When was desmond howard drafted

During the season, Howard had 40 receptions for yards and five touchdowns. After his time in Washington, Howard did not start in many games, but he was a productive player on the field. Howard spent one season with the Jacksonville Jaguars in and then joined the Green Bay Packers the next season.

During his time in Green Bay , he made the Pro Bowl for the first and only time in his career and was a first-team All-Pro selection. He led the league in punt returns, punt return yards, punt return average, and punt return touchdowns. During the game, he recorded 90 punt return yards and kickoff return yards with one touchdown. While Howard did not have the same success in the NFL that he had in college, he still had a productive career.

He finished his NFL career with 10, total yards and 17 touchdowns. However, they finished outside the top ten in the AP poll. He dominated the Big Ten leaderboards, coming first in receiving yards, with , receiving touchdowns, with 19, average punt and kick return yards, with Howard also led the entire NCAA in receiving touchdowns, kickoff return touchdowns and points. His Michigan side topped the Big Ten with a record, with their only loss coming against Florida State. The pose became a national sensation, with all forms of media picking up the story.

It grew so big and became integrated into American culture so much that even Presidents George W. The Wolverines performances throughout the season saw them come sixth in the final AP Polls. The Huskies capped off a perfect season by defeating Michigan in front of , spectators in California In fact, Howard won the award by the second-largest margin in the history of the most prestigious trophy in college football.

He also won the coveted Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Award for his electrifying performances and earned first-team All-American honours. The Heisman winner was predicted by many media outlets to be picked within the top five. The Green Bay Packers, who had the fifth overall pick, were reportedly very interested in acquiring the receiver.

It looked as if they would likely get him as the teams above them, the Indianapolis Colts, who had the first and second pick, the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals, were eager to draft players in different positions. However, the Washington Redskins, who had just won the previous Super Bowl, gained the sixth overall pick via a trade with the San Diego Chargers a year prior, also wanted the Wolverine.

Washington decided not to risk that Green Bay would pass on Howard, offering the Cincinnati Bengals their two first-round picks, at six and 28, and their third-round pick for their fourth overall selection, leapfrogging the Packers. The University of Michigan superstar only started one game in , with just three receptions and rushing attempts.

His second professional season was not much better, only entrusted to start five of the 16 games. He did gain 20 more receptions than the season before. However, his catch-rate was a mere The silver lining for the struggling receiver was that his His 40 catches saw him come third amongst his teammates and his yards gained placed him second behind Henry Ellard, who was second in the NFL that year with He also managed to record his first five touchdown receptions of his NFL career during the season.

Yet, his An expansion draft was held on February 15th so that the new franchises could fill their rosters. Every existing team had to make six players available to choose from, with Washington electing to add Howard to their unprotected players list. With the 55th pick, just three years after being selected fourth in the entry draft, Howard was drafted by the Jaguars.

Once again, the former college star failed to impress, making only six starts and 13 appearances in Jacksonville. He earned 23 receptions for yards and registered a receiving touchdown, but his After one year in Jacksonville, Howard became a free agent and signed for the Green Bay Packers in It was reported that the former Heisman winner barely made the Packers team for the season.

Luckily for the Ohio native, he earned a roster spot following a preseason punt return touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite almost cutting him before the season, Green Bay may not have won the Super Bowl that year without Howard.

The Michigan legend did not register a single offensive start throughout the season, although he did appear in all 16 games. His reception numbers fell yet again, only earning 13 for 95 yards, but his catch-rate increased to During the regular season, Howard led the entire league in punt return yards with and average return yards with He also recorded an NFL-leading yard return and scored three punts return touchdowns after failing to register any in his past three seasons.

The former Wolverine also managed kick return yards from 22 attempts, averaging It was during the postseason where Howard became a Green Bay hero.

His second one resulted in a yard return, which set up the offence to score on the ensuing drive. The Packers emerged victorious from this contest, outscoring the 49ers , despite a bizarre error following the halftime break where Howard failed to make it back to the field in time for the kickoff.

Somehow, no one on the Packers noticed this and lined up with only men and none in the returner position. The Ohio-native returned four kicks for yards as the Packers advanced to the Super Bowl for the first time since the season following their victory. The two sides combined for a Super Bowl record 24 first-quarter points, with the underdog Patriots taking a lead. However, the Packers asserted their dominance in the second quarter, scoring 17 unanswered points.

The Patriots pulled the score back to within six points after Curtis Martin registered am yard rushing touchdown. However, for the first time in the game in the third quarter, Howard got the kick he wanted. As Howard brought the ball out from the 1-yard line, the Packers formed a four-man wedge in front of him, with Don Beebe leading the returner through a hole. Howard dashed through the gap and swerved through the middle. Despite Graham illegally grabbing his facemask, Howard stayed on his feet.

Only Vinatieri stood in the returners way from taking it to the house. So he could do his endzone celebration. Although, James Harrison in and Jacoby Jones in have since surpassed this record.

Howard became the fourth player to score a kick return touchdown in the Super Bowl. But Howard made the big play.

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