Anquan Boldin

Infobox NFLactive


currentteam=Arizona Cardinals
currentnumber=81
currentposition=Wide receiver
birthdate=birth date and age|1980|10|3
birthplace=Pahokee, Florida
heightft=6
heightin=1
weight=217
debutyear=2003
debutteam=Arizona Cardinals
highlights=
* AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2003)
* 2x Pro Bowl selection (2003, 2006)
college=Florida State
draftyear=2003
draftround=2
draftpick=54
pastteams=
* Arizona Cardinals (2003-Present)
statweek=17
statseason=2007
statlabel1=Receptions
statvalue1=413
statlabel2=Receiving Yards
statvalue2=5,458
statlabel3=Receiving TDs
statvalue3=29
nfl=BOL283010 Anquan Kenmile "The Quan" Boldin (pronEng|AN-kwan) (born October 3, 1980) is a professional American football player. He was chosen by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2003 NFL Draft out of Florida State University. He was drafted in the 2nd round because of his relatively slow combine speed.cite web|url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2003/draft/news/2003/02/23/combine_sunday/|title=SI.com - 2003 NFL - Draft Preview|date=2003-02-24|language=English|accessdate=2008-08-21] His speed has proved no impediment to success. Boldin was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2003 by the Associated Press. He is known as one of the league's most physical receivers.

Boldin is the cousin of CFL All-Star defensive back Korey Banks. He also has a brother, Demir Boldin, who currently plays for Wake Forest University.

Boldin requested a trade following the 2007 season when his fellow wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald signed a four-year, $40 million contract extension with Arizona [Citation |last= |first= |title=Cards, Fitzgerald agree to $40M deal |url=http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7899730?MSNHPHMA |publisher="FOX Sports" |date=2008-03-11 |accessdate=2008-03-11] and the Cardinals declined to renegotiate Boldin's contract. He has 3 years with $12 million remaining on his current contract.

High school career

Boldin was a standout football and basketball player at Pahokee High School. His quarterbacking prowess led him to be named Florida's Mr. Football in 1998. During his senior season, Pahokee rolled to a 10-0 regular season record, routinely defeating teams by large margins. Pahokee defeated archrival Glades Central 34-14 in the Muck Bowl, Florida's biggest high school football showdown. Surprisingly, the Blue Devils were upset 29-14 by Coach Corky Rogers's powerhouse Bolles team from Jacksonville in the 2A state championship game.

Boldin is considered to be among the best players the state has ever produced. In 2007 he was named to the Florida High School Association All-Century Team which selected the Top 33 players in the 100 year history of high school football in the state of Florida's history. Many of his numbers were later eclipsed by Adrian McPherson.

College career

Anquan Boldin attended Florida State University. A versatile player, he played both wide receiver and quarterback. In just 23 games at wide receiver, Anquan Boldin caught 118 passes for 1,790 yards (averaging 15.2 yards per reception) and 21 touchdowns. Boldin's remarkable athleticism and work ethic have allowed him to rebound from several serious knee injuries in college and later in the NFL.

Pro career

Despite the initial concerns of the NFL scouts after Boldin registered a relatively slow 4.71 time in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, Boldin has broken several NFL records. In his rookie year, Boldin had 101 catches and was the only rookie selected to the 2004 Pro Bowl. Boldin also set an NFL record for most receiving yards by a rookie in his first game (217), and holds the NFL record for most receptions in the first 26 games of an NFL career (157) as well as the fastest to record 300 career receptions (47 games).

Boldin teams with Larry Fitzgerald, who was drafted a year after Boldin in 2004, to create one of the best wide receiver tandems in the NFL. In 2005, Boldin was injured and missed part of the season but yet still caught more than 100 passes for over 1,400 yards. On top of that, the Cardinals wide receivers became only the third duo from the same team to each catch over 100 receptions (see Herman Moore and Brett Perriman, also Rod Smith and Ed McCaffrey). Boldin and Fitzgerald also topped the 1,400-yard mark, only the third duo to achieve that in NFL history. They joined Detroit's Herman Moore and Brett Perriman, who accomplished the feat in 1995, and St. Louis' Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce, who did it in 2000. In 2007, Boldin became the quickest player in NFL history to compile 400 receptions and was selected to play in the 2007 Pro Bowl for the NFC, along with teammate Adrian Wilson.

Anquan Boldin was named the offensive captain for the Cardinals for the 2007-2008 season. On August 19th 2008, Boldin asked the Cardinals to trade him due to a contract extension dispute, claiming the team has not recognized his hard work.cite web|url=http://broadband.zoomtown.com/sports/statsx.php?s=NFL|title=Boldin wants Cardinals to trade him|last=Korte|first=Tim|publisher=Associate Press|language=English|accessdate=2008-08-20]

On September 28, 2008, Boldin was carted off the field after a violent helmet-to-helmet collision in the end zone with 27 seconds remaining in the Cardinals’ 56-35 loss to the New York Jets. Boldin caught a long pass from Kurt Warner, but was hit in the back by free safety Kerry Rhodes and then took a helmet-to-helmet shot from strong safety Eric Smith, knocking them both unconcious. Smith, also injured on the play, was able to get up after a few moments. After several minutes, Boldin was placed on a stretcher and was carted off the field. "He's alert," Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "He's talking and moving all his extremities. He asked to get up and the doctors won't let him." While the catch wasn't counted as a touchdown, Boldin had a good game as Warner's main go-to guy, finishing the game with 10 catches for 119 yards and one touchdown. On October 4, 2008, coach Ken Wisenhunt announced that Boldin would be out for an indefinite time period.

Referencing

External links

* [http://profootballreference.com/players/BoldAn00.htm Current Stats]
* [http://www.databasefootball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BOLDIANQ01 More Current Stats]
* [http://www.anquanboldin.net Anquan Boldin Fan Site]
* [http://www.sportsultra.com/nfl/player/anquan_boldin/234/news.jsp?track=titlebox SpotsUltra] .