American football player (born 1978)
American football player
Dante Hall
Hall in 2023
|
|
Position:
| Wide receiver
Return specialist
|
---|
|
Born:
| (
1978-09-20
)
September 20, 1978
(age 45)
Lufkin, Texas
, U.S.
|
---|
Height:
| 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
|
---|
Weight:
| 187 lb (85 kg)
|
---|
|
High school:
| Nimitz
(
Houston, Texas
)
|
---|
College:
| Texas A&M
(1996?1999)
|
---|
NFL draft:
| 2000
/ Round: 5 / Pick: 153
|
---|
|
|
|
---|
|
|
|
---|
|
Receptions:
| 162
|
---|
Receiving yards:
| 1,747
|
---|
Receiving touchdowns:
| 9
|
---|
Total return yards:
| 12,397
|
---|
Return touchdowns:
| 12
|
---|
|
|
Damieon Dante Hall
(born September 20, 1978) is an American former professional
football
player who was a
wide receiver
and
return specialist
for nine seasons in the
National Football League
(NFL). He is nicknamed "
the Human Joystick
" and "
the X-Factor
".
[1]
He played
college football
for the
Texas A&M Aggies
and was selected by the
Kansas City Chiefs
in the fifth round of the
2000 NFL draft
. Hall played for the Chiefs for seven years before being traded to the
St. Louis Rams
in 2007.
[2]
Hall was ranked the 10th greatest return specialist in NFL history on
NFL Network
's
NFL Top 10
Return Aces.
College career
[
edit
]
Hall played for
Texas A&M University
as a
running back
and
return specialist
.
[3]
His 4,707
all-purpose yards
place him second in school history behind
Darren Lewis
.
[4]
He majored in Ag Leadership & Development.
[
citation needed
]
On November 8, 1999, Texas A&M announced Hall's dismissal from the team for violations of the team's policy. Hall stated he thinks he was ousted due to parking violations.
[5]
Professional career
[
edit
]
Kansas City Chiefs
[
edit
]
The Kansas City Chiefs drafted Hall in the fifth-round of the 2000 NFL Draft.
[8]
He made his NFL debut on September 24, 2000, as a kick/punt returner. In five games, he returned 17
kickoffs
for 358 yards and six
punts
for 37 yards.
[4]
[9]
He spent the spring of 2001 playing in
NFL Europe
for the
Scottish Claymores
as a wide receiver. He led the league with 26 kickoff returns for 635 yards and was second in punt returns with 15 for 177 yards and second in combined net yards with 1,286.
[4]
In 2002, Hall had his first NFL touchdown off a 60-yard
reception
at the
New York Jets
on October 6, 2002.
[10]
Hall returned one kickoff and two punts for touchdowns. His two touchdowns off punt returns tied him for first in Chief franchise history. The
2002 NFL season
earned Hall his first NFL
Pro Bowl
, being selected as a kick returner.
[4]
Hall became the second player in NFL history to return a kickoff and a punt return for a touchdown in the same game.
[
citation needed
]
In 2003, Hall returned a kickoff or a punt for a touchdown four games in a row, which is an NFL record.
[10]
The most memorable moment of the season came against the
Denver Broncos
in which he reversed direction twice to evade the entire
special teams
unit en route to a 93-yard punt return for a touchdown, his 7th in the 10-game stretch from the previous season, then went on to score 10 total touchdowns in 13 games.
[11]
In the playoffs that year against the
Indianapolis Colts
, Hall had another kickoff return for a touchdown, giving him five for the year, as well as a receiving touchdown. Hall was named to the
2004 Pro Bowl
as a kick/punt returner for his second time.
[4]
In 2004, Hall touched the ball eight times for 242 yards vs. the
San Diego Chargers
on November 28, 2004. His six kickoff returns for 233 yards with a 96-yard touchdown in the game set a career-high. On December 19, 2004, he returned the opening kickoff 97-yards for a touchdown. This touchdown made him the Chiefs' franchise leader in career kickoff return touchdowns and career special teams touchdowns. During the
2004 NFL season
, Hall set single-season Chiefs' franchise records with 68 kickoff returns and career-high 1,718 kickoff return yards.
[10]
In 2005, in a memorable game against the
Denver Broncos
, Hall appeared to be on his way to a kickoff return for a touchdown, but he surprisingly fumbled the ball without being touched by a defensive player. With a touchdown on a kickoff return against the
Philadelphia Eagles
on October 2, 2005, he tied four players, among them
Ollie Matson
and
Gale Sayers
, for the most career kickoff return touchdowns, with six. That record stood until
Joshua Cribbs
broke it in 2009. Hall's sixth return was also his 10th return touchdown, placing him third in that category behind
Brian Mitchell
(13) and
Eric Metcalf
(12).
In 2006, Hall had two kickoff returns for 86 yards and three punt returns for seven yards in Week 12 vs. the Denver Broncos on November 23, 2006. This game made him the sixth player to have 10,000 career kick return yards. Hall played his second postseason game at
Indianapolis
on January 6, 2007, in a rematch from the 2003 Divisional Playoffs.
[10]
St. Louis Rams
[
edit
]
In 2007, Hall was traded along with a third-round draft pick to the St. Louis Rams for their third and fifth-round draft pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. Hall tied Metcalf on September 30, 2007, against the
Dallas Cowboys
with his 12th return touchdown. On October 7, 2008, Hall injured his ankle vs. the
Arizona Cardinals
, missing four games. He further aggravated his ankle on October 25, 2008, vs. the
Seattle Seahawks
and was placed on injured reserve.
[12]
In 2013, Hall worked as an assistant coach at
St. Anthony High School
in Long Beach, California.
[13]
In 2016, he spent several months as a radio host for
KILT-FM
in Houston, Texas.
[14]
NFL career statistics
[
edit
]
Receiving Stats
[15]
Year
|
Team
|
GP
|
Rec
|
Yards
|
Avg
|
Lng
|
TD
|
FD
|
Fum
|
Lost
|
2002
|
KC
|
16
|
20
|
322
|
16.1
|
75
|
3
|
11
|
0
|
0
|
2003
|
KC
|
16
|
40
|
423
|
10.6
|
67
|
1
|
16
|
0
|
0
|
2004
|
KC
|
16
|
25
|
230
|
9.2
|
22
|
0
|
15
|
0
|
0
|
2005
|
KC
|
16
|
34
|
436
|
12.8
|
52
|
3
|
19
|
0
|
0
|
2006
|
KC
|
15
|
26
|
204
|
7.8
|
19
|
2
|
15
|
0
|
0
|
2007
|
STL
|
7
|
5
|
27
|
5.4
|
12
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2008
|
STL
|
8
|
12
|
105
|
8.8
|
20
|
0
|
7
|
0
|
0
|
Career
|
94
|
162
|
1,747
|
10.8
|
75
|
9
|
85
|
0
|
0
|
Rushing Stats
[15]
Year
|
Team
|
GP
|
Att
|
Yards
|
Avg
|
Lng
|
TD
|
FD
|
Fum
|
Lost
|
2001
|
KC
|
13
|
2
|
10
|
5.0
|
6
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
2002
|
KC
|
16
|
11
|
54
|
4.9
|
21
|
0
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
2003
|
KC
|
16
|
16
|
73
|
4.6
|
16
|
0
|
5
|
0
|
0
|
2004
|
KC
|
16
|
8
|
56
|
7.0
|
17
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2005
|
KC
|
16
|
7
|
11
|
1.6
|
7
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2006
|
KC
|
15
|
3
|
11
|
3.7
|
9
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2007
|
STL
|
7
|
3
|
18
|
6.0
|
9
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2008
|
STL
|
8
|
4
|
9
|
2.3
|
10
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
Career
|
107
|
54
|
242
|
4.5
|
21
|
0
|
16
|
0
|
0
|
Returning Stats
[15]
Year
|
Team
|
GP
|
PRet
|
Yards
|
Lng
|
TD
|
FC
|
KRet
|
Yards
|
Lng
|
TD
|
FC
|
2000
|
KC
|
5
|
6
|
37
|
22
|
0
|
5
|
17
|
358
|
36
|
0
|
0
|
2001
|
KC
|
13
|
32
|
235
|
26
|
0
|
6
|
43
|
969
|
71
|
0
|
0
|
2002
|
KC
|
16
|
29
|
390
|
90
|
2
|
11
|
57
|
1,354
|
88
|
1
|
0
|
2003
|
KC
|
16
|
29
|
472
|
93
|
2
|
14
|
57
|
1,478
|
100
|
2
|
0
|
2004
|
KC
|
16
|
23
|
232
|
46
|
0
|
17
|
68
|
1,718
|
97
|
2
|
0
|
2005
|
KC
|
16
|
42
|
276
|
52
|
0
|
6
|
65
|
1,560
|
96
|
1
|
0
|
2006
|
KC
|
15
|
27
|
240
|
60
|
1
|
6
|
53
|
1,207
|
60
|
0
|
0
|
2007
|
STL
|
7
|
19
|
286
|
85
|
1
|
6
|
29
|
729
|
84
|
0
|
0
|
2008
|
STL
|
8
|
9
|
93
|
34
|
0
|
1
|
37
|
763
|
41
|
0
|
0
|
Career
|
112
|
216
|
2,261
|
93
|
6
|
72
|
426
|
10,136
|
100
|
6
|
0
|
Chiefs franchise records
[
edit
]
- Career kick return yards (8,644)
[16]
- Career kick return touchdowns (6)
[16]
- Career punt return touchdowns (5)
[16]
- Career combined punt and kickoff return touchdowns (11)
[16]
- Career All-purpose yards (12,356)
[16]
- Kickoff return yards in a single season: 1,718 (2004)
[16]
- All-purpose yards in a single season: 2,446 (2003)
[16]
Media
[
edit
]
Hall is the co-author of
Dante Hall: X-Factor
, a book that details his journey from Texas A&M
running back
to one of the best kick returners in the NFL. He is mentioned in
Lil Wayne
's song "Dipset (Reppin Time)" in the line "I'm like Dante Hall, I just throw up the X." Hall appeared as a guest on the Late Show with David Letterman on October 30, 2003.
Nicknames
[
edit
]
Hall has established many nicknames in his career, perhaps the best known being "X-factor", referring to how whenever he scored a touchdown he would cross his forearms to resemble an "X". Hall was also known as "The Human Joystick", referring to the agility he showed during returns.
Notes
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Jenkins, Lee (February 1, 2007).
"Bears' Hester Emerges From the Tall Grass"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
June 18,
2008
.
- ^
"Rams deal fifth-round pick for Hall"
.
ESPN
. April 25, 2007
. Retrieved
February 3,
2008
.
- ^
"Dante Hall"
.
Pro Football Weekly
. Archived from
the original
on August 5, 2002.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"Dante' Hall #82"
.
NFL Players
. Retrieved
February 3,
2008
.
- ^
"Texas A&M's Dante Hall Dismissed"
.
Associated Press
. Retrieved
September 5,
2021
.
- ^
"Dante Hall, Texas AM, RB, 2000 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football"
.
draftscout.com
. Retrieved
December 31,
2021
.
- ^
"Dante Hall, Combine Results, RB - Texas A&M"
.
nflcombineresults.com
. Retrieved
December 31,
2021
.
- ^
"2000 NFL Draft Listing"
.
Pro-Football-Reference.com
. Retrieved
March 19,
2023
.
- ^
"Chiefs' Hall comes back strong after miscue"
. Archived from
the original
on August 22, 2000.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Dante Hall"
.
St. Louis Rams profile
. Archived from
the original
on December 25, 2007
. Retrieved
February 3,
2008
.
- ^
NFL (October 27, 2017),
That Time Dante Hall Dazzled the NFL as the Human Joystick ?? | NFL Highlights
, retrieved
October 28,
2017
- ^
"Return specialist Hall latest Rams player to land on injured list"
.
ESPN
. December 6, 2007
. Retrieved
February 3,
2008
.
- ^
return to coaching
- ^
what happened to
- ^
a
b
c
"Dante Hall Stats"
. ESPN Internet Ventures
. Retrieved
April 10,
2014
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
"Kansas City Chiefs Franchise Encyclopedia"
.
pro-football-reference.com
. Retrieved
August 24,
2012
.
External links
[
edit
]