In American football, an interception (INT), also known as a pick, occurs when a pass intended for a player of the same team is caught by an opposition player, who then gains possession for their team. [3] [4] The National Football League (NFL) did not begin keeping official records until the 1932 season and did not begin tracking interceptions until 1940. [5] [6] In addition to the NFL interception leaders, league record books recognize the interception leaders of the American Football League (AFL), which operated from 1960 to 1969 before being absorbed into the NFL in 1970. [7] [8]
The single-season interception record is held by Night Train Lane, who logged 14 interceptions in 1952 while playing for the Los Angeles Rams as a rookie. [9] [10] Prior to that, Dan Sandifer of the Washington Redskins and Spec Sanders of the New York Yanks jointly held the record, earning 13 interceptions in 1948 and 1950 respectively. [11] [12] The record for most seasons leading the league in interceptions is three. This was first achieved by Everson Walls, who led the league in interceptions in 1981, 1982, and again in 1985. [13] Ed Reed was later able to match Walls by leading the league in 2004, 2008, and 2010. [13] [14] Bill Bradley became the first player to lead the league in interceptions in consecutive seasons (1971 and 1972), [15] with Everson Walls being the only other player to do so (1981 and 1982). [16] The most recent player to lead the league in interceptions is DaRon Bland who finished with 9 interceptions in the 2023 NFL season. [17]
Symbol | Meaning |
---|---|
Leader | The player who recorded the most interceptions in the NFL |
Ints | The total number of interceptions the player had |
TDs | The number of interceptions returned for a touchdown by the player (pick-sixes) |
GP | The number of games played by a player during the season |
† | Pro Football Hall of Fame member |
^ | The player is an active player |
* | Player set the single-season interception record |
(#) | Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list |
Symbol | Meaning |
---|---|
Leader | The player who recorded the most interceptions in the AFL |
Ints | The total number of interceptions the player had |
TDs | The number of interceptions returned for a touchdown by the player (pick-sixes) |
GP | The number of games played by a player during the season |
† | Pro Football Hall of Fame member |
* | Player set the single-season interception record |
(#) | Denotes the number of times a player appears in this list |
Season | Player | Ints | TDs | GP | Team | Refs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1960 | Goose Gonsoulin | 11* | 0 | 14 | Denver Broncos | [17] [130] |
1961 | Billy Atkins | 10 | 0 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | [17] [131] |
1962 | Lee Riley | 11 | 0 | 14 | New York Titans | [17] [132] |
1963 | Fred Glick | 12* | 1 | 14 | Houston Oilers | [17] [133] |
1964 | Dainard Paulson | 12 | 1 | 14 | New York Jets | [17] [134] |
1965 | W. K. Hicks | 9 | 0 | 14 | Houston Oilers | [17] [135] |
1966 | Bobby Hunt | 10 | 0 | 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | [17] [136] |
Johnny Robinson † | 1 | 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | [17] [60] | ||
1967 | Miller Farr | 10 | 3 | 14 | Houston Oilers | [17] [137] |
Tom Janik | 2 | 14 | Buffalo Bills | [17] [138] | ||
Dick Westmoreland | 1 | 14 | Miami Dolphins | [17] [139] | ||
1968 | Dave Grayson | 10 | 1 | 14 | Oakland Raiders | [17] [140] |
1969 | Emmitt Thomas † | 9 | 1 | 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | [17] [64] |
Gustave Joseph Frerotte is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Washington Redskins in the seventh round of the 1994 NFL Draft. He played college football at Tulsa.
Cedrick Wilson Sr. is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2001 NFL Draft. He was picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2005. Wilson earned a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XL, beating the Seattle Seahawks. With that achievement, he became one of very few football players to earn a championship ring at all three levels of football – high school, college, and professional. His son Cedrick Wilson Jr. has played in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins.
Tahaya De'Von Hutchins is a former American football cornerback and the General manager for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Mississippi.
The Tarleton State Texans football program, also known as the Tarleton Texans, is the intercollegiate American football team for Tarleton State University located in the U.S. state of Texas. Through the 2019 season, the team competed in NCAA Division II as members of the Lone Star Conference, but moved to the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) beginning in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. In fall 2021, Tarleton's full-time home of the Western Athletic Conference revived its football league at the FCS level, with Tarleton as one of the inaugural members.
Bacarri Jamon Rambo is a former American football safety. He played college football for the University of Georgia, where he was recognized as an All-American, and was selected by the Washington Redskins in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft.
Tom Kennedy was an American football quarterback. He played for the New York Giants in 1966.
Rodney Thomas II is an American football safety for the Indianapolis Colts in the National Football League (NFL). Thomas played 4 years of college football at Yale.