| No. 31, 30 | |||||||||||||||
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| Position | Cornerback | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1981-11-17)November 17, 1981 (age 44) Wichita Falls, Texas, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Texas(Texarkana, Texas) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Texas | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2004: 4th round, 110th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
Playing | |||||||||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||||||||
Coaching | |||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Nathaniel DeWayne Vasher (born November 17, 1981) is an American former professionalfootball player who was acornerback for seven seasons in theNational Football League (NFL). He was an All-American for theTexas Longhorns where he playedcollege football for four seasons. He was selected by theChicago Bears in the fourth round of the2004 NFL draft and with them became aPro Bowler and played inSuper Bowl XLI. He was also a member of theSan Diego Chargers andDetroit Lions.
A first team all-state selection at both cornerback andwide receiver atTexas High School inTexarkana, Texas, Vasher was recruited by theUniversity of Texas at Austin.
He started atstrong safety for theLonghorns in 2001 and at cornerback in 2002 and 2003. He intercepted 17 passes in his college career, tying the school record. He also returnedpunts and kickoffs and earnedAll-America honors as a punt returner in 2001.[1] In his senior year he earned All-Big 12 honors, third-team All-America recognition and was aJim Thorpe Award semifinalist. He helped the Longhorns win the 2001 Holiday Bowl and the 2002 Cotton Bowl.[1]
He set several records. In his senior year he set the single-season school record for pass break-ups with 26 and the career record with 64, which was also a Big 12 record. He also tied the school's career interceptions record with 17. He set the school record for punt return yards with 1,314 career yards. In his sophomore year, he tied then-UT season record with seven interceptions in a season. He tied the then school career record with 2 punt returns for a TD.[1]
In 2017, he was inducted into the Longhorns Hall of Honor.[1]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | 177 lb (80 kg) | 30+5⁄8 in (0.78 m) | 8+1⁄2 in (0.22 m) | |||||||||
| All values fromNFL Combine[2] | ||||||||||||
TheChicago Bears selected Vasher in the fourth round of2004 NFL draft with the 110th overall pick.[3] He began his career with the team as a back-upcornerback, but became a starter by the fourth week of the season. Vasher became the Bears’ top cornerback afterCharles Tillman was sidelined with an injury. In one of his best games of the season, Vasher intercepted one ofKen Dorsey’s passes and returned it for a 71-yard touchdown.[4]
Vasher had the best season of his career in2005, when he led the Bears andNational Football Conference with eight interceptions. He also set a record for the longest return of any kind when he returnedJoe Nedney’s missed 52-yard field goal for a 108-yard touchdown.[5] The record was later tied by teammateDevin Hester (who returned a missedJay Feely field goal for a score on November 12, 2006, against theGiants) andEllis Hobbs (who returned a kickoff for a touchdown on September 9, 2007, against theJets).[6][7] The record is now held byAntonio Cromartie, who returned a missedRyan Longwell field goal 109 yards for a touchdown for San Diego against Minnesota on November 4, 2007.[8] Vasher completed the season with an invitation to thePro Bowl, as well as two player of the week awards. He was also 10th in voting for the AP's NFL Defensive Player of the year and was a 2nd Team all Pro.[9]
Vasher missed portions of the2006 season on account of injuries and was limited to only three interceptions. He played a pivotal role in the Bears’National Football Conference Championship victory by recovering a fumble and also interceptingDrew Brees in the game's final minutes.[10] The next week in Super Bowl XLI he assigned to coverMarvin Harrison, one of theIndianapolis Colts’ top receivers, and limited him to 59 yards with 3 pass deflections, while also assistingChris Harris in an interception.
During the subsequent off-season, the Bears re-signed Vasher and Tillman to long-term contracts.[11] He sustained a groin injury during the third game of the2007 season and was forced to miss the next ten games while recuperating. He made his return during aMonday Night Football match up against theMinnesota Vikings, in which he intercepted a pass and also helpedBrian Urlacher record one by delivering a hit toRobert Ferguson.[12] Vasher continued to struggle with injuries, and lost his starting job toZack Bowman in 2009.[13]
On March 17, 2010, Vasher was released from the Bears.[14]
Vasher signed a two-year contract with theSan Diego Chargers on March 29, 2010, but was released in September before playing in a game with the team.[15]
On September 13, 2010, Vasher signed with theDetroit Lions.[16] He was re-signed to a one-year deal on March 4, 2011. On September 3, 2011 Vasher was cut by the Lions.[17]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2004 | CHI | 16 | 7 | 37 | 34 | 3 | 0.0 | 1 | 5 | 177 | 1 | 71 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 0 |
| 2005 | CHI | 16 | 15 | 47 | 40 | 7 | 0.0 | 0 | 8 | 145 | 1 | 46 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | CHI | 14 | 13 | 45 | 33 | 12 | 0.0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | CHI | 4 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 1 | 34 | 0 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | CHI | 8 | 7 | 22 | 21 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | CHI | 15 | 2 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 | DET | 14 | 5 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 87 | 51 | 193 | 160 | 33 | 1.0 | 4 | 20 | 368 | 2 | 71 | 49 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | TFL | Int | Yds | TD | Lng | PD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | ||
| 2005 | CHI | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | CHI | 3 | 3 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 0 |
| 4 | 4 | 17 | 14 | 3 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 0 | ||
Vasher was nicknamed "ESPN3" in college, and "The Interceptor" by Bears fans due to his many interceptions.[18]
His nephew,T. J. Vasher, is currently a wide receiver for theHouston Roughnecks of theUnited Football League.
He returned to UT after his NFL career, worked as a student assistant coach and earned his bachelor's degree in applied learning and development in the spring of 2014. In 2016 he received a Bill Walsh Minority Coaching Fellowship and spent the year as an intern coach with the Bears.[19] In 2017 he went to work on the coaching staff atTrinity International University, working with cornerbacks.[1][20]
In 2018, Vasher and former Bears teammateJohnny Knox became assistant coaches atCarmel High School under ex-BearBlake Annen.[21] he left in 2020 to be an volunteer assistant coach at Texas.[22]