Patrick tillman nfl career passing

“Somewhere inside, we hear a voice.”

“It leads us in the direction of the person we wish to become. But it is up to us whether or not to follow.”

Memorial Day is dedicated to honoring those who lost their lives while defending our nation.

In NFL circles, Pat Tillman’s name comes up often this time of year.

Eight months after the September 11th terrorist attacks, Tillman turned down a $3.6 million contract offer from the Cardinals to enlist in the U.S. Army and fight for our country.

Less than two years later, he was killed in combat at 27 years old.

Posthumously, Pat was awarded the Silver Star “for gallantry in action while serving with the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, during action in Afghanistan.”

“He is a hero,” said Michael Bidwill, then-VP of the Arizona Cardinals.

“He was a brave man. There are very few people who have the courage to do what he did, the courage to walk away from a professional sports career and make the ultimate sacrifice.”

And while he’ll always be remembered for the sacrifice he made for our country, Tillman’s life – both on and off the field – showed us the power of indomitable will.

Often lost in the story is Pat’s unlikely rise to the NFL.

Born in the Bay Area city of Freemont, California, Pat Tillman was the oldest of three sons.

After he didn’t make the varsity baseball team as a high school freshman, he decided to concentrate on football as a sophomore.

Despite being undersized for the linebacker position, Pat earned a starting spot.

And after being told he was “too small to ever play football”, he helped lead Leland High School to the Central Coast Division I Football Championship.

“Passion is kind of an important word for me,” he said in a 2002 interview.

“Whether it’s playing sports or whether it’s just living. Whatever you’re gonna do, in my opinion, you should be passionate about it, or else why do it?”

Despite earning first-team all-sectional honors

Always a player intent on doing things his own way, Arizona Cardinals safety Pat Tillman literally will march to a different drummer now, with the four-year veteran on Thursday turning his back on his NFL career to enlist in the U.S. Army.

Tillman, 25, will serve a three-year term. An unrestricted free agent, he did not generate much interest in the open market, but Tillman had a standing contract offer to return to the Cardinals.

Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis said Tillman wants to go through boot camp and join the elite Rangers program with younger brother Kevin, who spent last year with the Cleveland Indians' organization.

"This is very serious with Pat," McGinnis told the Associated Press. "It's very personal, and I honor that. I honor the integrity of that. It was not a snap decision he woke up and made yesterday. This has been an ongoing process, and he feels very strongly about it."

The former Arizona State standout started 39 games at strong safety for the Cardinals in three seasons, including 28 starts the past two years. In 60 appearances overall, Tillman recorded 331 tackles, three interceptions, 16 passes defensed and 2 � sacks.

A linebacker in college, and the Pacific-10's defensive player of the year as a senior in 1997, Tillman was selected by the Cardinals in the seventh round of the '98 draft. His transition to safety was not necessarily a smooth one at first, but he eventually became comfortable at the position, and started 10 games as a rookie.

His best NFL season was in 2000, when Tillman started all 16 games, and collected 145 tackles. He appeared in and started 12 games last season and had 83 tackles.

Last summer, Tillman turned down the opportunity to sign a five-year, $9 million offer sheet with the St. Louis Rams as a restricted free agent.

There were a few opportunities to sign elsewhere this spring, but agent Frank Bauer told ESPN.com last week that his client had shunned all proposals.

"He told me to quit worrying so m

American football player and soldier (1976–2004)

Patrick Daniel Tillman Jr. (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an American professional football player for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) who left his sports career and enlisted in the United States ArmySpecial Operations in May 2002 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. His service in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as his subsequent death, received national attention, especially so when it was discovered he had been killed by friendly fire.

Tillman played college football for the Arizona State Sun Devils, earning first-team All-American honors in 1997. After four seasons in the NFL, Tillman joined the Army Rangers and served several combat tours before he was killed in the mountains of Afghanistan. At first, the army reported that Tillman had been killed by enemy fire. A month later, on May 28, 2004, the Pentagon notified the Tillman family that he was actually killed by fire from his own side. The family and other critics allege that the Department of Defense delayed the disclosure until weeks after Tillman's memorial service out of a desire to protect the image of the U.S. military. In 2007, the Pentagon released a report ruling Tillman's death as accidental.

Tillman was posthumously promoted from specialist to corporal. He also posthumously received the Silver Star and Purple Heart medals.

Early life and education

Tillman was born on November 6, 1976, in Fremont, California, the son of Mary (Spalding) and Patrick Kevin Tillman. The oldest of three sons, with Kevin and Richard as the other two, Tillman played competitive football. He went to Bret Harte Middle School and helped lead Leland High School to the Central Coast Division I Football Championship. Tillman did not always play football. In his freshman year of high school, he was catcher for his baseball team, but did not make t