Give Me 1 Good Reason Why Jets' Klecko Shouldn't Be In Hall Of Fame

By Thomas Hensch

One of the biggest travesties in professional sports history is the exclusion of former Jets great Joe Klecko from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The best description of Klecko came from legendary actor Jackie Gleason in the 1980 film "Smokey and the Bandit II.” Joe had a small part in this film playing himself, driving a tractor trailer, which Joe actually did in the offseason. In the scene, Gleason's character, Sheriff Buford T. Justice, confronts Klecko, who is in the driver’s side of the big rig, yelling and cursing at him to move the truck. Klecko gets out of the truck, and Sheriff Justice has this terrified look and says "Oh my God! It’s that big ‘ole bulldog, Joe Klecko" … and then Klecko bends his sheriff badge in half with his own bare hands.

Big ‘ole bulldog Klecko was legendary for his feats of strength both off and on the field. In the 1989 book, Nose to Nose: Survival in the Trenches, by Klecko, ex-Jets center and teammate Joe Fields and Newsday reporter Greg Logan, there are some awesome stories about Joe's strength.

Want examples? Sure you do:

* Klecko was able to bend a quarter between his fingers.

* Klecko was once at a New Year’s Eve celebration with teammate Dan Alexander, a 6-foot-4, 274-pound guard (then considered actually big in the NFL). Alexander's son asked Klecko how strong he was and Joe, wearing his tuxedo, picked up Dan and military pressed him over his head, tearing up his tuxedo. Klecko then, while still holding the guy over his head, looked at Alexander’s son and said, “This Strong."
* During his days with the Jets, Klecko played with a 250-pound fullback named Dwayne Crutchfield. One day they were in the locker room before practice and Crutchfield was talking smack, telling Klecko wasn't the man. Then, in one swift move, Klecko picked up Crutchfield and put the visibly shaken man on top of the locker.

As great as those tales are, Klecko’s on-the-field power was equally impressive as he often left his teammates in disbelief. He once described how he bull-rushed Hall of Fame offensive tackle Anthony Munoz, who stood 6-6 and actually made Klecko look small. He picked up Munoz under his pads and threw him 10 feet into the quarterback.

Munoz later said, "In my 13 seasons Joe is right there at the top of the defensive players I had to block, up there with Fred Dean, Lee Roy Selmon and Bruce Smith.

“Joe was the strongest guy I ever faced. He had perfect technique -- hands in tight, great leverage. My second year, 1981, we went to Shea and beat the Jets, 31-30, but he was such an intense, smart player, I knew I was in a battle. He was the leader, the guy who kept the unit together."

"In my 13 seasons Joe is right there at the top of the defensive players I had to block, up there with Fred Dean, Lee Roy Selmon and Bruce Smith." -- Anthony Munoz

In addition, Hall of Fame guard Joe Delamielleure had made the most compelling argument for Klecko's enshrinement into the Hall of Fame.

"You can't think of his 10-year period without him. I had to block Joe Greene and Merlin Olsen when I was playing and, believe me, Joe Klecko was equal to those two guys,” Delamielleure said.

"If Joe Klecko had played one position for 10 years, he’d have been considered one of the top two or three players at that position, whichever one it was. There’s not another player who went to the Pro Bowl at three different positions. You take a defensive end and put him at nose tackle and he’s just as good there, that’s a great player. We need to get Joe Klecko in the Hall of Fame."

A fellow "New York Sack Exchange" member had this to say about Klecko after the Jets tried to market him and Mark Gastineau as just a "twosome" for the team's quarterback sacks.

“Joe told them, ‘It’s not just Mark and me, it’s the four of us,’” Marty Lyons recalled, referring as well to Abdul Salaam. “Joe told them, ‘If you’re going to market the four of us, OK, but if you’re only going to market two of us, no.’”

In all, Klecko played 11 seasons with the Jets (1977-87) before finishing his career with the Colts. He was the first player in NFL history to make the Pro Bowl at three different positions: defensive end (1981), defensive tackle (1983, ‘84) and nose tackle (1985). He had 20½ sacks in 1981, among his many achievements.

I had the privilege of meeting Klecko in 1987 while I was bouncing at the Long Island Marriott, sporting my blonde Brian Bosworth “Boz” haircut. For those who’ve seen me on Twitter, it’s probably hard to believe I once had hair, but I did. Klecko was a great guy and was very gracious.

The bottom line is this guy belongs in Canton. The experts have spoken and it’s nearly impossible to refute what he achieved in his career. So the Jets didn’t win a Super Bowl when he played. That shouldn’t mean anything.

The Hall of Fame is a place for individuals who are bigger than the game.

For me, and many thousands out there like me, there were none bigger than No. 73.

Thomas Hensch, otherwise known as @tommyjets on Twitter, is a lifelong fan and Gang Green eternal optimist. Please follow him on Twitter.