Donald Mitchell (American football)
Donald Roosevelt Mitchell (born December 14, 1976 in Beaumont, Texas) is a former American football cornerback in the National Football League for the Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Southern Methodist University.
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Position: | Cornerback | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | Beaumont, Texas | December 14, 1976||||||||
Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 182 lb (83 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Beaumont Central (TX) | ||||||||
College: | Southern Methodist | ||||||||
NFL Draft: | 1999 / Round: 4 / Pick: 117 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early years
Mitchell attended Beaumont Central High School. He played cornerback and was an All-District selection as a senior. He also practiced track and baseball.
He accepted a football scholarship from Southern Methodist University. As a sophomore, he started 6 games at cornerback. As a junior, he became a regular starter at cornerback, collecting 45 tackles and 3 interceptions.
As a senior, he registered 74 tackles, 16 passes defensed, 3 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles. He had 13 tackles against the University of Mississippi. He finished his college career after starting 26 out of 41 games, while making 160 tackles, 6 interceptions, 2 fumble recoveries and 4 forced fumbles.
Professional career
Tennessee Titans
Mitchell was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the fourth round (117th overall) of the 1999 NFL Draft. As a rookie, he earned the position of nickel back and appeared in all 16 games, tallying 7 tackles, one pass defensed, 19 special teams tackles (fourth on the team), one blocked kick and one returned interception for a touchdown. The Titans would eventually make it to Super Bowl XXXIV, where they lost to the Kurt Warner-led St. Louis Rams.[1]
In 2000, he suffered a torn right ACL during a practice and was placed on the injured reserve list on August 22.[2][3] In 2001, he appeared in 12 contests, missing the final 4 games with a sprained right knee, while making 25 tackles, 4 passes defensed, 13 special teams tackles and one blocked kick.
In 2002, he started 9 games at right cornerback in place on an injured Samari Rolle and was able to play through ankle and knee injuries.[4] He posted 51 tackles, one interception, 8 passes defensed, 2 quarterback pressures, 11 special teams tackles, 3 recovered fumbles and one forced fumble. In February 2003, he underwent arthroscopic surgery in one of his ankles. During his time with the Titans he was also a core special teams player.
Dallas Cowboys
On March 20, 2003, he was signed as a free agent by the Dallas Cowboys, with the intention of playing him at the nickel back position.[5] He suffered a serious left high ankle sprain in the final preseason game against the Oakland Raiders and was placed on the injured reserve list on August 31.[6] He was released on August 31, 2004.[7][8]
References
- "Super Bowl XXXIV Team Rosters". sportspool.com. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
- "Pickens Is Added To Titans' Arsenal". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "Transactions". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "Mitchell To Start In Place Of Rolle". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "After Losing Coles, Jets Sign Conway To Three-year Deal". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "Setting Roster Intrigues, Infuriates Cowboys' Parcells". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "Baltimore Signs Sanders For Depth In Secondary". Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- "Cowboys release nine, put DiNapoli on PUP list". August 31, 2004. Retrieved March 5, 2018.