Dante Wesley

Dante Julius Wesley (born April 5, 1979) is a former American football cornerback. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Wesley was also a member of the Chicago Bears, New England Patriots and Detroit Lions.

Dante Wesley
Wesley at the Carolina Panthers 2008 Fan Fest
No. 29, 21, 23, 33
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1979-04-05) April 5, 1979
St. Louis, Missouri
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:Pine Bluff (AR) Watson Chapel
College:Arkansas–Pine Bluff
NFL Draft:2002 / Round: 4 / Pick: 100
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • 2× second-team All-SWAC (1999-2000)
  • First-team All-SWAC (2001)
  • All-American (2001)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:104
Forced fumbles:5
Fumble recoveries:5
Pass deflections:18
Interceptions:0
Defensive touchdowns:1
Player stats at NFL.com

Professional career

First stint with Carolina Panthers

Wesley was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the 4th round (100th overall) of the 2002 NFL Draft.

Chicago Bears

In March 2006 he signed a 2-year contract with the Chicago Bears.

New England Patriots

After one season with the Bears, Wesley was acquired by the New England Patriots for an undisclosed draft pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Second stint with Panthers

On September 3, 2007, after being released by the Patriots, he signed again with the Panthers.

Wesley scored his first career touchdown on a 12-yard fumble return against the New Orleans Saints in the 2008 season finale.

In the 2009 NFL season, during a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Wesley hit the punt returner Clifton Smith, who had called for a fair catch but not yet received the ball. The Panthers were assessed a 15-yard penalty and he was ejected from the game.[1][2] Two days later, the NFL suspended Wesley for one game without pay. Wesley said he never meant to harm Smith, saying he merely mistimed his hit on him and wanted to apologize to Smith.[3]

Detroit Lions

Wesley signed with the Detroit Lions as an unrestricted free agent on April 3, 2010. Wesley was cut after the Lions had to go to the 53-man roster. He was re-signed by the Lions on September 30, 2010. He was released on October 19.

NFL statistics
YearTeamGPCOMBTOTALASTSACKFFFRFR YDSINTIR YDSAVG IRLNGTDPD
2002CAR13171430.0100000008
2003CAR16161421.0110000003
2004CAR13201820.0000000000
2005CAR16171610.0110000001
2006CHI1310910.0000000000
2007CAR22200.0000000000
2008CAR169810.0210000003
2009CAR15111101.0020000003
2010DET32200.0000000000
Career10710494102.05500000018

[4]

References
  1. "Dante Wesley Ejected After Hit On Clifton Smith NFL Panthers Bucs". 2009-10-18.
  2. "Wesley tossed; Smith has concussion". ESPN. AP. 2009-10-18.
  3. Chandler, Charles. Wesley suspended one game without pay. The Charlotte Observer, 2009-10-20.
  4. "Dante Wesley Stats". ESPN Internet. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.