consistently caused them to have some of their lowest statistics for the season and sometimes of their careers. Over eleven seasons in the NFL, Darelle played for the New York Jets (2007-2012, 2015-2016), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2013), New England Patriots (2014), and Kansas City Chiefs (2017), with appearances in four postseasons, including a Super Bowl with the Patriots. Darrelle's accolades include being named to the 2007 All-Rookie Team, seven Pro Bowls, four First Team All-Pros, and the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team. Darrelle was named to the Jets Ring of Honor in 2022 and will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in August 2023.

Darrelle is the son of Diana Askew and Darryl Revis, and he is the nephew of NFL lineman Sean Gilbert. Darrelle's most important accomplishments happened away from the game, when he became a father to Deyani and Jayden. Today, Darrelle's family works closely with him and The Darrelle Revis Foundation to help tackle childhood hunger and to support school students with educational programs.