Rickey Jackson

Sport: Football

Induction Year: 1999

Induction Year: 1999

By Sheldon Mickles

Baton Rouge Advocate

In his 15 NFL seasons as an outside linebacker, where jarring hits and violent collisions make it one of the most hazardous positions to play, the only thing that could slow Rickey Jackson down was Father Time.

That’s not to say Jackson, the most durable player to buckle up a chinstrap in New Orleans Saints’ history, didn’t try to pull the wool over the eyes of his most formidable opponent in the summer of 1997.

Nineteen months after Jackson retired from the San Francisco 49ers, who signed him in 1994 when the Saints broke off contract negotiations with the unrestricted free agent, the six-time Pro Bowl pick tried to make a comeback with the Saints — the team he spent 13 seasons with after being chosen in the second round of the 1981 draft.

The mind was certainly willing, but Jackson’s 39-year-old body told him differently after three exhibition games. He retired for good, but not before leaving an indelible mark on the franchise and community as a consummate Sunday warrior.

“I came back about 90 percent and never got to 100 percent,” said Jackson, now a defensive assistant on Mike Ditka’s coaching staff with the Saints. “I was satisfied with it, I just wasn’t the old Rickey Jackson.”

The old Rickey Jackson. That’s what helped make the former University of Pittsburgh linebacker, already a member of the Superdome’s Wall of Fame, a natural to be the fourth Saints’ player elected to the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame based solely on his career with them.

Perhaps the most popular player to ever suit up for the club and still revered by Saints’ fans, the native of Pahokee, Fla., will join Danny Abramowicz, Archie Manning and Dalton Hilliard in the Hall.

Jackson, who was drafted by former Saints coach Bum Phillips after being overshadowed by All-American linebacker Hugh Green at Pittsburgh, also left his mark (often black and blue) on opposing quarterbacks and ball carriers in college and the pros.

A 3-4 outside linebacker who combined speed, strength and quickness to become one of the NFL’s premier pass-rushers and run-stoppers, Jackson ended his career with 128 official sacks — which still ranks seventh on the league’s all-time list going into the 1999 season.

Counting the sacks Jackson had before it became an individual stat in 1982, he accumulated 136 in his career. He picked up 123 (115 official) of those when he was the heart and soul of the Saints’ defense from 1981-93 — earning Pro Bowl invitations from 1983-86 and in 1992-93.

The imposing 6-foot-2, 245-pounder led the team in sacks for six of his 13 years with the club, averaging 9.5 sacks a season. Jackson totaled 11.5 sacks in 1991 and a career-high 13.5 in `92, helping the Saints rank second in the NFL both years in scoring defense and fewest yards allowed.

It’s no coincidence that the Saints won a total of 23 games those two years, going 11-5 in 1991 when they won the only division title in franchise history and 12-4 the following year.

“Rickey had a tremendous career with us and he helped us win a lot of games,” said former Saints head coach Jim Mora. “Two of the things that marked Rickey’s career with the Saints was he showed up every day to (practice), and he showed up every Sunday and played hard.

“He was a good example to the younger players when he became a more veteran player, and he was a very, very tough guy,” Mora said. “He was a heck of a leader and a guy you wanted to go to war with. You knew he would give it his best shot at all times and play like crazy … you could always count on him and depend on him.”

The Saints depended on Jackson a lot — and he rarely let them down. He played in 227 regular-season games (195 in his career with New Orleans) and started every game he played in while with the Saints.

In this day and age of specialization, Jackson was a throwback in that he rarely came off the field. He took on younger linemen who outweighed him by 60 or more pounds to rush the passer, delivered crushing blows to running backs, and dropped into pass coverage when needed.

He averaged 85 tackles a year with the Saints and also had a nose for the ball, recovering 26 fumbles for them and two more with the 49ers to rank second on the NFL’s all-time list with 28.

But his greatest pleasure came from tossing younger linemen aside and making life miserable for vulnerable quarterbacks from his menacing defensive stance.

“That’s who puts you in the Pro Bowl — the guys you beat up during the season,” Jackson said. “They would look at film and try to figure ways to stay away from Rickey Jackson.”

If he couldn’t get to the quarterback to make the sack, Jackson forced them to step up into the pocket and into the arms of a teammate. Incredibly, most of Jackson’s sacks came from the left side of the defense — which means right-handed quarterbacks often saw him coming and still couldn’t escape.

Jackson made big play after big play with the Saints, making him the most popular player in the Superdome and in the locker room with his teammates who took notice of his dedication and desire.

“You can talk all the talk you want, but it ain’t worth a quarter unless you go out and do it,” said former LSU and Saints wide receiver Eric Martin, who played with Jackson from 1985-93. “Rickey did it. Every down, every game.”

The amazing thing is Jackson did it even though he never used knee pads or thigh pads, never taped his ankles and rarely saw the inside of the team’s training room.

Heading into what would be his final season with the Saints, a reporter figured out that Jackson, who didn’t wear equipment when he played as a kid, would take part in his 1,700th practice with the team early in 1993.

Fittingly, Jackson’s locker at the old Saints practice facility was far away from the training room and located next to the door that led to the practice field — as was his locker at the University of Pittsburgh.

“From Day One, I never had another locker,” Jackson said proudly. “First one to the door, first one to the practice field. That’s the way I always wanted it.”

While he hardly ever missed practice, Jackson never missed an NFL game because of an injury on the field.

He played an entire season with a broken thumb, started a 1990 game just two days after having hemorrhoid surgery, and played an entire game against the Los Angeles Rams while battling a stomach flu that hospitalized him for two days following the contest.

The night before a home game in 1983, Jackson had to be rushed to a hospital where he was diagnosed with pleurisy. After spending the night there to be treated, he was released and made it to the Superdome in time to pull on his uniform and play the whole game.

As it turned out, the only thing that could keep Jackson off the field –besides player strikes in 1982 and `87 –was a near-fatal collision with the rear of a flatbed pickup truck early in the 1989 season. Heading home late one night after returning from a road game, Jackson was driving at a high speed when he crashed into the truck. Miraculously, he suffered only a fractured cheekbone and walked away from the wreckage.

Jackson had to undergo surgery to repair the cheekbone, which included wiring his jaw shut. But he was back in the lineup after missing just two games when doctors said he would be sidelined from four to six weeks.

“He was back out there before anybody thought he could play,” said former Carolina Panthers coach Dom Capers, who was on the Saints’ staff when the accident happened. “That’s the type of player Rickey was.”