Sherman Plunkett

Sherman Eugene Plunkett (April 17, 1933 – November 18, 1989) was an American football offensive tackle. Over a ten-year career he played in the National Football League (NFL), for the Baltimore Colts (1958 to 1960), and in the American Football League (AFL) from 1961–1967, for the San Diego Chargers (1961–1962) and the New York Jets (1963–1967). He was an American Football League All-Star in 1964 and 1966 and a 1st Team All-Pro All-AFL in 1966.

Early life Plunkett was born on April 17, 1933, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He attended Frederick Douglass High School in Oklahoma City. At the time, Douglass was a segregated school. Plunkett played on the Douglass Trojans football team as a defensive tackle. As a junior, his 1949 Trojans team won a championship. In 1950, Plunkett was a team co-captain, weighing 247 pounds (112 kg), and known by the nickname "Big Plunk". Plunkett suffered a broken leg during the 1950 season in a game against Tulsa's Booker T. Washington High School. Plunkett, who would have weight issues throughout his career, ballooned up to 280 pounds in high school at one point.

Plunkett was a two-way tackle at Maryland State. His 1955 team went undefeated (9–0) and shut out its last five opponents. In 1954 and 1955, he was named first-team All-Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA). In 1955, he was named a second-team Little All-American and a Pittsburgh Courier All-American. One of his teammates was Johnny Sample, an honorable mention Little All-American in 1955 and first-team All-CIAA (1954-55), who would also be Plunkett's teammate on the Baltimore Colts (1958-60) and New York Jets (1966-67). Like Plunkett, Sample was a member of the Colts 1958-59 championship teams, and was also on the New York Jets team that won Super Bowl III.

Hofstra game While playing for Maryland State, he was involved in a gesture of good sportsmanship, when its coach told its players to ease up on their overmatched and under-manned opponents, Hofstra University. The then Flying Dutchmen of Hofstra had started the season with just twenty players before suffering injuries, and were in danger of having their program disbanded. Leading 28-0 early in the game, Maryland State intentionally never scored again in the game. He was the last man cut by coach Paul Brown, and did not make the 1956 Browns team. Future Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame defensive end Willie Davis was also on that All-Army team.

A free agent after leaving the Army, he was signed as a two-way tackle by the Baltimore Colts in 1958; though he chiefly played on kickoff and punt return teams that year, and did not start any games at tackle. During training camp, he would be the last one on the field, running extra laps until the coaches stopped him. In the game's first quarter, Plunkett's punt coverage resulted in the Giant's punt returner losing 10 yards in an effort to avoid Plunkett. The victory resulted in both his and the Colts' first ever title win. They would repeat together in 1959, again beating the Giants in the championship game.

During his three years in Baltimore, Plunkett never became a starter. Before the 1960 season, Ewbank thought about playing Plunkett at defensive tackle, but was concerned Plunkett lacked aggression.

Plunkett was known as "Big Boy" on the Colts, with his weight fluctuating between 280 (127 kg) to 320 pounds (145.1 kg). Still, he was one of the league's fastest moving linemen, and one of the fastest among all of the Colts players, having run the 50-yard dash in 4.9 seconds (while weighing over 280 pounds). The Colts offered Plunkett a $500 bonus if he reported to training camp at 275 pounds, but he came in at 300 pounds. Less than 10 days after that, the San Diego Chargers of the one-year old American Football League signed Plunkett.

The Chargers star offensive tackle Ron Mix (a future Pro Football Hall of Famer) had been called to National Guard service, and it was hoped Plunkett could fill in for Mix. Plunkett started eight games at tackle in 1961.

Mix returned to right tackle for the Chargers in 1963.

New York Jets With the Jets, Plunkett would once again be under head coach Weeb Ewbank, and once again have to deal with Ewbank's concerns over Plunkett's weight.

Plunkett became the Jets regular starting right tackle from 1963 to 1967. In 1965, the NEA again named him second-team All-AFL, as did the Associated Press (AP). In 1966, the AP named him first-team All-AFL. Plunkett started all 14 Jets games in 1967; his most valuable skill for the Jets, had declined during the 1967 season from prior years.

Over Plunkett's years with the Jets, Ewbank had unsuccessfully tried weight loss bonuses, a $1,000 incentive for Plunkett's wife to bring his weight down, and fines to keep Plunkett under 300 pounds; but nothing worked. In mid-August, the Jets finally waived Plunkett, making the 1967 season his last in professional football.

Weight Plunkett's weight may have been viewed differently in a later era. Plunkett has been described as "a lineman with a giant paunch but dancing feet".

The average weight of the Super Bowl I champion Green Bay Packers' offensive line of 1966 was 247 lb., with its two offensive tackles each weighing 250 lb. (Hall of Famer Forrest Gregg and Bob Skoronski). In 2003, over 200 offensive linemen weighed in excess of 300 pounds, with the average weights of each team's offensive line ranging from 295.8 lb. to 322.8 lb. These greater weights, however, raised greater concerns about health risks to the linemen.

Ironically, one of Ewbank's defining physical characteristics as the Jets coach was his notably "rotund" physique. Namath once called the 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) 195 lb. (88.5 kg) Ewbank a "little butterball".

Personal life Plunkett had made his home in West Baltimore. After retiring from professional football, Annapolis, Maryland mayor Roger Moyer offered Plunkett a job in the city's recreation department, where he worked with children for the next 17 years, with a focus on children in public housing. He is buried in Oklahoma City.