Deacon Jones Passes Away
Loved the way he described what a sack was:
"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."
destined to rush the gates of hell for the good guys.
sackmaster
He was a part of the Fearsome Foursome! What a treat to watch the old Los Angeles Rams . . . RIP DEACON!
Back in the late 1990s, the Sporting News ranked Jones at #13 on their list of greatest football players, which would have made him the highest ranked Ram, the highest ranked defensive end and the second-highest ranked defensive lineman on the list. He was also named "Defensive End Of The Century", and that as it should be for the man who more or less defined the position as we tend to think of it now.
In 1967 and 1968, if sacks were officially recorded, he would have had 50 of them in those two seasons, a pace that no one has matched to date.
Rest in peace, Deacon Jones.
My favorite Deaconism:
"John Kitna?!?! I could drink a quart of vodka and still take care of John Kitna!"
Redefined the way DE was played. Both are and will be missed.
Love watching film of him smacking o lineman with his clubbed fist. The man was a beast.. RIP DEACON
I got to meet Deacon at a party in Laguna Beach that my old man snuck me in to as a 13 year old. It was absolutely NOT someplace a young boy should have been at. My dad told me to tell everyone I was 18. So I followed the plan, and as I'm talking to Mr Jones, I tell him I'm 18 and am going to play defense in college. My inebriated father blurts out "HE'S Not 18. He's only 13!"
Way to go pops.
RIP Deacon. You were truly a fearsome football player.
This makes me sad. Growing up when we played football in the back yard when ever my dad batted down one of our passes he would scream "Deacon Jones!!" I'm 30 now and my friends and I still bring it up and laugh. At the time we really didn't know who he was.
The single greatest clip of Deacon Jones is this one. He's explaining the science behind his headslap and its effects on...er...everyone:
Or a woman? Erh, Mr. Jones, have a seat over here.
Is there any chance that they will go back and look at tape of how many sacks he had? I have to imagine he would be up in the top 5 all time.