Riq Woolen

Riq Woolen
No. 27 – Seattle Seahawks
Position:Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1999-05-02) May 2, 1999 (age 25)
Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Arlington Heights
(Fort Worth, Texas)
College:UTSA (2017–2021)
NFL draft:2022 / round: 5 / pick: 153
Career history
Roster status:Active
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 3, 2024
Total tackles:122
Fumble recoveries:5
Pass deflections:32
Interceptions:9
Defensive touchdowns:1
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Tariq "Riq" Woolen[1] (born May 2, 1999) is an American professional football cornerback for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UTSA Roadrunners and was selected by the Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL draft. Woolen made the Pro Bowl as a rookie in 2022.

Early life

Woolen grew up in Fort Worth, Texas and attended Arlington Heights High School. He was rated a three-star recruit and committed to play college football at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) over offers from North Texas, Houston, and Texas State.[2]

College career

Woolen redshirted his freshman season at UTSA.[3] As a redshirt freshman wide receiver, he caught 15 passes for 158 yards and one touchdown.[4] Woolen started the first three games of his redshirt sophomore season before moving to the cornerback position.[5]

Woolen became a starter during his redshirt junior season and finished the year with 35 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks with four passes broken up and one interception.[6] Woolen had 25 tackles, 5 passes broken up, and one interception as a redshirt senior.[7] After the conclusion of his college career, Woolen was invited to play in the 2022 Senior Bowl.[8]

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 4+1⁄8 in
(1.93 m) 		205 lb
(93 kg) 		33+5⁄8 in
(0.85 m) 		9+1⁄8 in
(0.23 m)		 4.26 s 1.49 s 2.49 s 4.30 s 7.10 s 42.0 in
(1.07 m)		 10 ft 11 in
(3.33 m)		 12 reps
All values from NFL Combine/Pro Day[9][10]

At the 2022 NFL Combine, Woolen ran a 4.26-second 40-yard dash, tied for third-best in the Combine history and fastest for a player over six foot.[11][12] He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round (153rd overall) of the 2022 NFL draft.[13]

In Week 3, Woolen recorded his first career interception from Atlanta Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota as time expired in the second half.[14] In Week 4, Woolen had his second career interception against Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff and returned it 40 yards for a touchdown in the 48–45 win.[15] After intercepting Kyler Murray in Week 6 against the Arizona Cardinals, Woolen became the only rookie over the last 10 years to record an interception in at least four consecutive games.[16][17] He was named National Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week for Week 6.[18] He was named to the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team and earned Pro Bowl honors.[19][20] He finished his rookie season with a total of six interceptions, tied for most in the league.[21][22] He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.[23]

In the 2023 season, Woolen finished with 53 total tackles (42 solo), two interceptions, 11 passes defended, and two fumble recoveries.[24]

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Legend
Led the league
Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast TFL Sck Sfty PD Int Yds Y/I Lng TD FF FR Yds Y/R TD
2022 SEA 17 17 63 46 17 1 0.0 0 16 6 47 7.8 40 1 0 3 8 2.7 0
2023 SEA 16 15 53 42 11 1 0.0 0 11 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 2 1 0.5 0
Career 33 32 116 88 28 2 0.0 0 27 8 47 7.8 40 1 0 5 9 1.8 0

Playoffs

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast TfL Sck Sfty PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF FR Yds Avg TD
2022 SEA 1 1 3 3 0 0 0.0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 1 1 3 3 0 0 0.0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

References

  1. ^ Bicks, Emily (August 8, 2023). "Seahawks CB Officially Changes Name Ahead of 2023 NFL Season". Heavy.com. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  2. ^ Gosset, Brian (December 11, 2016). "FW Arlington Heights receiver commits to UTSA". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  3. ^ Luca, Greg (April 30, 2022). "UTSA's Burford, Woolen taken on third day of NFL draft". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  4. ^ Lopez, Selby (September 4, 2019). "5 things Baylor fans need to know about UTSA, including their freshman QB and a WR head coach Matt Rhule". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  5. ^ Luca, Greg (September 1, 2021). "Converted wideout Tariq Woolen making mark at cornerback". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  6. ^ Luca, Greg (September 1, 2021). "UTSA 'freak' athlete Tariq Woolen looking to make strides in second year at CB". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  7. ^ Luca, Greg (December 20, 2021). "UTSA's Tariq Woolen declares for NFL draft, will skip Frisco Bowl". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  8. ^ Luca, Greg (February 4, 2022). "UTSA's Burford, Woolen set for Senior Bowl showcase". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  9. ^ "Tariq Woolen Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  10. ^ "2022 Draft Scout Tariq Woolen, Texas-San Antonio NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  11. ^ Shannon, Chase (January 24, 2022). "Catching up with Tariq Woolen". FoxSanAntonio.com. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
  12. ^ Luca, Greg (February 4, 2022). "UTSA's Spencer Burford, Tariq Woolen set for Senior Bowl showcase". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  13. ^ "Seahawks Select Texas-San Antonio CB Tariq Woolen With 153rd Overall Pick". Seahawks.com. April 30, 2022.
  14. ^ "Seahawks' Tariq Woolen: Grabs first career interception". CBSSports.com. September 27, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
  15. ^ "Seattle Seahawks at Detroit Lions - October 2nd, 2022". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  16. ^ "Instant Lookback: Woolen Won't Stop". seahawks.com. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  17. ^ @NFLonCBS (October 17, 2022). "Tariq Woolen is the ONLY rookie over the last 10 years to record an interception in at least 4 consecutive games" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "2022 NFL Week 6 Leaders & Scores". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  19. ^ "2022 NFL All-Rookie Team". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  20. ^ "2022 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  21. ^ "2022 NFL Defense". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  22. ^ "Seahawks' Tariq Woolen: Makes DROY case". CBSSports.com. January 20, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  23. ^ "2022 NFL All-Rookie Team". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  24. ^ "Riq Woolen 2023 Game Log". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved September 10, 2024.