Byron Maxwell

Byron Maxwell

Maxwell with the Seattle Seahawks in 2012
No. 41 Miami Dolphins
Position:	Cornerback
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1988-02-23) February 23, 1988
Place of birth:	North Charleston, South Carolina
Height:
Weight:
Career information
High school:	Charleston (SC) Fort Dorchester
College:	Clemson
NFL draft:	2011 / Round: 6 / Pick: 173
Career history
Seattle Seahawks (2011–2014) Philadelphia Eagles (2015) Miami Dolphins (2016–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
Super Bowl champion (XLVIII) 2× NFC champion (2013, 2014)
Career NFL statistics as of 2015
Total tackles: 146 Pass deflections: 37 Interceptions: 8 Forced fumbles: 5 Player stats at NFL.com

Byron S. Maxwell (born February 23, 1988) is an American football cornerback for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft, where he was a member of the Legion of Boom. Maxwell has also played for the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football at Clemson.

Early years

Maxwell attended Fort Dorchester High School in North Charleston, South Carolina, where he played football and ran track. As a junior cornerback, Maxwell had 60 total tackles, 19 pass breakups, led his team with 5 interceptions, returned for a total of 64 yards and 1 touchdown, and had 1 forced fumble. He also saw some time at kick return and punt return. In track & field, Maxwell was timed at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash and 10.8 in the 100-meter dash. He also bench-pressed 275 pounds and squatted 350.

Recruiting

Despite suffering an ACL tear and missing his entire senior season, Maxwell had many offers to places like Georgia, Maryland, Clemson, Nebraska, Notre Dame, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech. Maxwell committed to Clemson University on June 8, 2005 and signed his letter of intent on February 1, 2006, where he majored in sociology.

College career

Due to Maxwell's ACL tear during his senior year of high school, he redshirted his freshman year at Clemson. As a sophomore, he had 27 total tackles along with four pass breakups. He played as a reserve in the Gator Bowl against Nebraska with six tackles in 28 snaps including four special teams tackles. He earned the title special teams player of the week in games against N.C. State, Wake Forest, and Duke, and defensive player of the week at Virginia. He led the team in special teams tackles with 21 tackles. As a junior, Maxwell had 15 tackles on special teams plays, which again led the team. He played in 13 games with eight starts, recording 48 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, seven pass breakups, and tied for the team-high with three forced fumbles as a senior.

Maxwell played in four bowl games and had 16 combined tackles in those games. He earned team defensive player of the game against No. 16 Miami (Fla.) after totaling eight tackles and three pass breakups. Maxwell registered 165 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, a sack, four interceptions, 20 pass breakups, and six caused fumbles in a school record- tying 53 games (eight starts) in his career. He had 45 career special teams tackles, six career forced fumbles, among the top-10 figures in Clemson history. Maxwell ultimately ended up attaining an ACC second place tie within the forced fumbles category during his tenure with the Tigers. He was noted as being one of the hardest hitting defensive backs in the ACC.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	40-yd dash	10-yd split	20-yd split	20-ss	3-cone	Vert	Broad	BP
6 ft 0 in	202 lb	4.43 s	1.57 s	2.60 s	4.49 s	7.12 s	33 in	10 ft 4 in	24 reps
All values from NFL Combine and Pro Day

Seattle Seahawks

Maxwell was drafted with the 173rd overall pick in the 6th round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks with a pick they acquired from the Detroit Lions after a trade for Defensive End Lawrence Jackson. He saw time in 9 games of his rookie season, mostly on special teams. His second season in the NFL saw slightly more action, while still only playing in 9 games, Maxwell amassed 14 tackles, 4 pass deflections, 1 forced fumble, and 1 fumble recovery. In 2013, he was named the starting cornerback opposite Richard Sherman after Brandon Browner was suspended for a year for substance abuse, and became the new fourth member of the Legion of Boom. In Super Bowl XLVIII, Maxwell forced a fumble in the third quarter to seal the victory for the Seahawks. He finished the game with four tackles.

As a full-time starter at cornerback for the 2014 Seahawks, Maxwell played in 13 games, missing three weeks with a strained calf. Maxwell recorded 39 tackles, 2 interceptions, and 12 passes defended. He intercepted Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game, helping in a victory that propelled the Seahawks to a second straight Super Bowl. In Super Bowl XLIX, Maxwell recorded 5 tackles, but the Seahawks lost 28-24 to the New England Patriots as they failed to repeat as champions.

Philadelphia Eagles

On March 10, 2015, the Eagles and Maxwell agreed to a six-year, $63 million contract Maxwell finished the season with 64 tackles, 2 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, and 10 pass deflections. Maxwell allowed only 2 touchdowns all season, both to Julio Jones in the first game, where he allowed 9 catches on 11 targets, leading to many criticizing his play due to the size of his contract. Later he started to improve but was still not living up to his contract. He missed the final two games with a shoulder sprain that he sustained against Arizona.

Miami Dolphins

On March 9, 2016, the Eagles traded Maxwell, linebacker Kiko Alonso, and a first round draft pick to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for the Dolphins' first round draft pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

External links

• Miami Dolphins bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
• Philadelphia Eagles bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
• Seattle Seahawks bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
• Clemson Tigers football bio Archive copy at the Wayback Machine
• ESPN college stats