Warren Sapp
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| Oakland Raiders | |
|---|---|
| Career information | |
| College: | University of Miami |
| NFL draft: | 1995 / round: 1 / pick: 12 |
| Career history | |
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| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Warren Carlos Sapp (born December 19, 1972 in Orlando, Florida) is a professional football player for the NFL's Oakland Raiders. Sapp is known for his intense and aggressive defensive plays, and is one of the most regarded defensive lineman of his generation.[1]
Early years
Sapp was raised in Plymouth, Florida, a small, rural community on the Lake County/Orange County, Florida line. During the late 1980s, he earned widespread recognition as an outstanding football player at Apopka High School in Apopka, Florida as a linebacker, tight end and punter.[2] While playing football for Apopka High School, Sapp delivered a hit on a player from Dr. Phillips High school named Johnny Damon, who now plays baseball for the New York Yankees. This was the first concussion Johnny Damon ever received.
College career
Many top national colleges sought him out as a football player, but Sapp chose to play for the University of Miami, one of the premier collegiate football programs in the nation. Converted to defensive lineman while there, Sapp would win the "Bronko Nagurski Trophy" (best defensive player), the "Chuck Bednarik Award" (defensive player), and the "Lombardi Award" (best lineman or linebacker) all in 1994. He was also named to many "All-American" teams.
Awards and honors
- Second-team All-American (1993)
- 2x First-team All-Big East (1993-1994)
- Consensus First-team All-American (1994)
- Lombardi Award (1994)
- Outland Trophy finalist (1994)
- Big East Defensive Player of the Year (1994)
- Defensive Player of the Year by Football Writers Association, Football News and ABC (1994)
NFL career
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After playing college football at the University of Miami, where he was a defensive standout, Sapp was drafted into the NFL by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 1995 draft (12th pick overall).[citation needed] Sapp ran the fastest defensive end forty time, recording a 5.17 time. Upon joining Tampa Bay, Sapp was almost immediately given the starting job at the position of right defensive tackle and finished his rookie season with 27 tackles and one interception.[citation needed] Sapp continued to be a prolific, intimidating tackler for the Buccaneers, tallying 51 tackles and nine sacks in 1996 and 58 tackles and 10.5 sacks in 1997.[citation needed] In 1997, Sapp was named to his first Pro Bowl. He has appeared in six consecutive Pro Bowls since.[citation needed] Sapp was named 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the year.
2003 Super Bowl
In 2002, Sapp helped lead a resurgent Tampa Bay team to victory in Super Bowl XXXVII over the Oakland Raiders. Sapp had five tackles and two sacks during the 2002-2003 postseason.
Oakland Raiders
In 2004, it was reported that Sapp was interested in accepting a contract offer from the Cincinnati Bengals for four years worth US $16 million. However, on March 20, he announced that he had agreed to terms on a seven-year, $36.6 million contract with the Raiders. Sapp started all 16 games in his first season with the Raiders, splitting time at defensive end as well as defensive tackle. Sapp recorded 42 tackles (33 solo), 2.5 sacks (Sapp's lowest career sack total) and recovered two fumbles. 2005 started out as a great year for Sapp, as he was moved back to his familiar DT position. He started the first ten games of the season recording 29 tackles (25 of them solo), and finished second on the team to Derrick Burgess with five sacks. Sapp was sidelined for the last six games of '05 with a shoulder injury. Sapp returned to his All-Pro form in 2006, as he was nominated to his 8th Pro Bowl. Sapp and the Raider defense were one of very few bright spots for the 2006 Raiders. Sapp had 10 sacks to go along with 32 tackles and one forced fumble. Before the 2007 season, he lost 52 pounds.
Controversies
Mike Sherman confrontation
On November 24, 2002, at Raymond James Stadium, Sapp drew criticism for blocking the Green Bay Packers' Chad Clifton during an interception return by the Buccaneers. Clifton was jogging down field, away from the main action, and was blindsided by Sapp.[3] The hit sent Clifton to the hospital with a pelvic injury, which ended his season. Following the 21-7 Tampa Bay Buccaneers victory, Sapp and Packers' coach Mike Sherman exchanged heated words. Sherman approached Sapp and said to him "What you did was wrong."[4] In response, Sapp screamed at Sherman: "If you think you're so tough, why don't you put on a uniform?"[3] Sapp later called Sherman: "a lying, shit-eating hound. … If I was 25 years old and didn't have a kid and a conscience, I would have given him an ass-kicking right there at the 30-yard line."[3] Sherman later said of Sapp: "The joviality that existed after [the hit] when a guy's laying on the ground, with numbness in his legs and fingers, I just thought that wasn't appropriate for any NFL player."[4] Clifton has since recovered from the injury and still plays for the Green Bay Packers.[5]
The skipping incidents
During pre-game warm-ups of a December 23, 2002 Monday Night Football game at Raymond James Stadium, Sapp skipped through the Pittsburgh Steelers. Steelers running back Jerome Bettis shoved Sapp, and this was followed by a heated argument between the two teams. Sapp was not fined for the incident, but it added to his controversial image. Sapp felt that he was made an example by the NFL by being fined for that first skipping incident. "That's all this is about," said Sapp. "In my nine years in this league, no one's been fined for verbally abusing officials. It's unprecedented."[6] The Buccaneers had been earlier ridiculed by Steelers' Lee Flowers as being "paper champions." Notwithstanding, Sapp and the Buccaneers went on to win Super Bowl XXXVII five weeks later forever erasing the Paper Champs stigma.
In 2003, during an October 6 Monday Night Football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sapp was scolded for skipping through and disrupting the Colts players, who were spread out on the field, stretching during pre-game warmups. There was much anticipation and national interest going into the game, which was the return of former head coach Tony Dungy to Tampa. The Colts wound up erasing a 21-point deficit in the final four minutes, and defeated the Buccaneers 38-35 in overtime, initiating a frustrating downslide for the defending champions.
A week later, on October 12, 2003, prior to the game against the Washington Redskins, Sapp was running onto the field when he bumped into an NFL referee. The incident drew a fine of $50,000. Sapp's response to the fine : "It's a slave system. Make no mistake about it. Slave master say you can't do it, don't do it. They'll make an example out of you."[7]
Personal
- Sapp's agent is fellow University of Miami alumnus Drew Rosenhaus, widely considered one of the most aggressive agents currently representing NFL players.
- Sapp's first TV appearance as a Raider is on The Simpsons post-Super Bowl XXXIX episode.
- Sapp was a college football teammate of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson at the University of Miami
References
- ^ ESPN.com "Sapp insists food was tampered with on road trips"
- ^ "nflplayers.com". Warren Sapp #99. Retrieved May 1.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ a b c ESPN.com "Sherman angered by Sapp hit, celebration" Cite error: The named reference "espn" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b CNNSI.com "Sapp, Sherman sound off on third-quarter hit"
- ^ ESPN.com "Sapp has no regrets about hit on Clifton"
- ^ "espn.go.com". NFL Threatens to Suspend Sapp. Retrieved May 1.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "usatoday.com". Sapp's Act Ceases to Be Amusing. Retrieved May 1.
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