Wes Welker
| Wes Welker | |
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Positions: Wide Receiver , Return Specialist |
Jersey numbers: 83, 19 |
| born on May 1, 1981 in Oklahoma City , Oklahoma | |
| Career information | |
| Active : 2004 - 2015 | |
| Undrafted in 2004 | |
| College : Texas Tech | |
| Teams | |
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as a player
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| Career statistics | |
| captured passports | 903 |
| trapped yards | 9,924 |
| Touchdowns | 50 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Stats at pro-football-reference.com | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Wesley Carter "Wes" Welker (born May 1, 1981 in Oklahoma City , Oklahoma ) is an American American football player on the position of wide receiver and kick returner . He played with the New England Patriots , Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams in the National Football League (NFL) and is currently a wide receiver coach for the San Francisco 49ers .
Career
Welker attended Texas Tech University and broke the record for the most punt- return touchdowns in his career with eight. Even so, he was not selected in the NFL Draft and signed a contract with the San Diego Chargers as a free agent . He was taken out of the team by them immediately after the first week and went to the Miami Dolphins , where he mainly played in the special team . On November 10, 2004, he became the first player in American football history to achieve a tackle , a kickoff and a punt return, a field goal and a point after touchdown (PAT). Nonetheless, Welker was only a role player (he only played one game from the start) and later said: "In Miami, I usually only got into 3rd down ."
After two rather unspectacular years, Welker moved to the New England Patriots in 2007 under Head Coach Bill Belichick . At the side of quarterback Tom Brady and wide receiver Randy Moss , Welker suddenly became a star: he caught 112 passes, which was a team record, as well as eight touchdowns - seven more than he has achieved in his entire career. The Patriots had a perfect regular season , but surprisingly lost the Super Bowl XLII with 14:17 against the New York Giants . Welker was one of the few Patriots to achieve normal form, setting a Super Bowl record with 11 passes captured .
2008 started with a shock for New England when Brady injured himself badly in the foot and was replaced by Matt Cassel as starting quarterback . Nevertheless Welker established himself as a consistent wide receiver with 111 throws caught (three touchdowns). The Patriots missed the play-offs despite eleven wins , but Welker was elected to the Pro Bowl for the first time . In 2009 Welker made it back to the Pro Bowl with 123 passes caught (four touchdowns), but then he tore his cruciate ligament and fell out for the play-offs, in which New England were eliminated by the Baltimore Ravens . In 2010, due to an injury, he did not join until the middle of the season: at the side of the young tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez , who replaced Moss, who had been dismissed for disciplinary reasons, Welker made 86 passes (nine touchdowns), but was eliminated with the newly formed Patriots the New York Jets out. In 2011 Welker played his statistically best season (122 throws caught, nine touchdowns), in which he scored a 99-yard touchdown against the Miami Dolphins . With New England Welker made it into the Super Bowl XLVI against the New York Giants. In the 17:21 defeat, he dropped a pass at 17:15 in the fourth quarter that would have brought New England at least close to the field goal.
In 2013 Welker moved to the Denver Broncos after negotiations with New England over a contract extension were broken. At the Broncos he was part of the historic offensive that, under the leadership of quarterback Peyton Manning , broke the NFL records for touchdowns (76) and points (606). Denver made it to Super Bowl XLVIII , won by the Seattle Seahawks 43-8 . Welker caught a two-point conversion to the meanwhile 36: 8.
In the 2014 season, Welker was banned from the NFL for four games before the first day of play because of the illegal use of performance-enhancing substances. After his performance collapsed and teammates like Champ Bailey expressed concern that he could sustain permanent brain damage after multiple concussions , his contract was not renewed.
After he had not found a new club at the beginning of the 2015 season, he was signed by the St. Louis Rams on November 10, 2015 until the end of the season.
Since January 30, 2017, Welker has been employed as an assistant coach for the Houston Texans.
Style of play
Welker is statistically one of the most consistent wide receivers in the NFL: he's the only wide receiver to have three seasons with 110 or more passes captured, and only Marvin Harrison and Jerry Rice have had four seasons with 100 or more passes captured like him. Welker is considered a prototypical “slot receiver”, a small, agile catcher who can take short passes in the narrow “gap” between the offensive line and another wide receiver. His combination of “game intelligence, light-footedness, confidence in catching and fearlessness” is praised. Before Welker, slot receivers were used more as a stopgap solution in 3rd down, but he and Victor Cruz (New York Giants) contributed to the fact that more and more clubs use slot receivers on every down.
Private life
Welker has been married to his wife Anna, a former model, since 2012.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Time slot: Cruz and Welker evolve role of slot WR ( Memento of December 13, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), New York Daily News
- ↑ Wes Welker Suspended 4 Games (English) Bleacher Report, Retrieved September 3, 2014
- ↑ Champ Bailey wants Wes Welker to retire due to concussion history , sbnation.com
- ↑ welker reaches agreement with st. louis rams (English) espn.com, Retrieved November 10, 2015
- ^ Slot receivers taking center stage
- ↑ Who Is Anna Burns? Pictures Of Wes Welker's Wife, Former Model, Before Super Bowl XLVIII , intimes.com
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Welker, Wes |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Welker, Wesley Carter (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American football player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 1, 1981 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Oklahoma City , Oklahoma , United States |