Vinny Sutherland Vincent Joseph Sutherland ( born April 22 , 1978 ) is a former professional American football player who played wide receiver for two seasons in the National Football League for the Atlanta Falcons , San Francisco 49ers and Chicago Bears . He was a standout receiver and kick returner for Purdue University from 1997 - 2000 . He also played for the Arena Football League ' s New York Dragons . At the time of his graduation in 2001 , his 13 receiving touchdowns were a school record for one season . That record was tied in 2002 by John Standeford , and broken in 2004 by Taylor Stubblefield . He also still holds school records for punt return average in a season , punt returns for touchdowns in a season / career , and the longest reception in Purdue history . Early life . Sutherland attended Palm Beach Lakes High School in West Palm Beach , Florida . There he participated in both football and track and field . As a senior , he averaged better than 34 yards per touch of the ball and finished with 500 yards rushing on 53 carries and 600 yards on 29 receptions . He also played as a defensive back . He scored a total of 14 touchdowns as the Rams finished 9 - 3 , winning a district championship and advanced to quarterfinals of state playoffs . After the season , he was named to the Class 6A second team all - state , first team all - area and made Florida ’ s Super 11 Team . For Track & Field , Sutherland was all - state and all - county in both junior and senior years . He ran a high school career best 10 . 4 100m dash in senior season . College career . 1997 season . Sutherland choose to play his continue both his football and track and field career by signing a letter of intent to play for new Purdue Boilermakers head coach , Joe Tiller . He played in all 12 games and started three times as a true freshman . He finished the season ranked third on team with 34 receptions for 357 yards with two touchdowns . His two best games came against Notre Dame and Ball State when he made eight catches . The Notre Dame game also was his best yardage game of the season , as he had career - high 100 receiving yards . Joe Tillers ' passing attack , often called " basketball on grass , " specialized in bubble screen pass . Which played well for a smaller receiver like Sutherland . He registered 13 rushing attempts ( usually bubble screen that resulted in an official lateral ) for 111 yards ( fourth on team ) with two touchdowns . He also served as the team ' s punt returner , finishing the season ranked sixth in Big Ten with 9 . 8 - yard punt return average . He also had one kickoff return for 19 yards . He attempted two passes on reverse plays , completing one for 20 yards . He was named a 2nd Team Freshman All - American by The Sporting News . 1998 season . Sutherland received Purdue ’ s Most Improved Offensive Player Award for 1999 spring practice . As a sophomore , he played in all 13 games , starting one . He had 31 receptions for 301 yards with three touchdowns as well as nine rushes for 58 yards . He once again served as the team ' s punter returner , returning 10 punts for 82 yards . He best game of the season came against Indiana , when he caught a career - high two touchdown passes and downed two punts inside Indiana ’ s 5 - yard line . His efforts for the week earned him Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week honors , as well as Purdue ’ s Pop Doan Award for special teams . 1999 season . As a junior , Sutherland started all 12 games , and ranked second on team with 698 receiving yards and fourth with 39 receptions , to Chris Daniels , who set a school record in both categories . He also tied for team lead with seven touchdown receptions ( also Chris Daniels ) . He ranked seventh in Big Ten with 58 . 2 receiving yards per game , and led Big Ten with school - record average of 16 . 4 yards per punt return , which still stands as the Purdue record for punt return yardage average for one season . His two punt returns for touchdowns were also a Purdue record . His 17 . 4 yards per punt return during regular season to rank third nationally , and had school - record two punt returns for touchdowns . He also caught a 99 yard TD pass from quarterback Drew Brees in a game against Northwestern , which is still the longest pass in NCAA history . After the season he was named an honorable mention All - Big Ten by media . 2000 season . As a senior , Sutherland started 11 games , missing one game with an injury . He was still able to lead Purdue in receptions ( 72 ) , receiving yards ( 1 , 014 ) , touchdowns ( 14 ) , all - purpose yards ( 1 , 760 ) and scoring ( 84 ) . His regular season numbers were enough to make him a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award , the nations top receiver . His play also assisted the Boilermakers to win the Big Ten conference during the regular season , which allowed them to be invited to the 2001 Rose Bowl against the Washington Huskies . Purdue would go on to lose the game 34 - 24 , but Sutherland had two touchdown receptions in the game , tying a Rose Bowl record . He went on to be named first team all - Big Ten as a wide receiver and second team all Big Ten as a returner . At the time of his graduation , his 13 receiving touchdowns were a school record for one season . That record was tied in 2002 by John Standeford , and broken in 2004 by Taylor Stubblefield . He also holds school records for punt return average in a season , punt returns for touchdowns in a season / career , and the longest reception in Purdue history . Statistics . Source : Professional career . Pre - draft . Prior to the 2001 NFL Draft , Sutherland was projected to be drafted in the fourth or fifth round by NFLDraftScout . com . He was rated as the eighteenth - best wide receiver in the draft . He was invited to the 2001 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis , Indiana , where he posted the following numbers during his workouts : Atlanta Falcons . Sutherland was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the 5th round ( 136th overall ) . He was expected to replace Tim Dwight , who had been the team ' s kickoff and punt returner , but failed to make the team out of the preseason and was cut in August . San Francisco 49ers . Sutherland was quickly signed in September 2001 by the San Francisco 49ers . The 49ers were also looking for return help , and used Sutherland as the primary return man for both kickoffs and punts . For the season , he returned 50 kickoffs for 1 , 140 yards ( a 49ers rookie record ) and 21 punts for 147 yards with no touchdowns . He saw limited action playing as a wide receiver as he only had one catch for 5 yards , and added one carry for 16 yards . In the offseason , he was involved in a car accident , along with Kevin Curtis and Josh Shaw . Sutherland was arrested and charged with both driving under the influence of alcohol and a felony hit - and - run after an early - morning single - car accident in Saratoga , California . None of the players were seriously injured . Sutherland came back to camp the following fall , but was released on August 27 after suffering a hamstring injury . Chicago Bears . After he was let go by the 49ers , Sutherland quickly caught on with the Chicago Bears Sutherland didn ' t play until his 4th week with the team , when he returned 3 kickoffs in a game against the Detroit Lions , for an average of 16 . 3 yards a return . He was released 4 days later . Return to San Francisco 49ers . The 49ers re - signed Sutherland on December 31 , 2002 , but he did not appear in any games . New York Dragons . In 2004 , Sutherland signed with the New York Dragons of the Arena Football League . Sutherland appeared in the team ' s first 3 games , grabbing 7 passes for 82 yards and 2 touchdowns . He also had 2 carries for 2 yards . His arena football days were short lived , as he was released on February 23 .