
Nnamdi Asomugha
Nnamdi Asomugha ( NAHM-dee AH-sə-mwah; born July 6, 1981) is an American actor, director, producer, and former professional football cornerback who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, and San Francisco 49ers. He played college football for the California Golden Bears, and was selected in the first round of the 2003 NFL draft by the Raiders. For several years, he was considered one of the best shutdown corners in the NFL. In his 11-year career, he was voted All-Pro four times, including twice to the first team. Asomugha was selected as a member of Fox Sports's NFL All-Decade Team 2000–2009 and USA Today's NFL All-Decade Team 2000s, and is considered one of the greatest Raiders of all time. Asomugha received critical acclaim for his portrayal of Carl King in the film Crown Heights (2017). He was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male and he was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture. Variety named him one of the seven breakout performers of 2017. Asomugha made his Broadway debut in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play A Soldier’s Play (2020) as Private First Class Melvin Peterson, a role originated off-Broadway by Denzel Washington. Later that year, the production won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play. Asomugha received his first Emmy nomination when Sylvie’s Love (2020)—which he produced and starred in—was nominated for Outstanding Television Movie at the Primetime Emmy Awards. That same year, Variety named him one of its '10 Producers to Watch.'