football story going wrong way tackled by own player

Mean, dirty or just plain tough, Sprinkle was a man to avoid between the lines. If I had an opportunity to hit someone, I hit them. 'I was about as aggressive as any football player that walked on the field. 'I think that the article was a bum rap,' Sprinkle told National Football Post. But when Collier’s Weekly story called him 'The Meanest Man in Football,' well, the defensive end thought that went too far. No less an authority than Chicago Bears coach/owner George Halas considered Ed Sprinkle to be the roughest player in franchise history at one point. Games missed: 7 Bottom Line: Ed Sprinkle Ed Sprinkle on a 1951 Bowman football card. Ed Sprinkle, Defensive End Chicago Bears coach George Halas called Ed Sprinkle the toughest player he ever coached.

Keep trying, keep learning and keep growing.' -Cliff Harris, during his Hall of Fame enshrinement speech 48. 'How does a kid from a small D-II school in Arkadelphia make it to five Super Bowls and the Hall of Fame? I may be the only one who knows how slim that chance was.But if I can make it, anyone can achieve their goals. Washington Redskins coach George Allen wasn’t far off when he likened Harris to a 'rolling ball of butcher knives.' Tough Words From Cliff Harris Cliff Harris, left, won two Super Bowls with the Cowboys. He even wore kiddie-sized shoulder pads to improve speed and the force of hits. The All-Decade first-team selection welcomed contact, a mindset that translated well against the run and on special teams. Harris spent his entire career in the 1970s and had at least two interceptions in each one of them. 'Captain Crash' broke the mold with his two-way play at the position. Game missed: 3 Bottom Line: Cliff Harris Dallas Cowboys safety Cliff Harris makes a play against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1972.įree safeties were primarily cover guys back in the day. Cliff Harris, Safety Dallas Cowboys safety Cliff Harris knocks Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Harold Jackson off his feet on a pass play during the 1976 NFC championship game. 'I didn't have to wear a mask on Halloween to scare people, so I didn't need one to cover my face on the field.' -Tommy McDonald 49.

Tough Words From Tommy McDonald Tommy McDonald was an All-American at Oklahoma before being drafted in the third round of the 1957 NFL draft. After a frustrated Green Bay Packers defender shoved 'Scooter' into a snowbank on a touchdown reception, he gleefully jumped to his feet, then raced to the bench like his hair was on fire. Here’s more crazy: McDonald played without a face mask for virtually his entire career, the last player to do so.īut an image in the 1960 Championship Game said it all. His favorite route? A slant over the middle, of course. The 5-foot-9, 178-pound fireball of a flanker bounced off tacklers like a human Super Ball. Tommy McDonald was the schoolboy who thumbed his nose at the bully. Games missed: 8 Bottom Line: Tommy McDonald Philadelphia Eagles flanker Tommy McDonald, front, catches a pass from quarterback Sonny Jurgensen in 1961. Teams: Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Rams, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns Tommy McDonald, Flanker Tommy McDonald, at the University of Oklahoma in 1956, before the Philadelphia Eagles drafted him in 1957. You, too, Bill Romanowski, Jack Tatum and Ndamukong Suh. Here’s looking at you, Hardy Brown, Conrad Dobler and Rodney Harrison. Players who go outside the rules to maim opponents are not tough. Ability to recover when punched in the gut. Laser focus, no matter how big the moment. It can’t be bottled, packaged or weighed. It’s an intangible that comes in all shapes and sizes.

Toughest Football Players in NFL History Ronnie Lott, right, made life miserable for a lot of opponents.īefore the toughest players in NFL history can be discussed, we need to define the term. There’s no measure for toughness. If you were smart, you didn’t mess with these guys.

Football story going wrong way tackled by own player