Alontae Taylor

Alontae Taylor
refer to caption
Taylor in 2023
No. 1 – New Orleans Saints
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1998-12-03) December 3, 1998 (age 26)
Winchester, Tennessee, U.S.
Height:6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight:199 lb (90 kg)
Career information
High school:Coffee County Central
(Manchester, Tennessee)
College:Tennessee (2018–2021)
NFL draft:2022 / round: 2 / pick: 49
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career NFL statistics as of Week 14, 2024
Total tackles:195
Sacks:5
Forced fumbles:3
Pass deflections:38
Interceptions:2
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Alontae Devaun Taylor (born December 3, 1998) is an American professional football cornerback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Tennessee.

Early life

Taylor attended Coffee County Central High School in Manchester, Tennessee. He played quarterback in high school and during his career, he had 8,225 yards of total offense and 75 touchdowns.[1][2] Taylor played in the 2018 Under Armour All-American Game.[3] He committed to the University of Tennessee to play college football.[4][5]

College career

Taylor played at Tennessee under head coaches Jeremy Pruitt and Josh Heupel from 2018 to 2021.[6][7][8] He originally played wide receiver at Tennessee before transitioning to cornerback prior to his freshman year.[9] He became a starter his freshman year and overall started 31 of 45 career games. Taylor finished his career with 162 tackles, four interceptions, one pick-six, and one fumble recovery for a touchdown.[10][11][6] He decided to sit out the 2021 Music City Bowl in preparation for the 2022 NFL draft.[12]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 0+1⁄8 in
(1.83 m) 		199 lb
(90 kg) 		32+1⁄4 in
(0.82 m) 		9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		 4.36 s 1.51 s 2.52 s 4.25 s 7.08 s 39.0 in
(0.99 m)		 11 ft 1 in
(3.38 m)		 14 reps
Sources:[13][14]

Taylor was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the second round, 49th overall, in the 2022 NFL Draft.[15] He was placed on injured reserve on September 24, 2022.[16] He was activated on October 20.[17] In his rookie season, Taylor appeared in 13 games, of which he started nine. He finished with 46 total tackles and 11 passes defended.[18]

In Week 17 of the 2023 season, against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Taylor intercepted a pass intended for Trey Palmer from Baker Mayfield for his first career interception.[19] In the 2023 season, Taylor appeared in all 17 games and started 13. He finished with one sack, 75 total tackles (56 solo), two interceptions, 14 passes defended, and one forced fumble.[20]

During Week 1 of the 2024 season, against the Carolina Panthers, Taylor recorded three sacks against Bryce Young.[21] This set the New Orleans Saints record and tied the NFL record for most sacks in a game by a defensive back.[21]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF FR Yds TD
2022 NO 13 9 46 39 7 0.0 11 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2023 NO 17 13 75 56 19 1.0 14 2 16 8.0 16 0 1 0 0 0
2024 NO 8 7 45 32 13 4.0 7 0 0 0.0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Total 38 29 166 127 39 5.0 32 2 16 8.0 16 0 3 0 0 0

References

  1. ^ Ubben, David (November 7, 2018). "Alontae Taylor's road from a skinny, small-town quarterback to a key piece of Jeremy Pruitt's defense at Tennessee". The Athletic. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  2. ^ Kreager, Tom (July 10, 2017). "Tennessee Vols commitment Alontae Taylor of Coffee County is No. 4 on 2017 Dandy Dozen". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  3. ^ Hilbert, Evan (November 16, 2017). "Alontae Taylor receives Under Armour All-America Game jersey". USA TODAY High School Sports. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  4. ^ Kreager, Tom (December 22, 2017). "Coffee County's Alontae Taylor signs with Tennessee Vols football". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  5. ^ Hamilton, Gerry; VanHaaren, Tom (December 24, 2017). "Tennessee secure WR Alontae Taylor (No. 46) after losing two QB recruits". ABC News. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Alontae Taylor College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". Sports Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  7. ^ "Tennessee Volunteers Coaches". Sports Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  8. ^ Gallagher, Michael (July 21, 2021). "Alontae Taylor: 'Power T on my chest is bigger than me'". Nashville Post. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  9. ^ Rutherford, Nathanael (October 16, 2018). "Alontae Taylor Has Been Elite to Start His UT Career". Rocky Top Insider. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  10. ^ "Tennessee at Auburn Box Score, October 13, 2018". Sports Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  11. ^ Gray, Nick (November 6, 2021). "See Tennessee Vols football's Alontae Taylor run back interception for TD to change game vs. Kentucky". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  12. ^ Sparks, Adam (December 1, 2021). "Tennessee cornerback Alontae Taylor forgoing bowl game, declaring for NFL Draft". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  13. ^ "Alontae Taylor Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
  14. ^ "2022 Draft Scout Alontae Taylor, Tennessee NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved July 22, 2022.
  15. ^ "New Orleans Saints select Tennessee cornerback Alontae Taylor with Pick 49 in the 2022 NFL Draft". NewOrleansSaints.com. April 29, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  16. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. September 24, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  17. ^ "New Orleans Saints announce roster moves". NewOrleansSaints.com. October 20, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  18. ^ "Alontae Taylor 2022 Game Log". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
  19. ^ "Saints' Alontae Taylor: Gets first career INT in win". CBSSports.com. January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
  20. ^ "Alontae Taylor 2023 Game Log". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  21. ^ a b Gray, Darrion (September 8, 2024). "Alontae Taylor makes Saints history in 2024 season opener". Saints Wire. USA Today. Retrieved September 9, 2024.