He is regarded as the second dirtiest player in the NFL and a 2008 poll revealed that one of the scariest things in the NFL is being blocked by Runyan on a screen pass. The Most Risky Job Ever. Reporting on ISIS in Afghanistan. No one ever has been suspended for a second or third time. A Living Raider Legend, "Mr. Major funding for FRONTLINE is provided by John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980, the first year he was eligible. Jim Otto, Center, Oakland Raiders (1960-1974), Otto played fifteen seasons and never missed a game, despite 10 broken noses and over 40 back, knee, and shoulder operations, including 28 to his knees alone. Lewis is one of the greatest playmakers and natural team leaders the game has ever seen. Two years later Unitas played the entire season with a broken vertebrae. And he hung with me. He's going to make some trash out of me. But a knee injury that was treated with repeated shots of cortisone and steroids forced him to end a 15-year playing career after 1973. I used to watch you play when I was a kid --. He got beat up so bad in his early years. Anything loosea knee pad, a shoe, a chin strapwould be ripped off by a Butkus tackle. When Lotts finger didnt heal properly, he told the doctors to cut it off, and they amputated his pinkie at the third knuckle. 16. Jim Otto - Wikipedia He has played through numerous injuries, including a broken bone in his back. According to the latest NFLPA survey, conducted in 1990, more than one-third of 645 players whose careers began as early as 1940 and ended no later than 1986 retired because of disabling injuries. He helped the Steelers win four Super Bowl titles in a six-year span in the 1970's and is probably the most important player in team history. Nothing dirty about it. As a rookie, he was notorious for threatening veterans and starting fights in training camp. Walter Payton, Running Back, Chicago Bears (1975-1987). Longtime Raiders team doctor Robert Rosenfield, who died last January of cancer, diagnosed it as strained ligaments. Immediately everybody rushes to blame football or blame some other thing happened in their life either socially, emotionally or psychologically. Krueger now cant kneel and has problems walking on uneven surfaces. He has fought off three life-threatening bouts of infections to his arthritic joints, and almost died on the handicapped table once. But I don't think you can blame it -- I don't know. Now, the NFL average is about 300, and increasing. Now, nobody in America knows that, like they know about the guy who had a concussion, like the guy who is in class-action suits, suing the National Football League because they had a concussion. He retired from the Arena Football League in 1992. Favre has earned three MVP awards and led the Packers to a championship in 1996. Football is a contact sport, and injuries are a part of the game. Ive heard guys like Jim Otto and Dan Hampton say they would do it again. I mean, he'd figure out a way to beat you, and so would Jim Otto. Privacy Policy In the first sentence of his foreword for the book, Hall of Fame coach John Madden writes: If someone came from another planet and wanted to know what a football player looked like, youd show him a poster of Jim Otto. Madden goes on to call Jim the greatest center who ever played.. They want my brain at I think it's Michigan or --. The average weight for a lineman on the Colts championship teams in 1958 and 1959 was 240 pounds. Ronnie Lott was a cornerback who hit like a linebacker. Some play with injuries because they fear they might lose their job or position and their self-concept and identity. Bleier's story is one of the greatest in the history of sports. Or Boston, one of those, or North Carolina. Johnny Unitas, Quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers & Baltimore Colts & San Diego Chargers (1956-1974). 35. I mean, it's affected my life; it surely has. But that didn't bother me that much. As a rookie in 1920, he angered the Rock Island Independents so bad that they sent four players into the game on a mission to destroy Trafton. His head still down, Nagurski ran full speed into the brick outfield wall there at Wrigley Field. He proudly stated that he played football because it was the only way he could hit someone and get away with it. Jim Otto Age, Bio, Personal Life, Family & Stats - CelebsAges Courtesy of Pro Football Hall of Fame And they'll come up with some answers. And I think it's very unfair. Bucko Kilroy, Guard, Philadelphia Eagles (1943-1955). Well, I was having a pretty good game against Carter, and Nitschke was on the sideline -- you could see that -- and he was all upset. But a lot of guys no longer get the "Hey, Joe, how you doing. " But in my heart, I'm leaning to very possibly doing it, donating my brain, because if there is something there that can help others, that's what I should be doing. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It was a good, clean hit. 11. Once you leave the game, people forget about you quite quickly, said Drew Pearson, the former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver. We will take steps to block users who repeatedly violate our commenting rules, terms of use, or privacy policies. They are similar to those experienced by rape victims and soldiers returning from combat. He played five more games before the loose bone mass was removed. You want to spell football: T-U-F-F. WebJim Otto This article was written by Rich Shmelter For 15 seasons, the 00 on Jim Ottos uniform stood out like a beacon. Almost no one leaves this game unscarred either physically or mentally.. Among Doblers principal offenses were biting, gouging, punching, kicking, and grabbing the face mask. PBS Terms of Use 13. You got hit in the head, and you had amnesia. Nobody is helping me. In the opening chapter of his autobiography, Jim provides an accounting: 38 surgeries (a total now estimated to have doubled since the books 2000 publishing date), including 28 on his knees alone, both of which are artificial, as are both shoulders. In 1990, four players were suspended. He missed the whole next year of football. It's incredibly debatable, but here is my attempt to rank them in order for toughness. I'm telling you about it right now: I hurt. The guy coming down the field to cover the kickoff, the guy with the ball with the kickoff, hey, this is football. He is famous for his crack-back blocks, and broke the jaw of Cincinnati rookie Keith Rivers in a 2008 contest. Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis made the announcement Wednesday as part of a wide-ranging news conference touching on the state of the team, the recent death of Bill Walsh and pensions for former NFL players. The 2003 NFL MVP, McNair has never missed a playoff start and led the Titans to the Super Bowl in 1999. And even in soccer, you have problems with your head hitting the ball, two heads coming together or whatever. He wasn't drafted by any NFL team, so he joined the Oakland Raiders of the new AFL, went on a strength program to increase his weight by 50 pounds, and became Oakland's starting center for the next 15 seasons. You're taught to lead with your head. There were so many times that I would walk off the field and my eyes would be crossed. I have issues, yes, I have issues. Theyd shoot you up, and you could get painkillers anywhere. The NFL Hall of Famer recounts his legendary career with the Oakland Raiders, his many injuries, and the terrible cost of playing through the pain.From 1960 to 1974, Jim Otto played center for the Oakland Raiders, leading the team to historic AFL and NFL victories. Jack Youngblood, Defensive End, Los Angeles Rams (1971-1984). He tells a very straightforward biography of himself, deals out very little dirt but tells it as he sees it. Former Chicago Bears tight end and head coach Mike Ditka waddles like a wooden toy soldier because of an artificial hip. Now, when you're telling, I guess it was maybe in your book, that you talked about the hit that you took from Ray Nitschke, when you -- I guess it was your nose. WebAs a result of injuries sustained during his playing career, he has endured more than 70 surgeries, including nearly 30 knee operations. "I'm not out there crying" over concussions, "I would walk off the field and my eyes would be crossed", "Hitting harder than anyone else was very important to us.". How many games did Jim Otto play? Hall of Fame linebacker Sam Huff said, Hardy Brown was a designated hitter. In the 1968 regular season, Oakland scored 453 points (32.4 points/game), once again leading the AFL, beating the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round before losing to the Jets. How tall is Jim Otto? I realize that. I think if you were to look at me and evaluate me, it was a matter of pride. . It was the first injury that he had suffered and he would never participate in another snap. Before his death in 1992, Raiders defensive lineman Lyle Alzado said long-term steroid use was the cause of the brain tumor that eventually killed him. He was a football and ice hockey star at Wausau High and had no knee trouble, although he says he did play a season on a severely injured ankle. Are you saying that even if you had the information you would have played? Jim Otto. In 14 seasons of play for the Oakland Raiders, Jim Otto played had a punishing history of injuries. He needed 74 surgeries for his football injuries, including the amputation of one of his legs. This interview was conducted by FRONTLINEs Tom Jennings on Dec. 22, 2012. In 1999, he was ranked number 78 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. He was called the John Wayne of Football by John Madden. And Baltimore Colts Hall of Fame quarterback John Unitas once-golden right arm has a restructured right hand. Two years ago, Detroit Lions guard Mike Utley took a hit and suffered severe spinal damage, leaving him nearly a quadriplegic. Don Meredith, Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys (1960-1968), Meredith was really tough. And Nitschke, it was right toward the end of his career, and he was I guess letting Carter get some time in there. Well, in being taught to lead with your head and shoulders to make a tackle, and basically place your head to where it's going to hit the ball, because you get some good fumbles that way when you tackle and place your head and shoulders to where you're going to hit the side where he's carrying the ball. I know that I went to war, and I came out of the battle with what I got, and that's the way it is. Otto eventually had to have his right leg amputated on August 1, 2007. In his 14 seasons, Lilly never missed a game. In one game, he knocked out the entire Washington Redskins backfield one by one. The NFLPA report found that of the players leaving the game because of injury, 70.6% had emotional problems some time during the sixth-month transition period after football. Five years later, in 2002, Otto was stricken with prostate cancer, though the cancer is currently in remission. In most cases I would like to be able to be out there doing something for somebody else, helping somebody else, and I can't. He said, Football is tough. Do you feel like there's an increased notoriety of players when something very bad happens like a suicide? The only first-team All-AFL center in the leagues 10-year history, Jim helped the Raiders rise from a 9-33 start in their first three years of existence to a team that won seven division titles and an AFL title and made a Super Bowl appearance before he retired. He defined toughness as, more of a mental aspect than a physical power, saying, Toughness doesn't necessarily mean physical prowess; it's more mental., 3. Is Jim Otto in the Hall of Fame? Otto My first thoughts were, I got sick. He gave the following advice to future Hall of Fame tight end John Mackey: Make sure when anyone tackles you he remembers how much it hurts., 20. He was not a great linebacker. Youngblood played the final three games of the 1979 NFL playoffs, including the Super Bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers, with a heavily-taped broken leg. By submitting comments here, you are consenting to these rules:Readers' comments that include profanity, obscenity, personal attacks, harassment, or are defamatory, sexist, racist, violate a third party's right to privacy, or are otherwise inappropriate, will be removed. And that's why Sally and I came to the forefront Did anybody do anything for Mike Webster with Pittsburgh? Did you ever have that happen to you? In 14 seasons of play for the Oakland Raiders, Jim Otto played had a punishing history of injuries. In 1975, he was replaced by Dave Dalby. You don't mess with him. Right. A $300-million (minimum) gondola to Dodger Stadium? I'm over here, I had a couple dozen concussions or more, and I hurt. Doctors can pressure players who dont think they will ever get hurt or the ones who think they have only a few years left to make money.. 21. I am really sore, and I'm trying to figure out the best way to take care of that. Well, a huge hole opened, and I saw him coming. We met at the line of scrimmage, and you could hear the thud all over the Polo Grounds. Over the course of his career, Jim I mean, if you played marbles against Mike Webster, he still would beat you. I never went out of the game. I would say that suicide has been in the past one of the least spoken about things among players, among owners, among the NFL of anything. Jim Otto I look at Dave Dalby, because he used to tell me he wanted to follow me in my footsteps. Associated With Now, the amnesia one, that was before the NFL, is that right? Then we go back in. He suffered from chronic back pain due to He was double-teamed, every play, for his entire career. I wanted to help Dave Dalby and Sally did to because we loved him and I didn't see that happening in Pittsburgh with Mike Webster. Giants lineman Al DeRogatis once accused Kilroy of biting him on the nose. And I'm sure there's a lot of studies going on with regard to what was going on with him prior to this. It's just a physical battle in there, that you have to do. Otto Garrison has also played through a separated shoulder, a severely broken nose and a broken collarbone. It was really bad. Chuck Bednarik, Center & Linebacker, Philadelphia Eagles (1949-1962), The greatest collision of all time was Bednarik hitting Gifford. What's going on? Otto used to collapse in the early years of his retirement, even though he walks without difficulty now. 40. I just -- I know and I've told that those are the battle scars of a gladiator. In a playoff game in 1972, Greene recorded five sacks, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble, and blocked a field goal in a 9-3 win vs. Houston. Damn fools. He had his right leg amputated in 2007. When Giants defensive tackle Jim Pietrzak wished him good luck in the playoffs, he punched him. Jim Otto played before my time as a fan but I know his name and looked forward to reading his story. That's the way Mike Webster would say it, too. For the next fifteen years, Otto became a fixture at center for the Raiders, never missing a single game due to injury. League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis, New: 87 Deceased NFL Players Test Positive for Brain Disease, Study of Former NFL Players Shows Risks for Brain from Youth Football, NFL Concussion Settlement Wins Final Approval from Judge, In Fight Against ISIS, a Lose-Lose Scenario Poses Challenge for West. I was paid to play football, not hang out in the training room.. "If you want Otto to respond, just ring a bell. Its an orthopedics surgeons dream. Greene was notorious for kicking a player when he was down and had to be ejected from a game in 1975 for repeatedly kicking a Cleveland Browns player in the groin.
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