Today in Patriots History
Danny Woodhead
January 25, 2016:
Dave DeGuglielmo is fired as offensive line coach, and
Dante Scarnecchia is rehired for that position.
Happy 36th Birthday to
Danny Woodhead
Born January 25, 1985 in North Platte, Nebraska
Patriot RB 2010-2012; uniform #39
Signed as a free agent on September 18, 2010
At 5'8 and 175 pounds, no college football powerhouses were interested in Danny Woodhead. He stayed local and attended the school his parents attended, division 2 Chadron State. While there he set NCAA records for
most rushing yards in a single season (2,740), most 200 yard rushing games (19) and consecutive games scoring a touchdown (39).
Between his size and being a D2 player, the NFL took the same approach as colleges did, and did not invite Woodhead to the rookie combine. The running back was only able to show off his abilities at a pro day; his times in the 40 and vertical would have ranked second among running backs, and his 60 yard shuttle was better than any RB at the combine.
The Jets signed Woodhead as an undrafted free agent immediately after the 2008 draft. He spent '08 on injured reserve after tearing his ACL early in training camp, and was released after one game in '09. When the Pats signed Woodhead a few days later many suspected it was simply an intel move on New England's week two opponent. A roster spot had opened up when Denver was in dire need of a running back, and had bought high in a trade for
Laurence Maroney. The Pats still had
Fred Taylor,
Sammy Morris,
BenJarvus Green-Ellis and
Kevin Faulk. Woodhead was inactive for the game vs
the Jete, but Faulk suffered a season ending knee injury that day.
The next week Woodhead saw limited action, but gained 42 yards on three carries and scored a 22 yard touchdown in a 38-30 win over Buffalo. His playing time quickly increased as it was apparent he was not only a capable runner and receiver, but also a reliable player who rarely fumbled or dropped a pass, willing to effectively block much larger pass rushers.
Woodhead played in 45 regular season games in three years in New England. He scored 14 touchdowns and gained 2,181 yards from scrimmage, averaging 4.8 yards per carry and 10.7 ypc on 92 receptions; he also returned 22 kicks for another 48 yards. Woodhead also played in six playoff games for the Patriots, with one touchdown.
San Diego signed Woodhead as an unrestricted free agent on March 15, 2013; he retired from pro football on March 17, 2018. In ten NFL seasons Woodhead had 5,694 all purpose yards with 15 rushing touchdowns, 17 receiving TD, and two 2-point conversions.
Danny Woodhead Retires: The Exit Interview | Sports Illustrated
Danny Woodhead made a name for himself in the NFL by being the everyman's player, the underdog, the undrafted running back with a diminutive 5' 8" frame, full of grit.
Happy 50th Birthday to
Vincent Brisby
Born January 25, 1971 in Houston
Patriot WR 1993-1999; uniform #82
Pats 2nd round (56th overall) selection in the 1993 draft, from NE Louisiana
The
1993 draft was one of the better ones in Patriot history, and certainly the best since the
Chuck Fairbanks era.
Drew Bledsoe was the first overall pick and the Pats picked up
Troy Brown in the 8th round. With three second round picks the Pats added LB
Chris Slade, OL
Todd Rucci and WR
Vincent Brisby.
Until
Curtis Martin arrived in 1995, the Bledsoe/Parcells Patriots had no running game. (How else do you explain Bledsoe throwing 70 passes in one game?) Drew flung it around to
Ben Coates,
Michael Timpson and Brisby - a lot. In his first three seasons Brisby had 169 receptions for 2,504 yards and ten touchdowns. Unfortunately the completion rate on passes to Brisby was poor, with the receiver able to catch only 43.8% of the 386 passes thrown his way.
In 1996 Brisby signed a large contract extension, then dealt with a hamstring injury in training camp - and did not get on the field until week 12. Parcells famously stated that he "
recovered from open-heart surgery faster than Brisby had (from the hamstring injury). That's the truth. I'm not kidding you."
Brisby's first catch of the '96 season did not come until the Super Bowl against Green Bay. He lasted three more seasons under
Pete Carroll, buried on the depth chart behind
Terry Glenn,
Shawn Jefferson and Troy Brown.
Aug 15, 2000:
Patriots Cut Brisby | Hartford Courant
Vincent Brisby, who caught 66 passes in 1995 but only 48 since, was one of eight Patriots cut Monday.
Most people go with what and whom they know, and Patriots coach Bill Belichick, who spent 12 years as a Giants assistant, is no different. He has brought in Chris Calloway, who played seven seasons with the Giants and caught 22 passes for 314 yards and one touchdown last season with the Falcons.
Among those cut, the biggest surprise was that Brisby hung on as long as he did. NFL, as TV analyst and former coach Jerry Glanville loves to say, means Not For Long. Yet Brisby, 29, who signed a multimillion dollar contract before the 1996 season, then was promptly injured, hung on despite catching zero, 23, and seven passes the next three seasons. He was healthy in 1999, but then-Patriots coach Pete Carroll thought so little of him that he didn't activate him for four of the first five games.
Considering that Brisby had only three notable seasons it is a bit of a surprise to see where he ranks all time in Patriot franchise history:
- 3,142 career receiving yards was ninth most in franchise history at the time (17th now).
- 217 career receptions was eighth most in Pats history then (17th now).
- 14.5 yards per reception ranks eighth best in club history (minimum 200 catches).
Former Patriot Vincent Brisby inducted into his Louisiana College Hall of Fame | patriots.com
Vincent Brisby Hall of Fame (2015) | University of Louisiana Monroe
Happy 54th birthday to
Darryl Wren
Born Jan 25, 1967 in Tulsa
Patriot CB, 1993-94; uniform #27
Waiver claim from Bills on Aug 31, 1993
Darryl Wren played in twenty games over two seasons in New England. In '93 he started five games and had three interceptions, with 35 tackles. The Pats attempted to trade him to Seattle late in training camp in '04 for a sixth round draft pick, but that trade was voided when Wren failed his physical. He was originally a third round pick by Buffalo in '91, from Pittsburgh State.
Happy 56th birthday to
Jerry McCabe
Born Jan 25, 1965 in Detroit
Patriot LB, 1987; uniform #52
The Holy Cross alum was a replacement player for three games in '87; he also spent the next three seasons with the Chiefs.
Some other New England pro football players born on this date:
Ken Bungarda, 64 (1957)
Born in Hartford
OT from Missouri was drafted by the Bengals in '79, also played with 49ers.
Ray Preston, 67 (1954)
Lawrence High School
Played in 122 games for the Chargers at linebacker from 1976-1984.
Tom Toner (1950-1990)
Born in Woburn; Swampscott High School
Linebacker was drafted by Green Bay in '73 and played for the Packers until '77.
Vito Ananis (1915-1994)
Born in Cambridge; Cambridge Rindge Tech; Boston College
Halfback and defensive back for Washington in the forties.
Jack Flavin (1900-1965)
Born in Portland, Maine; Portland High School
Fullback in the twenties with the Buffalo All-Americans.
