Philip Kenwood Sam II (born February 26, 1983) 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 ...

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 ...

. He was selected by 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 fifth round of the

2004 NFL draft The 2004 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held from April 24–25, 2004, at the Theate ...

. 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 ...

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. Sam earned a

Super Bowl ring The Super Bowl ring is an award in the National Football League given to the team members of the winning team of the league's annual championship game, the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl ring offers a collectible memento for the actual players and t ...

with the Patriots in

Super Bowl XXXIX Super Bowl XXXIX was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles to decide the National Football League (NF ...

over the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The team plays its ...

. He was also a member of the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

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 ...

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

, and

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...

Early life

Sam first attended

Norcross High School Norcross High School is a public high school in Norcross, Georgia, United States, part of the Gwinnett County School System, and serving the cities of Norcross and Peachtree Corners. The school's mascot is the Blue Devil. The school is also the ...

before transferring to Buford High School in

Buford, Georgia Buford is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, Gwinnett and Hall County, Georgia, Hall counties in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 17,144. Most of th ...

. As a senior at Buford, Sam caught 39 passes for 1,067 yards and seven

touchdown 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 ...

s while also rushing for two scores. As the team's

free safety Safety (S), historically known as a safetyman, is a position in gridiron football on the American football positions#Defense, defense. The safeties are defensive backs who line up ten to fifteen yards from the line of scrimmage. There are two var ...

on defense, Sam accumulated 91

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

and grabbed five

interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, 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 ...

s. On special teams, Sam served as the team's punter and also returned two kicks for touchdowns, bringing his total for the season to 13. He earned all-state honors, was named conference and county player of the year, and was a Super Southern selection by the

Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

. While playing with the Florida State Seminoles, Sam gained fame for catching a pass from teammate

Chris Rix Christopher Charles Rix (born May 1, 1981) is an American sportscaster and former college football player. He played quarterback for the Florida State Seminoles. Early life Chris Rix was born and raised in upstate New York. He is of Filipino, ...

. This play led to Sam being noticed and leaving college early to pursue a career in the NFL.

Professional career

New England Patriots

Sam was selected with the 164th overall pick in the fifth round of the

out of Florida State University by the

. In his rookie season, Sam was inactive for six contests before being placed on

Injured Reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

with a groin injury. In January 2005, Sam was moved to the reserve/suspended list for violation of team rules. However, Sam did receive a

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...

ring after the Patriots beat the

24–21 in

. In 2005, Sam battled an undisclosed injury during training camp and the preseason, which hurt his chances of making the Patriots' 53-man roster. He was waived on September 3 and worked out for 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 ...

prior to being added to the Patriots' practice squad, where he would spend the rest of the season.

Cincinnati Bengals

As a free agent following the season, Sam was signed by

in February 2006. He caught two passes for 23 yards — his only receptions of the preseason — in the team's final exhibition game against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

. He was subsequently waived on September 2.

Miami Dolphins

After working out for the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

in October 2006, Sam signed with the Miami Dolphins and was placed on the team's practice squad. During the 2006 season Sam was forced to take a hiatus for personal reasons and was released, however he was re-signed a short time later and ended the season on the practice squad. In 2016, Sam alleged that he was released for missing a practice to visit his dying father. Despite a new head coach, Sam was re-signed to a future contract by the Dolphins in February 2007. He played for the

Rhein Fire Rhein Fire may refer to either of two American football franchises: * Rhein Fire (NFL Europe) The Rhein Fire were a professional football team in the NFL Europe, formerly the World League of American Football. Established in Düsseldorf, Germany ...

NFL Europa NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the developmental minor league of the National Football League (NFL). Originally founded ...

in the spring. On May 15, Sam was named the NFL Europa Offensive Player of the Week after racking up 122 yards and a touchdown in a 27–24 victory over the Frankfurt Galaxy. Sam was ultimately a final training camp cut of the Dolphins.

Oakland Raiders

Early in the 2007 NFL season, Sam signed a practice roster agreement with the Oakland Raiders. He was later released by the team in October.

Toronto Argonauts (first stint)

On September 4, 2008, Sam was a free agent signing of the

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

and was assigned to their practice roster. On September 20, he made his CFL debut against the

and ended the

2008 CFL season The 2008 CFL season was the 55th season of modern-day Canadian football, the 51st season for the Canadian Football League. It was also the first CFL season in which all of the league's regular season and post-season games, including the Grey C ...

playing in six games and made 36 receptions for 499 yards and three touchdowns.

Buffalo Bills

On January 26, 2009, Sam was signed to a reserve/future contract by the

. He was waived/injured by the Bills July 29, 2009 and reverted to season-ending

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

. The team released him with an injury settlement on July 31, making him a

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 ...

Toronto Argonauts (second stint)

Sam was activated from the deferred list by the Argonauts on August 4, 2009.

Calgary Stampeders

On February 17, 2010, Sam was traded to the Calgary Stampeders in exchange for wide receiver Jeremaine Copeland.

Toronto Argonauts (third stint)

On May 19, 2011, Sam was traded back to the Argonauts, along with defensive lineman Miguel Robede, for wide receiver

Reggie McNeal Reginald Parrish McNeal (born September 20, 1983) is an American former professional football player. He played five seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Texas A&M University. Early life McNeal attended ...

and defensive lineman Adrian Davis. He was released on June 20, 2011, after playing in just one preseason game.

Personal life

Sam majored in political science at Florida State. He is the son of Travis Johnson. He is the older brother of Lorne Sam. His sister, Autumn, played collegiate basketball at Clemson and is a sportscaster at WSB-TV in Atlanta, GA. He works with high school athletes in Bellbrook, Ohio to train Wide Receivers that will be selected for college teams with some success.P.K. Sam Gives Back
January 05, 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2020.

References

External links

P.K. Sam Gives BackArrest DetailsBuffalo Bills bio

New England Patriots bioToronto Argonauts bioArgonauts, Stampeders, Complete Six-Player Deal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sam, P. K. 1983 births Living people Sportspeople from Norcross, Georgia Players of American football from Gwinnett County, Georgia Players of Canadian football from Georgia (U.S. state) American football wide receivers Norcross High School alumni Florida State Seminoles football players New England Patriots players Cincinnati Bengals players Miami Dolphins players Rhein Fire players Oakland Raiders players Buffalo Bills players Canadian football wide receivers Toronto Argonauts players Calgary Stampeders players Violence against women in the United States American expatriate sportspeople in Germany 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen Buford High School (Georgia) alumni