Daunte Culpepper
Daunte Rachard Culpepper is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League for 11 seasons, primarily with the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the UCF Knights, winning the Sammy Baugh Trophy in 1998, and was selected by the Vikings in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft.
During his seven seasons with the Vikings, Culpepper led the team to two playoff runs, one division title, and an NFC Championship Game appearance, along with earning three Pro Bowl selections. He also set the single-season record for the most total yardage produced by an NFL quarterback in 2004. However, Culpepper suffered a devastating knee injury the following season that ended his Vikings tenure. After his injury, he played sparingly for the Miami Dolphins, Oakland Raiders, and Detroit Lions. Culpepper last played professionally for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League.
Early life
Culpepper was born to single mother Barbara Henderson, who is the sister of former NFL linebacker Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson. While his mother was pregnant with him, she was imprisoned for armed robbery. Culpepper was adopted when he was a day old and raised as one of over 15 children of the late Emma Lewis Culpepper, who worked in the correctional facility where his mother was held. They lived in Ocala, Florida, where Culpepper attended Vanguard High School. He played football, coached by Phillip Yancey, as well as basketball and baseball. After his senior season in 1994, Culpepper was named Mr. Football in the state of Florida. In 2007, Culpepper was named to the FHSAA's All-Century Team of the top 33 football players in Florida's 100-year history of high school football.Near the end of his high school team's state basketball championship game, the referee called Culpepper for traveling when he was driving for the game-winning lay-up. Later in his career, Culpepper celebrated football touchdowns by mimicking the motion a basketball referee makes when calling traveling, also known as "the roll".
Culpepper was drafted in the 26th round by the New York Yankees in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft but did not sign and chose to attend college.
College career
Culpepper struggled to get into college, because of low SAT scores. Top football schools such as the University of Miami and University of Florida backed off from recruiting him when it was assumed he would not qualify. As a Division II school, however, the University of Central Florida did not have to abide by the rules of Division I concerning SAT scores. With this, the University of Central Florida offered to tutor and help him achieve the necessary scores, and he qualified. Although big college programs returned to recruit him, as a show of loyalty, Culpepper enrolled at UCF.Although he had a love for baseball, Culpepper committed to play football at UCF as a quarterback. He rewrote virtually all the school's quarterback records, approximately 30 in all, many held by Darin Slack since 1987. Culpepper also set an NCAA record for single-season completion percentage at 73.6%, breaking a 15-year-old mark set by Steve Young. This record stood until Colt McCoy finished the 2008 season with a completion percentage of 77.6%. Culpepper accomplished a feat equaled by only two others in NCAA history when he topped the 10,000-yard passing mark and the 1,000-yard rushing mark in his career. He finished his career sixth on the NCAA's all-time total offense list for all divisions with 12,459 yards and was responsible for 108 career touchdowns.
After his junior season, Culpepper was being lured out of the collegiate ranks to enter the draft and join the NFL, but instead returned to UCF to play his senior year. UCF posted a 9–2 record, losing only to Purdue and Auburn.
College statistics
Professional career
Pre-draft
Minnesota Vikings
Early career and immediate success
Culpepper was drafted 11th overall in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings; he was the fourth quarterback chosen, after Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb and Akili Smith. In his first year Culpepper played in one game, rushing three times for six yards and did not attempt a pass.In 2000, Culpepper was named Minnesota's starting quarterback. He led the Vikings to victory in the first seven games and helped them finish 11–5 and advance to the NFC Championship Game, where they lost to the New York Giants 41–0. During the season, Culpepper passed for 3,937 yards, 33 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He also rushed for 470 yards and seven touchdowns. One of Culpepper's most notable moments was against the Buffalo Bills when he threw a pass across his body and the field to Randy Moss for a 39-yard touchdown, although the pass was at least 60 total yards. At the end of the year, he was selected to his first Pro Bowl. Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss said that Culpepper was one of the most talented quarterbacks he had ever seen following the 2000 season.
Struggles and comeback
Culpepper struggled over the next two seasons beginning in 2001, throwing 14 touchdowns to 13 interceptions. The Vikings finished the season 5–11. Culpepper started all 11 games in which he appeared, and missed the final five games of the season with a knee injury suffered in a December 2 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He completed 60 percent or more of his passes in nine of his 11 outings, twice surpassing the 70.0 percent mark, and had a passer rating of 100.0 better in two contests where the Vikings were 1–1. Culpepper's rushing total ranked third among NFL quarterbacks, trailing only Pittsburgh's Kordell Stewart and Philadelphia’s Donovan McNabb. Perhaps his most notable performance during this campaign occurred during a 20–16 comeback win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. On a run, Culpepper barreled into Derrick Brooks and Shelton Quarles, but was the first player up after the eight-yard score.Culpepper continued to struggle in 2002, throwing 18 touchdowns to 23 interceptions and leading the Vikings to a 6–10 record. He also fumbled an NFL record 23 times, losing nine of them. Culpepper's ten rushing scores led all NFL QBs in 2002 and also marked the sixth-highest total by a QB in NFL history, trailing only Cam Newton and, Steve Grogan, Johnny Lujack, Tobin Rote, Kordell Stewart, and Kyler Murray. Culpepper went on to win the EA Sports Madden Bowl title among NFL players during the 2003 offseason.
Culpepper made a comeback in 2003, leading the Vikings to a 9–7 record, although they missed the playoffs. He passed for 3,479 yards, 25 touchdowns, and only 11 interceptions, and earned his second trip to the Pro Bowl.
Historic season
Culpepper enjoyed his best statistical season as a professional in 2004 and, though they were only 8–8, the Vikings reached the playoffs for the second time under Culpepper. Passing for a league-leading 4,717 yards, a Viking-record 39 touchdowns, and only 11 interceptions, Culpepper was named to his third career Pro Bowl. He also broke Dan Marino's NFL record for combined passing and rushing yards, amassing 5,123 total yards. His 2,323 rushing yards from 2000–2004 also made him only the fourth quarterback in NFL history to run for more than 2,300 yards in a five-season period.. Culpepper’s career rushing average of 26.1 yards per game is fourth-best in history among quarterbacks. Only Vick, Cunningham, and Bobby Douglass averaged more rushing yards per game during their QB careers. After the 2004 season, Culpepper said the game had "slowed down" for him, saying, "I feel like a Jedi Knight."Injury
His first two games of the 2005 season were disappointments, as the Vikings went 0–2 while Culpepper threw no touchdown passes, eight interceptions, and fumbled twice. Culpepper rebounded in the third week, throwing for 300 yards and three touchdowns while beating the New Orleans Saints. In 2005, he had six touchdowns, twelve interceptions, and five fumbles before being injured in the seventh game. On October 30, he suffered a knee injury during a 38–13 loss to the Carolina Panthers. Culpepper sustained damage to three of the four major ligaments in the knee: the ACL, PCL and MCL. He was placed on injured reserve and began rehabilitation treatment near his home in Florida. Backup Brad Johnson took over in the Carolina game and after losing that one, they won the next six straight games and the team ended up with a 9–7 record. Daunte's final career win–loss record as a starter for the Vikings was 37–40.On December 14, 2005, Culpepper and three other players were charged with indecent conduct, disorderly conduct and lewd or lascivious conduct for their involvement in the 2005 Minnesota Vikings boat cruise scandal, according to court papers and news reports. The maximum penalty they could have faced was 90 days in jail. His defense contended there was racial discrimination among the prosecution. On April 4, 2006, however, the charges against Culpepper were dropped owing to a lack of probable cause.
Culpepper was in negotiations with Zygi Wilf, the new owner of the Vikings, concerning his contract with the team. Rumors surfaced that Culpepper was unhappy with his status in Minnesota due to Johnson's re-emergence following his injury. The Vikings wanted him to rehabilitate in Minnesota because they were not satisfied with his level of treatment in Florida. Culpepper refused this request.
Later, Culpepper expressed his desire to be out of Minnesota. According to the Associated Press, Culpepper said that if he was not traded, he wanted to be released. Culpepper said Culpepper did not insist on being traded to the Miami Dolphins, and orchestrated his trade without the services of his former agent. New Vikings coach Brad Childress likened his dealings with Culpepper to his dealings with Terrell Owens and said he never had a conversation with Daunte that did not involve his contract and getting more money instead of football and the team.