New England Patriots, Darryl Stingley - we have not forgotten you 36 years later
It has been 36 years since New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley was violently bludgeoned by safety, Jack Tatum of the Oakland Raiders. There is no other way to say it. The impact badly damaged Stingley's spinal cord and left him paralyzed for the rest of his life. Stingley died of his injuries on April 5, 2007. Although Darryl forgave Tatum for his on field actions, Jack did not reciprocate. His behavior typified the thuggish play that Oakland displayed. There was no remorse, and there was “no accident”.
The “criminal element”, which Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Chuck Noll makes reference to, started in 1976 following the Pittsburgh - Oakland regular season game. This was the game that safety George Atkinson delivered a forearm smash to the head of Steelers wide receiver Lynn Swann. The hit was away from the play, and the pass was not intended for Swann. This was the second time that Lynn Swann had gotten a concussion at the hands of Atkinson.
Bob Labriola of Steelers Digest timelines the events:
April 1977: Chuck Noll was summoned to Oakland for depositions in the defamation suit filed by George Atkinson over the famous “criminal element” remarks Noll made the day after the 1976 NFL season opener.
July 11, 1977: During cross-examination on the witness stand, Chuck Noll was forced to include Steelers’ Joe Greene, Mel Blount and Glen Edwards as players who also were part of the “criminal element” because of their own dirty play.
July 16, 1977: Mel Blount reacted to this by threatening to quit the Steelers, and he also said he planned to sue Noll for $5 million.
July 22, 1977: Chuck Noll was cleared of the charges filed by George Atkinson. Mel Blount dropped his lawsuit against Noll and rejoined the team.
Peter Richmond, SI.com:
The most infamous tackle on Darryl Stingley came in an exhibition game against the New England Patriots on August 12, 1978, a play that Tatum later stated he did "thousands of times" in practice and in regular game coverage. Tatum and Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley collided as Stingley was leaping for a pass on an inside slant route, a play the Patriots had run earlier in the game with some success that put him in the path of Tatum. There was an awkward collision as Stingley lowered his helmet to protect himself and hit Tatum's shoulder pad. The impact badly damaged Stingley's spinal cord and left him with incomplete quadriplegia for the rest of his life. The National Football League took no disciplinary action for the tackle; however, many of those violent tackles were later outlawed.
Tatum was the author three best-selling books: They Call Me Assassin (1980); They Still Call Me Assassin (1989); and Final Confessions of NFL Assassin Jack Tatum (1996). Tatum died of a heart attack on July 27, 2010. Former New England Patriots QB Steve Grogan, when asked about making a comment on Tatum’s death, stated: "I have a hard time trying to find something nice to say.... I just can't do it".
Paul Murphy is a freelance writer from New Hampshire.
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