Deacon Jones

Last updated

Deacon Jones
Deacon Jones in 1971 Brady Bunch promo.jpg
Jones in a 1971 promotional photo for his guest appearance on The Brady Bunch
No. 75
Position: Defensive end
Personal information
Born:(1938-12-09)December 9, 1938
Eatonville, Florida
Died:June 3, 2013(2013-06-03) (aged 74)
Anaheim Hills, California
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
High school: Hungerford
(Eatonville, Florida)
College: Mississippi Valley State
NFL Draft: 1961  / Round: 14 / Pick: 186
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Interceptions:2
Games played:191
Player stats at NFL.com

David D. "Deacon" Jones (December 9, 1938 – June 3, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and the Washington Redskins. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980.

Contents

Jones specialized in quarterback "sacks" stats, a term which he coined. Nicknamed "the Secretary of Defense", Jones is considered one of the greatest defensive players ever. [1] The Los Angeles Times called Jones "most valuable Ram of all time," and former Rams head coach George Allen called him the "greatest defensive end of modern football". [1]

Early life

Jones was born in Eatonville, Florida, and lived in a four-bedroom house with his family of ten. [2] Jones attended Hungerford High School, where he played football, baseball, and basketball. [3] During high school, Jones developed a lump in his thigh and learned that it was a tumor; he had surgery to remove it. [2]

Late in life, Jones told The San Diego Union-Tribune that when he was 14 years old, he witnessed a carload of white teenagers laughingly hit an elderly black woman with a watermelon. The woman died days later from the injury, and Jones recalls that there was never a police investigation. "Unlike many black people then, I was determined not to be what society said I was," Jones later recounted. "Thank God I had the ability to play a violent game like football. It gave me an outlet for the anger in my heart." [4]

College career

Jones' college football career consisted of a year at South Carolina State University in 1958, followed by a year of inactivity in 1959 and a final season at Mississippi Vocational College in 1960. [5]

South Carolina State revoked Jones' scholarship after they learned that he participated in a protest during the Civil Rights Movement. [2] However, one of the assistant football coaches at South Carolina State was leaving to coach at Mississippi Vocational, and told Jones and some of the other African-American players that he could get them scholarships at the new school. [2] While he was playing at Mississippi Vocational, he and his African-American teammates had to sleep in cots in the opposing team's gym because motels would not take them on numerous occasions. [2]

Professional career

Due to a lack of television coverage and modern scouting networks, Jones was largely overlooked. According to an NFL Films interview with writer Ray Didinger, “Deacon was discovered kinda by accident. The Rams were scouting some running backs and they found this defensive tackle who was outrunning the running backs that they were scouting.” Jones was drafted in the 14th round of the 1961 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He then earned a starting role as a defensive end and teamed with tackle Merlin Olsen to give Los Angeles a perennial All-Pro left side of the defensive line. [5] He became a part of the Fearsome Foursome defensive line of the Rams (along with Lamar Lundy, Rosey Grier, and Olsen), which is now considered to have been one of the best defensive lines of all time. [6]

"I'm probably the toughest (expletive) here. Ain't no
question about that with me. I'm the toughest guy
here... I'm clean. I mean, I ain't got no marks on
me. I don't know nobody else who can say that
who came out of any sport. I ain't got no marks on
me, so I've got to be the baddest dude I know of."

Jones, in an interview with Kevin Jackson [7]

Jones won consensus All-Pro honors five straight years from 1965 through 1969 and was second-team All-Pro in 1964, 1970, and 1972. He was also in seven straight Pro Bowls, from 1964 to 1970, and was selected to an eighth after the 1972 season with the San Diego Chargers. [5] He was voted the team's Outstanding Defensive Lineman by the Los Angeles Rams Alumni in 1962, '64, '65, and '66. In 1971, Jones suffered a severely sprained arch, which caused him to miss four starts, and he ended the season with 4½ sacks, his career-low to that point.

Jones was traded along with Lee White and Greg Wojcik from the Rams to the San Diego Chargers for Jeff Staggs, a second-rounder in 1972 (30th overall– Jim Bertelsen) and a second and third-rounder in 1973 (31st and 60th overall– Cullen Bryant and Tim Stokes respectively) on January 29, 1972. [8] [9] He was named San Diego's defensive captain and led all Chargers' defensive linemen in tackles and won a berth on the AFC Pro Bowl squad. He concluded his career with the Washington Redskins in 1974. [5] In the final game of his NFL career, the Redskins allowed him to kick the point-after-touchdown for the game's last score. Along the way, Jones was named the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Week four times: week 14, 1967; week 12, 1968; week 11, 1969; and week 10, 1970.

An extremely durable player, Jones missed only six games of a possible 196 regular-season encounters in his 14 National Football League seasons. [5]

Sacks

Jones was considered by many to revolutionize the position of defensive end. He was credited with coining the phrase "sacking the quarterback". [10] In 1999, Jones provided an L.A. Times reporter with some detailed imagery about his forte: “You take all the offensive linemen and put them in a burlap bag, and then you take a baseball bat and beat on the bag. You’re sacking them, you’re bagging them. And that’s what you’re doing with a quarterback.” [4]

What separated Jones from every other defensive end was his speed and his ability to make tackles from sideline to sideline, which was unheard of in his time. He also was the first pass rusher to use the head slap, a move that he said was, "...to give myself an initial head start on the pass rush, in other words an extra step. Because anytime you go upside a man's head … or a woman; they may have a tendency to blink they [sic] eyes or close they eyes. And that's all I needed. " [11] “The head slap was not my invention, but Rembrandt, of course, did not invent painting. The quickness of my hands and the length of my arms, it was perfect for me. It was the greatest thing I ever did, and when I left the game, they outlawed it.” [4]

Pro Football Weekly reported he accumulated 173½ sacks over his career, which would be third on the all-time sack list. (Jones would have ranked first all-time at the time of his retirement, and since has been surpassed by two fellow Hall of Famers Bruce Smith and Reggie White.) [12]

In 1967, Jones had 21½ sacks in only 14 games; he tallied 22 sacks in 14 games the following year. If official, this would have stood as an NFL record until Al Baker's 1978 campaign, in which he totaled 23 sacks. (The term "sack" had not yet been coined at the time, and official sack statistics were not recorded by the NFL until 1982.) [13]

Unofficial annual sack totals
YearSacksTeam
1961 8 Los Angeles Rams
1962 12 Los Angeles Rams
1963 5½ Los Angeles Rams
1964 22 Los Angeles Rams
1965 19 Los Angeles Rams
1966 18 Los Angeles Rams
1967 21½ Los Angeles Rams
1968 22 Los Angeles Rams
1969 15 Los Angeles Rams
1970 12 Los Angeles Rams
1971 4½ Los Angeles Rams
1972 6 San Diego Chargers
1973 5 San Diego Chargers
1974 3 Washington Redskins

(Source: Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers and Washington Redskins Media Guides)

After football

Acting

Jones worked as a television actor, and appeared in numerous TV programs since the 1970s, most often appearing in cameo roles. He appeared in an episode of The Odd Couple where he and Oscar were in a television commercial selling shaving products. He appeared on The Brady Bunch , and in a Bewitched episode in 1969, he played a guard to the Giant's castle in "Sam & the Beanstalk". Jones also played himself on an episode of Wonder Woman in 1978.

In 1978, he played a Viking named Thall in The Norseman . Fellow Hall of Famer Fred Biletnikoff joined Jones in the film, also portraying a Norseman. [14] That same year, Jones portrayed a fierce defensive lineman named Gorman in the film Heaven Can Wait .

In the series G vs E , he played himself, but as an agent of "The Corps". He also played a role in the hit show, ALF , where he played a father figure to Alf.

Broadcasting

Jones served as a color analyst for Rams broadcasts on KMPC radio in the 1994 season, teaming with Steve Physioc and Jack Snow. In 1998, shortly before Super Bowl XXXII between the Denver Broncos and Green Bay Packers, Jones correctly predicted the Broncos, 11 1/2 point underdogs, would win the game and Terrell Davis would be named MVP of the game.

Business

Jones worked for many companies, including the Miller Brewing Company, Haggar Clothing, Pacific Coast Medical Enterprises, and Epson America, and represented the NFL and Champion Products as spokesman for their Throwback campaigns. [1] Jones was also chairman for AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals in their national hypertension awareness program. [1]

Community involvement

NFL.com reported that Jones made several trips to Iraq to visit the U. S. military. [1] [15]

Jones served as the president and CEO of the Deacon Jones Foundation, an organization he founded in 1997 "to assist young people and the communities in which they live with a comprehensive program that includes education, mentoring, corporate internship, and community service." [1]

Bringing the NFL back to Los Angeles

Jones was one of the many former L.A. Rams players who disliked the team's controversial relocation to St. Louis in 1995. He was adamant in interviews and appearances that he played for Los Angeles, not St. Louis, and considered the Rams franchise there a different team that should have a different name.[ citation needed ] He participated in many grassroots efforts to bring NFL football back to L.A. and also voiced support on many new stadium proposals .[ citation needed ] The Rams eventually returned to Los Angeles in 2016 after Jones had died.

Honors

He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1980, and was named to the NFL's 75th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1994. [1] In 1999, he was ranked number 13 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranked player to have played for the Rams franchise, the highest-ranked defensive end, and the second-ranked defensive lineman behind Bob Lilly. The same year, he was named by Sports Illustrated as the "Defensive End of the Century". [1] In 2010, he was named to the inaugural class of the Black College Football Hall of Fame. [16]

Personal life

Jones stated that he gave himself the nickname Deacon after joining the Rams because too many David Joneses were in the local phone book. "Football is a violent world and Deacon has a religious connotation," he told the Los Angeles Times in 1980. "I thought a name like that would be remembered." [27]

Deacon Jones's wife Elizabeth is the chief operating and financial officer of the Deacon Jones Foundation, based in Anaheim Hills, California, [2] the community in which the couple lived.

Jones was a rhythm and blues singer during his football days, and was backed by the band Nightshift, which later became the group War. Jones sang onstage with Ray Charles, [28] performed on The Hollywood Palace in 1967 and 1968, and on The Merv Griffin Show in 1970. Jones was the inspiration for the name of the 1977 song "Deacon Blues" by Steely Dan. [29]

Death

On June 3, 2013, Jones died at 74 of natural causes after suffering from lung cancer and heart disease at his home in Anaheim Hills, California. [30] [31] Jones's death left Rosey Grier as the last surviving member of the Fearsome Foursome, the L.A. Rams defensive line which is widely considered the best such unit in the history of the NFL. Of the former defensive standout, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said, "Even with his fellow Hall of Famers, Deacon Jones held a special status. He was an icon among the icons." Washington Football Team General Manager Bruce Allen, son of Jones's longtime coach George Allen, called him "one of the greatest players in NFL history. Off the field... a true giant." [32] Sports Illustrated columnist Peter King noted at his death that Jones had a profound effect on the way defense was played in the NFL and cited the influence on such later NFL stars as Lawrence Taylor, Deion Sanders, and Michael Strahan. [33] As a tribute to Jones, the NFL created the Deacon Jones Award, which will be given annually to the league leader in sacks. [34]

Related Research Articles

Los Angeles Chargers National Football League franchise in Inglewood, California

The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The Chargers play their home games at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, which the club shares with the Los Angeles Rams.

Frederick Rudolph Dean was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). A two-time first-team All-Pro and a four-time Pro Bowler, he won two Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

Rosey Grier American football player, actor, singer, and writer

Roosevelt "Rosey" Grier is an American actor, singer, Protestant minister, and former professional football player. He was a notable college football player for The Pennsylvania State University who earned a retrospective place in the National Collegiate Athletic Association 100th anniversary list of 100 most influential student athletes. As a professional player, Grier was a member of the New York Giants and the original Fearsome Foursome of the Los Angeles Rams. He played in the Pro Bowl twice.

LaRoi Glover

La'Roi Damon Glover is a former American football defensive tackle and former assistant defensive line coach for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at San Diego State University. Glover enjoyed a 13-year career in which he made six-consecutive Pro Bowls and was a four-time All-Pro selection. He spent five seasons with the New Orleans Saints (1997-2001), four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys (2002–2005) and finished his playing career with the St. Louis Rams (2006–2008).

Leslie Claudis O'Neal is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for 13 years in the National Football League (NFL). He spent the majority of his career with the San Diego Chargers before finishing with the St. Louis Rams and Kansas City Chiefs. He was a three-time All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowl selection during his pro career.

Merlin Olsen American football defensive tackle, announcer, and actor

Merlin Jay Olsen was an American football player, announcer, and actor. He played his entire 15-year professional football career in the National Football League (NFL) as a defensive tackle with the Los Angeles Rams. He was selected to the Pro Bowl a record 14 straight times, missing selection only in the last year of his career. This record of 14 seasons being selected to play in the Pro Bowl, consecutive or otherwise, is shared with current Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady, former offensive lineman Bruce Matthews, former tight end Tony Gonzalez, and former quarterback Peyton Manning. A recipient of the 1961 Outland Trophy as the best lineman in college football, Olsen is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame. As an actor, he portrayed farmer Jonathan Garvey on Little House on the Prairie. After leaving that series, he starred in his own NBC drama, Father Murphy.

Jack Youngblood American football player

Herbert Jackson Youngblood III is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL) for fourteen seasons during the 1970s and 1980s. He was a five-time consensus All-Pro and a seven-time Pro Bowl selection and was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Before playing professionally, Youngblood played college football for the University of Florida, and was recognized as an All-American. He is considered among the best players Florida ever produced—a member of the College Football Hall of Fame and one of only six Florida Gators to be named to the Gator Football Ring of Honor.

Billy Ray Smith Jr. American football player

Billy Ray Smith Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. He played college football for the University of Arkansas, and was twice recognized as a consensus All-American. Smith was selected in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft, and played professionally for the NFL's San Diego Chargers.

Gary "Big Hands" Johnson

Gary Lynn "Big Hands" Johnson was an American professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He was a four-time All-Pro and a four-time Pro Bowl selection. He played the majority of his NFL career with the San Diego Chargers, and he was inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame.

Louie Kelcher

Louis James Kelcher is an American retired professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL), spending most of his career with the San Diego Chargers. He was a four-time All-Pro and a three-time Pro Bowl selection. Kelcher was inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame and is a member of their 40th and 50th anniversary teams.

Coy Bacon

Lander McCoy Bacon was a professional American football defensive lineman in the National Football League. He was selected to three Pro Bowls during his 14-year career. While quarterback sacks were not an official statistic during his career, researchers credit Bacon with a career total of 130.

Lawrence Lee Brooks Sr., is a former American Football defensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams eleven seasons from 1972 to 1982 in the National Football League. Brooks was drafted in the 14th round of the 1972 NFL Draft after playing college football at Virginia State University. He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.

Roger Brown (defensive tackle)

Roger Lee Brown is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at Maryland State College and professional football in the National Football League (NFL) for the Detroit Lions (1960–1966) and Los Angeles Rams (1967–1969).

The Fearsome Foursome was the dominating defensive line of the Los Angeles Rams of the 1960s and 1970s. Before them, the term had occasionally been applied to other defensive lines in the National Football League.

Lamar Lundy

Lamar J. Lundy, Jr. was an American defensive end with the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League for 13 seasons, from 1957 to 1969. Along with Deacon Jones, Merlin Olsen, and Rosey Grier, Lundy was a member of the Fearsome Foursome, often considered one of the best defensive lines in NFL history. All four also did some acting; Lundy portrayed the boulder-hurling cyclops in the unaired pilot of Lost in Space.

Isiah Robertson American football player

Isiah "Butch" Robertson was a professional American football player who played linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams (1971–1978) and the Buffalo Bills (1979–1982). He was selected to six Pro Bowls during his years with the Rams. He had 25 career interceptions, returning three for touchdowns, scoring a fourth touchdown on a fumble recovery in 1978. According to Rams and Bills records, Robertson also sacked the quarterback 24½ times and forced 16 fumbles in his career.

History of the San Diego Chargers Sports team history

The professional American football team now known as the Los Angeles Chargers previously played in San Diego as the San Diego Chargers from 1961 to 2016 before relocating back to Los Angeles where the team played their inaugural season. The Chargers franchise relocated from Los Angeles to San Diego in 1961. The Chargers' first home game in San Diego was at Balboa Stadium against the Oakland Raiders on September 17, 1961. Their final game as a San Diego-based club was played at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego at the end of the 2016 season against the Kansas City Chiefs, who defeated them 37–27.

Leroy Jones was an American professional football player who was a defensive end. He played the majority of his 11-year career with the San Diego Chargers in the National Football League (NFL).

Earl Franklin Leggett was an American football defensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams, and the New Orleans Saints. He played college football at Louisiana State University (LSU). He was also an assistant coach for various teams.

The Bruise Brothers were a group of American football players who played on the defensive line for the San Diego Chargers in the National Football League (NFL). The foursome, consisting of Fred Dean, Gary Johnson, Louie Kelcher, and Leroy Jones, formed one of the most dominant lines of their era. The Chargers selected Johnson, Kelcher, and Dean in the first two rounds of the 1975 NFL Draft, and they traded for Jones the following year. They helped San Diego lead the league in sacks in 1980.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "About Deacon". Deacon Jones Foundation. Retrieved July 18, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Deacon Jones special: Page One". Pro Football Weekly. Archived from the original on September 5, 2001.
  3. ↑ "The Very Frightening Secretary of Defense: Was Deacon Jones the NFL's Meanest". Deacon Jones Foundation. Retrieved July 23, 2008.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. 1 2 3 Goldstein, Richard (June 6, 2013). "Deacon Jones Dies at 74; Made Quarterback Sack Brutal and Enthralling". The New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Deacon Jones' HOF Profile". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 18, 2008.
  6. ↑ Goldstein, Richard (February 26, 2007). "Lamar Lundy, Lineman on the Rams' Fearsome Foursome, Dies at 71". New York Times. Retrieved July 21, 2008.
  7. ↑ "10 Burning Questions for Deacon Jones". ESPN. Retrieved July 21, 2008.
  8. ↑ "Chargers Trade for Deacon Jones," United Press International (UPI), Saturday, January 29, 1972. Retrieved November 1, 2020
  9. ↑ 1972 NFL Draft Pick Transactions, February 1 (Rounds 1–7) & 2 (Rounds 8–17) – Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved November 1, 2020
  10. ↑ "Jones, NFL coiner of 'sack the quarterback,' dies at 74". CNN U.S. Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. June 4, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  11. ↑ Deacon Jones' Equal Rights (& Lefts) For Women! on YouTube
  12. ↑ Turney, John (June 26, 2000). "Setting the record straight on all of those QB takedowns". Pro Football Weekly online. Retrieved July 21, 2008.
  13. ↑ See "Headslap" by John Klawitter, 1996. pp. 551-560.
  14. ↑ "The Norseman (1978)". IMDb. www.imdb.com. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  15. ↑ "Deacon Jones, Hall of Fame defensive end, dies at 74". NFL.com. April 9, 2008. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  16. ↑ "All Inductees". BlackCollegeFootballHOF.org. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  17. ↑ "S.C. Athletic Hall of Fame: Honorees and Inductees" . Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Central Florida Sports Hall of Fame". Central Florida Sports Commission. Archived from the original on August 6, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Florida Sports Hall of Fame Inductees 1960 to Present". Florida Sports Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  20. ↑ "Spirit Awards Finalists". Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  21. ↑ "NFL Alumni to Honor Len Dawson, Deacon Jones and Paul Salata". BW SportsWire. August 24, 1999. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  22. ↑ "Felix Jones Named 2011 NFL Alumni Spirit Award Recipient". Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  23. ↑ "Legend of the Year". Junior Seau Foundation. Archived from the original on May 7, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  24. ↑ "FHSAA announces 33-member All-Century football team". FHSAA.org. December 12, 2007. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  25. ↑ Burwell, Bryan (September 27, 2009). "Rams finally getting around to retiring Deacon Jones' jersey". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. McClatchey-Tribune News Service. Retrieved March 18, 2014.
  26. ↑ Alper, Josh (January 2, 2014). "Robert Mathis wins inaugural Deacon Jones Award". profootballtalk.nbcsports.com. Retrieved January 2, 2014.
  27. ↑ Thursby, Keith. "David 'Deacon' Jones dies at 74; Fearsome L.A. Rams lineman". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  28. ↑ Farrar, Doug. "Legendary defensive end David 'Deacon' Jones dies at 74". Yahoo!.
  29. ↑ Myers, Marc. "How Steely Dan created Deacon Blues". wsj.com.
  30. ↑ "NFL Hall of Fame defensive end Deacon Jones dead at 74". Fox News. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  31. ↑ Goldstein, Richard (June 4, 2013). "Deacon Jones, Fearsome N.F.L. Defensive End, Dies at 74". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 4, 2013.
  32. ↑ "NFL legend Deacon Jones dies at 74". ESPN.com. June 4, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  33. ↑ King, Peter. "Late Deacon Jones would have dominated any era". SI.com. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  34. ↑ McIntyre, Brian (June 22, 2013). "NFL to honor annual sacks leader with Deacon Jones Award". Yahoo! Sports . Retrieved June 22, 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.