Josh Sitton

Josh Sitton
refer to caption
Sitton with the Packers in 2015
No. 71 – Miami Dolphins
Position: Guard
Personal information
Born: (1986-06-16) June 16, 1986
Jacksonville, Florida
Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight: 320 lb (145 kg)
Career information
High school: Pensacola (FL) Catholic
College: UCF
NFL Draft: 2008 / Round: 4 / Pick: 135
Career history
Roster status: Injured reserve
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2018
Games played: 148
Games started: 138
Player stats at NFL.com

Josh James Sitton (/ˈsɪtən/ SIT-ən; born June 16, 1986) is an American football guard for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UCF and was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He has made four Pro Bowls and won Super Bowl XLV with the Packers, and also played two seasons with the Chicago Bears.

High school career

Sitton attended Catholic High School in Pensacola, Florida, where he lettered four times in football and twice in basketball. A two-way lineman, Sitton allowed just three quarterback sacks over two seasons on the offensive side, while adding 50 tackles and six sacks as a defensive lineman as a senior. He earned second-team all-state and first-team all-area honors as an offensive lineman as a senior.

Regarded as only a two-star recruit by both Rivals.com and Scout.com,[1][2] Sitton was not listed among the best offensive lineman prospects in the class of 2004. He chose UCF over offers from Nicholls State University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

College career

In his true freshman season at UCF, Sitton played in all 11 games with four starts at right guard. He was moved to right tackle for his sophomore season, where he started all 13 games for the Knights. He remained a starter at right tackle for the rest of his college career, blocking the way for Kevin Smith, as he rushed for 2,567 yards in 2007, just 62 yards short of breaking Barry Sanders's NCAA single-season rushing record (2,628) set in 1988.

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt 40-yard dash 10-yd split 20-yd split 20-ss 3-cone Vert jump Broad BP
6 ft 3 1⁄2 in
(1.92 m)		 319 lb
(145 kg)		 5.20 s 1.76 s 2.96 s 4.50 s 7.55 s 9 ft 0 in
(2.74 m)		 28 reps
All values from UCF Pro Day (March 20, 2008)[3]

Green Bay Packers

Sitton (left) playing for the Packers in 2009.

Sitton was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL Draft. In 2010, he was named Offensive Lineman of the Year by the NFL Alumni Association and was selected as a Pro Bowl alternate.[4] Sitton was a key part of the Packers offensive line. Sitton started every game at right guard during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, including all the team's playoff games.[5]

At the end of the 2010 season, Sitton and the Packers appeared in Super Bowl XLV. He was a starter in the 31–25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.[6]

Following the 2012 season, Sitton was moved to left guard. He had spent the first five years of his career at right guard.[7]

On September 2, 2011, the Packers signed Sitton to a five-year contract extension.[8] On January 21, 2013, Sitton was chosen to replace Mike Iupati in the Pro Bowl, his first selection.[9] On January 3, 2016, Sitton started his first career game at left tackle in place of the injured David Bakhtiari as the Packers played the Minnesota Vikings in the regular season finale that decided the NFC North champion.

On September 3, 2016, Sitton was released by the Green Bay Packers, in an unexpected move.[10] Packers head coach Mike McCarthy later said that Sitton's release "isn't just one thing." Sitton was entering the final year of his contract, and had criticized McCarthy's offensive game plan following a 2015 game against Arizona.[11]

"I really don't want to talk, man," Sitton told ESPN following his release. "I'm thankful to the organization. It's a tough business." From 2009-2015, Sitton started 110 of 112 regular season games and 13 playoff games.[12]

Chicago Bears

On September 4, 2016, Sitton signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Bears worth $21.75 million with $10 million guaranteed.[13]

Sitton revealed that his reasons for signing with the Bears included: how quickly the deal got done, the weather in the midwest compared to "too damn hot" in the south and close proximity to where he had lived in the Green Bay area. He denied that the signing had anything to do with wanting "revenge" by playing Green Bay twice a year.[14]

Sitton was forced to miss the team's first meeting against the Packers, a game at Green Bay on October 20. Sitton had suffered an ankle injury on one of the final plays of Chicago's prior game against Jacksonville.[15] Sitton did play in the game at home against Green Bay on December 18, though he noted that "it was just another game."

"I don't think too much about that. I'm not really that type of person in general. I don't get too emotional or too high or low about anything. So it's just the next game for us, a division opponent," Sitton said.[16] The Bears narrowly lost to Green Bay in one of the coldest games ever played at Soldier Field.

Despite missing three games due to an ankle injury, and the Bears' worst record in a 16-game season in franchise history, Sitton was named to the Pro Bowl replacing former teammate T.J. Lang. Sitton's presence on the offensive line helped rookie running back Jordan Howard finish second in the league in rushing, and helped Bears quarterbacks pass for the third-most yards in team history.[17]

It was Sitton's third Pro Bowl selection in a row and fourth overall. "The older you get, the more you appreciate them," Sitton said. "You can't play at a high level in this game forever. I don't know if I'll ever get back. The whole age thing makes it even more special. I'm still young, though, damn it."[17]

In March 2017, Sitton revealed that he felt like he was hitting a milestone achievement entering his 10th NFL season. "I have been lucky. A lot of guys are not lucky. They get the injury bug and things like that. I have been blessed to avoid that. And really, that is the difference maker in this business is being able to stay healthy. and I have been able," Sitton said.[18]

In 2017, Sitton started 13 games at right guard for the Bears. On February 20, 2018, the Bears declined an option on Sitton's contract, making him a free agent.[19]

Miami Dolphins

On March 16, 2018, Sitton signed a two-year contract with the Miami Dolphins.[20][21]

On September 14, 2018, Sitton was placed on season-ending injured reserve after suffering a torn rotator cuff.[22]

Personal life

Sitton went to high school with Roman Reigns and played football together.

Sitton and his wife have been married since July 2016. They were married in Pensacola.[23] In late July 2017, the couple's first daughter was born.[24]

Since 2014, Sitton has returned to his high school to host the Josh Sitton Football ProCamp for youth in the area.[18]

References

  1. ↑ "Josh Sitton Recruiting Profile". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
  2. ↑ "Josh Sitton Recruiting Profile". Scout.com. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Josh Sitton Draft Profile". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
  4. ↑ "Green Bay Packers: Josh Sitton". packers.com.
  5. ↑ "www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SittJo20.htm". Missing or empty |url= (help)
  6. ↑ "Super Bowl XLV - Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Green Bay Packers - February 6th, 2011". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
  7. ↑ "Packers' Offensive Line Changes: Bulaga Moving to Left Tackle, Sitton to Left Guard". AcmePackingCompany.com. May 3, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Packers and Sitton agree on five-year contract extension". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  9. ↑ "Sitton will replace Mike Iupati in Pro Bowl". Profootballtalk.
  10. ↑ "Packers release G Josh Sitton". Packers.com. September 3, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  11. ↑ Demovsky, Rob (September 5, 2016). "'This wasn't just one thing': Several layers to Packers cutting Josh Sitton". ESPN.com.
  12. ↑ Demovsky, Rob (September 3, 2016). "Packers release three-time Pro Bowler Josh Sitton". ESPN.com.
  13. ↑ Biggs, Brad (September 4, 2016). "Bears strike quickly, sign All-Pro guard Josh Sitton after Packers cut him". ChicagoTribune.com. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Ex-Packer Josh Sitton says signing with Bears wasn't about revenge". SportingNews.com. September 5, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Bears to play Packers without Josh Sitton and probably Pernell McPhee". ChicagoTribune.com. October 18, 2016.
  16. ↑ Mayer, Larry (December 15, 2016). "Facing Packers not special for Sitton". ChicagoBears.com.
  17. 1 2 "Bears guard Josh Sitton added to Pro Bowl". ChicagoTribune.com. January 23, 2017.
  18. 1 2 "NFL pro bowler Josh Sitton inspires at youth camp". USAToday.com. March 4, 2017.
  19. ↑ Knoblauch, Austin (February 20, 2018). "Bears declining to pick up Josh Sitton's contract option". NFL.com.
  20. ↑ Patra, Kevin (March 15, 2018). "Dolphins set to release Mike Pouncey, sign Josh Sitton". NFL.com.
  21. ↑ "Miami Dolphins Sign 4-Time Pro Bowl Guard Sitton, Re-sign Fales". MiamiDolphins.com. March 16, 2018.
  22. ↑ Patra, Kevin (September 14, 2018). "Dolphins guard Josh Sitton to miss rest of 2018". NFL.com.
  23. ↑ "Josh Sitton made Kristen Hewitt an honest woman". TotalPackers.com. July 10, 2016.
  24. ↑ Jeff Joniak [@JeffJoniak] (31 July 2017). "Josh Sitton expected to be on the practice field by Wednesday. Today is his report day after the birth of his child recently" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
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