Saints Countdown to NFL Kickoff 2020: #69 Anthony Hargrove
The New Orleans Saints are 69 days away from their Week 1 clash with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Here is a look at one of the best Saints player to wear #69: DT Anthony Hargrove.
Anthony Hargrove was an NFL journeyman playing for seven teams in nine years, two with New Orleans. He was a quarterback and free safety in high school, Hargrove made the switch to defensive lineman while attending Georgia Tech. In 24 games with the Yellow Jackets, Hargrove totaled 70 tackles, 6 sacks, 19 TFL, and 2 FR. Hargrove decided to enter the draft after being ruled academically ineligible in 2003. The St. Louis Rams selected him in the third round and 91st overall in the 2004 NFL Draft .
In his first two NFL seasons with the Rams, Hargrove dressed for 31 games, starting 17. After serving as a starter at DE in 2005, the Rams traded him four games into the 2006 season. The trade occurred after Hargrove was away from the team for two days without explanation. He joined the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a 2007 draft pick.
It was in Buffalo where Hargrove’s personal struggles hit an all-time low. After playing 10 games for the Bills in 2006, the NFL suspended the Georgia Tech product four games to start the 2007 season. The suspension came after he broke the NFL’s substance abuse policy. Six months later, Hargrove failed another drug test leading to a year-long suspension in 2008.
The league reinstated Hargrove in February 2009 after spending 10-months in rehabilitation in Miami, FL. In May, the Saints signed Hargrove and moved him from DE to DT. Hargrove appeared in all 16 games for the Saints in 2009, making 6 starts. Finishing the year with 5 sacks and his lone NFL TD, Hargrove found himself in Miami, FL. A year prior he spent nearly a year re-finding himself and beating addiction in a treatment center eight miles from where he hoisted the Lombardi trophy.
Hargrove battled adversity throughout his life. At six years old, Anthony's childhood house burned-down from a fire. The incident forced his mother and siblings to live in homeless shelters. Three years later, at nine years old, Hargrove lost his mother to AIDS and was adopted by his Aunt in Florida.
The Super Bowl XLIV champion spent three more years in the NFL with the Saints, Seahawks, and Packers. Hargrove ended his NFL career by playing in 102 games with 25 starts. In 2009, Hargrove’s Saints teammates awarded him the Ed Block Courage Award for his comeback.
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