Antoine Winfield

Infobox NFLactive


currentteam=Minnesota Vikings
currentnumber=26
currentposition=Cornerback
birthdate=birth date and age|1977|6|24
birthplace=Akron, Ohio
heightft=5
heightin=9
weight=180
debutyear=1999
debutteam=Buffalo Bills
college=Ohio State
highlights=
* Jim Thorpe Award (1998)
college=Ohio State
draftyear=1999
draftround=1
draftpick=23
pastteams=
* Buffalo Bills (1999-2003)
* Minnesota Vikings (2004-present)
statweek=5
statseason=2008
statlabel1=Tackles
statvalue1=619
statlabel2=Sacks
statvalue2=3.0
statlabel3=INTs
statvalue3=19
nfl=WIN144862

Antoine Winfield (born June 24, 1977 in Akron, Ohio) is an American football cornerback in the NFL. He played college football at the Ohio State University, winning the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back in 1998. Winfield was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft. Since 2004, he has played for the Minnesota Vikings. Winfield attended Garfield High School in his hometown of Akron, Ohio. He is regarded as one of the most physical corners in the league, known for his bone-jarring hits, and was ranked by Peter King (sportswriter) as the 31st best player in the NFL. [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/peter_king/08/28/1to100/ SI.com - Writers - Peter King: My list of the NFL's 500 best players - Wednesday August 29, 2007 12:09PM ] ]

1999 NFL Draft

The Buffalo Bills selected Winfield in the first round of the 1999 NFL Draft, as the 23rd overall pick.

Winfield, at 176 pounds, ran a 4.41 second 40-yard dash, 3.95 second 20-yard shuttle, 6.84 3-cone drill, and had a vertical jump of 37 inches at the 1999 NFL Combine [ [http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/profile.php?pyid=61157 Antoine Winfield, CB, Ohio State - 1999 NFL Draft Scout Profile, Powered by The SportsXchange ] ]

NFL Career

Buffalo Bills

In 1999, Antoine played in all 16 games and made two starts. He made his NFL debut on December 26, 1999, when he replaced Ken Irvin, who was injured the week before. Antoine made his first career interception against the Indianapolis Colts, picking off Peyton Manning on September 2. he also recorded his second interception, and made five tackles against Miami, and returned the interception for 10 yards. He played in one play off game versus Tennessee. In that game, he recorded 6 post season tackles, and his first post season interception.

In 2000, he started in the first 11 games of the season, before being put on injured reserve, with a shoulder injury. In his 11 games, Antoine made 65 tackles, of which 55 were solo, and made one interception. Antoine's only interception came off Peyton Manning, in a game on October 1. Antoine was dominate during this season, as he posted 8 tackles against Miami, on October 8, and nine tackles against the San Diego Chargers on October 15, and the New York Jets on October 29. He started in the game on November 12, but left with a shoulder injury. The following week against Kansas City, he was injured again, and this time was out for the season.

Antoine returned in 2001, and led the Bills in tackles with a career high 106, of which 79 were solo. He became the first corner back in Bills history to finish first in tackles. Antoine added 13 pass defenses, forced a fumble, and recovered his first career fumble. Winfield started in all 16 games, and was the Bills leading tackler in three of those games. He recorded his first career forced fumble, and his fourth career interception of Peyton Manning on September 23. As a special note, three of Winfield's first four interceptions came off Peyton Manning. Winfield then recorded his first career fumble in a game against New England in November 11. Antoine had a season high nine tackles in four straight games: San Francisco, Carolina, New England, and Atlanta respectively.

Winfield played the 2002 season in a Bill uniform, and started in 13 games. Antoine Winfield was injured in a game against Houston, and was out for the next three weeks. Coming off the knee injury, Antoine made four tackles against the Jets on November 24, and recorded his second career fumble recovery that led directly to a touchdown. This happened on December 1 against Miami. In a very physical game against Green Bay, Winfield made four tackles, two pass defenses, and a memorable hit on Terry Glenn that separated the receiver from his helmet. Antoine also notched 11 tackles in the game at the Metrodome versus the Vikings very early in the season. This was two short of his career high game.

In his final season with the Bills, Antoine started in all 16 games at left cornerback. He was ranked third on the team in total tackles with 124, was tied with Lawyer Milloy with the team lead with 14 pass defenses, recorded the first sack of his career against none other than Peyton Manning, and posted nine tackles and a pass defense in that game. Antoine also tied for a team high 12 tackles and helped shut down the running game of the New England Patriots on September 7. Antoine made a hug impact this season, and recorded no less than four tackles a game all season long. Winfield was signed by the Vikings as a free agent on March 8, 2004.

Minnesota Vikings

Upon coming to Minnesota in 2004, Antoine made an immediate impact with the Vikings. He started in 12 of 14 games and both playoff games. He led the team in interceptions, while raising the energy level of the entire defense with his aggressive playing style. Despite missing parts of four games, he managed to make 99 tackles this season, and led the Vikings in the playoffs with 22 tackles. Winfield was named NFL Player of the Week for the Wild card games against Green Bay. In that game, Antoine had one interception, and helped disrupt Brett Favre into throwing three other interceptions. He also earned votes in the Associated Press all-Pro balloting. He made a career high 16 tackles in a game against Indianapolis, and made three interceptions. Then the following week posted his first back to back interception game, against New Orleans. Winfield had two games where he posted 12 tackles. He recorded 12 tackles against Dallas on September 12, and on Monday Night Football against Philadelphia.

In 2005, Winfield recorded a career high 4 interceptions and led all defensive backs with 100 tackles. In this season, he was tied for second on the team with 12 pass defenses, third on the team with six tackles for a loss, and tied for a team high with two fumble recoveries on special teams. He had a season high 12 tackles against Detroit, grabbed his second interception of the season, and made three tackles on special teams. Winfield also made nine tackles in games versus Cincinnati, St.Louis, and N.Y. Giants. He started in all 16 games this season.

In his 2006 campaign, Winfield led the Vikings with 20 pass defenses, and was tied with the team lead with four interceptions. This matched his career high from 2005 for one season. He made 97 tackles, of which 83 were solo. He made 20 pass defenses, four interceptions and returned them for 33 yards. Since joining the Vikings in 2004, he has averaged over 95 tackles per season, has helped the Vikings to be ranked third in the NFL in takeaways with 36, and was a key element to the Vikings 8th ranked defense for the first time since 1994. Antoine has made a huge impact on this Vikings defense, since his arrival. He is a stand up guy, and is regarded as one of the hardest hitters in the NFL. He has raised the Vikings defense energy with his aggressive playing style. Antoine has eight regular season and playoff interceptions since joining Minnesota, and the Vikings are currently 8-0 when Antoine has an interception. He has been one of the most sought after free agents in recent memory by the Vikings.

http://www.minnesotavikings.com/TeamPlayerProfile_antoine_winfield.aspx

References

3. http://www.minnesotavikings.com/TeamPlayerProfile_antoine_winfield.aspx

External links

* [http://ohiostatebuckeyes.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/archive/greats/osu-m-footbl-winfield.html College football career summary] from the Ohio State University website
* [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/1999/nfldraft/video/antoine_winfield.html CNNSI.com Draft Video]