Sean Michael Taylor (born April 1, 1983 in Miami, Florida) is an American football player who currently plays free safety for the Washington Redskins of the NFL. Due to his ferocious style of hitting, his teammates have nicknamed him "Meast".[1] This a reference to him being "half-man, half beast.
Taylor played high school football at Miami's Gulliver Preparatory School where he helped Gulliver win the Florida Class 2A State Championship in 2000. At Gulliver, he was a star on both sides of the ball, playing running back (on offense) and defensive back and linebacker (on defense). In 2000, Taylor rushed for 1,300 yards and a state-record 44 touchdowns. On two separate occasions, Taylor rushed for more than 200 yards during Gulliver’s state playoff run. He also racked up more than 100 tackles during the 2000 season and accounted for three touchdowns (two receiving, one rushing) in the state title game victory over Marianna. Taylor was considered the No. 7 prospect in Dade County by the Miami Herald and rated the nation’s No. 18 skill athlete and an All-American by SuperPrep. He was also an Orlando Sentinel Super Southern Team selection, the No. 1 athlete on the Florida Times-Union Super 75 list, and rated the No. 14 player in Florida by the Gainesville Sun. Taylor began his High School football career at 6A Miami Killian Senior HS, but left to Gulliver 2A where he could play both offense and defense.
In 2001, he was one of just four true freshmen to play for Miami in the 2001 national championship season, carving a niche for himself in Miami's secondary in nickel and dime coverage packages. Taylor was named "Big East Special Teams Player" of the Week for his performance against the University of Pittsburgh. In 2002, Taylor was a first-team All-Big East selection by the league's head coaches in his first season as a starter. He finished third on the team in tackles with 85 (53 solos), broke up 15 passes, intercepted four passes, forced one fumble, blocked a kick and returned a punt for a touchdown. He led all defensive backs in tackles, interceptions and passes broken up and had a career-high 11 tackles (two solos) and intercepted two passes in the Fiesta Bowl loss to The Ohio State University. During his final year at Miami, Taylor produced a historic season that culminated with a plethora of honors and awards. He was a named a consensus first-team All-American, the "Big East Conference Defensive Player of the Year" and a finalist for the "Jim Thorpe Award" given to the nation's best defensive back. He led the Big East Conference and ranked first nationally in interceptions per game (0.83) with 10, tying the record for interceptions in a season held by former hurricane standout Bennie Blades. He finished third in total tackles with 77 (57 solos). He intercepted two passes in Miami's impressive 28-14 win over Pittsburgh, playing a key role as the Hurricanes limited All-American receiver Larry Fitzgerald to three receptions for 26 yards. He returned interceptions for an average of 18.4 yards, including a 67-yard touchdown return at Boston College, a 50-yard scoring runback at Florida State, and a 44-yard scoring runback against Rutgers. His three TD returns of interceptions is a Miami single-season record. Taylor was the first University of Miami player drafted in 2004, being selected one pick before widely-sought former teammate Kellen Winslow, a dominant tight end, who was chosen by the Cleveland Browns with the draft's sixth pick.
Following his 2004 selection by the Redskins, Taylor signed a seven-year, $18 million contract with the team. Shortly thereafter, fellow Redskin LaVar Arrington hit Taylor in the face with a shaving cream pie during a media interview as a ritual rookie hazing. On the field during the 2004 season, Taylor was successful, emerging as the Redskins' starting free safety by the third game of his rookie season. For the season, he had the team's second most interceptions, with four. In addition to his four interceptions, Taylor had 89 tackles, two forced fumbles and one sack. He started for the Redskins in 13 of the season's 16 games.
Taylor's short NFL career, however, has been overshadowed somewhat by controversy. He has fired two of his agents, walked out of a mandatory NFL rookie symposium for which he was fined, and was accused of spitting on Cincinnati Bengals player, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, who later called Taylor "a punk," during a 2004 game at FedEx Field. However, after an investigation, the NFL found nothing to substantiate the spitting allegation. Taylor continued his effective play in the 2005 season, finishing with 70 tackles, 1 sack, 2 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble returned for a touchdown. In this year he became recognized as one of the hardest hitters in the NFL. Taylor, along with fellow University of Miami and Redskins' teammate Clinton Portis, was fined $5,000 in the home game against the Philadelphia Eagles for violating the NFL dress code by wearing socks that did not match the Redskins' standard uniform. Portis was fined even more for further infractions. Taylor had ups and downs during a January 7, 2006 wild card game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Although he scored a touchdown that proved to be the Redskins' margin of victory, he was ejected after spitting at running back Michael Pittman. He was subsequently fined $17,000, the amount of his game check. The 2006 season was arguably the most inconsistent of Taylor's career. He finished the year leading the Redskins' defense with 129 tackles, 1 interception and 3 forced fumbles.
Taylor occasionally missed tackles in his attempts to knock the ballcarrier out. Some backers of Taylor might say this was the culmination of Taylor being forced to make tackles near the line of scrimmage to help the struggling Redskins defensive rush unit. He did not have a fellow safety to go along with him for most of the year, and struggled to make plays when he was stretched too thin. Taylor had his best game of the season in week 12 against the Carolina Panthers.[2] Though he played well all game, his presence was felt most sharply in the final minutes, making a key 4th-down tackle and intercepting a Jake Delhomme pass to seal the victory. He earned NFL Defensive Player of the Week honors following the game. Even while playing on a struggling Redskins defensive unit, Taylor's impact on the field was recognized when he was named a first alternate to the NFC's 2007 Pro Bowl team. When the first choice for safety, Brian Dawkins of the Philadelphia Eagles, chose not to play in the Pro Bowl due to an injury, Taylor was named to the vacated spot, marking his first Pro Bowl appearance. During the Pro Bowl, on a rudimentary special teams play, punt kicker Brian Moorman (Buffalo Bills) of the AFC conference decided to snap the ball and run on 4th down to try to pick up 3 yards and a 1st down. Taylor came from about 30 yards out of the defensive backfield and completely leveled Moorman horizontally, a play which became the hit of the game. In an act of good sportsmanship and respect after he took the hit, Moorman raced to midfield to congratulate Sean Taylor for making the big play.
While in 2007 Taylor was having the best season of his career in on the field and had stayed out of trouble off the field since the birth of his daughter, Jackie, in May 2006. He was becoming a leader, and his teammates had elected him to the players' committee that meets regularly with Gibbs. When on November 26th (Back home in Miami) Sean was shot by "an intruder who forcibly entered his residence," Miami police said. On November 27th 2007, Sean Taylor died at 3:30am. "The blood loss was too much. He didn't make it," said Taylor's former attorney, Richard Sharpstein, on CNN's "American Morning."
Many of Taylor's fans "loved him because [of] the way he played football," said his father, Florida City Police Chief Pedro Taylor, in a statement to the news media.
"Many of his opponents feared him, the way he approached the game. Others misunderstood him, many appreciated him and his family loved him. I can only hope and pray that Sean's life was not in vain that it might touch others in a special way," Chief Taylor said.
"God is always in control," Pedro Taylor later told reporters. "We have no control of life or death ... we thank Him for all 24 years of having Sean here. I know it sounds short, but that's His will and it was done."
Taylor spent four years with the Redskins and was recovering from a sprained right knee at the time of the attack. He didn't play in that Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which the Redskins lost 19-13.
Dubbing him "the prototype NFL free safety," the Redskins credited Taylor's team-leading tackling prowess for sending him to his first Pro Bowl after 2006.
He was regarded as one of the hardest-hitting players in the league. Taylor recorded 257 tackles (206 solo) during his brief career, two sacks and seven interceptions, according to the team Web site.
