Patrick Peterson

BIOGRAPHY

Patrick Peterson was born July 11, 1990, in Pompano Beach, Florida. He is a cornerback in the National Football League.

Peterson attended Louisiana State University, where he played for coach Les Miles's LSU Tigers football team from 2008 to 2010. One of the most decorated high school players to ever attend LSU, Peterson played 13 games as a true freshman. On November 8, against SEC West rival Alabama, he had his first collegiate interception. He started the final four games of the season, including the Chick-fil-A Bowl win over Georgia Tech. Peterson finished the season with 41 tackles, one interception, and three pass breakups, while also adding a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry. In his sophomore season, Peterson emerged as one of the top defensive backs in the Southeastern Conference. On September 26, against Mississippi State, he had a 37-yard interception return for a touchdown. In a game against standout wide receiver A. J. Green of Georgia, Peterson was able to hold Green to just four catches. By mid-season, Peterson tied for fourth in the league with seven passes defended and was named the SEC's "Most Improved Player" by ESPN's Chris Low. Following his junior season, he was a first-team All-SEC selection and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American. The Arizona Cardinals selected Peterson in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2011 NFL Draft. He was the first cornerback selected. Peterson returned as the starting cornerback, opposite William Gay, to begin the 2012 season. On September 16, 2012, Peterson had one carry for 17-yards, three combined tackles, a pass deflection, and intercepted Tom Brady in a 20-18 victory over the New England Patriots. On December 16, 2012, he recorded a season-high seven combined tackles and intercepted Detroit Lions' quarterback Matt Stafford in a 38-10 victory. The interception marked his seventh of the season. In 2013 Peterson started all 16 games in 2013 and made 42 combined tackles (40 solo), three interceptions, 13 pass deflections, and two fumble recoveries. Shortly after the 2014 NFL season, Peterson announced that he had been diagnosed with diabetes. He stated that this affected his performance in the 2014 season, that he had the disease under control, and was ready for the 2015 season. He was ranked #19 by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015. He was selected to the 2016 Pro Bowl as a cornerback, marking his fifth straight, and was voted first-team All-Pro for the third time. He was also ranked 18th best player by his fellow NFL players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016. On September 18, 2016, Peterson recorded four combined tackles and intercepted Jameis Winston during a 40-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In Week 3, Peterson recorded four combined tackles and intercepted Tyrod Taylor, catching the ball with one hand during an 18-33 loss to the Buffalo Bills. On December 24, 2016, he collected a season-high six combined tackles in a 34-31 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. He recorded 51 combined tackles (45 solo), six passes deflected, and three interceptions in 16 games and 16 starts. On December 20, 2016, for the sixth consecutive year, Peterson was selected to be in the 2017 Pro Bowl, along with teammates Larry Fitzgerald and David Johnson. He was also ranked 19th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017 as the highest-ranked cornerback. Overall, he finished the 2017 season with 13 punt returns for 88 net yards, 34 total tackles, one fumble recovery, eight passes defensed, and one interception. He finished the season with 54 tackles, five pass deflections, and two interceptions, on his way to his eighth straight Pro Bowl. On March 17, 2021, Peterson signed with the Minnesota Vikings. Peterson went on to sign a two year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers on March 13, 2022.