Dante Wesley

Dante Wesley

Wesley at the Carolina Panthers 2008 Fan Fest
No. 29, 21, 23, 33
Position	Cornerback
Personal information
Born	(1979-04-05) April 5, 1979 (age 46) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school	Pine Bluff (AR) Watson Chapel
College	Arkansas–Pine Bluff
NFL draft	2002: 4th round, 100th overall pick
Career history
Carolina Panthers (2002–2005) Chicago Bears (2006) New England Patriots (2007)* Carolina Panthers (2007–2009) Detroit Lions (2010)
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Awards and highlights
All-American (2001) First-team All-SWAC (2001) 2× second-team All-SWAC (1999-2000)
Career NFL statistics
Total tackles 104 Forced fumbles 5 Fumble recoveries 5 Pass deflections 18 Defensive touchdowns 1 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Dante Julius Wesley (born April 5, 1979) is an American former professional football cornerback. He was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round of the 2002 NFL draft. He played college football at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Wesley was also a member of the Chicago Bears, New England Patriots and Detroit Lions.

Professional career

Carolina Panthers (first stint)

Wesley was selected by the Carolina Panthers in the fourth round (100th overall) of the 2002 NFL draft. ^[1]

Chicago Bears

In March 2006 he signed a 2-year contract with the Chicago Bears.

New England Patriots

After one season with the Bears, Wesley was acquired by the New England Patriots for an undisclosed draft pick in the 2008 NFL draft.

Carolina Panthers (second stint)

On September 3, 2007, after being released by the Patriots, he signed again with the Panthers.

Wesley scored his first career touchdown on a 12-yard fumble return against the New Orleans Saints in the 2008 season finale.

In the 2009 NFL season, during a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Wesley hit the punt returner Clifton Smith, who had called for a fair catch but not yet received the ball. The Panthers were assessed a 15-yard penalty and he was ejected from the game. ^{[2] [3]} Two days later, the NFL suspended Wesley for one game without pay. Wesley said he never meant to harm Smith, saying he merely mistimed his hit on him and wanted to apologize to Smith. ^[4]

Detroit Lions

Wesley signed with the Detroit Lions as an unrestricted free agent on April 3, 2010. Wesley was cut after the Lions had to go to the 53-man roster. He was re-signed by the Lions on September 30, 2010. He was released on October 19.

NFL statistics

Year	Team	GP	COMB	TOTAL	AST	SACK	FF	FR	FR YDS	INT	IR YDS	AVG IR	LNG	TD	PD
2002	CAR	13	17	14	3	0.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8
2003	CAR	16	16	14	2	1.0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
2004	CAR	13	20	18	2	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2005	CAR	16	17	16	1	0.0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
2006	CHI	13	10	9	1	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2007	CAR	2	2	2	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2008	CAR	16	9	8	1	0.0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
2009	CAR	15	11	11	0	1.0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	3
2010	DET	3	2	2	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Career		107	104	94	10	2.0	5	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	18

References

1. "2002 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
2. "Dante Wesley Ejected After Hit On Clifton Smith NFL Panthers Bucs". YouTube . October 18, 2009.^{[ dead YouTube link ]}
3. "Wesley tossed; Smith has concussion". ESPN . AP. October 18, 2009.
4. Chandler, Charles. Wesley suspended one game without pay ^{[ permanent dead link ]}. The Charlotte Observer , 2009-10-20.