Takeo Spikes
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Takeo Gerard Spikes (; born December 17, 1976) 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
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
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
Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...
. He was selected by 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 ...
with the 13th overall pick in the
1998 NFL draft The 1998 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 April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...
. A two-time
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
selection and one-time
All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...
, Spikes also played for the
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
, and
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 ...
. Spikes is one of only seven linebackers to start more than 200 NFL games. Only once did Spikes record fewer than 70 tackles in a season. He was a
team captain In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...
in 13 out of 15 seasons. Spikes played in 219 games without a playoff appearance, the most in NFL history. The Eagles, 49ers, and Chargers all made the playoffs the year after Spikes left each team. After retiring from the NFL, Spikes became a media personality. He is a football analyst on NBC Sports Network and
Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British broadcasting of sports events, subscription sports channels operated by the satellite television, satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television ...
in the United Kingdom and co-hosts shows on SiriusXM and the SEC Network.


Early life and education

Spikes was born in
Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...
. He attended Washington County High School in
Sandersville, Georgia The city of Sandersville is the county seat of Washington County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,813 in 2020. It is also a part of the Central Savannah River Area. Sandersville is known as the "Kaolin Capital of the World" due to ...
, where he earned
All-America 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 ...
n honors from ''
Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...
'' and ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' and was named Georgia's "Mr. Football" by state coaches as a senior. Spikes was also named "Georgia Player of the Year" as a senior.


College career

Takeo entered
Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...
, majoring in liberal arts. In the 1997 campaign, he led Auburn with 136 tackles as Auburn advanced to the SEC
Championship game A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world championships, and ...
where they were defeated, 30–29, by the
Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Colleg ...
, led by
Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the In ...
. Spikes was named MVP for his performance in this game. Spikes was college teammates with productive tailback Stephen Davis. Takeo Spikes received his Auburn degree in 2016.


Professional career


Cincinnati Bengals

Spikes entered the
1998 NFL draft The 1998 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 April 18–19, 1998, at the Theater at M ...
and was selected in the first round by 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 ...
. In his rookie season he started all preseason games and all regular season games. He became the first rookie to lead the Bengals in tackles since James Francis led them in 1990. He also led the team by total snaps played on offense and defense, which added up to 997. In 1999, he was the team captain, playing in all his games as a Right Inside Linebacker and a Right Linebacker. He forced four fumbles and recovered four, leading the team in fumble recoveries as well. In 2000, he played every game as a Right Linebacker and recorded 128 tackles. He passed the 100 tackle mark for the third straight time and led the team in tackles and fumble recoveries. In 2001, Spikes started at RLB for all of the 15 games he played that season. He once again led the team in solo and total tackles in the 2001 campaign. Spikes missed Game 5 because of his father's death. Spikes dedicated the season, and the remainder of his professional career to his father. He wrote his dad's name on the tape he wrapped around his wrists for the remaining 12 games of the season. The 2002 season was his final season with the Bengals, as he played all 16 games. In his tenure with the Bengals, he played 79 of a possible 80 games, missing only one for his father's funeral. He led the team in solo and total tackles once again and scored his second defensive TD by way of fumble recovery. Following the season, Spikes was given the designated player tag making him a restricted free agent. After not finishing better than 6–10 during any of his seasons in Cincinnati, Spikes stated he rather sign with a playoff contender. (However, the Bills did not make the playoffs for the entire 2000s decade, while the Bengals went 11–5 and won their division in 2005).


Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills signed Spikes to an offersheet worth $32 million over six years, that the Bengals did not match. The 2003 season earned Spikes his first
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
selection. He recorded 126 tackles, with the addition of a pair of sacks, a pair of interceptions, and a pair of fumble recoveries. On September 25, 2005, Spikes suffered a season-ending tear to his right Achilles' tendon while tackling
Michael Vick Michael Dwayne Vick (born June 26, 1980) is an American college football coach and former player who is the Head coach, head football coach at Norfolk State Spartans football, Norfolk State University. He played quarterback in the National F ...
during the Bills' 24–16 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 3. In 2006, while recovering from a torn Achilles tendon, Spikes played in 12 games while missing 4 games early in the season due to a hamstring injury. During the first series of the first game of the year, Spikes made a blind side sack on
Patriots A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot(s) or The Patriot(s) may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American R ...
QB
Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons. He spent his first 20 seasons with the New Engla ...
, forcing a fumble which was recovered by Bills LB
London Fletcher London Levi Fletcher-Baker (born May 19, 1975) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the John Carroll Blue Streaks and sign ...
for a touchdown. The sack and forced fumble were Spikes' only of the season.


Philadelphia Eagles

On March 26, 2007, he was traded alongside
Kelly Holcomb Bryan Kelly Holcomb (born July 9, 1973) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders. Holcomb was signed by the ...
to 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 ...
, in exchange for Darwin Walker and a
2008 NFL draft The 2008 NFL draft was the 73rd NFL draft, annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York (state), New York ...
selection. After an effective first season as an Eagle, Spikes' season was cut short in week 14 when he suffered a torn
rotator cuff The rotator cuff (SITS muscles) is a group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the human shoulder and allow for its extensive range of motion. Of the seven scapulohumeral muscles, four make up the rotator cuff. The four muscles a ...
injury 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 ...
, a game the Eagles won, 10–6. With emerging linebackers Stewart Bradley and Omar Gaither ready to take over, the Eagles chose not to pick up his team option, thus making him a free agent. The Eagles had made the playoffs six of the previous seven years before he was traded there, and also the following three after he left (including a trip to the NFC Championship game the next year). However, by not making the playoffs in his lone season in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Spikes went eight seasons without being part of a playoff team.


San Francisco 49ers

On August 10, 2008, Spikes was signed by the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
on the same day they released
linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...
Brandon Moore. Spikes was assigned No. 51, with
Dontarrious Thomas Dontarrious Dewayne Thomas (born September 2, 1980) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Auburn Tigers. He was selected by the Minnesota ...
changing from 51 to 56 – the number previously worn by Moore. On February 27, 2009, Takeo was re-signed to a 2-year contract. Spikes was team captain in San Francisco all 3 years of play. Spikes recorded 1 sack and 3 interceptions in the 2008 season. In 2009, Spikes recorded 4 sacks and missed one game due to an injury on November 1, 2009. In San Francisco, Spikes became famous for his sack dance. In 2010, Spikes led all linebackers in most attempted tackles per miss. Spikes missed four tackles over his three seasons with San Francisco. Called Bamm Bamm and TKO,
Patrick Willis Patrick L. Willis (born January 25, 1985) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for his entire eight-year career with the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football ...
and Takeo Spikes were called the dynamic duo. Spikes said, "With Patrick I’ve always admired how great he wants to be at a young age. That’s how he gained my respect. He would always just hound me and ask me questions. He was the sponge and I was the bucket of water...that’s why our relationship is bigger than just on the field. He’s like a brother to me." After being assured that he would be re-signed by head coach
Mike Singletary Michael Singletary (born October 9, 1958), nicknamed "Samurai Mike", is an American former professional football player and coach. He played as a linebacker for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college foo ...
, the 49ers fired Singletary and decided to go with rookie NaVorro Bowman as the starter, making Spikes a free agent once again.


San Diego Chargers

Spikes signed a three-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 ...
on July 26, 2011. Spikes was team captain both seasons with San Diego. On September 11, 2012, Spikes played his 200th career start earning him membership in a very elite group of linebackers to reach this achievement. On September 30, 2012, he forced
Jamaal Charles Jamaal RaShaad Jones Charles (born December 27, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played college footb ...
to fumble when playing against the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...
. The Chargers later won the game, 37–20. Spikes was released by the Chargers on March 7, 2013.


NFL statistics


Personal life

Spikes was named after Japan's 66th Prime Minister
Takeo Miki was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, Prime Minister of Japan from 1974 to 1976. A native of Tokushima Prefecture, Miki was educated at Meiji University and the University of Southern California. He was first elected ...
after Spikes' parents saw a news report about the Japanese prime minister.Michael Silver
Face Lift
''Sports Illustrated'', November 26, 2001, Accessed October 7, 2011.
Miki's successor, who was appointed the nation's 67th Prime Minister on December 24, 1976, a week after Takeo was born, was also a Takeo (Fukuda). Takeo's younger cousin
Brandon Spikes Brandon Spikes (born September 3, 1987) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Florida Gators, was recognized as a consensus All-America ...
is a former linebacker who played for 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 ...
and the
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 ...
. Spikes dedicated his entire career to his father shortly after he died. Spikes said, "My father was a good man. Really showed me the work ethic ... taught me to feel like you're not entitled to anything. If I can live my life just as he did, even three-quarters of the way he did, then I figure I'll have a pretty successful life." Spikes and singer
Tionne Watkins Tionne Tenese Watkins (born April 26, 1970), also known by her stage name T-Boz, is an American singer. Watkins rose to fame in the early 1990s as a member of the girl-group TLC. She has won four Grammy Awards for her work with TLC. Early life ...
dated from 2006 to 2009. Takeo Spikes received his Auburn degree in 2016. In 2016, Spikes earned a
Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular ...
degree from the
University of Miami Business School Miami Herbert Business School (officially the University of Miami Patti and Allan Herbert Business School) is the business school of the University of Miami, a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. The school was founded in 1929 ...
.


Neck and strength

Spikes is recognized and known for the size and strength of his
neck The neck is the part of the body in many vertebrates that connects the head to the torso. It supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that transmit sensory and motor information between the brain and the rest of the body. Addition ...
.
Bleacher Report ''Bleacher Report'' (often abbreviated as B/R) is a website that focuses on sports and sports culture. Its headquarters are in San Francisco, with offices in New York City and London. ''Bleacher Report'' was acquired by Time Warner's Turner B ...
called Spikes "the most jacked linebacker in the NFL." Spikes has measured his neck at 21 inches. At one point in his career, he could bench 490 pounds. He was featured in ''
ESPN The Magazine ''ESPN The Magazine'' was an American monthly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut. The first issue, with the cover line "NEXT.," was published on March 11, 1998 (cover date March 23, 1998), and featured K ...
''s "The Body Issue" in 2012 with a focus on his neck and trapezius.


Philanthropy

Spikes provides mentoring at his annual TKO camp where he inspires young boys and girls to reach their goals. The mission of the camp is to help the participants bridge the gap of taking their goals from dreams to reality. The day-long event gives middle to high school age girls and boys an opportunity to participate in a basketball camp, football camp, and cheerleading camp with motivational speeches and Q&A with professional athletes. The annual event also includes a financial contribution to the local Washington County, GA athletic department.Pro Player Insider "12 Things You Need to Know About Takeo Spikes" July 21, 2012
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References


External links


Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spikes, Takeo 1976 births Living people American Conference Pro Bowl players American football linebackers Auburn Tigers football players Buffalo Bills players Cincinnati Bengals players Philadelphia Eagles players Players of American football from Augusta, Georgia San Francisco 49ers players San Diego Chargers players People from Sandersville, Georgia Players of American football from Washington County, Georgia University of Miami Business School alumni