Deshea Townsend

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**Deshea Townsend**
National Football League debut

Pittsburgh Steelers — No. 26
Cornerback
Date of birth: September 8, 1975 (1975-09-08) (age 32)
Place of birth: Batesville, Mississippi
Height: 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Weight: 183 lb (83 kg)
1998 for the Pittsburgh Steelers
Career history
College: Alabama
NFL Draft: 1998 / Round: 4 / Pick: 117
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers (1998-Present)
Career highlights and awards
Super Bowl champion (XL)
Selected NFL statistics (through Week 17 of the 2007 NFL season)
Tackles	322
Sacks	15.5
INTs	18
Stats at NFL.com

Trevor Deshea Townsend (born September 8, 1975) is a defensive back who is currently playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers. A native of Batesville, Mississippi, Deshea played high school football for the nationally-revered Mississippi juggernauts the South Panola Tigers, where he was the teammate of fellow future Alabama Crimson Tide star Dwayne Rudd. Along with Rudd, Townsend continued his career in college at the University of Alabama where both became members of the Theta Delta Chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., in 1995.

An eight year veteran of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Townsend grew from a special teams player and nickel back (and initially known in Pittsburgh as the player to wear Rod Woodson's number 26 after he left the Steelers) into a solid starter for the Steelers at cornerback. Townsend is known for his outside speed as a pass rusher. Townsend has recorded 13.5 quarterback sacks, and 14 interceptions during his eight years as a Steeler. He also had a key sack on Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck during the final minutes of Super Bowl XL, which helped secure the Steelers eventual victory. He was re-signed by the Steelers as an unrestricted free agent in March 2006.