Johnthan Shuntay Banks (born October 3, 1989) 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

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 ...

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 ...

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, United States. It is classified among "R ...

, where he received

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors. He was selected by 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 ...

in the second round of the

2013 NFL draft The 2013 NFL draft was the 78th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in ...

Early life

Banks was born in Maben, Mississippi. He attended

East Webster High School East Webster High School is in Maben, Mississippi. In 2022 it had 485 students with 83.5 percent white and 13.4 percent black. Its test scores were above the state average in reading and math. It is in the Webster County School District. Athl ...

in Cumberland, where he played

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

and

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

for the East Webster Wolverines

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

team. Considered a three-star recruit by 247Sports.com, Banks was listed as the No. 41 safety in the nation in 2009.

College career

Banks enrolled in

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, Un ...

, where he played for the

Mississippi State Bulldogs football The Mississippi State Bulldogs football program represents Mississippi State University in the sport of American football. The Bulldogs compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the ...

team from 2009 to 2012. He compiled 221 tackles, a school record, 16

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team bu ...

, four

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackle (football move), tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the l ...

s and four

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. He was originally a

, but made the switch to cornerback as a sophomore. Following his senior season in 2012, he won the Jim Thorpe Award for the top defensive back in college football. He also received first-team

honors from the Football Writers Association of America, the Walter Camp Football Foundation, and Scout.com, and was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Prior to the

, Banks was considered one of the best cornerback prospects but after the disappointing NFL combine, most NFL scouts put him as a late first-round or an early second-round pick.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On April 26, 2013, Banks was selected by the

in the second round (43rd overall) in the 2013 NFL draft. He was the sixth cornerback taken in the 2013 NFL draft behind Dee Milliner, D. J. Hayden, Desmond Trufant, Xavier Rhodes, and fellow college teammate Darius Slay, respectively. On May 23, Banks signed his four-year contract with the

, worth $4.726 million, including a $1.817 million bonus. Banks got his first interception against Carson Palmer and 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 ...

on September 29. During the season, he contracted

methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Methicillin-resistant ''Staphylococcus aureus'' (MRSA) is a group of gram-positive bacteria that are genetically distinct from other strains of ''Staphylococcus aureus''. MRSA is responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. ...

(MSRA). Despite the infection, he finished his rookie season with 55 tackles and 3 interceptions. After training camp and the preseason, Banks was named the starting cornerback opposite Alterraun Verner. The Tampa 2 system installed by head coach Lovie Smith proved to play to Banks' strengths as he notched 50 tackles, 10 passes defensed, and four interceptions for the 2014 season.

Detroit Lions

On November 1, 2016, Banks was traded to the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

for a conditional seventh round pick in the 2018 NFL draft. He was released by the Lions on December 3.

Chicago Bears

On December 5, 2016, Banks was signed by 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 ...

. On March 11, 2017, Banks signed a one-year contract with the Bears. He was released on September 2.

Houston Texans

On September 20, 2017, Banks signed with the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

. He was released on October 10.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

*
Mississippi State Bulldogs bio

Tampa Bay Buccaneers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Banks, Johnthan 1989 births Living people American football cornerbacks Mississippi State Bulldogs football players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Players of American football from Mississippi Detroit Lions players Chicago Bears players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen People from Maben, Mississippi