Tennessee Titans Throwback Thursday: Albert Haynesworth

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The Tennessee Titans haven’t always been known as a “big personality” type of team. But, man – there are a few big personalities in their history if you look for them – guys like Pacman Jones, Vince Young, and the guy I’m writing about here today, Albert Haynesworth. Haynesworth could have been the most dominant defensive tackle of his generation had he played a little more consistently. At times, he sure looked like it. Other times, he just looked like a mess.

He came to the Titans by way of the University of Tennessee in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft. As a Vol, Haynesworth lined up next to John Henderson on the defensive line, and that is an absolute unit if I’ve ever seen one. For his potential as a dominant run stopper, the Titans made him the 15th overall selection.

For the most part, he was the tremendous defensive tackle the Titans drafted him to be, but man – he had a reputation for being a nasty guy. One year into the league, and he was fighting teammates (Justin Hartwig, to be exact – had to look that one up).

Then, in 2006, we had the infamous stomping incident, where Haynesworth stepped on the exposed face of Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman Andre Gurode. It gashed Gurode’s head open, leaving a wound that would require 30 stitches to heal, and cost Haynesworth five games without pay. Jeff Fisher was absolutely livid about it, and I remember him saying the team was thinking about cutting Haynesworth at the time. Nonetheless, it was a nasty incident that didn’t reflect well upon Haynesworth and the Titans organization as a whole.

But, though he committed plenty more penalties, he returned to action and the following two seasons (2007 and 2008) were his best as a pro. Haynesworth earned Pro Bowl nominations both seasons, but the real honor lied in his earning first team All-Pro honors each season as well.

Ultimately, it led to Haynesworth getting that preposterous contract with the Washington Redskins.

$100 million – what were they thinking? That was the pay day Haynesworth wanted, though, and apparently, he was content to take his money and ride off into the sunset. No one ever accused this guy of desperately wanting a championship, I’ll just say that. But, in Washington, he proved hard to work with, didn’t show up for offseason workouts, and when he did, he was in terrible shape. But, again, what was Washington thinking? The guy didn’t even fit their 3-4 defensive scheme as a nose tackle.

He fizzled out in Washington after two seasons, and some analysts have called him the worst free agent signing in NFL history.

But, that’s just the stuff on the field. Let alone, his list of transgressions off the field. Those include multiple traffic incidents, failing to pay a loan, a road rage incident, and reckless boating.

Haynesworth went on to have short stints with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But, he was never the same player as 07-08, and his career was over by 2011.

Overall, Haynesworth came away from his NFL career looking like a loose cannon who flat out played dirty when he lost his temper. You can’t deny his ability, at least for that last stretch with the Titans. But, off the field, he has a documented history of being an asshole. I’m sorry, but there’s really no other word to describe it. It’s a shame that a player with his talent couldn’t keep his cool, and later on in his career, seemed to develop a lackadaisical attitude about football, because could’ve been one of the all time greats.

Instead, Haynesworth left us with flashes of elite ability in what was, by and large, a rather bizarre NFL career. Nonetheless, his career stat line reads:

Career – 261 tackles, 30.5 sacks, 27 passes deflected, six forced fumbles
Career as a Titan – 199 tackles, 24 sacks, 19 passes deflected, six forced fumbles

TENNESSEE TITANS THROWBACK THURSDAY ARCHIVES

Drew Bennett
Keith Bulluck
Eddie George
Chris Henry
Brandon Jones
Steve McNair
Samari Rolle
LenDale White
Vince Young

Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Alabama Crimson Tide football, the WWE, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley

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