Cordarrelle Patterson

Cordarrelle Patterson, nicknamed "Flash", is an American football player for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). A versatile utility player, he plays running back, wide receiver, return specialist, and occasionally on defense. Patterson played college football for Tennessee and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He has also been a member of the Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots with whom he won Super Bowl LIII, and the Chicago Bears.

Cordarrelle Patterson’s Early Life and Background

Patterson was a triple threat while attending Northwestern High School in Rock Hill, South Carolina, playing football, basketball, and running track. He caught 75 passes for 944 yards with 18 touchdowns, leading his team to the State Class 4A Division II Championship game, and was named All-State as a senior. He began a post-graduate year at North Carolina Tech Preparatory Christian Academy in 2009 but left prior to the spring to enroll at Hutchinson Community College.
He played junior college football and was recognized as an NJCAA All-American in 2010 and 2011. He holds more than a dozen records at Hutchinson, including career receiving yards (1,832), career receptions (113), career receiving touchdowns (24), career total touchdowns (36), career points (216), career kickoff return average (41.9), and career all-purpose yards (3,379). He earned the honors in 2011 as a return specialist and totaled 645 yards on 21 combined kickoff and punt returns with three touchdowns while recording 52 receptions for 908 yards and nine touchdowns. As a sophomore, Patterson earned first-team All-American honors on offense and was named the 2011 Jayhawk Conference Offensive Player of the Year after catching 61 passes for 924 yards and 15 touchdowns, carrying the ball 32 times for 379 yards and six touchdowns, and averaging 48.2 yards on 10 kickoff returns with three more scores. Patterson received offers from most of the upper-tier Division I programs but ultimately chose to attend the University of Tennessee over LSU, Auburn, and others. He was used as a wide receiver, but also excelled when playing return specialist or running back. In 12 starts, Patterson racked up a school-record 1,858 all-purpose yards, which ranked first in the SEC and 18th in the NCAA.

Who Drafted Cordarrelle Patterson?

On January 9, 2013, Patterson, along with college teammates Tyler Bray, Justin Hunter, and Darrington Sentimore, announced his intention to leave college early and declare for the 2013 NFL Draft. Patterson was selected in the first round with the 29th overall pick by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2013 NFL Draft in a draft-day trade with the New England Patriots; the Patriots received four draft picks (a second, third, fourth, and seventh).

Cordarrelle Patterson’s NFL Journey

Patterson is a regular in the NFL and is widely regarded as one of the greatest return specialists in NFL history, with a league record nine kickoff return touchdowns in his career, six of which have been longer than 100 yards. A Super Bowl champion, he has appeared in 127 games (36 starts) and has returned 239 kickoffs for 7,118 yards (29.8 avg.) and eight touchdowns on special teams, and has tallied 216 receptions for 2,087 yards (9.7 avg.) and 10 touchdowns and 167 carries for 1,017 yards (6.1 avg.) and eight touchdowns on offense. He also leads the NFL in kickoffs returned for touchdowns since entering the NFL in 2013 with eight and is tied with Josh Cribbs (eight) and Leon Washington for the most career kickoff returns for a touchdown in NFL history. He ranks second among qualified returners in NFL history with a 29.8 kickoff return average. Only Pro Football Hall of Famer Gale Sayers (30.8) has a higher career kickoff return average. He recorded a league-high 1,017 kick return yards on 35 returns (29.1 avg.) as a returner and rushed a career-high 64 times for 232 yards and a touchdown and caught 21 passes for 132 yards for the Bears in 2020.

Cordarrelle Patterson teams

Minnesota Vikings (2013-2016)

Patterson was selected in the first round with the 29th overall pick by the Minnesota Vikings in the 2013 NFL Draft in a draft-day trade with the New England Patriots. Patterson was exceptional on the Special Teams and was awarded the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month for September. In Week 8, Patterson returned the opening kickoff 109 yards for a touchdown, tying the NFL record for the longest play ever, for which he earned the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. He finished his rookie season with 45 catches, 469 yards, and five touchdowns. He was selected to the Pro Bowl on January 2, 2014, and was named a kick returner on the 2013 All-Pro team. After a coaching change, Patterson struggled over the next two seasons, finishing with just 35 receptions, owing to minimal play at the WR position. In 2016, his struggles as a receiver continued but he excelled as a kick returner. He was named to his second Pro Bowl and First-team All-Pro, as a returner. He compiled 52 receptions for 453 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. In addition, he had 25 kickoff returns for 792 net yards and a return touchdown.

Oakland Raiders (2017)

On March 13, 2017, Patterson signed a two-year, $8.5 million contract with the Oakland Raiders. He joined a position unit that contained Michael Crabtree, Amari Cooper, Seth Roberts, and Johnny Holton. He still had a solid year with the Raiders, finishing with 31 receptions for 309 yards to go along with 13 carries for 121 yards and two touchdowns and 19 returns for 538 yards.

New England Patriots (2018)

On March 18, 2018, the Raiders agreed to trade Patterson and a 2018 sixth-round pick to the New England Patriots for a 2018 fifth-round pick. The deal became official two days later. He was very good for the Patriots, even filling in at RB occasionally, and tallied 21 receptions for 247 yards and three touchdowns to go along with 42 carries for 228 yards and a touchdown for the season. He also returned 23 kicks for 663 yards and a touchdown. In his return to playoff action, Patterson had three yards rushed and a 23-yard kick return in the Divisional Round, before recording two receptions for 18 yards and three returned kicks for 80 yards in the AFC Championship game. He then helped the team with two receptions for 14 yards, a 38-yard kick return, and seven rushing yards, winning Super Bowl LIII.

Chicago Bears (2019-2020)

On March 13, 2019, Patterson signed a two-year, $10 million contract with the Chicago Bears. Patterson earned his second NFC Special Teams Player of the Month award for his performance in November, during which he recorded 294 kickoff return yards on ten attempts and four tackles as a gunner on punts. On December 17, 2019, Patterson was voted into the 2020 Pro Bowl roster as a starter. He was named first-team All-Pro as a kick returner and second-team All-Pro as a special teamer. He finished the year with the NFL’s most kick return yards, while his yards per return led the NFC and was second in the league. His 29.9 kickoff return average was also the second-highest in Bears’ franchise history behind Gale Sayers. During Week 10 of the 2020 season, Patterson tied the NFL record for the most kickoff return touchdowns in a career when he returned the second-half opening kickoff for a 104-yard score that gave the Bears the lead. The touchdown also set the franchise record for the longest kickoff return in team history, surpassing Sayers' 103-yard score in 1967. On December 21, 2020, Patterson was named an All-Pro to the Pro Bowl for the second consecutive season. He finished the season with the most rushing attempts and rushing yards in his career, at 64 attempts and 232 yards respectively.

Atlanta Falcons (2021-Present)

On April 15, 2021, Patterson signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons. In Week 12, Patterson recorded 108 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns, both career-highs. In the same game, Patterson also made his first appearance on defense for the Falcons, playing one down at safety during a hail mary attempt. He finished the season with 153 rushes for 618 rushing yards, 52 receptions for 548 receiving yards, and 11 total touchdowns, all career highs. On March 22, 2022, Patterson re-signed with the Falcons for a two-year, $10.5 million contract and entered the season as the Falcons’ starting running back.

Championships and Rings Won by Cordarrelle Patterson

Cordarrelle, during his pitstop at the Patriots’ lineup, won his first, and only, Super Bowl, defeating the Los Angeles Rams by a score of 13-3 in Super Bowl LIII.

Cordarrelle Patterson’s Super Bowl Championship Rings

Cordarrelle Paterson Awards and Honours

Cordarrelle Patterson NFL Records

• Most kickoff return touchdowns in NFL history: 9

• Longest kickoff return touchdown: 109 yards (October 27, 2013)

• First NFL player to have a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown, a 75-yard touchdown catch, and a 50-yard rushing touchdown in the same season (2013)

Vikings franchise records

• First wide receiver to rush for 100 yards in a game: 102 yards

• Longest rushing touchdown by a wide receiver: 67 yards (September 7, 2014)

• Most kickoff return yards in a season: 1,393 (2013)

• Most kickoff return yards in a season by a rookie: 1,393 (2013)

• Highest kick return average in a season: 32.4 (2013)

• Highest kick return average in a career: 29.6 (2013–present)

• Most kickoff return touchdowns in a season: 2 (2013)

• Longest play by a Viking: 109 yards (October 27, 2013)

• Most games with 100 kick return yards: 13

• Most kick return yards by a Viking: 4,040

• Most Special Team touchdowns by any Viking in franchise history: 5

Cordarrelle Patterson Net Worth

Cordarrelle Patterson has an estimated net worth of $4.3 million. He signed a 2-year, $10,500,000 contract with the Atlanta Falcons, including a $5,000,000 signing bonus, $5,000,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $5,250,000.

Cordarrelle Patterson family

Cordarrelle Patterson has two siblings, Charles Patterson and Crystal Patterson. His mother is Catherine Patterson; his father’s identity is yet to be known. He is a father of four beautiful children: two sons, (One named Avian who was born in October 2012 from his previous relationship, and the other Qoi Aiko born in January 2021 ), and two daughters who are Cienna born in November 2013, and Zyana born in March 2018.