Darrelle Revis: Career retrospective

Darrelle Revis spent his high school career at Aliquippa High School, which is a half hour away from Pittsburgh. He played football and basketball and ran track. During his time at Aliquippa, Revis solidified himself as a hometown hero and became one of the best high school football players in Western Pennsylvania.

After weighing his options, Revis decided to stay local and committed to the University of Pittsburgh. Revis recorded two interceptions as a true freshman. The Pittsburgh Panthers went 8-4 and lost to Utah in the Fiesta Bowl, 35-7.

While the Panthers didn’t make another bowl appearance in his final two years with the team, Revis didn’t fold. He nabbed All-American honors in 2005 and 2006 as the best cornerback in the country. During his junior year, he took a punt return to the house against West Virginia in the Backyard Bowl. The play is a testament to his effort and will to win. Revis capped off his college career as a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award.

Revis left the Panthers' storied football program as one of the best ever to grace the uniform. Following a long lineage of great Panthers such as Aaron Donald, Dan Marino, and Larry Fitzgerald, the kid from Western Pennsylvania made the legends proud. A great cornerback in college, he was also a great punt returner.

A college football sensation, Revis was considered the most complete cornerback in the 2007 NFL Draft. The New York Jets selected Revis with the 14th overall pick. Jets head coach Eric Mangini was captivated by his skillset and intangibles that make a player great. Revis was headed to the Big Apple.

It didn’t take long before Revis made his presence known in the NFL. He became a key contributor quickly. In his rookie year, Revis totaled 88 tackles, 17 passes defended, and three interceptions. He earned a spot on the 2007 PFWA All-Rookie Team. The Jets went 4-12 that year.

Revis continued his solid play the following year. As a young star on the Jets' defense, Revis finished the 2008 season with 58 tackles, 16 passes defended, and five interceptions. This was good enough for his second Pro Bowl. He made seven trips in total (2008, ‘09, ‘10, ‘11, ‘13, ‘14, ‘15). With NFL legend Brett Favre playing quarterback, the 2008 Jets put together an 8-4 start before collapsing to 9-7.

Revis was a good player the minute he stepped onto an NFL field. He became a great player under the Jets' new head coach Rex Ryan. Teeming with the knowledge he learned as a defensive coach with the Baltimore Ravens, Ryan infused swagger and moxie into a Jets team that desperately needed it. Under his defensive guidance, Revis had some of the best years of his career. Ryan knew how to draw up a game plan that put Revis in the best position to win his matchups. 

Revis played his best season as a pro in 2009. The all-world cornerback logged 54 tackles, a league-leading 31 passes defended, and six interceptions. Despite the breakout season, Revis finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting to Green Bay Packers stud Charles Woodson. Under new head coach Rex Ryan and rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, the Jets went 9-7 and lost to Peyton Manning’s Indianapolis Colts in the 2009 AFC Championship Game. Revis and the Jets were finally playing January football.

In 2009 and 2010, the New York Jets were among the best teams in the league. They went to back-to-back AFC Championship Games. While the Jets being good sounds like an oxymoron, the Jets were flying first class during these years. Through it all, Revis was the engine of the Jets' defense. 

When you are as great as Revis was, you eventually receive a nickname. For the stud cornerback, he was nicknamed Revis Island during his time with the Jets. No wide receiver wanted to be stuck on this island. It wasn’t a vacation to go up against Revis. It was more like the movie Castaway . In the 2009 season, Revis held the game’s best receivers to 35 yards or less, including Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Reggie Wayne,  per NJ.com. Shutting down the league’s finest became an annual occurrence for Revis.

Revis and Co. had high hopes heading into the 2011 season. They were Super Bowl favorites. This would be the year they put it all together and brought the Lombardi back to New York. The Jets didn’t live up to the expectations put on them by the sports media and went 8-8. All things considered, Revis had a fine outing in 2011, making the Pro Bowl roster.

Faced with the unbelievable pressure of playing in New York for a team with Super Bowl aspirations, Revis tore his ACL halfway through the 2012 season. Off the field, Revis was interested in re-negotiating his contract because he wanted to be paid like the premier cornerback he was. While Revis was the Jets' best player through good times and bad, his days with the team seemed numbered.

Revis was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the 2012 season. He got what he wanted in the Sunshine State, a six-year, $96 million contract. Revis proved he still had it, logging 50 tackles, 11 passes defended, and two interceptions. Revis earned yet another trip to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl. However, the Bucs started the season 0-8 and went 4-12.

Revis was released from the team soon after Lovie Smith was hired as the Bucs' new head coach. The New England Patriots signed him as soon as he hit the market. It took some getting used to. Regardless, got himself out of the previous two-year slump and played lights out on a Patriots defense loaded with talent. The Patriots went 12-4 and beat the Seattle Seahawks and the Legion of Boom in Super Bowl XLIX. Revis logged a sack in the victory.

The Patriots didn’t re-sign Revis once the victory cigars and champagne dried up. Revis decided it was time to reunite with the team he built his legacy with. Revis signed with the Jets and played well in his first year back, making the Pro Bowl in 2015. The Jets overachieved and went 10-6. After the 2016 season, the Jets let him walk in free agency.

Late into the 2017 season, the Kansas City Chiefs desperately needed depth at cornerback. Since they were Super Bowl contenders that year, they went all in and signed the aging cornerback. He made 11 tackles in five games with the Chiefs, who suffered a Wild Card defeat in the playoffs.

When it came time to create the 2010s All-Decade Team, there was no way the voters could leave Revis out. He was a shoo-in for the honor. Over the decade, Revis totaled 243 tackles, 75 passes defended, and 15 interceptions.

No cornerback did more for their team than Darrelle Revis. One of the greatest Jets of all time, his coverage skills were out of this world. Every Sunday, he took the opposing team’s best wide receiver out of the game. With a combination of fundamentals and supreme talent, Revis became the shutdown corner of his generation. He is greatly missed across the NFL.

When his time comes, Revis will most definitely be selected into the Hall of Fame. Few cornerbacks made a bigger impact on the game. A bust of Revis belongs in Canton, Ohio.