Eric Grant Weems (born July 4, 1985) 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 ...

player who was a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

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 ...

, and

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

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 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 ...

for the

Bethune–Cookman Wildcats The Bethune–Cookman Wildcats are the athletic teams that represent Bethune–Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida. Bethune-Cookman is a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference and participates in NCAA Division I Football Champio ...

and was signed by the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

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 2007. He also played for the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

and

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 ...

Early life

Weems attended

Seabreeze High School Seabreeze High School is a public high school located in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. The school was named a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence in 1989. Notable alumni * Duane and Gregg Allman, of The Allman Brothers Band, class of 196 ...

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach is a coastal Resort town, resort city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. Located on the East Coast of the United States, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Deltona� ...

and was a letterman in

and basketball. In football, as a senior, he was named the team M.V.P. and was an All-Area selection and an All-State selection. In basketball, he was an All-Area selection.

College career

While attending Bethune-Cookman University in his hometown of

, Weems was a stand-out wide receiver/A-back for the

Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football The Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football team represents Bethune–Cookman University in the sport of college football. The Wildcats compete in the NCAA Division I, Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of the National Collegiate Athl ...

team. He played under head coach Alvin Wyatt from 2003 to 2007. Weems left with his name in the records for numerous receiving categories throughout his four-year career at Bethune-Cookman. In his senior year, he added special teams to his portfolio, serving as the kickoff and punt return specialist for the Wildcats.

Professional career

Atlanta Falcons (first stint)

2007 season

Weems saw action in the NFL for the first time in the season finale against the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

. He did not post any statistics.

2008 season

Weems's first career reception came with a 4-yard catch in the first quarter of the Falcons' week 12 match-up against the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

. Later in the same game, Weems provided a key block for a 7-yard

Harry Douglas Harry Douglas IV (born September 16, 1984) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisville Cardin ...

touchdown run. His first career fumble recovery came on a

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

muffed punt in week 16 of the 2008 season.

2009 season

Weems won a job with the Atlanta Falcons as a punt returner in 2009 when wide receiver

was placed on the injured reserved list with a season ending knee injury. Weems ended up returning both punts and kicks as the season progressed. Weems scored his first career touchdown against the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

in Week 7 of the 2009 season, he caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Matt Ryan. Weems scored his second career touchdown against 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 ...

in Week 11 of the 2009 season, he had a 4-yard touchdown reception. On the night of November 16, 2009, Weems was arrested in

DeKalb County, Georgia DeKalb County (, , ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 764,382, making it Georgia's fourth-most populous county. Its ...

for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. Shortly afterward, Weems released a statement saying “Unfortunately, I was involved in an incident on November 17, 2009. I am embarrassed about the situation and I sincerely apologize to the entire Atlanta Falcons organization and our great fans.” No specific action was taken by the Atlanta Falcons or the NFL. Weems finished the 2009 season with six catches for 50 yards and two touchdowns. He rushed eight times for 53 yards. Weems returned 48 kicks for 1214 yards and 27 punts for 270 yards, fumbled three times and losing two, and recorded 10 tackles.

2010 season

Weems had a career-high of four catches against 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 ...

in the first week of the 2010 season. He had his first career start as a wide receiver against the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

in week 2. Weems returned his first career kickoff return for a touchdown against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

on week 13 of the season. The 102 yards was a franchise record for the

. He also returned his first career punt return for a touchdown against the

on week 17 of the season. The 55 yards was a career-high. Weems was selected to the

2011 Pro Bowl The 2011 Pro Bowl was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2010 season. It took place at 7:00 p.m. EST (2:00 p.m. local time) on Sunday, January 30, 2011, at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The NFC won 55–41, des ...

as a special teams member. Weems finished the 2010 season with six catches for 61 yards. He returned 40 kickoffs for a 1,100 yards with one touchdown. Weems returned 18 punts for 230 yards with one touchdown. He was the only player in the NFC to return a kick and a punt for a touchdown. Weems had a notable contribution for the

in the 2010-2011 NFC Divisional Round against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

. Early in the second quarter, Weems fielded a kickoff two yards deep in his team's own end zone and ran virtually untouched for 102-yard kickoff return touchdown. The 102-yard return was the longest play in NFL postseason history.

2011 season

The

re-signed Weems to a one-year contract on July 31, 2011. He appeared in all 16 games with the

, He made two starts at the wide receiver position. Weems caught a career-high 11 catches for a career-high 90 yards. Weems returned 24 kicks for 563 yards. He also returned 32 punts for 315 Yards. Weems also recorded 12 tackles on special teams. He did not score any touchdowns. Weems was selected as a first-team alternate for the 2012 Pro Bowl as a special teams player. Weems returned four kickoffs for an average of 20 yards per kickoff and a long of 27 yards in the NFC Wild Card Round game against the

. He did not record any receptions in the 24–2 loss.

Chicago Bears

On March 14, 2012, Weems signed a three-year contract with the

as an

unrestricted 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 ...

. Weems played in all 16 games with one start at the wide receiver position. Weems caught 2 balls for only 27 yards. He returned 13 kickoffs for 231 yards and 1 punt for no yards. Weems fumbled once and recovered 2 fumbles during the season. He also made 8 tackles. The Bears finished the season with a record of 10-6 and did not make the playoffs. Weems appeared in all 16 games with the Bears in 2013. He recorded only one reception for eight yards. Weems returned five kickoffs for 57 yards. Weems recorded nine tackles in the season and forced one fumble. After the Bears signed

Santonio Holmes Santonio Holmes Jr. (born March 3, 1984) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) and current wide receivers coach for Central State Marauders and Lady Ma ...

, Weems was released by the team on August 16, 2014.

Atlanta Falcons (second stint)

On August 21, 2014, Weems signed with the Atlanta Falcons. Weems appeared in all 16 regular season games with the Atlanta Falcons in 2014. On October 5, Weems forced a fumble and recovered a fumble on separate occasions against the

. He caught his first touchdown of the season against the

on December 8. He then caught his second touchdown two weeks later on December 21, against the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

. Weems caught 10 passes for a career-high 102 yards and two touchdowns. On special teams, he recorded thirteen tackles, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble, and returned two kicks for 34 yards. Weems signed a two-year extension with the Falcons on March 6, 2015. Weems saw action in all 16 games. He had one reception for 11 yards. Weems returned 15 kicks for 403 yards. He also returned 19 punts for 221 yards. In the 2016 season, Weems was part of a record-breaking Falcons team. On September 18, 2016, he returned a punt for a career-long 73 yards against the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

. Weems and the Falcons reached

Super Bowl LI Super Bowl LI was an American football game played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Houston, Texas, on February 5, 2017, to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2016 NFL season, 2016 season. The American Football Confe ...

, where they faced the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

. In the Super Bowl, Weems had two kick returns for 25 total yards and one punt return for no yards. the Falcons fell in a 34–28 overtime defeat.

Tennessee Titans

On March 10, 2017, Weems signed with the

. He was released on September 2, 2017, but was re-signed the next day. In the 2017 season, Weems mainly played on a special teams role for the Titans. On March 9, 2018, Weems was released by the Titans.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Weems, Eric 1985 births Living people American football return specialists American football wide receivers Atlanta Falcons players Bethune–Cookman Wildcats football players Chicago Bears players Seabreeze High School alumni Players of American football from Daytona Beach, Florida Tennessee Titans players