Dameon Pierce was an underutilized RB for the Florida Gators.
Played at Gainesville from 2018-’21.
Ran for 1,806 yards and 23 TDs on 329 carries over his time there.
A bowling ball of a back with explosive power, Pierce clocked in at 5’9″, 235.
He’d be selected in the 4th round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans.
Pierce went on to have a fine rookie season for an otherwise terrible offense.
Had his first 100+ yard game running for 131 yards on 14 carries in week 4 against the Chargers.
Pierce was starting to make rumblings as a potential dark horse rookie of the year candidate, but his rookie season ended abruptly in Week 14 after he suffered an ankle injury.
All in all Pierce compiled a fine rookie campaign with 939 yards rushing on 220 carries, and 4 TDs.
He suffered the notorious sophomore slump in 2023 as he struggled with nicks and tears, along with an adjustment to a ZBS.
Supplanted in the lineup, he ran for 416 yards and 2 TDs.
In a bright spot however, he put his time in as a returner on special teams, and returned a kickoff 98 yards for a TD in a loss to the Browns.
NOTES:
Well the market for Dameon cratered so I took advantage of the the situation to pick up an autograph of his. I really tried hard to digest the ’22 Texans campaign with Pierce and Pitre standing out as players I kicked the can on getting a jersey of. I was surprised that Pierce didn’t adapt to the ZBS, but I like him to stick it out as a change of pace back for the franchise.
Neil Rackers was a kicker for the Fightin’ Illini from 1996-’99.
Over that period he was 96.3% on XP (77/80) and 68% (34/50) on FGs, scoring 179 points.
Selected in the 6th round of the 2000 NFL Draft.
After a rocky rookie season, he settled in kicking 17 FGs in 2001, and 15 in 2002.
He’d join the Arizona Cardinals in 2003.
In 2004, he hit 22/29 field goals, including a league long 55 yarder.
In that game against the Seahawks, he hit two other field goals of 50+ yards tying the single game NFL record held by Morten Anderson.
Then he went on to hit an improbable 31 straight field goals.
During the 2005 season, set the NFL record with 40 field goals in a season (42 attempts).
He again led the league in attempts in 2006 with 37 (28 FGM).
In 2010, Rackers was allowed to test free agency and decided to play for the Texans.
He’d provide great stability at the position after the departure of Kris Brown– who’d been with the team since its inception.
Rackers posted 27 FGs in 2010, and 32 in 2011.
Tied a franchise long 57 yard field goal in 2010 (since surpassed).
ACCOLADES:
All Pro 2005
Pro Bowl 2005
Golden Toe Award 2005
NOTES:
Incredibly underrated over his career, I must admit I was disappointed when the Texans opted not to sign him, in favor of drafting ‘Beercan’ Randy Bullock in 2012.
Rackers was also a head hunter- A rare trait among kickers. From time to time he was known to dish out some jarring hits. I seem to remember some odd fact that he’s the the NFL record holder for career special teams tackles by a kicker.
My old friend Erik, told me stories about chugging beers in the parking lot at NRG with Neil, saying he’s a real cool dude so I had to get him eventually. I was a bit disappointed. I think this Adrenalyn card was the only Texans card they made of Neil. I love how Rackers’ autograph incorporates the goal posts into it.
I had tried BJ a few times already without any luck- even delaying posting his original post for a few months hoping I’d get a success back, but no dice. Every once in a while I pull out my stack of failures that were RTSed by the mailman and go through them. I decided to take a closer look at Daniels’ address. I knew he worked at USF but the address was off by just a bit, so I tweaked it and tried again. A bit over two months later he sent me back the autographs and a really nice note on USF stationary thanking me for being a fan.
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
