Philip Wheeler
refer to caption
Wheeler with the Oakland Raiders in 2012
No. 41, 50, 51, 52
Position:Linebacker
Personal information
Born: (1984-12-12) December 12, 1984 (age 39)
Columbus, Georgia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:245 lb (111 kg)
Career information
High school:Columbus (GA) Shaw
College:Georgia Tech
NFL draft:2008 / Round: 3 / Pick: 93
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
  • 2× Second-team All-ACC (2006, 2007)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles:552
Sacks:6.5
Forced fumbles:4
Fumble recoveries:2
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Philip Gregory Wheeler (born December 12, 1984) is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Georgia Tech.

Wheeler has also played for the Oakland Raiders, Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers, and Atlanta Falcons.

Early years

In 2000, Wheeler, a sophomore, helped lead the Shaw High School football team to win the Georgia High School Association's AAAA Football State Championship. As a senior, he was named as an Honorable Mention All-Region selection by PrepStar and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution named him as a first team Class AAAA All-State selection.

College career

In the 2005 season, Wheeler recorded 65 total tackles, 11.5 tackles-for-loss, 4.5 sacks, four interceptions, eight passes defended, and one forced fumble.[1] In the 2006 season, he recorded 89 total tackles, 14.5 tackles-for-loss, nine sacks, five passes defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.[2] In the 2007 season, he recorded 89 total tackles, nine tackles-for-loss, six sacks, five passes defended, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.[3]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand span 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Bench press
6 ft 1+7⁄8 in
(1.88 m) 		245 lb
(111 kg) 		33 in
(0.84 m) 		9+3⁄4 in
(0.25 m)		 4.66 s 1.55 s 2.65 s 4.29 s 7.11 s 36.5 in
(0.93 m)		 10 ft 2 in
(3.10 m)		 24 reps
Sources:[4][5]
Wheeler (#50) with the Indianapolis Colts, 2010.

Indianapolis Colts

Wheeler was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the third round (93rd pick) of the 2008 NFL Draft.[6] He played for the Colts from 2008 to 2011.[7]

Oakland Raiders

Wheeler signed a one-year contract with the Oakland Raiders on March 30, 2012. He had a career year totaling 109 tackles, three sacks, and two forced fumbles.[8][9]

Miami Dolphins

Wheeler signed with the Miami Dolphins on March 12, 2013 to a 5-year, $25 million deal with $13 million guaranteed.[10] Wheeler was brought in to replace Kevin Burnett. Wheeler was released by the Dolphins on March 10, 2015.[11]

San Francisco 49ers

Wheeler was signed by the San Francisco 49ers on April 30, 2015.[12] He was released by the 49ers on September 4.[13]

Atlanta Falcons

Wheeler signed with the Atlanta Falcons on October 20, 2015.[14]

In the 2016 season, Wheeler and the Falcons reached Super Bowl LI, where they faced the New England Patriots on February 5, 2017. In the Super Bowl, he had one total tackle as the Falcons fell in a 34–28 overtime defeat.[15]

Arizona Cardinals

On July 27, 2017, Wheeler signed with the Arizona Cardinals.[16] He was released on September 8, 2017, but was re-signed a few days later.[17][18] He was released again on September 15, 2017 but re-signed a few days later, only to be released again on September 25.[19][20]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Bold Career high

Regular season

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2008 IND 16 0 14 12 2 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2009 IND 16 7 61 42 19 1.0 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
2010 IND 16 6 61 40 21 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
2011 IND 13 11 85 48 37 1.0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2012 OAK 16 16 110 78 32 3.0 5 0 0 0 0 6 2 1 0 0
2013 MIA 16 16 118 83 35 0.5 5 0 0 0 0 7 0 1 0 0
2014 MIA 15 4 46 35 11 0.0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2015 ATL 9 2 29 21 8 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
2016 ATL 16 4 28 18 10 0.0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
133 66 552 377 175 6.5 25 0 0 0 0 15 4 2 0 0

Playoffs

Year Team Games Tackles Interceptions Fumbles
GP GS Cmb Solo Ast Sck TFL Int Yds TD Lng PD FF FR Yds TD
2008 IND 1 0 1 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2009 IND 3 3 7 5 2 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2010 IND 1 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2016 ATL 3 1 2 2 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
8 4 11 8 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

References

  1. ^ "Philip Wheeler 2005 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  2. ^ "Philip Wheeler 2006 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  3. ^ "Philip Wheeler 2007 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
  5. ^ "2008 NFL Draft Scout Philip Wheeler College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "2008 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  7. ^ "Philip Wheeler Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  8. ^ Raiders agree to 1-year deal Philip Wheeler to fill void at OLB
  9. ^ "Philip Wheeler 2012 Game Log". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  10. ^ Mike, Florio (March 12, 2013). "Dolphins add linebacker Phillip Wheeler". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
  11. ^ Alper, Josh (March 10, 2015). "Dolphins release Philip Wheeler, Shelley Smith". Pro Football Talk. NBCSports.com. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  12. ^ Alper, Josh (April 30, 2015). "49ers sign Philip Wheeler, release Trindon Holliday". Pro Football Talk. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  13. ^ Alper, Josh (September 4, 2015). "49ers release Philip Wheeler, Joe Looney and Craig Dahl". NBCSports.com. Retrieved September 7, 2015.
  14. ^ "Falcons Sign LB Wheeler, Release S Godfrey". Archived from the original on October 9, 2016. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
  15. ^ "Super Bowl LI - New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons - February 5th, 2017". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  16. ^ Williams, Charean (July 27, 2017). "Cardinals sign veteran LB Philip Wheeler". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
  17. ^ Williams, Charean (September 8, 2017). "Cardinals activate Scooby Wright, cut Philip Wheeler". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
  18. ^ Williams, Charean (September 11, 2017). "Cardinals re-sign Philip Wheeler, cut Scooby Wright". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.
  19. ^ "Cardinals sign veteran TE Jim Dray, cut LB Philip Wheeler again". USAToday.com. September 15, 2017.
  20. ^ Gantt, Darin (September 20, 2017). "Cardinals bring back linebacker Philip Wheeler again". ProFootballTalk.NBCSports.com.

External links

Indianapolis Colts 2008 NFL Draft selections
Categories