John Abraham

John Abraham is a professional football defensive end who plays for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). He was born in Timmonsville, South Carolina on May 6, 1978.

Abraham was drafted in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft by the New York Jets. He was immediately productive; in his first season as a pro he recorded 12 tackles and 4.5 sacks in just six games before being injured. The next season, he improved to 82 tackles and 13 sacks and was called for the first time to represent the AFC in the 2001 Pro Bowl. The next season he recorded 82 tackles, with 10 sacks, and was again selected for the 2002 Pro Bowl. He got injured in mid season in 2003 but managed to recover the next season, to play in his 3rd Pro Bowl in 2004.

Abraham was born in Timmonsville, South Carolina.  In his high school years at Lamar High School in Lamar, South Carolina, he was primarily an athlete in the track program, where he set the current South Carolina record for the 200-meter dash.  He played just one season of high school football but was nonetheless recruited to play at the University of South Carolina.  While there, he amassed 23.5 sacks, ranking second on South Carolina's career list, and was named an all-SEC first-team player.

Drafted in the first round of the 2000 NFL Draft, he made an immediate impact for the New York Jets; in his rookie season, he recorded 12 tackles and 4.5 sacks in only six games before being injured.  In 2001, he recorded 82 tackles and 13 sacks, and was named to the AFC Pro Bowl.  In 2002, he again recorded 82 tackles, with 10 sacks, and was again named to the Pro Bowl.  In 2003, he only recorded 37 tackles and six sacks, due to being injured mid-season.

In the 2004 season, Abraham recorded 10 sacks before sustaining a knee injury in December that kept him out for the rest of the season.  The following year, the Jets tagged him as a franchise player to keep him with the team, but a contract holdout kept him from training camp; he ended up sigining a one-year contract with the Jets less than two weeks before the start of the season.

Prior to the 2005 season he switched his jersey number from #94 to #56.  He chose this number because it corresponded to his birth date (5/6/1978), and because it was unavailable the seasons before, mainly because of Sam Cowart, who was traded to Minnesota earlier in the off-season.

Abraham was once again franchised for the 2006 season, which would have led to a 1 year contract for $8.33 million, though Abraham indicated he no longer wished to play for the Jets.  On March 21, 2006, the Jets completed a long-anticipated trade, trading Abraham to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for the 29th overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, which the Falcons had acquired from the Denver Broncos in exchange for the 15th pick.  The Falcons also received a pair of middle round selections in the trade.

After the trade, Abraham signed a 6-year $45 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons, where he wears #55.

In 2006, Abraham was the player with the highest salary on the Atlanta falcons, at over $15 million.

In 2008, he had a career high 16.5 sacks through the entire season and ranked 3rd in the league that year. Despite the great numbers he was not elected by voters to play in the 2009 Pro Bowl.

Abraham was raised by his mother, Maggie Abraham. Abraham has a daughter, Endraya. He enjoys watching basketball in his spare time and his favorite team is the Los Angeles Lakers. He cites running back Walter Payton and wide receiver Jerry Rice as his childhood idols. He attended the Jets' May 5, 2003 blood drive to benefit hospitals throughout Queens, Nassau and Suffolk counties.

John has done some charity work, as he attended the Jets' May 5, 2003 blood drive to benefit hospitals throughout Queens, Nassau and Suffolk counties. He enjoys watching basketball in his spare time and his favorite team is the Los Angeles Lakers. He cites his childhood idols as RB Walter Payton and WR Jerry Rice.