Howard was born in East St. Louis, Illinois. He had an inauspicious beginning in football, being cut by his head coach in Junior High. He attended East St. Louis High School, where he played both linebacker and tight end for the Flyers high school football team coached by Bob Shannon. As a senior, he helped the school win the 6A state title, receiving Parade All-America and All-state honors. In track he once threw the shot put 60'.
College career
Howard accepted a football scholarship from the University of Illinois, where he became a four-year starter. After being redshirted because the team had starter Darrick Brownlow at middle linebacker, in his freshman season he posted 134 tackles and 4 sacks. He made a career-high 24 total tackles and a school record 20 solo tackles against Ohio State University. He had 23 tackles against the University of Michigan. From the start of his sophomore season he was a member of a talented linebacker corps that included fellow standouts Kevin Hardy, Simeon Rice and John Holecek. He registered 138 tackles and 4 forced fumbles. He had 18 tackles against the University of Michigan and 17 against Ohio State University. As a junior, he had 123 tackles and 4 passes defensed. He made 17 tackles against the University of Minnesota. As a senior in 1994, he recorded career-highs in tackles, tackles for loss, fumble recoveries and interceptions, while also making 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. He tallied 18 tackles against Purdue University and the University of Michigan. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American that season, becoming the first Illini player to win the Dick Butkus Award and Jack Lambert Award, both presented annually to the best linebacker in college football. He was the first player in school history to register at least 100 tackles in each of his four seasons, to lead the team in tackles for four straight years and he also finished as the all-time leading tackler in school and conference history with 595. In 2017, he was inducted into the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame.
On August 28, 1995, he was signed by the St. Louis Rams and after playing in 16 games, he was released on August 20, 1996.
Chicago Bears
On November 6, 1996, he signed with the Chicago Bears, playing in three games before breaking a finger and being placed on the injured reserve list. He wasn't re-signed at the end of the year.
