Around the NFL
I can't let the passing of Jack Tatum go by without thinking of some of the monster hits he made the '70s. This is a guy who was a punishing, aggressive hitter, and players had a lot more leeway to clobber receivers and running backs in those days.
Tatum is best known, of course, for the play in a preseason game that tragically paralyzed Darryl Stingley in a preseason game.
But that was just one of many crushing hits he was involved in.
I think of the goal-line shot he put on Earl Campbell. Campbell scored a touchdown on the play, but the hit left him with broken ribs. (I think it might have left Tatum with a concussion as well). That hit can be seen at the 3:01 mark on this YouTube video (and check out the run starting at 2:45, maybe the best power run in NFL history).
It was Tatum who arrived at the same time as the ball at Three Rivers Stadium in 1972, sending both Frenchy Fuqua and the football flying but creating the Immaculate Reception.
And he delivered one of the most memorable hits in Super Bowl history against the Vikings, knocking off Sammy White's helmet (how White hangs onto that ball, I have no idea).
The hardest hitter in NFL history? Jack Tatum is the first guy I would think of.
—Ian Allan
- Comments [2]
Readers' Comments
Add a Comment
Already a registered user? Please sign in to add comments.
To add comments, you must become a registered user of our site. To register, please click here.
Posted by JUSTIN ELEFF | Jul. 27 at 05:47 PM
Funny - I've watched that Campbell video several times before, but this is the first time it strikes me just how reckless he was with the ball. Adrian Peterson is going through the ringer for his fumbles, but looking at the numbers, through 1981 (his fourth season) Campbell was no better at holding on.
Posted by IAN ALLAN | Jul. 28 at 02:43 AM
I know it's not fundamentally sound, but I love it when a player carries the ball like a loaf of bread.