Ike Lassiter

Isaac "Ike" Thomas Lassiter (November 15, 1940 – February 15, 2015) was an American football defensive end who played in the American Football League (AFL) for the Denver Broncos and the Oakland Raiders, where he was an AFL All-Star in 1966 and second-team All-AFL twice. His unofficial 17 quarterback sacks in 1967 is the AFL record for sacks by a player in a single season. He then played in the National Football League (NFL) with the Boston / New England Patriots for two seasons. He finally played in the World Football League (WFL) with the Jacksonville Sharks for one year.

Early life Lassiter was born on November 15, 1940, in Wilson, North Carolina. He was the oldest of nine children, born to Dempsey and Mary Jane (Bynum) Lassiter. He attended Charles H. Darden High School, where he starred on the football team.

College career Lassiter received a football scholarship to attend Saint Augustine College in Raleigh, North Carolina. He was invited to play in the December 1961 All American Bowl in Tucson, Arizona.

Lassiter received a Bachelor of Arts degree in physical education, with a minor in psychology. He signed with the Rams. After only three weeks in the Rams training camp, he joined the AFL's Denver Broncos.

Lassiter started five of the 14 games in which he played for the Broncos in 1962, playing left defensive end. He had two quarterback sacks. The next season, he started all seven games in which he played, with 3.5 sacks. In 1964, he played in only two games for the Broncos, starting one game and having one sack. By 1964, Lassiter perceived himself to be the subject of unduly harsh treatment by the Broncos coaches; including being subjected to ridicule in front of other players. He became embittered and was released during the 1964 season.

In 1966, Lassiter again started all 14 Raiders' games at left defensive end. He had 10 sacks (tied for the team lead with left defensive tackle Dan Birdwell) and one interception. Their 10 sacks were third most in the AFL. He was selected to play in the January 1967 AFL All-Star Game, along with Raiders' right defensive end Ben Davidson and right defensive tackle Tom Keating; and was named second-team All-AFL by the Associated Press (AP), as was Keating. The Raiders led the AFL with 36 sacks.

In the 1967 regular season the Raiders team had a won–lost record of 13–1. Lassiter led the Raiders with 17 sacks, the most by any player in the AFL. Sacks did not become an official statistic until 1982, but unofficially, Lassiter's 17 sacks were the most in a single season during the AFL's 10-year history. In 1967, Birdwell had 14.5 sacks, Davidson and Keating each had nine, and right linebacker Gus Otto had 8.5. Overall, the Raiders combined for a league-leading total of 67 sacks and 665 yards lost that season, the 67 sacks being the record in a 14–game season and the total yards lost an all-time record. The all-time record for sacks is 72, accomplished by the 1984 Chicago Bears in a 16–game season.

The Raiders defeated the Houston Oilers, 40–7 in the 1967 AFL championship game. Lassiter considered this game his biggest thrill as a player.

The Raiders 1967 defense was known as "the eleven angry men". New York Jets future Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath suffered a broken jaw in a December 17 loss to the Raiders, 38–29. It was originally believed that this came on a famous play where Davidson viciously hit Namath and Namath's helmet flew off of his head. However, the injury was suffered earlier in the game on a big hit from Lassiter. Raiders' owner Al Davis said later that Lassiter was upset Davidson got the credit. Lassiter himself said it was him and not Davidson who broke Namath's jaw, but that he had more respect for Namath than many other of the top quarterbacks of his era, because "He'd take your best shot. He didn't duck like a lot of quarterbacks. ... but Namath would hold the ball until the final second and stand up to you". The Raiders set an all-time record in leading the AFL in sacks from 1966 to 1968. He played in the November 17 Raiders' 43–32 victory over the Jets. In the third quarter, Lassiter and Davidson had sacked Namath to stop a Jets' drive that had reached the Raiders' 15-yard line. In the fourth quarter, the Jets took a 32–29 lead with a little over one minute left in the game. The Raiders came back to score two touchdowns in less than one minute to win the game. The game was nationally televised, but the last minute of the game was preempted on television by the children's movie Heidi; and those who had been watching the game missed seeing the Raiders' comeback. The game became known as the Heidi Game.

The Raiders finished the 1968 season 12–2. They defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, 41–6 in the first round of the playoffs; but lost to the Jets in the AFL championship game, 27–23. Lassiter had ½ sack in that game. The Jets came from behind in the fourth quarter to win the championship game. At the time, Lassiter was in shock from that loss for two days, and it stuck with him for years. Lassiter was selected second-team All-AFL by the AP, United Press International (UPI), and Pro Football Weekly. The Raiders finished the season 12–1–1. They defeated the Oilers in the first round of the playoffs 56–7. Lassiter had three sacks in that game. The Kansas City Chiefs, whom the Raiders had defeated twice in the regular season, beat the Raiders in the 1969 AFL championship game, 17–7. Lassiter recovered a fumble in that game. Like the Jets a year earlier, the Chiefs went on to win the Super Bowl.

Boston/New England Patriots At the end of August 1970, the Raiders traded Lassiter to the Boston Patriots for an undisclosed 1971 draft pick. In the first game of the 1970 season, the Patriots' defensive line of Lassiter (left end), Jim Lee Hunt (left tackle), Ron Berger (right tackle) and Houston Antwine (right end) set a Patriot team record with eight sacks. Lassiter started and played in only five games in 1970, with 3.5 sacks, before suffering a season-ending injury. He started 12 games in 1971 at left defensive end with the renamed New England Patriots, with three sacks.

End of playing career Lassiter was traded to the Washington Redskins in 1972 for an undisclosed draft pick. Washington released him in early August 1972. He sat out the next two seasons, but played for the Jacksonville Sharks in 1974 in the World Football League. He was the Sharks' player representative.

Legacy and honors Lassiter started every Oakland Raider game at left defensive end from 1965 to 1969. He had 61.5 sacks during that span. From 1966 to 1969, he had at least 10 sacks per season, and twice had 15 or more sacks during that time. In commenting on his football career, he often said "Once a Raider, Always a Raider".

Personal life and death The 1970 trade sending Lassiter to Boston occurred just weeks before his wife was due to have a baby, and Lassiter considered retiring. His wife was in California, where he also had an insurance business, and he was concerned about leaving her. He decided to play after discussing the issue with Patriots' coach Clive Rush.

After retiring from football Lassiter stayed in Oakland. He taught in the Oakland Unified School District. He also worked as a counselor at Peralta College East Bay Skills Center, and coached football at Merritt College, as well as for a semi-professional team (the Fairfield Flyers). He also served his local church in Oakland during his life there.