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Ed "Too Tall" Jones

Ed "Too Tall" Jones
refer to caption
Jones signs autographs in January 2014.
No. 72
Position: Defensive end
Personal information
Date of birth: (1951-02-23) February 23, 1951 (age 65)
Place of birth: Jackson, Tennessee
Height: 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Weight: 271 lb (123 kg)
Career information
High school: Merry High School
College: Tennessee State
NFL Draft: 1974 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Sacks: 57.5 (unofficially=106)
Fumble Recoveries: 19
Interceptions: 3
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR
Sacks: 57.5 (unofficially=106)
Fumble Recoveries: 19
Interceptions: 3
Player stats at NFL.com

Ed Lee "Too Tall" Jones (born February 23, 1951) is a retired American football player who played 15 seasons (1974–1978, 1980–1989) in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. In 1979, he briefly left football to attempt a career in professional boxing.

Jones was born in Jackson, Tennessee. He attended Merry High School where he played baseball and basketball. He only played three football games, because his high school did not support the sport until his senior year. His basketball skills earned him All-America honors and scholarship offers from several Division I (NCAA) programs. He also had offers from Major League Baseball teams to play first base in their Minor league baseball systems.

As a senior he fought a Golden Gloves boxing match, recording a knockout of his opponent in less than a minute. He stopped shortly after that, when his basketball coach read an article about the fight, and made him choose between basketball and boxing.

He signed with Tennessee State University to play basketball, but left the team after two seasons, to concentrate on playing football under head coach John Merritt.

The 6'9" Jones received his famous nickname during his first football practice, after a teammate mentioned that his pants didn't fit, because he was “too tall to play football". In his new sport, he became a two-time All-American defensive lineman, playing on a team that only lost 2 games, en route to winning the black college football national championship in 1971 and 1973.


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