Dave Jennings

David Tuthill Jennings (June 8, 1952 – June 19, 2013) was an American professional football punter who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New York Giants. He played college football for the St. Lawrence Saints and began his NFL career in 1974 with the Giants, where he spent his first 11 seasons. In his final three seasons, he was a member of the New York Jets.

During his Giants career, Jennings led the league in punting yards twice during the 1979 and 1980 seasons in addition to having the most average punting yards during the latter. Jennings also received four Pro Bowl and two first-team All-Pro selections. After retiring as a player, he was a radio color commentator for Jets and Giants games from 1988 2007. He was inducted to the New York Giants Ring of Honor in 2011 and named among the 100 greatest New York Giants of all-time in 2024.

Life and career Jennings played both college football and college basketball and graduated from St. Lawrence University in 1974. As a high school student, he did not play football. He lettered in both football and basketball at St. Lawrence, and was inducted to the St. Lawrence Saints hall of fame in 1988.

After graduating from St. Lawrence, Jennings was not drafted, and briefly signed with the Houston Oilers as a practice squad member until he was released and recruited to the New York Giants as a free agent. He then moved to commenting on Giants games from 2002 until 2007, when he was replaced by former Giants linebacker Carl Banks. During this time, Jennings worked as a game analyst alongside fellow WFAN Giants announcers Bob Papa and Dick Lynch. In addition to his booth work, Jennings was a part of the Giants pre- and post-game shows, covering player interviews from the locker room.

Dave Jennings was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1995, and publicly revealed his condition in 2005. It was speculated around when he retired from broadcasting in 2008 that fatigue due to Parkinson's may have been the cause of his change in broadcasting roles and eventual retirement.

NFL career statistics Legend Led the league Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Punting Punts 1974 NYG 14 68 2,709 1,991 64 39.8 28.4 2 - 12 1975 NYG 14 76 3,107 2,663 64 40.9 35.0 0 - 4 1976 NYG 14 74 3,054 2,354 61 41.3 30.6 3 11 10 1977 NYG 14 100 3,993 3,233 58 39.9 32.3 0 19 4 1978 NYG 16 95 3,995 3,151 68 42.1 33.2 0 18 11 1979 NYG 16 104 4,445 3,818 72 42.7 36.7 0 19 9 1980 NYG 16 94 4,211 3,445 63 44.8 36.6 0 16 13 1981 NYG 16 97 4,198 3,397 62 43.3 35.0 0 19 12 1982 NYG 9 49 2,096 1,829 73 42.8 37.3 0 16 3 1983 NYG 16 84 3,386 3,003 66 40.3 35.3 1 29 5 1984 NYG 16 90 3,598 2,919 54 40.0 31.4 3 22 10 1985 NYJ 16 74 2,978 2,499 66 40.2 33.8 0 23 8 1986 NYJ 16 85 3,353 3,068 55 39.4 36.1 0 27 6 1987 NYJ 12 64 2,444 2,224 58 38.2 34.8 0 12 6 Career 205 1,154 47,567 39,594 73 41.2 34.0 9 231 113

Playoffs Year Team Punting Punts 1981 NYG 2 8 349 311 51 43.6 38.9 0 2 0 1984 NYG 2 10 381 357 47 38.1 35.7 0 5 0 1985 NYJ 1 5 192 180 49 38.4 36.0 0 1 0 1986 NYJ 2 17 646 556 55 38.0 30.9 1 1 1 Career 7 40 1,568 1,404 55 39.2 34.2 1 9 1