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 Freeman in 2010 | |||||||||
| No. 86 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1972-05-27)May 27, 1972 (age 52) Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 198 lb (90 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Baltimore Polytechnic | ||||||||
| College: | Virginia Tech | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1995: 3rd round, 90th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Antonio Michael Freeman (born May 27, 1972) is an American former professionalfootball player who was awide receiver in theNational Football League (NFL), most notably for theGreen Bay Packers. He attended theBaltimore Polytechnic Institute andVirginia Tech.
Freeman playedcollege football atVirginia Tech, where he caught 121 passes for 2,207 yards and 22 touchdowns in four seasons. He also returned 64 punts for 652 yards and another touchdown, and rushed for 37 yards. His accomplishments earned him enshrinement in theVirginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame.
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft0+5⁄8 in (1.84 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 31+1⁄4 in (0.79 m) | 8+3⁄8 in (0.21 m) | |||||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[1] | ||||||||||||
Freeman was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the1995 NFL draft.[2] In his rookie season, he returned a punt 76 yds for a touchdown during a playoff win over Atlanta.[3] He went on to lead the Packers in receiving in four seasons from 1996 to 1999, and led the NFL in receiving in 1998.
The peak of Freeman's career occurred during his first tenure with theGreen Bay Packers including a victory inSuper Bowl XXXI in 1997 over theNew England Patriots. During that Super Bowl, Freeman caught a then-Super Bowl record-length touchdown pass of 81 yards fromBrett Favre. The record was eclipsed inSuper Bowl XXXVIII whenMuhsin Muhammad caught an 85-yard touchdown pass. That play would give the Packers the lead for good as they went on to win 35–21. Freeman finished the game with three receptions for 105 yards. The following year, Freeman gained over 1,200 receiving yards as Green Bay advanced to their second consecutive Super Bowl, where he caught 9 passes for 126 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 31–24 loss to theDenver Broncos. His 230 all-purpose yards in the game was the third highest total in Super Bowl history.
In1998, Freeman had his best NFL season, catching 84 passes for a league leading 1,424 receiving yards and earning the right to his onlyPro Bowl appearance.
Duringovertime of a Monday night game on November 6, 2000, despite bad weather conditions, Freeman caught what initially appeared to be an incomplete pass while lying on his side—after almost being intercepted byMinnesota Vikings cornerbackCris Dishman, the ball actually bounced off multiple parts of Freeman's body without hitting the ground. Untouched by the defender, Freeman jumped to his feet and ran the ball in for the winning touchdown over the Vikings, the Packers'rival. The touchdown promptedABC play-by-play announcerAl Michaels, who was stunned by the play, to shout, "He did WHAT?!"[4][5] In 2005,ESPN labeled the catch as the greatest play in the history ofMonday Night Football.[citation needed] Freeman has said it was the second best catch of his career (claiming his best to be an 81-yard touchdown reception in Super Bowl XXXI).
Freeman played for the Green Bay Packers from1995 through the2001 NFL season. After feuding with Packers Head CoachMike Sherman in 2001, Freeman signed with thePhiladelphia Eagles. His final game in his first Packers tenure was against theSt. Louis Rams during the 2001 NFL playoffs. He then went on to play a year for the Eagles in 2002 before coming back to Green Bay for the 2003 season and a second tenure with the club. His final catch with the Packers occurred on the road in December 2003 during the fourth quarter of Brett Favre's phenomenal performance against the Oakland Raiders on ABC's Monday Night Football, following the death of Favre's father. He played his final game with Green Bay in the infamous "4th and 26" debacle in the NFL playoffs against the Philadelphia Eagles in January 2004. Freeman last played in the NFL with theMiami Dolphins during 2004 training camp.[6]
In his ten NFL seasons, Freeman caught 477 passes for 7,251 yards, gained 1,007 yards returning kickoffs and punts, and scored 61 touchdowns. He played in thePro Bowl in 1999. His teams made the playoffs in seven of his NFL seasons. He appeared in four NFC Championship Games and two Super Bowls. He ranks sixth all-time on the Green Bay Packers receivers list with 6,651 yards on 431 catches. Freeman had three 1,000 yard receiving seasons in his career, 1997–1999. Nicknamed "Free", in 2006 Freeman won aPop Warner Award for his work with youth.
On June 16, 2007, Freeman signed with the Packers to retire with the team.[7] He was inducted into theGreen Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 2009.[8]
Freeman occasionally participates as an analyst onESPN First Take andNFL Live, mostly during NFL season. He has also appeared onESPN College Gameday in support of his alma mater Virginia Tech. Freeman now appears on Redskins Kickoff and Redskins Postgame Live as a commentator onComcast SportsNet Washington. Freeman was inducted into theVirginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.[9]
Antonio Freeman has hosted his own radio show 'The End Zone with Antonio Freeman' since 2010, the show currently airs on WTSO in Madison and WOKY in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Receiving | Punt returns | Kick returns | Fumbles | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FD | Ret | Yds | Lng | TD | FC | Ret | Yds | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | |||
| 1995 | GB | 11 | 8 | 106 | 13.3 | 28 | 1 | 7 | 37 | 292 | 26 | 0 | 3 | 24 | 556 | 45 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | GB | 12 | 56 | 933 | 16.7 | 51 | 9 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| 1997 | GB | 16 | 81 | 1,243 | 15.3 | 58 | 12 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| 1998 | GB | 15 | 84 | 1,424 | 17.0 | 84 | 14 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| 1999 | GB | 16 | 74 | 1,074 | 14.5 | 51 | 6 | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | GB | 15 | 62 | 912 | 14.7 | 67 | 9 | 47 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 |
| 2001 | GB | 16 | 52 | 818 | 15.7 | 63 | 6 | 40 | 17 | 114 | 29 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 28 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | PHI | 16 | 46 | 600 | 13.0 | 59 | 4 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | GB | 15 | 14 | 141 | 10.1 | 15 | 0 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| Career[10] | 132 | 477 | 7,251 | 15.2 | 84 | 61 | 349 | 54 | 406 | 29 | 0 | 10 | 27 | 600 | 45 | 0 | 6 | 4 | |
