Paul Martha

John Paul Martha (June 22, 1942 – February 4, 2023) was an American professional football player who was a safety for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He later entered the practice of law.

Early life Martha played high school athletics at Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh, where he was a star quarterback, graduating in 1960.

College career Martha played college football and basketball at the University of Pittsburgh. After playing quarterback in 1961, he moved to running back, where he became a consensus All-American in his second season at the new position. In 1962, he led Pitt in both receiving and scoring. He led the Panthers to a 9–1 record as a senior in 1963, and after the season he played in the East-West Shrine Game, the Hula Bowl and the College All-Star game.

NFL career Martha was selected in the first round (10th overall) of the 1964 NFL draft by his hometown Pittsburgh Steelers.

In his rookie season of 1964, Martha caught six passes for 145 yards (a 24.2 average) and rushed four times for 12 yards. He also returned 13 punts and one kick. In 1965, he caught 11 passes for 171 yards (a 15.5 average) and rushed two times for three yards. He spent the next four seasons as a full-time safety on defense, and in those four seasons he recorded a total of 15 interceptions.

After the 1969 season, his sixth and last one in Pittsburgh, he played for the Denver Broncos in 1970, picking off a career-high six passes for 99 return yards.