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Dennis Northcutt

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Dennis Northcutt
refer to caption
Northcutt during his tenure with the Jaguars
No. 86
Position:Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1977-12-22) December 22, 1977 (age 46)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height:5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Weight:172 lb (78 kg)
Career information
High school:Dorsey (Los Angeles)
College:Arizona
NFL draft:2000 / round: 2 / pick: 32
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Receptions:399
Receiving yards:4,941
Receiving touchdowns:18
Rushing yards:366
Rushing touchdowns:1
Return yards:2,684
Return touchdowns:3
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Dennis LaMont Northcutt (born December 22, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver and punt returner for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Arizona Wildcats, earning consensus All-American honors and setting team career receiving records. A second-round pick in the 2000 NFL draft, he played professionally for the Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions of the NFL.

Early life

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Northcutt was born in Los Angeles, California. He attended Washington High School in Los Angeles,[citation needed] then transferred to Dorsey High School in Los Angeles, California, and was a student and a letterman in football and track helping the Dons win the CIF LA 4-A CITY Football Championship. In football, as a senior, he was named the City Player of the Year, and made 74 rushing attempts for 900 yards (12.16 yards per rushing attempt avg.) and 23 touchdowns.

College career

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He attended the University of Arizona, where he played for the Arizona Wildcats football team from 1996 to 1999. He earned recognition as one of the best receivers and returners in Wildcats history, catching 223 passes for 3,252 yards. Only two other Pac-10 players have had more receptions and receiving yards in their careers. Northcutt also caught passes in 43 straight games, a conference record. In his senior year, he set an Arizona records with 88 receptions for 1,422 yards. His punt-return average that year of 19 yards per return was second in the nation. As a senior in 1999, he was recognized a consensus first-team All-American as an "all-purpose" athlete.

Professional career

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2000 NFL Combine

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump
5 ft 10+3⁄8 in
(1.79 m) 		175 lb
(79 kg) 		29 in
(0.74 m) 		10+1⁄8 in
(0.26 m)		 4.44 s 1.52 s 2.59 s 4.04 s 6.96 s 37.5 in
(0.95 m)		 10 ft 3 in
(3.12 m)
All values from NFL Combine[1][2]

The Cleveland Browns chose Northcutt in the second round of the 2000 NFL draft.[3] After a good rookie season and an injury-plagued second one, he established himself as one of the team's most important weapons in 2002. He led the team that year with eight touchdowns, including two on punt returns, and finished third in the league with a 14.7 yard punt return average. According to Football Outsiders, Northcutt's 2002 season is the most efficient season, play-for-play, of any wide receiver from 1991 to 2011, even though Northcutt caught a modest 38 passes.[4] Despite his efficiency, Northcutt's 2002 season is most memorable for a critical drop on third down in the Browns playoff matchup against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers.

In 2003, Northcutt led the Browns with 62 receptions, and in 2004, he led the Browns with 55 receptions. Northcutt left the Browns as the 10th best receiver in Browns history with 276 catches for 3,438 yards and 9 touchdowns. He was a good punt returner for the Browns, finishing his stint there with 202 returns for 2,149 yards. Three of his returns went for touchdowns, though seven were called back due to penalties. He holds the record for most punt return yardage in Browns history.

On March 4, 2007, Northcutt signed a five-year, $17 million deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars as an unrestricted free agent. Signing with a different team gave him the opportunity to start out fresh. He quickly rose to the top of the WR depth chart in his first season with the team. During his first year on the team, he placed second on the team in both receptions and yards receiving, and finished tied for second on the team in touchdown receptions. He also served as an occasional punt returner during the season.

On June 26, 2009, he was traded to the Detroit Lions in exchange for safety Gerald Alexander. Northcutt played in all 16 games of the 2009 season for the Lions, starting in two games. On September 5, 2010, Northcutt was waived in the Lions' final cuts before the start of the regular season. He has since joined a recreational flag football league at the North Ave turf fields.

NFL statistics

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Regular season

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Year Team GP Receiving Rushing Punt returns Kickoff returns
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD FD Att Yds Avg Lng TD FD Ret Yds Lng TD FC Ret Yds Lng TD
2000 CLE 15 39 422 10.8 37 0 24 9 33 3.7 13 0 1 27 289 30 0 12 0 0 0 0
2001 CLE 11 18 211 11.7 26 0 7 3 26 8.7 12 0 1 15 86 32 0 9 1 26 26 0
2002 CLE 13 38 601 15.8 43 5 31 8 104 13.0 36 1 4 25 367 87 2 10 0 0 0 0
2003 CLE 15 62 729 11.8 44 2 43 12 83 6.9 23 0 4 36 295 38 0 10 0 0 0 0
2004 CLE 16 55 806 14.7 58 2 25 8 19 2.4 8 0 1 36 432 44 0 12 0 0 0 0
2005 CLE 16 42 441 10.5 58 2 19 2 33 16.5 31 0 1 35 368 62 1 13 0 0 0 0
2006 CLE 13 22 228 10.4 43 0 10 3 32 10.7 16 0 1 28 312 81 0 13 0 0 0 0
2007 JAX 15 44 601 13.7 55 4 30 6 27 4.5 8 0 0 26 240 37 0 13 0 0 0 0
2008 JAX 14 44 545 12.4 41 2 25 1 9 9.0 9 0 0 5 14 9 0 7 0 0 0 0
2009 DET 16 35 357 10.2 47 1 18 — — — — — — 22 189 43 0 15 3 66 34 0
Career[5] 144 399 4,941 12.4 58 18 232 52 366 7.0 36 1 13 255 2,592 87 3 114 4 92 34 0

Postseason

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Year Team GP Receiving Rushing Punt returns
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD FD Att Yds Avg Lng TD FD Ret Yds Lng TD FC
2002 CLE 1 6 92 15.3 32 2 6 1 5 5.0 5 0 0 2 70 59 0 4
2007 JAX 2 5 59 11.8 19 0 3 — — — — — — 3 31 16 0 0
Career 3 11 151 13.7 32 2 9 1 5 5.0 5 0 0 5 101 59 0 4

References

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  1. ^ "2000 Draft Scout Dennis Northcutt, Arizona NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  2. ^ "Dennis Northcutt, Combine Results, WR - Arizona". nflcombineresults.com. Retrieved September 29, 2022.
  3. ^ "2000 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  4. ^ Football Outsiders Almanac 2012 (ISBN 978-1-4782-0152-6), p.357
  5. ^ "Dennis Northcutt Stats". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
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