Brandon Boykin (born July 13, 1990) 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 wi ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

. He played college football at

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and was drafted by 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 play ...

in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. He also played for the Pittsburgh Steelers,

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

, Chicago Bears and

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

throughout his career.

High school career

Boykin attended Fayette County High School (Georgia) and played for the varsity football team. In his senior year, he, along with fellow NFL Player

Matt Daniels Matthew Daniels (born September 27, 1989) is a former American football safety and current special teams coach of the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the St. Louis Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2 ...

, led the football team into its first undefeated season in over 20 years but lost in the second round of the GHSA playoff. Boykin also played for the school's basketball team where he averaged 18 points and five assists per game while helping lead his team to the State Championship game where he and his team came up short.

College career

Boykin attended the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

from 2008 to 2011. He finished his career with 159 tackles, nine interceptions and a sack. As a senior, he was named the MVP of the

2012 Outback Bowl The 2012 Outback Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game, held on January 2, 2012, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, as part of the 2011–12 NCAA Bowl season. It was the 26th edition of the Outback Bowl, and was tel ...

after tackling Keshawn Martin for a safety, and returning a punt 92 yards for a touchdown in a 33–30 triple overtime loss to the

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the school colors are green and wh ...

. Boykin also won the

Paul Hornung Award The Paul Hornung Award is a college football award that was created in January 2010 by the Louisville Sports Commission (LSC) with the support of Paul Hornung, a native and resident of Louisville, Kentucky and member of the College Football Hall ...

Professional career

Philadelphia Eagles

Going into the 2012 NFL Draft, Boykin was projected as one of the best cornerback prospects. He was drafted in the fourth round (123rd overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft by the

. He signed a four-year contract with the team on May 11, 2012. His first season he recorded 31 total tackles, 7 passes defended, and 1 forced fumble. He saw little playing action on defense, but his 1,037 kick return yards were second in the NFC and seventh in the NFL. Boykin started the 2013 season with his first interception, off Redskins

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Robert Griffin III Robert Lee Griffin III (born February 12, 1990), nicknamed RG3 and RGIII, is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football at Baylor, where he won the Heisman Trophy as a senior, and was selected second overa ...

, helping the Eagles to win 33–27. He recorded his next interception in a week 5 win over the

Giants A giant is a being of human appearance, sometimes of prodigious size and strength, common in folklore. Giant(s) or The Giant(s) may also refer to: Mythology and religion *Giants (Greek mythology) *Jötunn, a Germanic term often translated as 'gi ...

where he picked off Eli Manning. In a week 10 game against the Green Bay Packers who were without quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Boykin intercepted quarterback

Scott Tolzien Scott Jeffery Tolzien (born September 4, 1987) is a former American football quarterback and coach who is the quarterbacks coach for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Wisconsin. He was signed ...

's pass in the

endzone The end zone is the scoring area on the field, according to gridiron-based codes of football. It is the area between the end line and goal line bounded by the sidelines. There are two end zones, each being on an opposite side of the field. ...

and ran it back for 76 yards. He followed up again the next week, intercepting Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III. In a week 16 game against the Chicago Bears, Boykin intercepted

Jay Cutler Jay Christopher Cutler (born April 29, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Chicago Bears. He played college football for the Van ...

and ran it back 54 yards for the score. The week 17 showdown against division rival

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

was for the NFC East division title. Late in the fourth quarter the Cowboys marched down the field when back-up quarterback

Kyle Orton Kyle Raymond Orton (born November 14, 1982) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football for Purdue, where he started four straight bowl games. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Dr ...

threw behind his wide receiver,

Miles Austin Miles Jonathon Austin III (born June 30, 1984) is an American football coach and former wide receiver who is the wide receivers coach for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played in the NFL for 10 seasons, ...

. Boykin intercepted the pass and kneed it after a short return. The interception led to the Eagles rushing the ball twice for a first down, then two kneel downs to run out the clock and seal the Eagles' divisional win at a final score of 24–22. Boykin enjoyed a breakout year in 2013 with 42 solo tackles, 5 assists, 2 forced fumbles, 16 passes defended, and 6 interceptions (second in the NFL). For the 2014 season, Boykin had 36 solo tackles, 5 assists, 9 passes defended, and an interception.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On August 1, 2015, Boykin was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for a conditional 2016 5th-round pick.

Carolina Panthers

On March 28, 2016, Boykin signed a one-year contract with the

. The Panthers released Boykin and two others to create roster space for six new rookie tryouts two months later.

Chicago Bears

On July 27, 2016, Boykin signed with the Chicago Bears. He was placed on the team's injured reserve list on August 3, 2016 due to a

pectoral Pectoral may refer to: * The chest region and anything relating to it. * Pectoral cross, a cross worn on the chest * a decorative, usually jeweled version of a gorget * Pectoral (Ancient Egypt), a type of jewelry worn in ancient Egypt * Pectorali ...

injury suffered during training camp.

Baltimore Ravens

On June 5, 2017, Boykin signed with the

. He was placed on injured reserve on September 2, 2017.

References

External links

Philadelphia Eagles biography

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boykin, Brandon 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Atlanta American football cornerbacks American football return specialists Georgia Bulldogs football players Philadelphia Eagles players Pittsburgh Steelers players Carolina Panthers players Chicago Bears players Baltimore Ravens players