Antonio Pierce
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Antonio Pierce at the New York Giants Super Bowl champions parade in NYC. |
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| New York Giants — No. 58 | |
| Linebacker | |
| Date of birth: October 26, 1978 | |
| Place of birth: Long Beach, California | |
| Height: 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | Weight: 238 lb (108 kg) |
| National Football League debut | |
|---|---|
| 2001 for the Washington Redskins | |
| Career history | |
| College: Arizona | |
Teams:
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Stats at NFL.com | |
Antonio Durran Pierce[1] (born October 26, 1978, Ontario, California) is an American football middle linebacker on the National Football League's New York Giants. Pierce stands 6'1" and weighs 240 lb. In February of 2008 he became a Super Bowl Champion.
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[edit] Football career
[edit] Amateur career
He played high school football at Paramount High School in Paramount, California. He played two years of football at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, California, before transferring to the University of Arizona. As a senior at the University of Arizona, he had 3 sacks, 77 tackles (10 for losses), 2 forced fumbles, 1 interception,and 1 blocked kick. Pierce was not taken in the NFL draft in 2001 after his senior year at Arizona because many NFL scouts considered him too undersized to play linebacker in the NFL.
[edit] Pro career
The Washington Redskins signed him as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2001. He played in all 16 games as a rookie, with 7 starts. He recorded 52 tackles and one interception during his rookie campaign. Over the next two seasons, Pierce played sporadically, recording only 18 and 15 tackles respectively, during the 2002 and 2003 seasons. It wasn't until the 2004 season, his fourth in the league, that he played a full season replacing the injured Michael Barrow. That season Pierce logged a career high 114 tackles, 95 of them solo. He also had two interceptions, one of which was a pick off Ken Dorsey that he returned 76 yards for a touchdown, and a forced fumble.
The New York Giants signed him on March 3, 2005 to start at inside linebacker. He became the captain of the defense, and in 13 games, Pierce notched 100 tackles, 80 of them solo, two interceptions and one forced fumble returned for a touchdown. His 2005 season ended early as he suffered a leg injury, against the Philadelphia Eagles, and missed the final three regular season games and the Giants' only postseason game, a 23-0 loss to the Carolina Panthers.
In 2006, Pierce recorded 137 tackles (107 solo), a sack, an interception, and defended 8 passes. Pierce was named as a first alternate for the Pro Bowl. He was invited to play in Hawaii after Brian Urlacher suffered a toe injury in Super Bowl XLI, and withdrew from the Pro Bowl.
[edit] Broadcasting
Antonio Pierce served as a communications intern on the Howard Stern Show on May 7, 2008. He stated he would like to pursue a career in broadcasting after his NFL career.[2] Near the end of the day's show he asked to stay for the remainder of the week and Howard agreed.[3]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Pierce on Pro-Football-Reference. rbref.com. Retrieved on 2007-12-22.
- ^ The Howard Stern Show for May 7, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-05-07.
- ^ Daily Highlights for May 7, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-05-07.
