Deshea Townsend
Trevor Deshea Townsend is an American professional football coach and former cornerback who currently is the defensive backs coach and defensive pass game coordinator for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He previously worked as an assistant coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, New York Giants, Tennessee Titans, and Arizona Cardinals.
Townsend played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fourth round in the 1998 NFL draft, where he spent his entire career, besides his final year with the Indianapolis Colts.
Early life
A native of Batesville, Mississippi, Townsend played high school football for the South Panola Tigers, where he was the teammate of fellow future Alabama Crimson Tide star Dwayne Rudd. Townsend played quarterback at South Panola and led the team to the 1993 Mississippi State 5A championship and an undefeated 15–0 record.Playing career
College
Along with Rudd, Townsend continued his career in college at the University of Alabama where both became members of the Theta Delta Chapter of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, in 1995. He majored in business management.He had seven career interceptions at Alabama. In 1995 at Georgia, Townsend returned a blocked field goal attempt 90 yards for a touchdown in a 31–0 win.
Townsend was named All-SEC in 1995, 1996, and 1997.
National Football League
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Townsend in the fourth round of the 1998 NFL draft. He was the 14th cornerback drafted in 1998.Image:Townsend tackle 2005.jpg|left|thumb|Townsend making a tackle in 2005
Townsend grew from a special teams player and nickelback, into a solid starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers at cornerback. Townsend was known for his outside speed as a pass rusher. Townsend has recorded 322 tackles, 15.5 quarterback sacks and 18 interceptions during his twelve years as a Steeler. He also had a key sack on Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck during the final minutes of Super Bowl XL, which helped secure the Steelers eventual victory.
On March 23, 2002, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Townsend to a four-year, $4.20 million contract as an unrestricted free agent that included a signing bonus of $1 million. He visited with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during free agency and his agent was also contacted by the New England Patriots, Houston Texans, and Atlanta Falcons.
On March 17, 2006, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Townsend to a four-year, $8 million contract that included a signing bonus of $2 million. He received the contract offer during a visit with the New England Patriots.
During the 2008 season, Townsend accepted the reduced role from starting cornerback to the nickel package.