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Tony Banks (American football) facts for kids

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Tony Banks
No. 12
Position: Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1973-04-05) April 5, 1973 (age 52)
San Diego, California, U.S.
Height: 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight: 229 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High school: Hoover (San Diego)
College: San Diego Mesa (1992–1993)
Michigan State (1994–1995)
NFL Draft: 1996 / Round: 2 / Pick: 42
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Pass attempts: 2,356
Pass completions: 1,278
Percentage: 54.2
TD–INT: 77–73
Passing yards: 15,315
Passer rating: 72.4

Anthony Lamar Banks, born on April 5, 1973, is a former American professional football player. He played as a quarterback for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Tony Banks played college football for the Michigan State Spartans. He was chosen by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of the 1996 NFL draft. Banks also played for the Baltimore Ravens, Washington Redskins, and Houston Texans. With the Ravens, he helped his team win their first ever Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXV.

Early Life and High School

Tony Banks grew up in San Diego, California. He went to Hoover High School. While there, he was a talented athlete. He played football, basketball, and baseball for his school.

College Football Career

Before playing college football, Banks played right field for a minor league baseball team. This team was part of the Minnesota Twins organization. He played in Ft. Myers, Florida.

After his baseball career, he went to San Diego Mesa College. He played football there for two years. Then, he transferred to Michigan State University. At Michigan State, Banks became one of the top quarterbacks. He is among the all-time record holders for the Spartans. He ranks high in passing completion percentage and total passing yards. He also ranks high in career passing touchdowns. Tony Banks was the first quarterback picked in the 1996 NFL draft.

College Statistics

Season Team GP Passing
Cmp Att Pct Yds TD Int Rtg
1994 Michigan State 11 145 238 60.9 2,040 11 6 143.1
1995 Michigan State 9 156 258 60.5 2,089 9 15 128.4
Totals 20 301 496 60.7 4,129 20 21 135.5

Professional Football Career

Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle
6 ft 4+1⁄2 in
(1.94 m)		 220 lb
(100 kg)		 33+1⁄8 in
(0.84 m)		 9+1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)		 4.93 s 1.68 s 2.86 s 4.55 s

Playing for the St. Louis Rams

The St. Louis Rams chose Tony Banks in the second round of the 1996 NFL draft. He was the very first quarterback picked that year. He quickly became the starting quarterback as a rookie. Banks gained many passing yards and touchdowns in his first season. However, he also had a record number of fumbles. The team finished the season with 6 wins and 10 losses.

Over the next two seasons, Banks's performance did not improve much. The Rams finished last in their division. After three seasons with the Rams, the team signed another quarterback. They then traded Banks to the Baltimore Ravens.

Playing for the Baltimore Ravens

Tony Banks had some of his best career statistics with the Baltimore Ravens. In 1999, he threw a career-high 17 touchdowns. He only had eight interceptions that year. He also passed for 2,136 yards.

Banks played well at the start of the 2000 season. But some fumbles and interceptions caused the team to lose games. The team decided to make a change. They replaced him with backup quarterback Trent Dilfer. Dilfer remained the starter and led the team to win Super Bowl XXXV. Banks finished 2000 with eight touchdowns and eight interceptions. He was released by the team after the season.

Playing for Other Teams

After leaving the Ravens, Banks signed with the Dallas Cowboys in 2001. However, he was released by the Cowboys before the season started.

Later that year, Banks signed with the Washington Redskins. While with the Redskins, he helped the team turn their season around. They started with 0 wins and 5 losses. But then, they won five games in a row. He was released after that season.

Banks then signed with the Houston Texans. He was the second-string quarterback behind David Carr. Banks played very little during his four years with the Texans. On February 28, 2006, the Texans released him. He did not play in the NFL again.

NFL Career Statistics

Legend
Won the Super Bowl
Bold Career high

Regular Season Stats

Year Team Games Passing Rushing Sacks Fumbles
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD Sck Yds Fum Lost
1996 STL 14 13 5–8 192 368 52.2 2,544 6.9 15 15 71.0 61 212 3.5 0 48 306 21 11
1997 STL 16 16 5–11 252 487 51.7 3,254 6.7 14 13 71.5 47 186 4.0 1 43 317 15 7
1998 STL 14 14 4–10 241 408 59.1 2,535 6.2 7 14 68.6 40 156 3.9 3 41 237 14 10
1999 BAL 12 10 6–4 169 320 52.8 2,136 6.7 17 8 81.2 24 93 3.9 0 33 190 12 11
2000 BAL 11 8 5–3 150 274 54.7 1,578 5.8 8 8 69.3 19 57 3.0 0 20 152 11 5
2001 WAS 15 14 8–6 198 370 53.5 2,386 5.8 10 10 71.3 47 152 3.2 2 29 173 15 10
2002 HOU 0 0 – DNP
2003 HOU 7 3 2–1 61 102 59.8 693 6.8 5 3 84.3 6 27 4.5 0 13 57 7 1
2004 HOU 5 0 – 1 2 50.0 16 8.0 0 0 77.1 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 5 0
2005 HOU 2 0 – 14 25 56.0 173 6.9 1 2 57.6 2 −2 −1.0 0 0 0 2 0
Career 96 78 35–43 1,278 2,356 54.2 15,315 6.5 77 73 72.4 246 881 3.6 6 227 1,432 73 31

Postseason Stats

Year Team Games Passing Rushing Sacks Fumbles
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD Sck Yds Fum Lost
2000 BAL 3 0 – 0 3 0.0 0 0.0 0 0 39.6 1 −1 −1.0 0 0 0 0 0
Career 3 0 0–0 0 3 0.0 0 0.0 0 0 39.6 1 -1 -1.0 0 0 0 0 0

Coaching Career

On March 9, 2020, Tony Banks became the head football coach for Greenhill School. This is a private school in Addison, Texas. Before becoming head coach, he worked as an assistant coach at the same school.

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