Quinton Teal (born March 8, 1984) 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 ...

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 ...

who played for

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 ...

teams including 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 ...

Early life and education

He was born in

Bennettsville, South Carolina Bennettsville is a city located in the U.S. state of South Carolina on the Great Pee Dee River. As the county seat of Marlboro County, Bennettsville is noted for its historic homes and buildings from the 19th and early 20th centuries—includin ...

where he attended Marlboro County High School. 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 ...

Coastal Carolina University Coastal Carolina University (CCU or Coastal) is a public university in Conway, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College, and later joining the University of South Carolina System as USC Coastal Carolina, ...

. A three-time first team All-Big South winner, he holds the

Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), ...

record with 17 career interceptions. At Coastal Carolina, Teal played with future NFL players QB

Tyler Thigpen Tyler Beckham Thigpen (born April 14, 1984) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback. Thigpen was selected out of Coastal Carolina University by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round of the 2007 NFL draft. ...

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 ...

, WR Jerome Simpson,

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 ...

, FB

Mike Tolbert William Michael Tolbert (born November 23, 1985) is an American former professional football player who was a fullback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. Tolbert was signed ...

Professional career

In the 2007 season he ranked third on the Panthers with 13 special teams tackles. He made his first NFL start 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 ...

on December 22 and responded with a career-high seven tackles. He was the only undrafted rookie free agent to make Carolina's 53-man roster. Had 45 tackles in his 3-year career with the Panthers (2007–2009). On April 29, 2010, Teal signed with 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 ...

but was later cut from the team. On August 10, 2010, Teal signed a two-year contract with the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

but was released during final cuts on September 4, 2010. He was then re-signed by the team on September 28, 2010.

Personal life

Quinton currently owns and operates Teal Fitness with his spouse in the Charlotte, NC area. Quinton Teal and Mike Tolbert are the first Coastal Carolina teammates to be on the same NFL roster.

References

1984 births Living people American football defensive backs Coastal Carolina Chanticleers football players Carolina Panthers players Seattle Seahawks players San Diego Chargers players 21st-century American sportsmen {{defensiveback-1980s-stub