Mathieu, playing both free safety and nickel corner through 13 weeks of his first season in Arizona, was a strong candidate for defensive rookie of the year.
He was placed on season-ending injured reserve. In , Mathieu played only 13 games thanks to a thumb injury that required surgery. In Mathieu's third season — a year in which he would earn his first career Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro nods — he tore his right ACL and missed the last two games.
In , after Arizona signed Mathieu to a five-year contract extension, he played only 10 games due to a shoulder injury that eventually landed him on injured reserve yet again. Two knee injuries — severe, severe knee injuries. He was a guy that played in the league 10 years, and he never really made it through a season healthy. But he always had a great spirit about him. I felt like that conversation he had with me, really gave me some hope that made me push through a lot of injuries.
Mathieu in finally played a complete, game schedule. Ironically, it was after his first fully healthy NFL season that Arizona decided to cut him. He had refused to take a pay cut, an understandable defiance considering Arizona had just extended him two years prior.
Beyond the loss of the money that once was promised to him, Mathieu was forced to hit free agency as a player who had played just one healthy season in five years.
To be cut, it was a reflective moment for me. It really humbled me. Asked whether he maintains any hard feelings about the Cardinals and how his stint ended, Mathieu shook his head and smiled. They gave me an opportunity to play in the NFL.
They put me in a good locker room with some good dudes. Definitely emotional when they cut me. But mad? Not mad. The NFL world calls this kind of contract a "prove-it deal," a term commonly associated with players who have had trouble staying on the field. Many assumed he would earn more on the open market, but the dollar figures were not his priority. That's all I want. Miles is also a Midwest native from Elyria, Ohio. He has said numerous times he wants to coach again. The kickoff time and television network is expected to be announced Sunday.
Arkansas defeated Florida, , on Saturday. You know what? To hell with them. USC hired Clay Helton instead for the permanent job. On December 10, , the Arizona Cardinals placed Mathieu on injured reserve officially ending his rookie season. He completed his rookie season in with 68 combined tackles 65 solo , nine pass deflections, two interceptions, a sack, and a forced fumble in 13 games and 11 starts.
Mathieu was named a first-team All-Pro at the slot cornerback position by Pro Football Focus after the season. After spending a year out of football in , he was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round of the NFL Draft, reuniting him in the defensive backfield with former college teammate Patrick Peterson.
In , he was invited to the Pro Bowl and earned first-team All-Pro honors. He has also played for the Houston Texans. On August 10, , LSU head coach Les Miles announced that Mathieu would be dismissed from the football team due to a violation of team rules.
News outlets reported that the dismissal was a result of repeated drug test failures, although Miles did not confirm those reports. Mathieu had formerly expressed an interest in returning to the program for the season. Mathieu's withdrawal was expected to last for the entire — academic year.
However, on September 4, , Mathieu ended his withdrawal and enrolled for fall semester classes. On October 25, , Mathieu and three other LSU former players were arrested on possession of marijuana. He ran a 4. He also later participated at his pro day on March 27, Mathieu attended the NFL Combine and completed all of the combine and positional drills. On March 28, , Mathieu attended LSU's pro day, but chose to stand on his combine numbers and only performed positional drills. He was projected to be a second or third round pick by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts.
At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Mathieu was ranked as the tenth best cornerback prospect in the draft by DraftScout. At the end of the regular season, Mathieu had 77 total tackles 60 solo and 17 assists , 1. On special teams, Mathieu had 26 punt returns for yards, with 2 returned for a touchdown. Mathieu earned the nickname "The Honey Badger" for his tenacious ability to play extremely tough football against much larger opponents, as well as his knack for making big plays.
This led to him being a Heisman Trophy finalist. On December 8, , Mathieu was awarded the Chuck Bednarik Award, given to the year's best defensive player in college football. This marked the second straight year an LSU defensive player won the nation's top defensive honor following Patrick Peterson in Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.
As a true freshman in , Mathieu played in all 13 games with one start. He finished the season with 59 tackles, 3 sacks, and 2 interceptions. He was the Most Outstanding Defensive Player of the Cotton Bowl Classic after he recorded seven tackles, one tackle for loss, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, one interception, one sack, and one pass breakup. His biological mother was absent the majority of the time and his biological father, Darrin Hayes, has been incarcerated for murder most of Mathieu's life.
After his grandfather died in , Mathieu was adopted by his uncle, Tyrone Mathieu, and aunt, Sheila Mathieu. In college he developed a reputation for causing turnovers, setting a Southeastern Conference SEC record with 11 career forced fumbles and earning the nickname "Honey Badger.
Mathieu was dismissed from the LSU football program after that season due to a violation of team rules. Tyrann Mathieu Player.
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