Andre Tippett was Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Today
February 2, 2008
Here's a little bit about the guy.
Tippett was drafted by the New England Patriots in the 2nd round of the 1982 NFL Draft.
Tippett is a member of the NFL’s 1980s all-decade team. Four of the other linebackers on the team are already in the Hall of Fame (Lawrence Taylor, Mike Singletary, Ted Hendricks, and Jack Lambert). Tippett was selected to five Pro Bowls in his career, earning the nod in five straight seasons from 1984–88.
From 1984–85, Tippett recorded the highest two-season sack total by a linebacker in NFL history, totaling 35.0 sacks during the two seasons. His 18.5 sacks in 1984 are the third most by any linebacker in a single season, while his 16.5 sacks in 1985 are tied for the sixth most by any linebacker in NFL history. He achieved the feat despite playing primarily on the strong side, lining up opposite of a tight end, in an era where most successful pass-rushers lined up on the weak side.
Tippett holds the Patriots’ franchise record with 100.0 career sacks. He also owns the top three single-season sack performances in Patriots history (18.5 in 1984, 16.5 in 1985 and 12.5 in 1987). He ranked seventh on the all-time sacks list, and third among linebackers, at the time of his retirement following the 1993 season. Over his career, Tippett recorded 100 sacks in 151 games, an average of 0.662 sacks per game. The mark currently ranks fourth in NFL history among linebackers.
After not recording a sack as a rookie in 1982, Tippett finished either first or second on the team in sacks in each of his final 10 seasons. He led the team in sacks six times and finished second on the team four times. Tippett recorded 30 multiple-sack games in his career and sacked a total of 37 different quarterbacks. Tippett recovered 17 opponents’ fumbles during his career, tying him for first on the Patriots’ all-time list (Steve Nelson). He also forced 14 fumbles in his career.
Tippett was named the NFL’s linebacker of the year by the NFL Players Association for three straight seasons from 1985–87. He was voted to the Associated Press All-NFL First-team on two occasions (1985 and 1987) and Second-team on two other occasions (1986 and 1988). He was also named to the NFL Films All-Pro team in 1984.
He was voted the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) co-Defensive Player of the Year (with Raider Howie Long) in 1985. Additionally, he was voted the 1985 UPI AFL-AFC Defensive Player of the Year.
Tippett twice earned AFC Defensive Player of the Week awards. The first in the Patriots 20-13 win over the New York Jets as he stopped the Jets 3 times within the 10 yard line on 10-20-85. Next, he was the AFC Defensive Player of the Week in the Patriots 21-7 win over the Houston Oilers on 10-18-87.
Tippett spent his entire 11-year career with the Patriots and was a member of three playoff teams, including the 1985 AFC Champions.
| Andre Tippett |
Position(s):
Linebacker |
Jersey #(s):
56 |
Born: December 27, 1959 (1959-12-27) (age 48)
Birmingham, Alabama |
| Career Information |
| Year(s): 1982-1993 |
| NFL Draft: 1982 / Round: 2 / Pick: 41 |
| College: Iowa |
| Professional Teams |
- New England Patriots (1982-1993)
|
| Career Stats |
| Sacks |
100 |
| Interceptions |
1 |
| Games |
151 |
| Stats at NFL.com |
| Career Highlights and Awards |
- 5x Pro Bowl selection (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988)
- 5x All-Pro selection (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988)
- NFL 1980s All-Decade Team
- 1985 Co-NEA NFL Defensive Player of the Year
- 1985 UPI AFL-AFC Player of the Year
|
| Pro Football Hall of Fame |
Tippett was selected to the Patriots’ 35th Anniversary Team in 1994 and was selected to the Patriots Team of the Century in 2000. He was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame in 1999. Tippett was inducted into the University of Iowa Hall of Fame on September 7, 2007.
In January, 2008, he was voted by a panel of former NFL players and coaches to Pro Football Weekly's All-Time 3-4 defensive team along with Harry Carson, Lawrence Taylor, Randy Gradishar, Howie Long, Lee Roy Selmon, and Curley Culp.
He was named as one of 17 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2007 and 2008. As a finalist he joined other modern-era players and two players selected by the Hall of Fame’s Senior Committee in the pool from which the Hall of Fame class was selected.
The Hall of Fame’s 40-member Selection Committee met in Miami on February 3, 2007, to select the Class of 2007. Tippett was not selected for enshrinement, but he was among the top 10 finalists. The now 44-member Selection Committee will meet in Arizona, the day prior to Super bowl XLII, to vote on the Class of 2008. Recently, Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson said, " "I think it is about time Andre Tippett is in the Hall Of Fame."
Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andre_Tippett
-Boston Hooligan
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