Landon Collins

Early years

A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, Collins grew up in the Algiers neighborhood. When Hurricane Katrina hit the city in 2005, Collins and his family had to leave, and eventually settled in Geismar in Ascension Parish.

High school career

Collins attended Dutchtown High School, where he was a two-sport star in football and track. In football, he was an All-American defensive back. As a sophomore, he had 26 tackles with 1.5 sacks, one interception and one fumble recovery, while playing alongside senior Eric Reid. Replacing Reid, Collins accounted for 102 tackles with 12 tackles for loss and four interceptions as a junior, earning an 5A All-State selection by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. The Dutchtown Griffins went unbeaten through the regular season and entered the playoffs as the No. 1 seed, only to be upset 29–14 by No. 24 New Iberia Westgate in the Class 5A quarterfinals. The Griffins finished the season with a 12–1 record. As a senior, Collins excelled on both sides of the ball. On offense, he rushed for 1,218 yards and 21 touchdowns while averaging 13.7 yards per carry. Meanwhile, in the defensive backfield, he had 34 tackles with four interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Collins became the first player in LSWA history to earn 5A All-State honors on both sides of the ball. He led the Griffins to their second straight 10–0 regular season and District 5-5A title. However, in the opening round of the 5A playoffs, they were upset 28–14 by Ponchatoula. For his individual achievements, Collins earned All-American honors by Parade and USA Today. He also starred in the 2012 Under Armour All-America Game, recording an interception and keying a goal-line stand.

Also an standout track & field athlete, Collins was one of the state's top sprinters while at Dutchtown. At the 2011 Josten's Invitational, Collins ran the second leg on the Dutchtown 4 × 100m squad, helping lead them to victory and setting a new school record at 41.10 seconds. He won the 100-meter dash at the 2012 Episcopal 4-Way Championships, recording a personal-best time of 10.28 seconds. He also posted a career-best time of 21.60 seconds in the 200-meter dash at the 2012 Josten's Invitational, where he placed first. At the LHSAA Class 5A State Championships, Collins ran the second leg on the Dutchtown 4 × 200m squad, helping them claim the state title with a time of 1:25.40 minutes. In addition, he also ran a 4.48-second 40-yard dash and had a 36-inch vertical jump.

Regarded as a five-star recruit by both Rivals.com and Scout.com, Collins was ranked as the No. 2 safety prospect in his class. Recruited by nearly every major school, Collins narrowed his choice down to Alabama and Louisiana State. He announced his decision live at the Under Armour All-America Game, choosing the Crimson Tide, much to the dismay of his mother. Collins acknowledged that he "actually made the decision two years prior."

College career

As a true freshman at Alabama, Collins contributed as a backup. He started on the kickoff and punt coverage units on and saw reserve action at safety in all 14 season games, recording 17 tackles and blocking a punt. He tied for the team lead with 10 special teams tackles, including nine on kickoff coverage and one on punt coverage. He became a starter his sophomore season in 2013 after Vinnie Sunseri suffered a season-ending injury. He finished the year with 70 tackles and two interceptions. As a junior, he led the team with 98 tackles and three interceptions. He was named a unanimous All-American.

After his junior season, Collins entered the 2015 NFL Draft.

Professional career

Prior to his junior season, Collins was projected a high first-round selection in the 2015 NFL Draft by various mock drafts.

New York Giants

Collins was selected 33rd overall in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the New York Giants.

2015: Rookie year

On June 19, 2015, the New York Giants signed Collins to a four-year, $6.12 million contract with $4.02 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $2.71 million.

Collins entered training camp competing with Cooper Taylor and Nat Berhe to be the New York Giant's starting free safety, after they lost veterans Quintin Demps, Antrel Rolle, and Stevie Brown to free agency in the off season. On August 14, 2015, in a preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Collins suffered a sprained MCL. He missed only one preseason game. The New York Giants named him the starting free safety to begin his rookie season. Collins was switched from his natural strong safety position since he was better suited to play free safety than Brandon Meriweather.

He made his professional regular season debut in the New York Giants' season opener against the Dallas Cowboys and finished the 27–26 loss with four combined tackles. On October 19, 2015, Collins made his first career interception, picking off Sam Bradford and made five combined tackles in the Giant's 27–7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. On December 20, 2015, Collins recorded a season-high ten combined tackles and a pass deflection in a 38–35 loss to the Carolina Panthers. He finished his rookie season with 112 combined tackles, nine pass deflections, and an interception in 16 starts. The New York Giants finished 6–10 and head coach Tom Coughlin resigned at the end of the season.

2016

Collins enjoyed a breakout year in 2016 helping the Giants to an 11-5 record and return to the playoffs for the first time since 2011.

With the selection of Darian Thompson in the 2016 NFL Draft, Collins was able to switch back to his originally intended position of strong safety. He was named the de facto starting strong safety to begin the regular season.

In the season opener against the Dallas Cowboys, Collins recorded six solo tackles and a pass deflection in his regular season debut at strong safety. The following week, he made sixed combined tackles and made his first career sack on Drew Brees in a 16–13 victory over the New Orleans Saints. On October 16, 2016, Collins racked up a season-high nine solo tackles, an assisted tackle, and sacked Joe Flacco in a 27–23 win over the Baltimore Ravens. The following week the New York Giants played the Los Angeles Rams at Twickenham Stadium in London and he made eight solo tackle and a season-high two interceptions off of Case Keenum and returned one for a 44-yard touchdown. He was named Week 7's NFC Defensive Player of the week.

On November 6, 2016, Collins made a season-high 12 combined tackles, a pass deflection, a sack, and intercepted Carson Wentz during the Giant's 28–23 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. He was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for the second consecutive game and was the first safety to accomplish that feat since Troy Polamalu. The following week, he recorded five solo tackles and intercepted Andy Dalton in the fourth quarter of a 21–20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. During a Week 11 matchup with the Chicago Bears, Collins made six solo tackles, three pass deflections, and intercepted Jay Cutler with 1:11 left on the clock to seal the 22–16 victory. This was Collins fourth consecutive game with an interception. Collins earned NFC Defensive Player of the Month for November, registering 30 combined tackles, a sack, and three interceptions.

On December 20, 2016, Collins was named to the 2017 Pro Bowl. He finished his first season under new head coach Ben McAdoo with 125 combined tackles, four sacks, 13 pass deflections, five interceptions, and a touchdown in 16 starts. Collins ended the season as the only player in NFL history to have over 100 solo tackles, more than two sacks, at least five interceptions, and with a minimum 12 pass deflections. He was also named first-team All-Pro. After the season, Collins was named NFC Defensive player of the Year by the Kansas City Committee of 101.

Charity work

In 2017, Collins headlined the Landon Collins Celebrity Softball Game. The game was organized by Giants fan Joe Ruback, known as "License Plate Guy." Current Giants players teamed up against players from the Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI championship teams. The event consisted of a softball game, dodgeball game and a home run derby. Part of the ticket proceeds benefited the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund, an organization that provides emotional, financial and practical support for families fighting childhood cancer.