Dashon Goldson

Dashon Hugh Goldson (born September 18, 1984) is an American football safety for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Washington. The San Francisco 49ers chose him in the fourth round of the 2007 NFL Draft.

Early years
Goldson was born in Carson, California. He started playing football with the Tri-City Falcons which is a Pop Warner team in Harbor City, California. He played high school football at Narbonne High School in Harbor City where as a senior he totaled 130 tackles and six interceptions, with two returned for touchdowns.

College career
Goldson played college football for the Washington Huskies where he played 43 games and recorded a total of 293 tackles, six interceptions, two forced fumbles and one sack. He graduated in June 2006 with a degree in American Ethnic Studies.

San Francisco 49ers
Goldson was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fourth round (126th overall) in the 2007 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, he played in ten games, recording 15 tackles as a backup to then-starting safety Mark Roman. In his second year with the 49ers, Goldson recorded 21 tackles as a backup.

2009 season
In 2009, the 49ers front office announced that Goldson would be the starter for free safety going into next season, while giving current starter Mark Roman permission to seek a trade.

Dashon Goldson made his NFL debut as a starter against the divisional rival Arizona Cardinals on September 13, where the 49ers were victorious on the season opener, winning 20-16 against the reigning NFC conference champions. In week 2, Goldson recorded his first career interception by diving under a pass that was tipped by Nate Burleson. The 2009 season would prove to be a productive season, where Goldson led all San Francisco defenders in interceptions with 4, and he also forced 3 fumbles. Goldson finished his first year as a NFL starter with 94 tackles, 2 sacks, 6 pass defenses and 4 interceptions.

2010 season
Goldson struggled during much of the 2010 season, missing tackles and not forcing turnovers like he did in 2009, finishing with 59 tackles and one interception.

2011 season
Prior to the 2011 season Goldson was an unrestricted free agent and visited with the New England Patriots. He ultimately decided to sign a 1 year contract and re-sign with the 49ers. He was named to his first career Pro Bowl, coming in second in the NFC in voting behind Earl Thomas. He had a career-high 6 interceptions and 9 pass deflections during the regular season and is now known to be one of the hardest hitting safeties in the NFL. In the playoffs, he intercepted a Drew Brees pass and returned it near the goal line which resulted in an Alex Smith touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree to give the 49ers a 1st-quarter 14-0 lead.

On October 26, 2012, Goldson was fined $7,875 for taunting the Seattle Seahawks in Week 7. On December 20, 2012, he was fined $77,500 for uniform violations and a helmet-to-helmet collision with Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez.