Chad Pennington

At 47 years old, Chad Pennington has this physical status:

James Chadwick Pennington (born June 26, 1976) is a retired American football quarterback who competed in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons.

He played college football at Marshall University and was drafted by the New York Jets in the first round as the eighteenth overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft.

He played for the Jets from 2000 to 2007, as well as for the Miami Dolphins from 2008 to 2010.

Pennington has been the only person to win the AP Comeback Player of the Year Award twice, both in 2006 and 2008.

In 2008, he came in second place in MVP voting to Peyton Manning.

Pennington was the NFL's all-time leader in career completion percentage at 66.0% when he was suspended in 2014 after being surpassed by Drew Brees during the 2014 season.

Early years

Elwood, Pennington's father, was a physical education teacher and football coach at Halls High School, as well as his mother, Denise, a student at the Webb School of Knoxville. Both of Pennington's parents are of English descent. Basketball, Pennington's first sport, began in the third grade. In his freshman year in high school, he started playing football. Due to the school's rigorous academic curriculum, his parents decided to have him repeat the eighth grade. Pennington played basketball and football at Webb, but knew he had a great chance of going back to college by football.

He was recruited by only two colleges, Middle Tennessee State University (FBS) and Chattanooga's University of Tennessee, both NCAA Division I-AA schools. He attended a training camp at Marshall University, his parents' alma mater, where he was noticed by head football coach Jim Donnan and given a scholarship.

Personal life

On March 1, 2001, Pennington married Robin Hampton, his college girlfriend. He brought his Jets' playbook on his honeymoon, which was notably on display. The couple have three children together. Pennington and his family now reside in Woodford, Kentucky.

In 2003, Chad and Robin Pennington founded the 1st & 10 Foundation with the aim of strengthening communities in West Virginia, Tennessee, and the New York metropolitan area. The foundation has given more than half a million dollars to various charitable charities since its inception in 2003.

With partner JW Hart, Pennington created the #10 Bucking Bulls. Several times, he carried bulls to the PBR Finals, the most notable of which was #121, Cat Man Do.

He was hired in 2018 to be a football coach at Lexington, Kentucky's Sayre School. He led the team to a 3–5 record in his first year of coaching.

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College career

Pennington was Marshall's fourth-string quarterback in 1995 and was supposed to be redshirted, leading Marshall to the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game, which Marshall lost to Montana, 22-20. Pennington was redshirted in favor of Eric Kresser, a transfer from the Florida Gators who supervised the Herd's return to the I-AA Championship game in 1996. In 1997, Pennington returned to action as Marshall went from Division I-AA to Division I-A. Marshall won in his first bowl game victory in a 48-29 victory over Louisville in the 1998 Motor City Bowl. Pennington was voted the game's MVP. Marshall went undefeated at 13–0 in his senior year (1999) as Pennington led the team to its third straight Mid-American Conference championship. Both Pennington and Marshall played in the 1999 Motor City Bowl in Pontiac, Michigan, defeating BYU by 21–3, capped Pennington's undefeated senior season.

In several passing categories, Pennington set school records. In 1999 Heisman Trophy voting, he came in fifth place. At Marshall, Randy Moss was Pennington's top receiver. Pennington finished his career at Marshall with 1,026 completions for 13,423 yards and 115 touchdowns, with only 45 interceptions.

Pennington went beyond football, graduating with a degree in journalism, a 3.83 grade point average, and being a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship. He worked for Marshall's newspaper The Parthenon and was a broadcaster for the school's radio station WMUL, but not to be distracting.

Does not contain statistics from 1995, when Marshall competed in Division I-AA.

Professional career

In the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft, Pennington was drafted by the New York Jets, 18th overall and the first quarterback.

Chad appeared in only three appearances in his first two seasons before starting as the Jets' starting quarterback after supplying Vinny Testaverde in the fifth game of the 2002 season. Pennington helped the Jets resurrect the Jets' fortunes by leading the 1–4 team to an unexpected 9–7 record and the AFC East division championship. Pennington threw for 3,120 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions, despite beginning less than a full season. His 104.2 quarterback rating set a new team record. Pennington threw for a 142 QB rating, leading the Jets over Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts' number four passing offense by a score of 41–0 on a very soft field that arguably hampered the Colts' passing game by a score of 41–0.

Pennington and the Jets had high hopes going into the 2003 season, but in their fourth pre-season game against the New York Giants, Pennington sustained a fractured hand. Due to his injury, he missed the first six games of the season. Pennington's wrist will never be the same again due to the severity of the accident and a rushed recovery process, and his once thrilling play-fake became utterly normal. The Jets began the season 1-4 without their starting quarterback. Despite his return, the Jets only lost five more games to finish 6-10.

The Jets signed Pennington to a seven-year, $64.2 million deal, while the Jets led the Jets to a 5–0 record in the 2004 season. However, Pennington suffered his rotator cuff injury during a Week 9 game against the Buffalo Bills, and later missed three games. In Pennington's absence, second string quarterback Quincy Carter was 2-1. With a rout of the Houston Texans, the Houston Texans returned to action. Despite a scuffle between the New York media and losses to the New England Patriots and the St. Louis Rams, the Jets earned their first wild card berth with a 10–6 record. Pennington led the Jets to a 20-17 overtime victory over the AFC West Champion San Diego Chargers in the first round, going 23-33 for 279 yards and two touchdowns. The Titans and the Jets then met the 15–1 Steelers at Pittsburgh. Despite the Jets' offensive struggles and facing a 10–0 deficit, the Jets' defense and special teams rallied to score 17 unanswered points. However, Pennington and the Jets will see their seasons come to an end with kicker Doug Brien missing two potential game-winning field goals. In overtime, the Steelers advanced to victory.

Throughout the season, Pennington and the local New York media feuded. During a news conference on December 20, 2004, Pennington told the assembled media that it was "not (their) right") but a "privilege" of theirs to cover the Jets, "not (their) right" but "to be around a bunch of young professionals every day and do your work."

In Birmingham, Alabama, Pennington underwent right shoulder surgery on February 4, 2005. It was later discovered that he had suffered a serious tear in the right rotator cuff, as well as a large bone spur on the shoulder. Both Pennington and Jets coach Herman Edwards denied that the shoulder had yet to fully recover after a poor job against the Kansas City Chiefs in September and a weak one against the Miami Dolphins the following week, prompting rumors that the shoulder had yet to fully recover, but Pennington and Jets coach Herman Edwards denied this, citing a lack of pre-season preparation and Mike Heimerdinger's less-than-full comprehension of new offensive coordinator Mike Heimerd Pennington sustained an injury against the Jacksonville Jaguars on September 25, 2005, but the Jets barely led the Jets to victory despite not throwing well. However, tests revealed another tear in his rotator cuff later this day.

Pennington underwent surgery on October 6, 2005, to repair his right shoulder. Pennington and the Jets hoped that with more recovery time than his first surgery, he would have more endurance and control with his throws going into the 2006 season. Pennington restructured his deal with the New York Jets to guarantee he continued with the team for at least the 2006 season in the midst of eventually concluded labour talks in February-March 2006. Pennington was reported to have taken a significant cut in pay, with the amounts recovered by way of achievable compensation; however, the Jets organization does not comment on contractual matters.

Pennington began training with new throwing coaches in the 2006 season and concentrated heavily on his torso and throwing mechanics. Eric Mangini, the new head coach, told players and the media that the quarterback position was still uncertain, and that all four Jets quarterbacks (Chad Pennington, Patrick Ramsey, Brooks Bollinger, and Kellen Clemens) had a chance to be the starter during training camp. Pennington's throws were limited by the Jets' medical staff to insure the safety of his shoulder.

Pennington won the Jets pre-season quarterback competition and started the 2006 season in pre-injury form. Pennington played back-to-back 300-yard passing games in the first two weeks of the season, and for the first time in his career. For his Week One performance against the Tennessee Titans, Pennington was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week. Pennington passed for a career-high 339 yards in Week 15 in Minnesota.

With 3,352 yards in all sixteen games, Pennington set new records for completions, passing attempts, and passing yardage.

Although Pennington's arm strength was often criticized, the offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer's new offense was a success. Pennington led the Jets to a 10–6 record and a playoff appearance as a wild card team by using a short passing game and profiting from wide receivers Lavernues Coles, Jerricho Cotchery, and running back Leon Washington, a significant improvement over their 4-12 record and a playoff appearance.

In their lone playoff game, the Jets faced the New England Patriots. The Jets lost 37-31, with Pennington passing for 300 yards and a touchdown. Pennington also became the Jets' all-time leader in postseason starts with five, with five starting with five.

Pennington was named Comeback Player of the Year Award in just one year after tearing his rotator cuff. He obtained 27 of the 50 votes cast, far ahead of second-place finisher Drew Brees' 8.5 percent.

Pennington's 2007 season was tumultuous one. Pennington sustained a high ankle sprain that kept him out of game two in the first game of the season. He led the Jets to a 31–28 victory over the Miami Dolphins in their third game, throwing two touchdowns and running for a third time. In Week 4, he threw three interceptions against the New York Giants, giving him five interceptions in two games. He was 17-14 losing to the Buffalo Bills in Week 4. In the fourth quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals, two weeks later, he threw a costly interceptor late. After leading the Jets to a dismal 1–7 start, coach Eric Mangini decided to fire Pennington for second-year quarterback Kellen Clemens. During a Week 15 match against the Patriots, the Clemens sustained a rib injury, resulting in Pennington's return to game action. Pennington had a field day after finishing 25 of 38 pass attempts for 184 yards. He also threw for more yards and less interceptions than former quarterback Tom Brady, who was on his way to an MVP season, but that day was 14-27 for 140 yards with one interception. The Jets lost 6–10. Pennington started at Tennessee next week. The Clemens were suspended before facing the Kansas City Chiefs in their final game of the season. Pennington's 2007 season featured 1,765 yards, ten touchdowns, 9 interceptions, and a passer rating of 86.1.

Eric Mangini announced a competition for the starting quarterback position between Pennington and Clemens in 2008. However, the Jets acquired veteran and former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre on August 7, 2008, resulting in Pennington's release later that day.

At least six teams were interested in Pennington at the time when he was cut from the Jets. However, only the Minnesota Vikings and the Miami Dolphins were considered serious candidates. Pennington and the Miami Dolphins announced on August 8 that they had a two-year, $11.5 million contract. Pennington will have to train for the starting job, according to Dolphin head coach Tony Sparano. As the Dolphins entered the regular season, he was later announced as the starting quarterback. His 67.4 completion percentage led the NFL and beat Miami's single-season 64.2 by Dan Marino in 1984. He played in all 16 games for the Dolphins and helped the team win 9 of their last ten games) and the third seed in the AFC East Championship, finishing with a 97.4 rating. In the first round of the playoffs, the Dolphins defeated the Baltimore Ravens 27–9. He was the first Dolphins quarterback since Hall of Famer Dan Marino to throw for 3,500 yards. Pennington received a coveted MVP award from several major media outlets for his role in the Dolphins' ten-win revival. He received four votes and finished second, tied for second with running back Michael Turner for the 2008 AP NFL MVP. Peyton Manning, the award's winner, received 32 votes.

Pennington was named his second Comeback Player of the Year Award at the conclusion of the regular season.

Pennington was the starting lineup for the Miami Dolphins in 2009, with Pat White as the second string and Chad Henne as the third string. During the third quarter, Pennington sustained the same shoulder on which he had two prior surgeries, including two on September 27, 2009. In the 23-13 loss, Chad Henne was his replacement.

Pennington underwent an MRI on September 28, the first time in the midst of rumors of a season-ending illness. Initial findings revealed a torn capsule in his throwing shoulder on September 29, 2009. Pennington went with a third shoulder surgery after getting a second opinion. Although Pennington later said that he was not sure if he'll play again, he'd try and rehabilitate the shoulder and concentrate on getting back to the league. Tyler Thigpen was activated from the Chiefs for an undisclosed 2010 draft pick, and the Dolphins have acquired him back to him on injured reserve.

Pennington was re-signed by the Dolphins to a one-year contract on March 5, 2010. If he had started, the deal would cost him $5.75 million, $4.2 million if he had been traded by the team, or $2.5 million as a back-up to Chad Henne.

Pennington was named starting quarterback for the November 14 game against the Titans on November 10, 2010. Pennington sustained a serious shoulder injury on his first play. The injury was considered to be potentially career-limiting.

In 2011, Pennington made his second return to the league. However, he tore his ACL while playing a game of pick-up basketball on March 31, 2011. During the 2011 NFL season, Pennington revealed that he will work for Fox Sports as an analyst. Following his fourth shoulder surgery, he said on February 9, 2012, he would return rather than attempt a comeback.

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