Rod Woodson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Roderick Kevin "Rod" Woodson (born March 10, 1965 in Fort Wayne, Indiana) was a professional American football player.
Rod Woodson began playing football as a boy in Fort Wayne, Indiana. After gradulation from Snider High School in 1983, Rod was awarded a full scholarship to Purdue University. He starred at Purdue, winning All Big Ten and All American honors in 1985 and 1986. Woodson also starred in track, qualifying for the 1984 Olympic Trials.
In 1987, Woodson was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He returned kicks and played defensive back for Pittsburgh through the 1996 season. A highlight came in 1995, when Woodson became the first player to return from reconstructive knee surgery in the same season. That year he tore his Anterior Cruciate Ligament in the first game and returned to play in the Super Bowl XXX between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas just 19 weeks later.
Woodson's career took a somewhat nomadic turn after free agency from Pittsburgh. Although he has remained to raise his family in Pittsburgh he has hopped between three additional franchises. Woodson signed with San Francisco for the 1997 season, Baltimore for the years 1998 to 2001 (where he won a Super Bowl), and the Oakland Raiders for 2002 and 2003 (where he appeared in his thrid Super Bowl). In 2001, after fourteen seasons in the league, Woodson finally got to play on the winning side in Super Bowl XXXV.
Woodson was released by the Oakland Raiders on July 27, 2004 after failing his team physical. He has since officially retired, and has stated to the press that he has no desire to resume his career [1]. His replacement at free safety for the Raiders was Stuart Schweigert, who broke Woodson's career interception record at Purdue.
A consummate professional, Woodson is among the NFL's all time leaders in games played as a defensive back and interceptions. He holds the league record with 12 interceptions returned for a touchdown.
For his excellence on the field, Woodson has been named to the Pro Bowl eleven times, a record for his position. Woodson was named 1993's NFL Defensive Player of the Year by the Associated Press. In 1994, he was named to the NFL's 75th Anniversary Team. The Sporting News and College Football News have also honored him as one of the 100 greatest players of the 20th century.
He now works for the NFL Network on "NFL TOTAL ACCESS" with Rich Eisen.
Since 1994, Woodson has operated an annual youth football camp, the Woodson/Fabini Football Camp, on the grounds of his former high school. He is also a partner in Woodson Motorsports, a BMW motorcycle dealership and repair shop in Fort Wayne.
