Tag: Rod Woodson

All-Time Saints Villains: Who has the most interceptions against New Orleans?

Who has intercepted the most passes from Saints quarterbacks? Hall of Famers like Ronde Barber, Rod Woodson, and Ronnie Lott have haunted them over the years:

We’re continuing our series on the New Orleans Saints’ all-time greatest opponents by shifting attention to defense, thanks to StatMuse. This time we’re looking at the best ballhawks to suit up against New Orleans — a list that includes Pro Football Hall of Famers like Ronde Barber, Ronnie Lott, and Rod Woodson, along with some other annoyingly effective defensive backs.

Let’s get to it, sorting by total interceptions and then return yards:

Former Ravens S Tony Jefferson retiring from NFL, joining Baltimore in new role

Former Baltimore Ravens safety Tony Jefferson is retiring from the NFL.

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The Baltimore Ravens have had a lot of great safeties over the course of their franchise history. Players such as Rod Woodson, Ed Reed, Eric Weddle and others come to mind, with other contributors at the position also stepping up in a big way both on and off of the field.

One of the more beloved players in team history is former Baltimore safety Tony Jefferson. On Thursday, it was reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN and later confirmed by the Ravens that Jefferson will be stepping away from playing in the NFL after nine seasons, but will be returning to Baltimore to take on a scouting role within the organization.

The veteran was paired with Weddle to form a great tandem for the Ravens.  Unfortunate injuries were a part of his story in Baltimore, but he’ll now take the next step in his football career in the team’s front office.

Vipers outlast Guardians for first XFL 2023 triumph

The Vegas Vipers outscored the Orlando Guardians in a battle of previously winless XFL teams

Rod Woodson and the Vegas Vipers have their first win in XFL play.

Terrell Buckley and the Orlando Guardians are winless through five games.

In a duel between previously winless teams Saturday, the Vipers outlasted the Guardians, 35-32.

The outcome was in doubt until 72 seconds were left. Cody Latimer caught a 45-yard TD pass from Quinten Dormady.

However, a 3-point conversion — from the 10-yard line — failed — and Woodson had his first XFL victory.

The loss spoiled a superb relief effort by Quinten Dormady. He replaced Paxton Lynch and went 22-of-25 for 256 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Luis Perez was 20-of-28 for 269 yards through the air and 3 touchdowns.

Jeff Badet had a pair of TD receptions and Rod Smith rushed for 62 yards and 2 scores.

 

Hall of Famer Rod Woodson talks how to cover Justin Jefferson

The Hall of Famer gives his take on covering the mega star wide receiver

The Minnesota Vikings have one hell of a player in wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

Not only does he lead the NFL in receiving yards but he also won the Nickelodeon Valuable Player (NVP) Award for week one. He was outstanding for the Vikings against the Packers going off for nine receptions for 184 yards and two touchdowns, including this beautiful deep crossing route in the second quarter.

With such a star on the outside for the Vikings, there are more and more questions on how to cover the third year player from LSU.

In an article with The 33rd Team, hall of fame defensive back Rod Woodson, who knows a thing or two about coverages, broke down how he would cover the star receiver. His biggest key? Stuffing the number.

What he means by that is by rolling coverages to his side when he’s lined up outside. Think about how teams used to have a safety to Randy Moss’ side whenever he was on thei field for the Vikings. For Woodson, that means a lot of cover-2 man with that one safety responsible for providing support for the man on Jefferson. On the backside they would play cover-3 or man.

When Jefferson is in the slot its a different story. Woodson described it as a cover-4 man with the safety and nickel double covering the star receiver.

While these are good strategies, good luck covering the mega-star.

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Former Ravens DB Rod Woodson added to team’s radio broadcast group

The Ravens have brought on Hall of Fame defensive back Rod Woodson to be part of their game day team

The Baltimore Ravens aim to bring the best game day coverage to the table for their fans. They do a great job of putting together a talented broadcast team and product that gets the best out of each game, with high-level analysis brought by all of their commentators.

On Monday, Baltimore announced that they have brought Hall of Famer and Super Bowl Champion defensive back Rod Woodson to be part of the game day radio broadcasting team.  Woodson joins play-by-play man Gerry Sandusky in the booth, while Evan Washburn will work as the sideline reporter.

Woodson has media experience, appearing on NFL Network, the Big Ten Network, and Westwood One as an analyst for many years. Before being announced as the newest member of the Ravens game day crew, it was announced that he will be the head coach of the new Las Vegas XFL Team that will start up in 2023.

Woodson played for 17 years in the NFL, spending time with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, the then-Oakland Raiders, and San Francisco 49ers.  In four years in Baltimore, Woodson brought a veteran presence to the young Ravens defense and eventual Super Bowl winning team in 2000.  He totaled 306 tackles, 20 interceptions, and five defensive touchdowns during his time in purple and black. Woodson was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2009 with a total of 1,049 tackles, 71 interceptions, and 12 touchdowns in his career.  Those 71 interceptions ranks third all-time in NFL history.

Ravens hosting tribute for 2000 Super Bowl-winning team

The Ravens announced an event as a tribute to their 2000 Super Bowl-winning team

The Baltimore Ravens have had numerous magical seasons throughout their 26-year history. The relatively young franchise played their first game in 1996 and won a championship just a few years later. Now, the team has an upcoming event will look to pay tribute to their team from the 2000-2001 season in which they won Super Bowl XXXV.

The Ravens announced “A Championship Celebration,” a public ticketed event that looks to honor members from the Ravens’ 2000-01 Super Bowl winning team. Guests from the Super Bowl XXXV team scheduled to make an appearance include Brian Billick, Ray Lewis, Shannon Sharpe, Rod Woodson, Tony Siragusa, Trent Dilfer, Jamal Lewis, and others. Stories and unseen footage from the season and surprise guest appearances will also take place.

Those in attendance will have photo opportunities with the 2000 Lombardi Trophy and Lamar Hunt Trophy. They will also receive a custom Super Bowl XXXV pennant. The event will be held on Monday, May 23, 2022 at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in downtown Baltimore.

Ticket information can be found here.

Former Steeler great takes a shot at WR JuJu Smith-Schuster over social media

Rod Woodson seems to think JuJu Smith-Schuster spends too much time on social media.

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The proliferation of social media use by professional athletes has created a great diving between current players and players of the past as well as a large portion of the fanbase. Many old-school players believe players dedicate too much of their life on social media and not enough on their craft.

This seems to be the case for former Steelers star and Hall of Famer Rod Woodson. Woodson piped up in a Twitter thread where he suggested the team should sign Josh Rosen to groom behind Ben Roethlisberger. An idea we fully endorse.

One user suggested training wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster to draft a young player to which Woodson fired back that you can’t trade him because all he wants to do on social media.

Smith-Schuster does dedicate a lot of time to his brand and expanding his earning opportunities well beyond football. As long as he continues to produce on the field, it really shouldn’t matter to anyone. But Smith-Schuster is heading into free agency so this year is big for him.

Smith-Schuster gets something of a pass for his miserable 2019 season because of the poor quarterback play but if he doesn’t have a bounceback in 2020, his off-field endeavors will come up again.

Do you agree with Woodson? Should Smith-Schuster put more energy into football and slow down with the social media stuff? Let us know.

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8 Steelers among ‘best player to wear each jersey number’

Several former Pittsburgh Steelers were selected as best to wear their respective numbers.

Eight players from the Pittsburgh Steelers past made CBS Sports’ list of “best players to wear each jersey number in the NFL,” half of whom were career-long Steelers.

The list combed through each jersey number, and CBS Sports selected the best player to wear it.

Denver Broncos former quarterback John Elway beat out Ben Roethlisberger as the best player to wear No. 7. Since it’s a league-wide list, that’s an easy mistake to make. But CBS really lost me when they also considered former Cincinnati Bengals QB Boomer Esiason.

Here’s what CBS Sports had to say about the four players who spent their entire careers in the black and gold:

No. 43: Troy Polamalu, DB
Teams: Pittsburgh Steelers

Polamalu had an instinctual feel for the game. Images of him timing the snap to hurdle the offensive line and sack the quarterback were common on Sundays. The Pro Football and College Football Halls of Fame inductee recorded 32 interceptions, 14 forced fumbles and three touchdowns. The California native won two Super Bowls in addition to being named a six-time All-Pro and an eight-time Pro Bowl selection.

He was the No. 16 overall selection in the 2003 NFL Draft.

No. 58: Jack Lambert, LB
Team: Pittsburgh Steelers

Lambert won four Super Bowls as a member of the Steelers. The NFL Defensive Player of the Year recorded 1,479 tackles, 28 interceptions and 23.5 sacks. He has been selected to nine Pro Bowls and is an eight-time All-Pro. Lambert was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.

No. 59: Jack Ham, LB
Team: Pittsburgh Steelers

Former Steelers are dominating yet another list. The same happened with our Ultimate NFL Draft last month. Ham has recorded 32 interceptions and two touchdowns. The Pro Football and College Football Hall of Famer went to eight Pro Bowls and was an eight-time All-Pro. Like Lambert and Blount, Ham was named an honorable mention to the CBS Sports Steelers Franchise Five.

No. 75: “Mean” Joe Greene, DT
Team: Pittsburgh Steelers

The former No. 4 overall selection played 13 seasons in the league. He won four Super Bowls and was an eight-time All-Pro during that period. His No. 75 jersey is one of two — Ernie Stautner being the other — to be retired by the Steelers franchise. Greene also made 10 Pro Bowls and has been inducted into the Pro Football and College Football Halls of Fame.

Others appearing on the list include defensive backs Rod Woodson (No. 26) and Donnie Shell (No. 31), running back Jerome Bettis (No. 36), and linebacker Kevin Greene (No. 91).

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Rod Woodson, Aeneas Williams expect big things from Darnay Holmes

A trio of Pro Football Hall of Famers have high expectations for New York Giants rookie cornerback Darnay Holmes.

When the New York Giants selected Darnay Holmes in the fourth round of this year’s draft, he immediately received a lot more hype than mid-rounders usually receive.

Holmes was widely considered a steal for the Giants, and his workload may have already grown given the legal troubles cornerback DeAndre Baker is facing.

A few weeks back, Sports Illustrated’s Bucky Brooks raved about the Giants’ fourth round selection, and now several Pro Football Hall of Famers have shared their thought and high expectations on the UCLA product.

Unlike most rookies, Holmes has a few contacts that may have prepped him for his adjustment to the NFL. Holmes’ father was a running back in the NFL in the mid-to-late 90s.

The Giants’ rookie has a few mentors who are members of Canton’s elite — Rod Woodson, Aeneas Williams and Deion Sanders have all mentored Holmes in his path to the NFL. Holmes was the recipient of the DB MVP at Sanders’ Prime21 camp in 2015.

“He might be the sleeper [defensive back] in the draft,” Woodson told ESPN. “I know he was taken in the fourth round. But I like his mindset. No coach can measure one’s heart and one’s mind until you start playing. I think when I’ve seen him playing and talked to Carnell and his son, just the way he moves and how fluid he is and has that recall during the games when people are doing stuff to him that makes you kind of excited to watch a player like that.”

But the admiration for Holmes didn’t end there as Sanders also had some high praise when he referred to the cornerback’s combine performance as both “flawless” and “unbelievable.”

As for his relationship with Aeneas Williams, Holmes was coached by Williams in 2016 for “Nike’s The Opening” and at the Senior Bowl in 2020.

“I was thinking in the back of my mind, a team is going to get a steal, I didn’t know when or where he was going to go, but I know he has a lot more value than where he was drafted. I can tell you that,” Williams said.

Depending on how the legal situation plays out with DeAndre Baker, the Giants may need Holmes to be more pro-ready than they anticipated when they drafted him in April. And although he’s unlikely to start on the outside, some nickel guys may be forced to step up in Baker’s potential absence, thrusting Holmes into a larger role.

Regardless of what his rookie season may entail, it seems that the Giants may have gotten serious value when they took Holmes in the fourth round.

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Former Steelers DB Rod Woodson understands the team’s need for speed on offense

Rod Woodson wants to see the Steelers draft a speed receiver in the NFL draft.

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From 1987-2003, former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Rod Woodson was known as one of the most athletic, best all-around defenders in the NFL. He understands well what offenses need and who are the hardest players to defend. So when he spoke about the Steelers needs in the upcoming NFL draft, we listened.

Woodson was candid when he said he felt like drafting defense early would be a wasted pick. He feels like adding a wide receiver, in particular one with elite speed, if the right move for Pittsburgh.

“I think it would be a wasted pick if they used it on a defensive player, Woodson said. “Their first obvious needs are receiver & running back. They need help for that offense. I think they need a receiver more, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they took a running back.”

“But when you find a quick receiver, it helps,” Woodson continues. “You can ask any defensive back, and they’ll tell you the quicker and faster receivers are harder to defend because they can create separation.”

The Steelers could take some combination of running back and wide receiver with their first two picks and go a long way toward helping the offense catch up to that elite defense.

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