Brian Mitchell (American football)
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- For other people with the same name, see Brian Mitchell
| Brian Mitchell | |
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| Position(s): RB / Return specialist |
Jersey #(s): 30 |
| Born: August 18, 1968 Fort Polk, Louisiana |
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| Career Information | |
| Year(s): 1990–2003 | |
| NFL Draft: 1990 / Round: 5 / Pick: 130 | |
| College: Louisiana-Lafayette | |
| Professional Teams | |
| Career Stats | |
| Return Touchdowns | 13 |
| PR yards | 4,999 |
| KR yards | 14,014 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Career Highlights and Awards | |
NFL Records:
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Brian Keith Mitchell (born August 18, 1968 in Fort Polk, Louisiana) is a former American football player who played running back for the Washington Redskins (1990-1999), and later the Philadelphia Eagles (2000-2002) and New York Giants (2003).
He was well known as a kick returner, and is the NFL's second all time leader in total yardage (23,330), thanks in large part to his 14,014 yards from kickoff returns and his 4,999 punt return yards. Both are NFL records. He also rushed for 1,967 yards on 388 carries (avg. 5.1 rushing yards), caught 255 passes for 2,336 yards, recovered 20 fumbles for 14 return yards, and scored 29 touchdowns (4 kickoff returns, 9 punt returns, 12 rushing, 4 receiving). His 13 special teams touchdowns are also an NFL record. His 9 punt return touchdowns are 2nd behind Eric Metcalf (10). He is also one of only four players to record four seasons of over 2,000 total yards, (the others being Marshall Faulk, Dante Hall and Tiki Barber) and missed out on a fifth by only five yards.
He played college football at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette), where he played quarterback, and was drafted by Washington in the fifth round of the 1990 NFL draft for special teams.
In just his second season with the Redskins, Mitchell led the NFL in punt return yards (600) and punt return touchdowns (2), assisting his team to a championship appearance in Super Bowl XXVI, where Washington defeated the Buffalo Bills 37-24. Mitchell continued to play for the Redskins until 1999, leading the NFL in punt return average(14.1) and touchdowns (2) in 1994, and making a pro bowl selection in 1995. In 2000, he joined the Eagles and played for them until 2002. After spending the 2003 season with New York, he was released by the Giants before the 2004 season. He then re-signed to a one day contract for the Washington Redskins, thus ending his stellar NFL career.
Since retiring, Mitchell has been a TV and radio host and analyst for a variety of outlets. On TV, he is currently the NFL analyst for WUSA-TV in Washington, where he co-hosts the station's Sunday night wrap-up program entitled "Sports Plus". Previously, Brian was a co-host of Redskins Post Game Live on Comcast SportsNet in Washington, DC. On radio, Brian was the host of The Brian Mitchell show on WTEM, located in Rockville, Maryland, until the show ended on April 27, 2007 because of program lineup changes. He moved to The John Thompson Show as co-host.
