No. 55 | |||||||
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Position: | Linebacker | ||||||
Personal information | |||||||
Born: | Pompano Beach, Florida, U.S. | March 14, 1958||||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
Weight: | 235 lb (107 kg) | ||||||
Career information | |||||||
High school: | Boyd H. Anderson (Lauderdale Lakes, Florida) | ||||||
College: | Tulsa | ||||||
NFL draft: | 1981 / Round: 4 / Pick: 102 | ||||||
Career history | |||||||
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As a coach: | |||||||
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Career highlights and awards | |||||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Donald Kirk Blackmon (born March 14, 1958) is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He played in the NFL as a linebacker with the New England Patriots. Most recently he was the defensive coordinator for the New York Sentinels of the United Football League (UFL).
Blackmon was selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 1981 NFL draft. A 6'3". 235 lbs. linebacker from the University of Tulsa, Blackmon played his entire NFL career for the Patriots. He started 72 of 89 games [1] and recorded 541 tackles, 30.5 sacks, and five interceptions before being forced to retire after a neck injury in a game against the Raiders in 1987. He was on the Patriots AFC title team in 1986. Blackmon was a three time all-conference selection at Tulsa and has been named to the school's Hall of Fame.
Super Bowl XX was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Chicago Bears and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1985 season. The Bears defeated the Patriots by the score of 46–10, capturing their first NFL championship since 1963, three years prior to the birth of the Super Bowl. Super Bowl XX was played on January 26, 1986, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
Tedy Lacap Bruschi is an American former football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons. He played college football for the Arizona Wildcats, where he earned two-time consensus All-American. He was selected by the New England Patriots in the third round of the 1996 NFL draft, and played his entire professional career with them. Bruschi won three Super Bowls and was a two-time second-team All-Pro selection.
Andre Bernard Tippett Sr. is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American in 1981. A second-round pick in the 1982 NFL draft, Tippett was selected to five Pro Bowls and was named first-team All-Pro twice in his career. Since 2007, he has been the Patriots' executive director of community affairs. He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008. He is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
Rosevelt Colvin, III is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Purdue Boilermakers and was selected by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round of the 1999 NFL draft.
William Edwards Blackmon is a former American football safety and return specialist. He played college football for the Boston College Eagles, and was selected in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He was also a member of the New York Giants, Arizona Rattlers, Seattle Seahawks, Jacksonville Jaguars, Washington Redskins, and Saskatchewan Roughriders. He is currently an analyst for the Boston College Football team.
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Vincent Bernard "the Undertaker" Brown is an American football coach and former player. He played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) linebacker with the New England Patriots from 1988 to 1995. He was selected by the Patriots in the second round of the 1988 NFL draft. Brown's NFL career ended abruptly at age 30. After eight years of playing linebacker for the Patriots, he was suddenly and unexpectedly told that his career was over. His career was one of the best in Patriots history as an inside linebacker. On January 6, 2023, Brown was hired to become the next Head coach of North Carolina A&T.
George Stephen King is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) from 1973 to 1981. He played college football for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. He was named to the New England Patriots All-1970s team.
Glades Central Community High School is a high school in Belle Glade, Florida. In the 2014–15 school year its enrollment numbered 992 students. The school was a football powerhouse. In 2001, the New York Times reported that Glades Central had produced more current National Football League players than any other high school in the country with 7 during the 2001 season. The school has a football rivalry with fellow powerhouse Pahokee High School.
Jerod Mayo Sr. is an American football coach and former linebacker who is the head coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played with the Patriots for eight seasons. Mayo played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers and was selected by the Patriots tenth overall in the 2008 NFL draft.
Scott O'Brien is an American football coach and former player who is currently serving as an area scout for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). A former defensive end/linebacker, O'Brien served as a special teams coach for three college football teams and for five NFL franchises during a 35-year long coaching career. In 2015, O'Brien retired from coaching and began his current role as an area scout.
Qualin Dont'a Hightower is an American football coach and former linebacker who is the inside linebackers coach for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played in the NFL for nine seasons with the Patriots. Hightower played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, receiving consensus All-American honors and winning two BCS National Championships. Selected in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft by the Patriots, he was named to two Pro Bowls and won three Super Bowl titles.
Richard L. Blanchard is a former linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Tulsa and later played professionally with the New England Patriots during the 1972 NFL season. After being cut by the Patriots and sitting out the 1973 season, he signed with the Detroit Wheels of the World Football League (WFL) in 1974.
Elandon Roberts is an American football linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Houston. He was selected by the New England Patriots in the sixth round of the 2016 NFL draft. He plays primarily as a linebacker on defense, but when injuries during the 2019 season left the Patriots without a fullback on the roster, Roberts began to play that position as well.
Christian C. Sam is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at Arizona State, in 2017 leading the Pac-12 with 127 tackles, while also leading the Pac-12 with 87 solo tackles. He has been a member of the New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers, Detroit Lions, Tampa Bay Bandits, New Orleans Breakers, and Arlington Renegades.
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