John Wooten

John B. Wooten (born December 5, 1936) is an American former professional football player who was a guard for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Cleveland Browns and Washington Redskins. Wooten played college football for the Colorado Buffaloes and was selected in the fifth round of the 1959 NFL draft.

Early life Wooten was born in Riverview, Texas. His family then moved to Carlsbad, New Mexico and he attended segregated schools through the 9th grade, before attending the newly-integrated Carlsbad High School. He was also selected as one of 25 members of Colorado's All-Century Team in 1989, honoring the school’s first 100 years of intercollegiate football. During that time, he blocked for Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown, widely regarded as one of the top running backs in NFL history. Brown led the league in rushing for six of the seven seasons Wooten served as one of his blockers, and was the NFL Most Valuable Player in 1965 with 1,544 yards and a league-best 21 touchdowns. On July 19, 1968, he was released from the Browns by owner Art Modell. The Washington Redskins signed Wooten in August, and he played his final year with them.

Front office After retiring from football, Wooten worked for a short time as a sports agent at Pro Sports Advisors from 1973 to 1975. He then became a scout with the Dallas Cowboys from 1975 to 1979. He was promoted to Director of Pro Personnel in 1980. In 1992, he moved to the role of Player Personnel with the Philadelphia Eagles. He was promoted to Vice President of Player Personnel in 1994. In 1998, he moved to the Baltimore Ravens Assistant Director of Pro and College Scouting. In 2000, he began to prepare for his eventual retirement, taking a step back to work as a consultant with the Ravens until 2003.

Fritz Pollard Alliance In 2003, Wooten became the Chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance, an advocacy group who works in conjunction with the National Football League as it relates to minority hiring in coaching, scouting and front office positions.