John Mackey (American football)
- Baltimore Colts (1963-1971)
- San Diego Chargers (1972 )
- 5 × Pro Bowl selection (1963, 1965-1968 )
- 3 × All-Pro selection (1966, 1967, 1968)
- Jersey number blocked at college
- NFL 1960s All- Decade Team
- 1 × NFL Champion (1968 )
- 1 × AFC Champion (1971 )
- Super Bowl winner V
- Pro Football Hall of Fame (1992 )
- Nassau County Sports Hall of Fame (2000)
- Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor
John Kevin Mackey (* September 24, 1941 in New York City; † July 6, 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland) was an US- American football player. He played as a tight end in the National Football League ( NFL) with the Baltimore Colts and the San Diego Chargers.
Youth
John Mackey was born in 1941 as one of six children of a pastor in New York City. He grew up in the town of Roosevelt in Nassau County in Hempstead and attended high school. Already at school, he drew attention to himself as an outstanding athlete and was awarded the " Thorp Award" as the best football player of the district. After finishing school in 1959 he studied from 1960 at Syracuse University.
Playing career
College career
John Mackey studied from 1960 to 1963 history and political science at Syracuse University. He completed his studies from the Bachelor. From 1960 to 1962 he played with the " Syracuse Orange ", the football team of his colleges, along with Ernie Davis as Halfback Football. Davis was also his next door neighbor on the campus of the college. In 1961 he was set up by the coach of the Orange Ben Schwartz Walder as tight end. A year later, he played with his team in the Liberty Bowl against the team from the University of Miami. The game ended with a 15:14 victory for his team. His college team honored him in all three years of study from for his sporting achievements.
Professional career
Mackey was drafted in 1963 by the trained by Don Shula Baltimore Colts in the second round to 19th place. The Colts had at that time with Johnny Unitas over one of the best quarterbacks of the NFL history. The position of the tight ends was little developed at the beginning of the career of Mackey. With the establishment of Mackey in the Colts team and the NFL should change that. In 1965, he scored with a pass catches a room gain of 814 yards and was the second best statistical pass receiver of the team. The following year he started 50 passes for a room gain of 829 yards. Nine of these balls he could use to touchdowns. This placed it at the forefront of internal team team standings. 1968 could the Colts in the regular season 13 of 14 games to win and move into the play-offs. There the team met initially to the Minnesota Vikings. At 24:14 victory of his team over the Vikings Mackey could score a touchdown. In the NFL championship game, the team of Mackey met the Cleveland Browns, who stayed with their 34:0 defeat without chance. The victory meant the qualification for the " AFL- NFL Championship Game", which was later renamed in Super Bowl III. There, the Colts met the Weeb Ewbank supervised by New York Jets, whose charismatic quarterback Joe Namath had guaranteed a victory of his team before the game. He had followed his announcement deeds. Although the Colts were favored to win and get three Mackey pass catches with a space gain of 35 yards, kept the Jets with 16:7 the upper hand.
In 1970, Don McCafferty took over as coach in the Colts. He led the team to the second Super Bowl. Having been in the regular season eleven were won by 14 games, the team from Baltimore met first on team, coached by Paul Brown Cincinnati Bengals, who were defeated with 17:0. The counterparties in the AFC Championship Game was the Oakland Raiders. The team of John Madden had to tolerate a 27:17 defeat. In Super Bowl V Mackey then showed excellent performance. The Dallas Cowboys were quickly able to go 6-0 in the lead. Only in the second quarter of Game Mackey scored a touchdown to compensate. He had caught a pass from Unitas and carried the ball for a distance of 75 yards into the end zone of the cowboys. Mackey started in the game even a second passport and after 60 minutes of play left the assisted by Tom Landry Cowboys with a 16:13 defeat the playing field.
Mackey played for another year in Baltimore. A title defense failed his team. 1971 failed the Colts in the AFC Championship game to the Miami Dolphins with 21:0. After another unsuccessful game year with the San Diego Chargers John Mackey ended after the 1972 season his career.
Off the pitch
Mackey was 1969-1973 chairman of the players' union " National Football League Players Association " ( NFLPA ). His commitment was due to a contract dispute in 1968. Over the next few years, the players were under his and under the leadership of other former players like Gene Upshaw reach, that they also benefited from the economic success of the NFL. Rules of the NFL, the players largely disenfranchised, were gradually repealed.
John Mackey suffered least from Pick's disease. He was a long-term care and lived in a nursing home. The cost of his care were denied by the NFL and the players union. He died 69 years old on 6 July 2011, the effects of his illness. Its body was burned.
Honors
Mackey played five times in the Pro Bowl, the final game of the best players of the season. He was elected three times to the All- Pro. The University of Syracuse has his jersey number blocked. John Mackey is a member of the NFL 1960s All- Decade Team in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and in the Nassau County Sports Hall of Fame. He is honored on the Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor.