Nathaniel Wayne, Jr. (born January 12, 1975 in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

(Ole Miss.) He graduated with a degree in criminal justice. He was known as "Mr. Monday Night," as he consistently performed well on ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, AB ...

''.

Professional career

Wayne was drafted with 219th selection in the

1998 NFL Draft The 1998 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...

. He played one game for the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

in 1998, when they won their second straight

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

. He played a slightly larger role on the team in 1999, but was mainly a special teamer. He signed with the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

and play with them as a starter and major contributor to the defense for three years, recording 298 tackles, ten sacks, six interceptions, five forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries, and 23 passes defensed. Wayne signed a four-year deal with the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

on March 14, 2003. He started in 2003, but was limited to playing on nickel packages in 2004, due to the promotion of

Jeremiah Trotter Jeremiah Trotter (born January 20, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. He played college football for the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks and was ...

, and movement of

Mark Simoneau Mark Lee Simoneau (born January 16, 1977) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. He played college football for Kansas State University and was r ...

to weakside linebacker. Even then he lost playing time to Keith Adams. Wayne was the first Eagle released in the 2005 off-season, and signed with the Lions later that year.

Personal life

Wayne has a wife, Tamiko, and three children. He also owns a Coldstone Creamery in Atlantic Station in Atlanta, Georgia where he currently resides. He is also a devout Jehovah’s Witness.

References

1975 births Living people American football outside linebackers Ole Miss Rebels football players Denver Broncos players Green Bay Packers players Philadelphia Eagles players Jacksonville Jaguars players Detroit Lions players {{linebacker-1970s-stub