Antwon Valentino Blake (born August 9, 1990) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

and

special teamer In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their position. Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He was signed by the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2012 and was also a member of the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

and

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Texas–El Paso (UTEP). In September 2016, Blake changed his first name from ''Antwon'' to ''Valentino.''

College career

He played

at Texas-El Paso (UTEP) from 2008 to 2011. During his career at UTEP, Blake totaled 137 tackles, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 interception. He started every game his junior and senior years also started 1 game his sophomore season before suffering an ankle injury.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

Blake signed with the

following the

2012 NFL draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

as a rookie free agent. He was released on September 1, 2013.

Pittsburgh Steelers

On September 2, 2013, Blake was claimed on waivers by the

Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in 1933, the Steeler ...

. Blake would remain on the team over the next 3 seasons. He gathered his first interception during a Week 8, 2014 game against the Colts, picking off

Andrew Luck Andrew Austen Luck (born September 12, 1989) is an American football executive and former professional quarterback who is the general manager of the Stanford Cardinal. He previously played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons ...

. In 2015, Blake became a starter. Though the Steeler pass defense was one of its worst in decades, Blake played a role. During Week 5, he picked off

Philip Rivers Philip Michael Rivers (born December 8, 1981) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons, primarily with the Chargers franchise. He played college football for the ...

, and ran it 70 yards for his first pick-six. He would have 2 more picks during the year, one in a Week 8 loss to the Bengals, and one against the Bengals in the Wild Card game.

Tennessee Titans

On March 17, 2016, Blake signed with the

, reuniting him with former Steelers defensive coordinator

Dick LeBeau Charles Richard LeBeau ( ; born September 9, 1937) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL) He was active at field level in the NFL for 59 consecutive seasons, 14 playing as a cornerback ...

New York Giants

On March 20, 2017, Blake signed with the

. On August 23, 2017, the Giants placed Blake on the Reserve/Exempt list after leaving practice. He was released on September 2, 2017. On September 5, 2017, Blake announced his retirement from the NFL.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

Blake was signed by the

on January 30, 2019.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

UTEP Miners bio

Jacksonville Jaguars bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Valentino 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Jacksonville, Florida Players of American football from Houston UTEP Miners football players American football cornerbacks American football safeties Jacksonville Jaguars players Pittsburgh Steelers players Tennessee Titans players New York Giants players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Canadian football defensive backs Players of Canadian football from Jacksonville, Florida