| No. 80, 89 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Tight end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | March 17, 1958 San Diego, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 238 lb (108 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Sweetwater (National City, California) | ||||||||
| College | New Mexico (1976–1979) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1980: 4th round, 106th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Christopher Allen Combs (born March 17, 1958) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for two seasons. [1] He played college football at New Mexico and was selected by the Houston Oilers in the fourth round of the 1980 NFL draft.
Combs played at New Mexico for four seasons, from 1976 to 1979. In his junior season, Combs caught 21 passes, tied for the most among Lobos receivers that year. [2] Combs caught 54 passes for 860 yards and 11 touchdowns over the course of his collegiate career. [3]
| Season | Team | GP | Receiving | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | |||
| 1976 | New Mexico | 11 | 7 | 91 | 13.0 | 0 |
| 1977 | New Mexico | 12 | 15 | 284 | 18.9 | 6 |
| 1978 | New Mexico | 12 | 21 | 322 | 15.3 | 1 |
| 1979 | New Mexico | 12 | 11 | 163 | 14.8 | 4 |
| Career | 47 | 54 | 860 | 15.9 | 11 | |
Combs was selected in the fourth round by the Houston Oilers in the 1980 NFL draft, but did not play for the team. [4] He was claimed by the St. Louis Cardinals on August 29, 1980, and made the final roster in part because the team did not have a veteran tight end. [5] [6] Combs played all 16 games in 1980, catching two passes, one of which was a 38-yard touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons.
In the 1981 season, Combs again played all 16 games for the Cardinals, catching five passes for 54 yards.
In 1982, Combs signed with the New York Giants, but was released during training camp. [7]
Combs joined the Boston Breakers for the United States Football League’s inaugural 1983 season. He played in 11 games, and caught one pass for 11 yards.
Combs remained with the Breakers after the team moved to New Orleans. In the 1984 season, Combs played in six games for the Breakers, but did not register a statistic. [8]
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1980 | St. Louis Cardinals | 16 | 0 | 2 | 52 | 26.0 | 38 | 1 |
| 1981 | St. Louis Cardinals | 16 | 2 | 5 | 54 | 10.8 | 13 | 0 |
| Career | 32 | 2 | 7 | 106 | 15.1 | 38 | 1 | |