Tyrann "Honey Badger" Mathieu

"I definitely have a long journey in front of me, definitely going to be some challenges, but I think I'm prepared for it."

- Tyrann Mathieu

Tyrann Mathieu is an professional football player. He Attended Louisiana State University (LSU) and played as a defensive back. In 2012 he was expelled due to substance abuse. Mathieu successfully completed rehab and was able to take part in the NFL. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals and has played with the bird gang ever since.

Early Life
Tyrann "Honey Badger" Mathieu was born on May 13, 1992 in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he played defensive back for the St. Augustine High Purple Knights. He recorded 32 tackles, five interceptions, one sack and one fumble recovery as a senior, and received an athletic scholarship to attend Louisiana State University.

College Career
Despite only starting one game in his freshman season, Mathieu was the Most Outstanding Defensive Player of the 2011 Cotton Bowl Classic after he recorded seven tackles, one tackle for loss, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, one interception, one sack and one pass breakup in LSU's 41-24 win over Texas A&M. At the end of the 2011 regular season, Mathieu had totaled 77 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries (2 returned for a touchdown), and 2 interceptions. On special teams, Mathieu had 26 punt returns for 420 yards, with 2 returned for a touchdown. On October 19, 2011, Mathieu was suspended for one game following a violation of LSU's drug policy. Mathieu was named the most valuable player of the 2011 SEC Championship Game. Mathieu earned the nickname "The Honey Badger" for his amazing ability to play extremely tough football against much larger opponents. This led to him being a Heisman Trophy finalist. On December 8, 2011, Mathieu was awarded the Chuck Bednarik Award, given to the year's best defensive player in college football. This marked the second straight year a LSU defensive player won the nation's top defensive honor following future teammate Patrick Peterson. On August 10, 2012, LSU coach Les Miles announced that Mathieu would be dismissed from the football team due to a violation of team rules. News outlets reported that the dismissal was a result of repeated drug test failures. On August 17, 2012, Mathieu withdrew from LSU and entered a drug rehabilitation program in Houston, Texas. Mathieu's withdrawal was expected to last for the entire 2012-2013 academic year. However, on September 4, 2012, Mathieu ended his withdrawal and enrolled for fall semester classes. On October 25, 2012, Mathieu and three other LSU former players were arrested on possession of marijuana. Despite all this, "Honey Badger" was able to participate in the NFL Scouting Combine and the NFL Draft.

On April 26, 2013, the Arizona Cardinals selected Mathieu with the 69th overall pick in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

Career as a Cardinal
There was a statement from Cardinals' head coach Bruce Arians that Mathieu would be playing Free Safety. From the very beginning Tyrann was a huge success with the Cardinals. In his NFL debut, he chased down Rams Tight End Jared Cook and stripped the ball from him inside the five-yard-line, the fumble was recovered by teammate Karlos Dansby. In week 2 Mathieu had the game winning tackle on a crucial 4th down for the Lions where he tackled WR Nate Burelson just shy of the first down. "Honey Badger didn't disappoint in week 3 where he picked off an overthrown bomb from Drew Brees. This outstanding rookie season would come to a close on December 8 when he tore his ACL and his LCL. Mathieu was placed on IR ending his season. In 2014 he would remain healthy whereas nearly all the rest of the playmakers became injured.