Charles Tillman

Charles Anthony Tillman (born February 23, 1981), nicknamed "Peanut", is an American former football cornerback who played in the National Football League (NFL).

Tillman attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he played for the Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football team from 1999 to 2002.

He started for all four years as a left cornerback after being a wide receiver in high school.

His Ragin' Cajuns teammates included future Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor.

Tillman graduated from ULL with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.

He played college football for the Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns, and was selected by the Chicago Bears in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft.

Tillman played 12 years for the Bears, helping them reach Super Bowl XLI, and also played one year with the Carolina Panthers, making Super Bowl 50 with the team, although he had been placed on injured reserve earlier in the season.

The Chicago Bears selected Tillman in the second round (35th overall) in the 2003 NFL Draft.

He was the sixth cornerback drafted in 2003.

On August 1, 2003, the Chicago Bears signed Tillman to a five-year, $4.32 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $2.05 million.

Throughout training camp, Tillman competed to be a starting cornerback against Jerry Azumah.

Head coach Dick Jauron named Tillman the third cornerback on the depth chart to begin the regular season, behind R. W. McQuarters and Jerry Azumah.

He made his professional regular season debut in the Chicago Bears' season-opener at the San Francisco 49ers and made three solo tackles and forced the first fumble of his career during a 49–7 loss.

Tillman forced a fumble by Jimmy Williams during a punt return by Williams in the fourth quarter that was eventually recovered by Chicago Bears' long snapper Patrick Mannelly.

On October 5, Tillman earned his first career start after he supplanted Jerry Azumah for the role.

He made six solo tackles and deflected a pass as the Bears defeated the Oakland Raiders 24–21 to earn their first victory of the season.

In Week 8, Tillman made eight solo tackles, deflected a pass, and made his first career interception during a 24–16 victory against the Detroit Lions.

Tillman intercepted a pass by Lions' quarterback, that was originally intended for wide receiver Az-Zahir Hakim, and returned it for a 32-yard gain during the second quarter.

On November 13, Tillman collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (nine solo), deflected two passes, and intercepted a pass by Marc Bulger in the Bears' 23–21 loss against the St. Louis Rams in Week 11.

The following week, he made six solo tackles and made his first career sack as the Bears defeated the Denver Broncos 19–10 in Week 12.

In a Week 15 game against the Minnesota Vikings, Tillman recorded an interception in the final minute of the game, where he snatched the ball away from Randy Moss in the endzone and prevented the Vikings from taking the lead and won the game for the Bears 13-10.

Tillman completed his rookie campaign with a total of 83 combined tackles (76 solo), eight pass deflections, four interceptions, and one sack in 16 games and 13 starts.

On December 29, the Bears fired Dick Jauron after they finished the 2003 NFL season with a 7–9 record.

Head coach Lovie Smith named Tillman and R. W. McQuarters the starting cornerbacks to begin the 2004 NFL season.

On September 19, 2004, Tillman collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (nine solo) during a 21–10 victory at the Green Bay Packers in Week 2.

Tillman sustained a knee injury and was sidelined for the next eight games (Weeks 3–11).

He finished the 2004 NFL season with 39 combined tackles (32 solo), five pass deflections, and one forced fumble in eight games and seven starts.

In 2005, Tillman and Nathan Vasher were named the starting cornerback duo to begin the regular season.

On October 30, 2005, Tillman recorded seven combined tackles (six solo), deflected two passes, and returned an interception for his first career touchdown during a 19–13 overtime victory at the Detroit Lions in Week 8.

Tillman intercepted a pass by Lions' quarterback Jeff Garcia, that was intended for wide receiver Mike Williams, and returned it for a 22-yard touchdown to help the Bears defeat the Lions in overtime.

On December 11, 2005, Tillman recorded eight combined tackles (five solo), deflected a pass, and made a season-high two forced fumbles during a 21–9 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 14.

He was selected to two Pro Bowls and was the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2013.

He was known for his cover skills as well as his ability to force fumbles by stripping or "punching" the ball away from players, with his well-timed punch of the ball commonly known as the "Peanut Punch".

In 2022 the NFL acknowledged it as a new Gridiron football concept in a memo sent to all GMs and head coaches.

After retiring from the NFL, Tillman joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2018.

Tillman was born in Chicago, Illinois, but spent a majority of his youth traveling around the world.

His father, Donald Tillman Jr., a sergeant in the United States Army, was frequently stationed in different locations, ranging from United States to Germany.

Tillman attended eleven different schools during his youth, but eventually graduated from Copperas Cove High School in Texas.

During his time at the school, Tillman was a two-time All-District 8-5A and all-area team selection.

The Austin American-Statesman and All-State Class 5A honorable mention named him to the Super Cen-Tex team.