Keith Millard
No. 93, 75, 77 | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position: | Defensive tackle Defensive end | ||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||
Born: | Pleasanton, California, U.S. | March 18, 1962||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||||||||
Weight: | 260 lb (118 kg) | ||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||
High school: | Foothill (Pleasanton) | ||||||||||
College: | Washington State | ||||||||||
NFL draft: | 1984 / round: 1 / pick: 13 | ||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||
As a player: | |||||||||||
As a coach: | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Record at Pro Football Reference |
Keith Joseph Millard (born March 18, 1962) is an American former professional football player who played as a defensive tackle for nine seasons for the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks and Philadelphia Eagles from 1985 to 1993 in the National Football League (NFL).[1]
Early life and college
[edit]Millard was born in Pleasanton, California. He was a tight end and linebacker at Foothill High School in Pleasanton. He played college football at Washington State University. As a freshman Millard played tight end but was moved to defensive tackle as a sophomore, where he started first time as a junior. He was voted first-team All-Pac-10 as a senior and won the Morris Trophy as the Pac-10's top defensive lineman.[2][3] As a senior, he was named a first-team All-American by Gannett News Service.[4]
Professional career
[edit]Millard was selected by the Vikings based on a recommendation from their scout Don Deisch in the first round of the 1984 NFL draft and played one season in the USFL.[5] He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1988 and 1989. He held the NFL record for most sacks in a single season by a defensive tackle with 18 in 1989, and was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year that season. His record was broken by Aaron Donald in 2018.[6] The following season he suffered a major knee injury in a week 4 contest versus Tampa Bay. The injury effectively ended his time in Minnesota, and although he continued to play for a handful of seasons with various teams, he was never again as dominant of a force.
Millard's large stature was a huge asset in bulking up the Minnesota Vikings defensive line. His All-Pro honors and record-setting sacks make him a Minnesota Vikings great. He played in 93 games during his career, making 58 sacks, and two interceptions.[7]
Millard was voted among the top 50 players to ever play for the Minnesota Vikings In 2010.[8]
NFL career statistics
[edit]Legend | |
---|---|
NFL Defensive Player of the Year | |
Bold | Career high |
Year | Team | GP | Tackles | Fumbles | Interceptions | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | FF | FR | Yds | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | |||
1985 | MIN | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1986 | MIN | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 17.0 | 17 | 0 | 0 |
1987 | MIN | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1988 | MIN | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1989 | MIN | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18.0 | 0 | 1 | 31 | 1 | 48 | 48.0 | 48 | 0 | 0 |
1990 | MIN | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1991 | MIN | 0 | did not play due to injury | ||||||||||||
1992 | GB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
SEA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
1993 | PHI | 14 | 19 | 18 | 1 | 4.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career[9] | 93 | 19 | 18 | 1 | 58.0 | 0 | 10 | 47 | 2 | 65 | 32.5 | 48 | 0 | 0 |
Coaching career
[edit]After retirement as a player, Millard went on to coaching. He coached at the college level, in the Spring Football League with the Los Angeles Dragons, and the XFL, San Francisco Demons, before getting a job with the Denver Broncos' coaching staff as the club's defensive line coach/pass rush specialist. He was in charge of creating and implementing all pass rush techniques used in the Broncos' defensive scheme. Under Millard, the Broncos had one of the toughest defenses in the league. Millard coached the Oakland Raiders defensive line from 2005 to 2007. In 2009, he was hired as the defensive coordinator for the Merced College Blue Devils. On February 8, 2011, it was announced that Millard, along with Grady Stretz, will be a defensive line coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, specializing in pass rush. In 2012, Millard was hired by the Titans as an assistant coach.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Keith Millard Stats, News and Video - DT". NFL.com.
- ^ "Cabernet Indoor Sports » Bio". Archived from the original on March 2, 2011. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
- ^ "Keith Millard's the Art of Pass Rush - Bio's". Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
- ^ Buchsbaum, Joel S. (November 29, 1983). "Young, not Rozier deserves trophy". The Pensacola Journal. Gannett News Service. p. 3B. Retrieved February 26, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "1984 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
- ^ a b "Bucs add DL coaches Keith Millard, Grady Stretz | Tampa Bay Buccaneers blog: Bucs Beat". Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
- ^ "Keith Millard Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ "Minnesota Vikings | the 50 Greatest Vikings". Archived from the original on January 8, 2011. Retrieved May 4, 2012.
- ^ "Keith Millard Stats". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
External links
[edit]- 1962 births
- Living people
- American football defensive tackles
- Washington State Cougars football players
- Jacksonville Bulls players
- Minnesota Vikings players
- Green Bay Packers players
- Seattle Seahawks players
- Philadelphia Eagles players
- National Conference Pro Bowl players
- San Francisco Demons coaches
- Denver Broncos coaches
- Oakland Raiders coaches
- National Football League Defensive Player of the Year Award winners
- Foothill High School (Pleasanton, California) alumni
- Players of American football from Alameda County, California
- All-American college football players