Darren Woodson
Encyclopedia
Darren Ray Woodson is a former American football
safety in the National Football League
. He played his entire career for the Dallas Cowboys
from 1992
to 2004
. He was drafted
by the Cowboys in the second round (37th overall) of the 1992 NFL Draft
out of Arizona State University
.
During his career he was elected to five Pro Bowl
s and was named All-Pro
three times by the AP
. He was a member of all three Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl
champion teams of the 1990s. He was described in Sports Illustrated
as "one of the hardest hitters in the NFL."
After missing the 2004 season
due to a herniated disc
, he officially announced his retirement in December 2004 as the team's all-time leading tackler with 1,350 career tackles
.
Since his retirement, Woodson has worked as a football analyst for ESPN
, appearing on programs such as NFL Live
and SportsCenter
.
As of 2003, Woodson was the last remaining Dallas Cowboy in the league who had been on the active roster for the Cowboys' 1990's Super Bowl championship teams.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
safety in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. He played his entire career for the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
from 1992
1992 Dallas Cowboys season
-Week 3: vs Phoenix Cardinals:-Week 5: at Philadelphia Eagles:-Week 6: vs Seattle Seahawks:-Week 7: vs Kansas City Chiefs:-NFC Divisional Round: Dallas Cowboys 34, Philadelphia Eagles 10:...
to 2004
2004 Dallas Cowboys season
Even before 2004 season began, the Cowboys would face adversity and be forced to adjust. Coming off their first winning season in 5 years, the team, under Bill Parcells direction, would continue to bring in veteran talent and draft promising prospects. In the off-season, the Cowboys would sign...
. He was drafted
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
by the Cowboys in the second round (37th overall) of the 1992 NFL Draft
1992 NFL Draft
The 1992 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1992. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft...
out of Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
.
During his career he was elected to five Pro Bowl
Pro Bowl
In professional American football, the Pro Bowl is the all-star game of the National Football League . Since the merger with the rival American Football League in 1970, it has been officially called the AFC–NFC Pro Bowl, matching the top players in the American Football Conference against those...
s and was named All-Pro
All-Pro
All-Pro is a term mostly used in the NFL for the best players of each position during that season. It began as polls of sportswriters in the early 1920s...
three times by the AP
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
. He was a member of all three Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
champion teams of the 1990s. He was described in Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
as "one of the hardest hitters in the NFL."
After missing the 2004 season
2004 NFL season
The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League.With the New England Patriots as the defending league champions, regular season play was held from September 9, 2004 to January 2, 2005...
due to a herniated disc
Spinal disc herniation
A spinal disc herniation , informally and misleadingly called a "slipped disc", is a medical condition affecting the spine due to trauma, lifting injuries, or idiopathic, in which a tear in the outer, fibrous ring of an intervertebral disc allows the soft, central portion A spinal disc herniation...
, he officially announced his retirement in December 2004 as the team's all-time leading tackler with 1,350 career tackles
Tackle (football move)
Most forms of football have a move known as a tackle. The primary purposes of tackling is to disposses an opponent of the ball, to stop the player from gaining ground towards goal or to stop them from carrying out what they intend....
.
Since his retirement, Woodson has worked as a football analyst for ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, appearing on programs such as NFL Live
NFL Live
NFL Live is a National Football League studio show, currently airing Monday through Friday at 4:00 p.m and 12:30 a.m ET on the ESPN cable network. Formerly known as NFL 2Night, the program is the only NFL-related studio program to air during the week...
and SportsCenter
SportsCenter
SportsCenter is a daily sports news television show, and the flagship program of American cable network ESPN since the network launched on September 7, 1979. Originally broadcast only daily, SportsCenter is now shown up to twelve times a day, replaying the day's scores and highlights from major...
.
As of 2003, Woodson was the last remaining Dallas Cowboy in the league who had been on the active roster for the Cowboys' 1990's Super Bowl championship teams.