If your last name is Youngblood, you better bring it.
Jack Youngblood did more than just that, he became an NFL legend and one of the greatest players the sport had ever seen.
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Youngblood was one of the league’s nastiest defendersCredit: Getty
Youngblood played for the Los Angeles Rams from 1971-1984.
His entire 14-year career was played in Los Angeles, where he became an eight-time All-Pro, seven-time Pro Bowler, led the league in sacks twice and was a member of the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team.
The Rams retired his No.85 and his legacy has been immortalized in Canton, Ohio as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 2001.
The Rams drafted Youngblood out of the University of Florida in 1971 in the first round with the 20th pick, and the rest was history.
Out of the countless career moments Youngblood had, none is bigger than playing in NFC Championship and Super Bowl with a broken leg.
In fact, NFL Network has named Youngblood’s 1979 playoff run among its list of the ‘gutsiest performances’ of all time.
Youngblood had fractured his fibula during the postseason in 1979. That should have ended his year — 99% of players who break their leg aren’t going to continue to play in the same season. Youngblood wasn’t like most players.
He was the 1%.
He played in the NFC title game, helping the Rams defeat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and holding them scoreless, winning 9-0.
The otherworldly defender had his best chance at a world championship in Super Bowl XIV.
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Youngblood and the Rams were feared in the 1970sCredit: Getty
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Youngblood was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 2001Credit: Getty
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To this day, Youngblood’s career remains one of the most decorated of all-timeCredit: Getty
However, it wasn’t meant to be, as Terry Bradshaw and the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated Youngblood and the Rams 31-19.
That would be his lone Super Bowl appearance, despite reaching the NFC Championship five times in his career.
NFL.com ranked Youngblood No. 1 when counting down the ‘scariest players’ in the league’s history. There have been thousands of players to come through the National Football League, but none scarier than Youngblood.
That tells you all you need to know.
Youngblood played in a remarkable 201 consecutive games, which is a Rams team record. He only missed one game in his 14-year NFL career, despite a laundry list of injuries that would have kept most guys from even sniffing the field.
However, that big scary defender from years ago can no longer be found, as Youngblood now spends his days in a different kind of light.
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When asked what he was up to, the 75-year-old kept it simple.
“I’m trying to stay out of trouble, to be honest with you,” Youngblood told the Rams’ official website back in 2024.
“When you have a little more time on your hands outside of the work and the routine you had while you were playing, it’s so different than the real world.
“I have a farm up in Jefferson County, so I try to get up there three-to-five days a month because 200 acres will keep you busy for sure and that takes up quite a bit of time and effort.”
From one of the game’s greatest defenders, to retiring on a 200-acre farm, Youngblood has lived a full life.
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