Asante Tyrell Samuel Sr. (born January 6, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He was born in Accra, Ghana and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He played college football for the UCF Knights and was selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL draft. Samuel also played for the Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons. He led the NFL twice in interceptions, in 2006 and 2009. He is the father of Asante Samuel Jr., a cornerback who plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Samuel was born in Accra, Ghana, and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he attended Boyd H. Anderson High School in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida. As a junior quarterback, he threw for 1,800 yards and rushed for 500 yards. As a senior, Samuel concentrated on defense, and earned All-State honors, and finished his senior year with 4 interceptions and 75 tackles. Samuel also managed kick and punt return duties. Ten minutes before kickoff of Samuel's final high school game, he replaced his team's injured starting quarterback. He threw two touchdown passes, intercepted two more, rushed for 80 yards, and even worked on special teams returning kicks and punts. Samuel decreased his 40-yard dash time from 4.5 seconds during his sophomore year of high school to 4.49 seconds entering the NFL.
Samuel attended the University of Central Florida, majored in business administration, and played for the UCF Knights football team. He finished his college career with 127 tackles (102 solo, 25 assisted), 8 interceptions, and a school-record 38 passes deflected (the previous record was 34 deflections). Samuel also returned 63 punts for 673 yards, for an average of 10.7 yards per return.
The New England Patriots selected Samuel in the fourth round (120th overall) of the 2003 NFL draft. The Patriots orchestrated a trade with the Denver Broncos to ensure the acquisition of Samuel by agreeing to trade their fourth-(128th overall) and fifth-round (157th overall) picks in the 2003 NFL draft in return for the 2003 fourth-round pick (120th overall) from the Broncos. He was the 16th cornerback selected and the last of two cornerbacks drafted by the Patriots in 2003, following second-round pick (39th overall) Eugene Wilson .
On June 10, 2003, the Patriots signed Samuel to a four–year, $1.68 million rookie contract that included a signing bonus of $312,500.
Throughout training camp, he competed Tyrone Poole to earn the role as the No. 2 starting cornerback following the departure of Otis Smith. Head coach Bill Belichick named him a backup and listed him as the No. 3 cornerback on the depth chart to begin the season, behind starters Tyrone Poole and Ty Law.
On September 7, 2003, Samuel made his professional regular season debut in the New England Patriots' season-opener at the Buffalo Bills and made one tackle and one pass deflection as they lost 0–31. On September 21, 2003, Samuel recorded two solo tackles, set a season-high with two pass deflections, and returned his first career interception for a touchdown during a 23–16 win against the New York Jets. He intercepted a pass attempt by Vinny Testaverde thrown to wide receiver Wayne Chrebet and returned it 55–yards to score his first career touchdown. In Week 7, Samuel earned his first career start in place of Ty Law, who was inactive due to an ankle injury. He recorded one solo tackle and broke up one pass during a 19–13 overtime victory at the Miami Dolphins. On November 3, 2003, Samuel made one solo tackle, one pass deflection, and sealed the Patriots' 30–26 victory at the Denver Broncos by intercepting a pass by Danny Kanell to wide receiver Ashley Lelie with 19 seconds remaining in the game. In Week 13, he set a season-high with eight combined tackles (seven solo) during a 38–34 loss at the Indianapolis Colts. He appeared in all 16 games throughout his rookie season with one start and finished with a total of 34 combined tackles (29 solo), made five pass deflections, two interceptions, and one touchdown.
The New England Patriots finished the 2003 NFL season with a 14–2 record, earning a first-round bye. On January 10, 2004, Samuel appeared in his first career playoff game, but was limited to two solo tackles during a 17–14 win against the Tennessee Titans in the Divisional Round. On February 1, 2004, Samuel appeared in Super Bowl XXXVIII, as the Patriots defeated the Carolina Panthers 32–29, earning Samuel his first Super Bowl ring.
Throughout training camp, Samuel competed against Tyrone Poole to be the No. 2 starting cornerback under defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel. Head coach Bill Belichick named him the primary backup and listed him as the third cornerback on the depth chart to begin the season, behind returning starters Ty Law and Tyrone Poole.
In Week 6, starting cornerback Tyrone Poole injured his knee during a 30–20 victory against the Seattle Seahawks. Samuel was subsequently named as his replacement as the No. 2 starting cornerback entering Week 7. On October 31, 2004, the Patriots' No. 1 starting cornerback, Ty Law, exited in the first quarter of a 20–34 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers after suffering a fracture to his foot. Samuel would start alongside rookie Randall Gay for the rest of the season, as Ty Law remained inactive for the last eight games (Weeks 10–17). On November 7, 2004, Samuel recorded one solo tackle before exiting in the first quarter of a 40–22 victory at the St. Louis Rams due to an injury to his arm. He subsequently remained inactive for the Patriots' 29–6 win against the Buffalo Bills in Week 10. He was sidelined for two games (Weeks 12–13) due to a shoulder injury, but returned before fully recovering. In Week 14, Samuel set a season-high with three pass deflections and had a pick-six after intercepting a pass by Carson Palmer to wide receiver T. J. Houshmandzadeh and returning it 34–yards for a touchdown during a 28–35 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. The following week, he set a season-high with six combined tackles (five solo) and had one pass deflection during a 28–29 loss at the Miami Dolphins in Week 15. On December 17, 2004, the Patriots officially placed Poole on injured reserve due to his knee injury that required surgery and rendered him inactive. He finished the season with a total of 39 combined tackles (37 solo), made 12 pass deflections, three forced fumbles, one interception, and one touchdown in 13 games and eight starts.
The New England Patriots finished the 2004 NFL season first in the AFC East with a 14–2 record. On January 16, 2005, Samuel earned a start in a playoff game for the first time in his career during a 20–3 victory against the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Divisional Round. On February 6, 2005, Samuel started in Super Bowl XXXIX and recorded four combined tackles (three solo) and led his team with four pass deflections as the Patriots defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 24–21.
The New England Patriots promoted Eric Mangini to defensive coordinator after Romeo Crennel accepted the head coach position with the Cleveland Browns. He entered training camp as a candidate to become the No. 1 starting cornerback following the departure of Ty Law. He competed for the role against Tyrone Poole, Randall Gay, Duane Starks, and Chad Scott. He began the season as the No. 1 starting cornerback, alongside Tyrone Poole. In Week 1, Tyrone Poole injured his ankle and was replaced by Randall Gay as he remained inactive for the rest of the season.
In Week 8, he set a season-high with seven solo tackles, made two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Kelly Holcomb to wide receiver Eric Moulds as the Patriots defeated the Buffalo Bills 21–16. The following week, Samuels set a season-high with eight combined tackles (six solo) and made two pass deflections during a 21–40 loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 9. He was inactive as the Patriots lost 26–28 against the Miami Dolphins in Week 17. He finished with a title of 54 combined tackles (44 solo), 13 pass deflections, and three interceptions in 15 games and 15 starts.