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jason taylor

One of the most feared defenders

Once a home-schooled “Pittsburgh kid” thought to be too skinny for the game of football, Jason Taylor became one of the most feared defenders on a National Football League field, and one of the most generous individuals off of it. Drafted by the Miami Dolphins in 1997, Taylor became the greatest pass rusher in the storied franchise’s 60+ year history before moving on to successful TV, radio, and coaching careers and being enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.             

Seemingly endless athletic accomplishments

Prior to announcing his retirement from professional football in December of 2011, Taylor built a resume of seemingly endless athletic accomplishments. Following the 2006 season he was named the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year, the highest honor bestowed on a defensive performer.  In addition, he received All-Pro honors on four occasions, was selected to six Pro Bowls, appeared on numerous All-NFL Defensive Teams, was named the NFL Alumni Association’s Defensive Lineman of the Year in consecutive seasons (2005-06) and to the NFL’s exclusive All-Decade team for the 2000’s.  After one-year stints in Washington (2008) and with the New York Jets (2010), Taylor returned to the Miami Dolphins in 2011 to play his 15th and final NFL season, culminating 13 spectacular years (1997-2007; 2009, 2011) in Miami where he amassed a team record for career sacks with 131.  At the time of his retirement, he ranked sixth all-time in league annals with 139.5 career sacks.  Taylor was the league’s sack champion in 2002 with 18.5, and with 111 sacks from 2000-2009, he was the NFL’s most prolific pass rusher of that decade.  Taylor was honored as the Dolphins’ Most Valuable Player on four occasions, was the club’s Leadership Award winner three times and in 2012, his first year in retirement, the Dolphins inducted Taylor into the team’s Honor Roll. On February 4, 2017, in his first year of eligibility, Taylor was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Currently, he serves as defensive line coach for the University of Miami Hurricanes’ football team.

Away from the field, Jason has been equally as successful

Away from the field, Jason has been equally as successful, evidenced by his second-place finish on the sixth season of Dancing with the Stars, his limited-edition collection of timepieces with Invicta Watch Group, and his role as an NFL analyst for the likes of ESPN, NBC Sports, Sirius/XM NFL Radio, and most recently, the color analyst for Westwood One Radio’s Sunday Night Football broadcast.  People named him to its 2008 “100 Most Beautiful” list and US Weekly tabbed him one of “TV’s New Top 10 Dream Men.” In addition, he has been considered one of the “10 Hottest Men in Sports” by Sports Illustrated for Women and one of the Top 20 Best Looking Male Athletes by a panel of Sports Illustrated swimsuit models.  Jason was the first-ever male spokesperson for the Neutrogena line of health and skin products, was a Jordan Brand Sports member of “Team Jordan,” appeared in national television commercials for Home Depot and Sprint, has been a featured model in several national and international print ad campaigns as well as in Men’s Health, GQ, Sports Illustrated, TV Guide, Maxim and FHM magazines, has appeared on The Tonight Show, MTV Cribs, Entertainment Tonight, Wheel of Fortune, BET’s 106 & Park, The Jamie Kennedy Experiment and made a cameo appearance in the box office smash Jackass: Number Two. 

Jason has worked with numerous charitable organizations

Over the course of his 13-year career with the Miami Dolphins, Jason worked with numerous charitable organizations including the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, United Way, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, First Book, Habitat for Humanity and the Urban League.  In the spring of 2002, he participated in two USO Tours during which he visited military bases and hospitals in Kuwait, Iraq and Germany. In 2004, feeling the desire to further extend his charitable arm, Jason established the Jason Taylor Foundation in an effort to build a better future for the children of South Florida.  Since opening its doors, the JTF has contributed more than $12,000,000 in programs and services to benefit youth.  In 2007, the Jason Taylor Reading Room, a comprehensive after-school program designed to address academic challenges among inner-city youth, particularly in the areas of literacy, was proudly launched in Miramar. The Reading Room also features a spoken word poetry component that incubated a full-blown network, now featuring nearly 50 schools across the state. 

2007 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award

Just prior to Super Bowl XLII, Jason was honored with the 2007 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award for his community service activities as well as his excellence on the field.  He has been recognized by The Sporting News on multiple occasions with their annual “Good Guys” award, received a prestigious JB Award following the 2006 season from James Brown, host of CBS Sports’ “THE NFL TODAY,” and was presented with the Henry P. Iba Citizen Athlete Award, given annually to America’s premier athletes who excel in their sport and have shown by their actions a desire to help others.