Tag Archives: toronto argonauts

CFL, NFL

Christie, Steve

pset90 christieCards: Score Supplemental 1990, ProSet 1990, GameDay 1992
Acquired: TTM 2014, C/o Home
Sent: 4/1    Received: 4/17   (16 days)

Steve Christie left William & Mary as the school’s All-Time leading scorer in 1989 with 279 points. He was signed as a free agent by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1990. The Bucs had a solid kicking game with Donald Igwebuike, but Christie beat him head to head in camp and won the job outright. Through Week 7 of the 1990 season Christie was the leading scorer in the NFL with 57 points and hit all of his XP, and was 14 of 16 of field goals.  By the end of the season Steve was named All-Rookie by the UPI, as he finished second in the NFC with a .852 field goal percentage.  After another solid season in 1991 with the Bucs, Christie was left unprotected by the team, controversially after he made promises not to leave the team.

The Buffalo Bills had finally decided that it was time for longtime kicker Scott Norwood to go. They offered Steve twice the salary he was making in Tampa to come to Buffalo.  Christie didn’t look back. scosup90 christieHe’d later cite that the ‘lack of winning tradition’ in Tampa as factoring into making his decision easier, because, “You get quite depressed only winning 3 games a season.”
Christie distinguished himself with the Bills almost immediately. and played with the franchise through the 2000 season, erasing many of the previous kicking marks held by Norwood. Steve set the franchise records that he set were the longest field goal (59 yards), the longest field goal in playoff history (54 yards), and the most career field goals in the playoffs (9). Steve is the franchise’s All-time leading scorer with 1,011 points, and set a franchise record with 14o points in a single season (1998).

In 2001, Steve signed with the San Diego Chargers after a somewhat contentious divorce from the Bills. A preseason injury forced the Bills to offer Christie an injury settlement- an offer that he rejected. So the team with no real choice at that point placed him on injured reserve, and then finally granted his unconditional release a few weeks later. He played with the Chargers through the 2003 season. From there he spent some time with thegday92 christie Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Giants in 2004.

Christie then entered a period of semi-retirement. He briefly played for the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in 2007 as a favor to general manager Mike Clemons- a teammate from William & Mary. Afterwards he signed a one day contract with the Buffalo Bills to officially retire as a member of the franchise in 2008.  He’s done some football commentary since then and has worked in the CFL as a player agent. As of 2014, Steve’s 1,476 points ranks 16th in NFL history and his 336 field goals rank 13th.

In this day and age, kickers have become more interchangable between franchises, but the best clutch kickers such as Christie, Stenerud, Anderson, and Andersen, have just become more and more rare, especially when they were able to pull of long stints with one team.

G  229           XPA 473         XPM 468         PCT  98.9
FGA 431         FGM 336         PCT  78.0          PTS 1476

 

 

 

Arena, CFL, NFL

Dukes, Cliff

tntafl11 dukesCard: TNT AFL 2011
Acquired: IP 2014,  San Antonio Talons vs. Arizona Rattlers

Cliff Dukes played collegiately for the Spartans of Michigan State starting 35 games and collecting 15.5 sacks over his time there. After hopping around the practice squads of the Rams (2005-2006) and Saints (2006), Cliff joined the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League in 2008 but notched only 1 tackle. He’d head north and play for the Toronto Argos of the CFL in 2009. Returning to Tampa in 2010, Dukes unleashed havoc across the league and was named second team All-Arena after collecting 34.5 tackles and 7 sacks for the Storm. In 2011 Cliff led the league with 12.5 sacks. He’d be traded in 2012 to the Kansas City Command, but the Command would trade him just a few short days later to the Arizona Rattlers in a blockbuster trade. Since he joined the starting lineup of the Rattlers, Dukes has solidified the defensive front of the team and helped them win the past two Arena Bowls.  Dukes was cool enough to sign his card for me and thanked me for the support. An imposing figure, Cliff’s recognizable afro seems almost out of character on his menacing frame.

 

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Woodson, Shawn

pset91wlaf woodsonCard: ProSet WLAF 1991
Acquired: TTM 2014, C/o Work
Sent:  1/29   Received: 2/8  (10 days)

Shawn Woodson played linebacker for tiny James Madison University from 1985 to 1988. He finished his career at the I-AA school with 341 tackles and 15 sacks, and as a senior earned second team All-American Honors. Shawn was tabbed by the Minnesota Vikings in the 12th round of the monstrous 1989 NFL draft. Although he didn’t make the roster, he signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL, and saw action in one game. Released in the preseason again by the Vikings the following year, Woodson was then taken by the Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks in the second round of the linebacker portion of the 1991 WLAF draft. He’d room with defensive stalwarts Jon Carter and Patrick McGuirk while with the Skyhawks.

The Skyhawks set a record for futility going 0-10 that season, -translating to the defensive unit getting plenty of time on the field. Woodson was second on the team with 3.5 sacks, 65 tackles, and 3 quarterback hurries. After the season, the Skyhawks were disbursed by the league- perhaps mercifully.

He’s married now with 2 kids and lives in Virginia, where he owns a PostNet location. Google came to the rescue again, as Shawn has a pretty unique name and university combination, helping me knock out another member of the elusive Skyhawks brand.

Tac 65            Sac 3.5         Fum 0         Int 0      Yds 0     Avg -.-       Td 0        Lg -.-