Paul Coffman from the ‘80’s Packers. He was a great complementary option to James Lofton. I always felt he was an underrated player who was a key behind the scenes contributor for some memorable Packer offenses in the 80’s. He came across as humble and a good teammate - always an easy guy to root for. This year’s Packers could sorely use a TE like old #82 on their squad.
Mike Ditka. We saw him in SB 6 in New Orleans in 1972, his last season, when he was with Dallas. He caught a TD pass from Staubach in the end zone right in front of us. It was Dallas's final score. I got a snapshot of it. I still have that picture. Dallas beat Miami 24-3.
No discussion of great tight ends would be complete without the mention of Marv Fleming. He played on many championship teams and made a key block on Bart Starr's quarterback sneak in the Ice Bowl.
John Mackey. The toughest TE to ever bring down. Broke so many tackles, ran over/thru more tacklers than anyone. Gronkowski and Ditka were the closest. Johnny Unitas and Mackey were quite the duo! There are others who were great pass catchers (Winslow, Jackson, Gonzalez, Newsome, Sharpe, etc) but lacked the sheer strength and toughness of Mackey.
Jason Witten, of course. One of the greatest tight ends. Blocking, catching, shoot, he didn't even need a helmet. He set the standard for TEs for over a decade.
Keith Jackson university of Oklahoma edition. An incredible receiving threat on a wishbone-running team that never passed. Big, athletic, great blocker and very fun to watch.
I always enjoyed watching Ben Coates for the Patriots in the 90s. Big, burly guy. Great hands, always seemed to catch everything. Humble and quiet off the field too. Brent Jones on those great 49ers teams was fun to watch too.
Mark Bavaro from the 80's Giants. One tough TE. Quiet, never injured and always gave it 100%. Never took a down off. Never forgot the 49er game our Championship year on Monday night when he caught a pass over the middle and carried what seemed like the entire 49er Defense literally on h is back for a 20+ yard gain. Amazing.
Mark Bavaro - to me the ultimate “prototypical “ TE - did everything very well and tough physical player. I’ve read that the battles between Bavaro and Carl Banks in practice for years were legendary
Ed West. Just because of his nickname, "The Toolbox." And his longevity, many years in Green Bay, think 13-14 years in NFL, and was never a premier passing game target. Something to be said for guys at that position who play a long, long time and are primarily blockers or 2nd/3rd TE types.
Mark Bavaro. Great blocker. Great receiver. Tough as nails. Played with a broken jaw. Arguably made the greatest TE play in history against Ronnie Lott and seven other Niners in ‘86. Injuries cut short an amazing talent. After LT, probably Parcells’ favorite player.
Ron Kramer was one of the pioneers of the position and named to the NFL’s 50th anniversary team. The Lombardi sweep worked best during his years with GB. It is likely that GB never had a TE as good as it’s first one.
What happened to the packers content? The current packers week to week? Am I missing something? Where is that coverage? I’m not interested in McGinns opinion of 40 years ago.
Paul Coffman from the ‘80’s Packers. He was a great complementary option to James Lofton. I always felt he was an underrated player who was a key behind the scenes contributor for some memorable Packer offenses in the 80’s. He came across as humble and a good teammate - always an easy guy to root for. This year’s Packers could sorely use a TE like old #82 on their squad.
Marv Cook was my guy. Absolute shame he got surpassed/overlooked by Ben Coates. He was the Pats only threat on Super Tecmo Bowl.......
Mike Ditka. We saw him in SB 6 in New Orleans in 1972, his last season, when he was with Dallas. He caught a TD pass from Staubach in the end zone right in front of us. It was Dallas's final score. I got a snapshot of it. I still have that picture. Dallas beat Miami 24-3.
No discussion of great tight ends would be complete without the mention of Marv Fleming. He played on many championship teams and made a key block on Bart Starr's quarterback sneak in the Ice Bowl.
John Mackey. The toughest TE to ever bring down. Broke so many tackles, ran over/thru more tacklers than anyone. Gronkowski and Ditka were the closest. Johnny Unitas and Mackey were quite the duo! There are others who were great pass catchers (Winslow, Jackson, Gonzalez, Newsome, Sharpe, etc) but lacked the sheer strength and toughness of Mackey.
Kellen Winslow with Dan Fouts and Air Coryell was fun to watch. The Nat Moore Helicopter catch was the most memorable TE catch for me.
Jason Witten, of course. One of the greatest tight ends. Blocking, catching, shoot, he didn't even need a helmet. He set the standard for TEs for over a decade.
Keith Jackson university of Oklahoma edition. An incredible receiving threat on a wishbone-running team that never passed. Big, athletic, great blocker and very fun to watch.
I always enjoyed watching Ben Coates for the Patriots in the 90s. Big, burly guy. Great hands, always seemed to catch everything. Humble and quiet off the field too. Brent Jones on those great 49ers teams was fun to watch too.
Mark Bavaro from the 80's Giants. One tough TE. Quiet, never injured and always gave it 100%. Never took a down off. Never forgot the 49er game our Championship year on Monday night when he caught a pass over the middle and carried what seemed like the entire 49er Defense literally on h is back for a 20+ yard gain. Amazing.
Mark Bavaro - to me the ultimate “prototypical “ TE - did everything very well and tough physical player. I’ve read that the battles between Bavaro and Carl Banks in practice for years were legendary
Ed West. Just because of his nickname, "The Toolbox." And his longevity, many years in Green Bay, think 13-14 years in NFL, and was never a premier passing game target. Something to be said for guys at that position who play a long, long time and are primarily blockers or 2nd/3rd TE types.
Mark Bavaro. Great blocker. Great receiver. Tough as nails. Played with a broken jaw. Arguably made the greatest TE play in history against Ronnie Lott and seven other Niners in ‘86. Injuries cut short an amazing talent. After LT, probably Parcells’ favorite player.
Tony Gonzalez. Hooper.
Ron Kramer was one of the pioneers of the position and named to the NFL’s 50th anniversary team. The Lombardi sweep worked best during his years with GB. It is likely that GB never had a TE as good as it’s first one.
What happened to the packers content? The current packers week to week? Am I missing something? Where is that coverage? I’m not interested in McGinns opinion of 40 years ago.