Doug Atkins

Doug Atkins

Atkins on a 1954 Bowman football card
No. 81, 91
Position:	Defensive end
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1930-05-08)May 8, 1930
Place of birth:	Humboldt, Tennessee
Date of death:	December 30, 2015(2015-12-30) (aged 85)
Place of death:	Knoxville, Tennessee
Height:	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Weight:	257 lb (117 kg)
Career information
High school:	Humboldt (TN)
College:	Tennessee
NFL Draft:	1953 / Round: 1 / Pick: 11
Career history
Cleveland Browns (1953–1954) Chicago Bears (1955–1966) New Orleans Saints (1967–1969)
Career highlights and awards
2× NFL champion (1954, 1963) 8× Pro Bowl (1957–1963, 1965) 4× First-team All-Pro (1958, 1960, 1961, 1963) 6× Second-team All-Pro (1957, 1959, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1968) NFL 1960s All-Decade Team New Orleans Saints No. 81 retired Tennessee Volunteers No. 91 retired
Career NFL statistics
Games played: 205 Interceptions: 3 Player stats at NFL.com
Pro Football Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame

Douglas Leon Atkins (May 8, 1930 – December 30, 2015) was an American football defensive end who played for the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears, and New Orleans Saints in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the University of Tennessee under legendary head coach Robert Neyland. He is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Atkins was a fierce defender who was known for using his immense size and agility to his advantage. At 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m), Atkins often batted passes down at the line of scrimmage and used his skills as a high jump champion to leapfrog blockers and get to the quarterback. Atkins was one of the first great exclusively defensive players in professional football and, along with fellow Hall of Famer Gino Marchetti, revolutionized the defensive end position.

Atkins was born May 8, 1930, in Humboldt, Tennessee. He attended Humboldt High School and played for the school's basketball team, which won the state championship in 1949 with an undefeated record. He enrolled at the University of Tennessee to play for the Tennessee Volunteers of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) on a basketball scholarship, but once American football head coach Bob Neyland saw his combination of size and agility, he was recruited for the football team. Atkins played on the 1951 Tennessee Volunteers football team that won the national championship. He earned All-America honors in 1952. Atkins is one of the few players in Tennessee history to have his number retired. He was considered one of the, if not the, most dominant defensive players in SEC history. Atkins was the only unanimous selection to the SEC All Quarter-Century team and was selected as the overall SEC "Player of the Quarter-Century" for the years 1950 to 1975.