Wes Welker
Wes Welker was born in Oklahoma City on May 1, 1981. He began his football career at Heritage Hall High School in Oklahoma City and during his Junior year, he helped lead his team to the 2A State Football Championship defeating Tishomingo High School. He was named The Daily Oklahoman All-State Player of the Year and Oklahoma State Player of the Year by USA Today. Out of high school, Welker was offered a scholarship at Texas Tech to play for the Red Raiders. His amazing athleticism prompted Welker to win the Mosi Tatupu Award, given annually to the best special teams’ player in college football. He was also named to the Sports Illustrated All-Decade Team as a punt returner. Yet, after his senior year, Welker was not invited to the NFL Scouting Combine.
Welker signed as an undrafted free agent with the San Diego Chargers. After the Chargers he decided to sign with the Miami Dolphins where he was mostly used on special teams. Welker joined the New England Patriots beginning a lustrous five year career with the team. While in New England, Welker led the league in receptions in 2007, 2009 and 2011. He holds the four highest single-season reception totals in Patriot history, as well as four of the top ten receiving yardage totals, including the franchise record. Welker was selected to the Pro Bowl, the All-Pro Team, or both, in every season of his Patriots career.
In 2013, Welker signed a two-year, $12 million contract with the Denver Broncos. In his debut as a Bronco, Welker had nine receptions for 67 yards and two touchdowns against the Baltimore Ravens. By week 11, Welker had more touchdowns than he had the entire previous season with the Patriots and as many as he had in any season with New England. In January 2014, he earned his third AFC Championship win after he helped the Broncos defeat his former team, the New England Patriots. In 2017, Wes became an NFL Assistant Coach for the Houston Texans and in 2019, he became the Wide Receivers Coach for the San Francisco 49ers. He currently serves as the Wide Receivers Coach for the Miami Dolphins.