| No. 72 | |||||||||
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| Position | Offensive tackle | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1949-06-29)June 29, 1949 (age 76) Canton, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 275 lb (125 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Canton Glenwood (Plain Township, Ohio) | ||||||||
| College | Michigan (1968–1970) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1971: 2nd round, 43rd overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Daniel Lee Dierdorf (born June 29, 1949) is an Americansportscaster and former professionalfootball player. He played 13 seasons (1971–1983) as anoffensive tackle for theSt. Louis Cardinals of theNational Football League (NFL).
Dierdorf playedcollege football for theMichigan Wolverines from 1968 to 1970 and was selected as a consensusAll-America in 1970 and a first-teamAll-Big Ten Conference player in 1969 and 1970. He was inducted into theUniversity of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor in 1996 and theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
Playing in the NFL for St. Louis, he was selected by theNational Football League Players Association as the Offensive Lineman of the Year for three consecutive years from 1976 to 1978. Between 1974 and 1980, he played in thePro Bowl six times and was chosen as a first-teamAll-Pro five times. He was named to theNFL 1970s All-Decade Team and was inducted into thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Since his playing career ended, Dierdorf has worked as a broadcaster. He worked for theAmerican Broadcasting Company (ABC) from 1987 to 1999, including 12 seasons ascolor analyst onMonday Night Football. He was then part of theNFL on CBS team as an announcer for 15 years from 1999 to 2013. For the 2014 through 2021 seasons, he was the color analyst for Michigan Wolverines football radio broadcasts. In 2008, Dierdorf received thePete Rozelle Radio-Television Award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Dierdorf was born in 1949 inCanton, Ohio,[1] the son of John and Evelyn Dierdorf. He grew up near the site of thePro Football Hall of Fame and watched as a boy as the museum was under construction. His father worked much of his life for theHoover Vacuum Company, which was headquartered inNorth Canton.[2] Dierdorf attended Glenwood High School (now known asGlenOak High School) in Canton.[1] He played football and also competed in thediscus throw andshot put while in high school.[3] A lightly recruited prospect from Canton, Ohio, Dierdorf looked into a number of Midwestern schools with hopes of landing a football scholarship but did not receive offers from Notre Dame or Michigan State. Ohio State coach Woody Hayes spoke at Dierdorf's high school graduation but didn't think Dierdorf was talented enough to be a Buckeye.[4]
Dierdorf enrolled at theUniversity of Michigan in 1967, having been recruited byMichigan Wolverines football coachBump Elliott. He played on both offense and defense for Michigan's all-freshman football team in 1967.[5][6] As a freshman, he was also the training adversary for NCAA heavyweight wrestling championDave Porter.[5]
As a sophomore, Dierdorf started nine of ten games at the right offensive tackle position for the1968 Michigan football team that compiled an 8–2 record inBump Elliott's final season as head coach.[7] Elliott called Dierdorf "without a doubt" his "most active and talented offensive lineman".[8] In Michigan's victory overWisconsin, Dierdorf played a key role blocking forRon Johnson as Johnson set an NCAA record with 347 rushing yards and a Big Ten record with five rushing touchdowns.[9][10] Dierdorf was credited with opening gaping holes on three of Johnson's touchdown runs. Michigan assistant coachTony Mason said, "He just blew people out of Johnson's way like they weren't even there."[8] Dierdorf received second-teamAll-Big Ten honors from theAssociated Press (AP) in 1968.[11]
Dierdorf sustained a knee injury on the first play of the 1968Michigan–Ohio State game, and his ability to return to the team remained doubtful until the start of the 1969 season.[12]
In 1969,Bo Schembechler took over as Michigan's coach and led the1969 team to aBig Ten Conference championship and a No. 9 ranking in the finalAP Poll.[13] Dierdorf started seven games at right offensive tackle and one at left offensive tackle.[13] At six feet, four inches, and 255 pounds, he was the team's strong tackle, switching from one side of the line to the other, so that he could lead the play no matter which way it went.[12] Michigan's 1969 season culminated with a 24–12 upset victory over No. 1Ohio State. For his performance in the Ohio State game, Dierdorf received the UPI's Lineman of the Week award.[14]
Dierdorf was selected by both theAssociated Press (AP) andUnited Press International (UPI) as a first-team player on the1969 All-Big Ten Conference football team.[15][16] He also received second-team All-America honors from the Central Press.[17]
As a senior, Dierdorf started nine games at right tackle and one at left tackle for the1970 Michigan team that compiled a 9–1 record.[18] At an October 1970 press luncheon, coach Schembechler opined that Dierdorf was "as good as any tackle in the country" with "good quickness, wonderful strength, smartness, and competitiveness, and he's a great leader."[19] Asking if Dierdorf had any faults, Schembechler paused, then answered his own question: "Faults? Hummmm. He's got big feet and it's hard to fit him into shoes. That's all I can think of."[19] Dierdorf was a consensus first-team pick on the1970 College Football All-America Team,[20] receiving first-team honors from theAmerican Football Coaches Association, the AP,[21] theFootball Writers Association of America,[22] theNewspaper Enterprise Association,[23] and the UPI.[24] He was also picked by both the AP and UPI as a first-team All-Big Ten player,[25][26] and was picked to play in three post-season all-star games: theEast–West Shrine Game,[27]Hula Bowl,[28] andCollege All-Star Game.[5]
Dierdorf was selected by theSt. Louis Cardinals in the second round (43rd overall pick) of the1971 NFL draft.[1] As a rookie in 1971, he appeared in 12 games, six as a starter. During the 1972 and 1973 seasons, Dierdorf became a fixture in the Cardinals' offensive line, starting all 14 games both years.[1][29] However, the Cardinals continued to struggle, compiling identical 4–9–1 records all three years.[30] Dierdorf played at theoffensive guard andoffensive tackle positions in 1971 and 1972 before settling in at the offensive tackle in 1973.[31]
From 1974 to 1976, Dierdorf started every game at right tackle for the Cardinals during a three-year span in which the team compiled records of 10–4, 11–3, and 10–4 under head coachDon Coryell.[1][30] In 1977, Dierdorf sustained a broken jaw and missed two games to injury as the Cardinals fell to 7–7.[1][30] In 1978, Dierdorf started all 16 games at right tackle for the Cardinals.[1]
During his peak years from 1974 to 1978, Dierdorf was regarded as one of the best offensive linemen in the NFL. He was selected by theNational Football League Players Association as the Offensive Lineman of the Year for three consecutive years from 1976 to 1978.[32] The Cardinals' offensive line, led by Dierdorf,Conrad Dobler, andTom Banks, led the NFL with the fewest sacks allowed for three years (and theNational Football Conference for five years) in the mid-1970s.[31][33] In 1975, the group set an NFL record, allowing only eight sacks in 14 games.[31]
Dierdorf did not allow a sack during the entire 1976 and 1977 seasons. His streak ended in the first game of the 1978 season whenChicago Bears defensive endTommy Hart tallied two sacks against Dierdorf. Dierdorf had not given up a sack since the 1975 NFC Divisional playoff game whenJack Youngblood sackedJim Hart.[citation needed]
Dierdorf was selected to play in thePro Bowl for five consecutive years from 1974 to 1978.[1] Dierdorf also received first-team All-NFL honors as follows: in 1975 from thePro Football Writers Association (PFWA); in 1976 from theAssociated Press (AP), PFWA,Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), andPro Football Weekly (PFW); in 1977 from AP, PFWA, NEA, and PFW; and in 1978 from AP, PFWA, NEA, PFW.[1] He was named as the NFC choice for the NFLPA/Coca-Cola Offensive Lineman of the Year Award three straight years (1976–78) and was theSeagram's Seven Crowns of Sports Offensive Lineman of the Year in 1975. He also won theForrest Gregg Award for NFL Offensive Lineman of the Year in 1975.
On September 9, 1979, Dierdorf sustained torn ligaments in his left knee during an extra point attempt in the second quarter of the second game of the season against theNew York Giants. After the game, Dierdorf said, "The knee was completely out of the socket. It moved a couple of inches off to the side. My leg was all twisted around and my foot was pointing in the wrong direction. It was painful. Very painful."[34] Dierdorf was carried off the field on a stretcher, underwent knee surgery, and missed the remainder of the 1979 season.[34][35]
Dierdorf returned to the Cardinals in 1980,[36] starting all 16 games for the team at right tackle in both the 1980 and 1981 seasons.[1] In 1980, he was selected to play in the Pro Bowl and was selected as a first-team All-NFL player by the NEA.[1] In 1982, Dierdorf moved to center and was the starter at that position for all nine games in a strike-shortened season.[33]
In 1983, Dierdorf returned to his right tackle position and appeared in seven games, only four as a starter.[1] On October 11, 1983, after the Cardinals began the season with a 1–5 record, Dierdorf announced that he would retire at the end of the 1983 season. At the press conference announcing his retirement, Dierdorf said, "This was an easy decision for me to make. . . . Physically, I just can't play the type of game I want to." He added: "Ninety-five percent of me is sad that I'm retiring, but my knees are very, very happy."[37]
In January 1984, after retiring as a player, Dierdorf was hired as an afternoon talk show host byKMOX radio in St. Louis.[38][39] In the fall of 1984, he also worked as a color analyst on radio broadcasts ofMissouri Tigers football and St. Louis Cardinals football games. In late 1984, he also addedSt. Louis Blues hockey broadcasts to his repertoire. In the fall of 1985, Dierdorf was hired by CBS as part of its broadcast team for NFL games.[40][41] He worked on CBS broadcasts of NFL games in 1985 and 1986.[42]
In April 1987, Dierdorf was hired byABC to joinAl Michaels andFrank Gifford onMonday Night Football broadcasts.[42] He spent 12 seasons onMonday Night Football before resigning the post in early 1999.[43]
During his affiliation with ABC, Dierdorf also served as a blow-by-blowboxing commentator in 1989, beginning withMeldrick Taylor's first defense of his championship, served as a correspondent for the network's coverage of the1988 Winter Olympics inCalgary, and called play-by-play of someCollege Football on ABC games in the early 1990s.
In April 1999, Dierdorf signed with CBS and was paired withVerne Lundquist as the network's No. 2 NFL broadcasting team.[44] After week 2 of the2000 season, Lundquist was moved to CBS' leadcollege football team, and Dierdorf served as commentator forDick Enberg from 2000 to2005. Lundquist would partner up with Dierdorf in week 1 in2003 and2005. He also partnered up withKevin Harlan in week 1 of2001,Ian Eagle in week 1 of2002, andTodd Blackledge in week 1 of2004 while Enberg was covering theUS Open tennis on CBS. During the2006 NFL season, Dierdorf was paired withGreg Gumbel as CBS' No. 2 NFL pairing behindJim Nantz andPhil Simms.[45] He remained paired with Gumbel for eight seasons from2006 to2013.
On November 20, 2013, Dierdorf announced that the2013 NFL season would be his last as an analyst. "It has become a challenge for me to travel to a different NFL city every week, so it's time to step aside."[46] Dierdorf's final broadcast for CBS was an AFC divisional playoff game on January 11, 2014, between theIndianapolis Colts andNew England Patriots.[47]
On April 17, 2014, Dierdorf was introduced as the new color analyst forMichigan Wolverines football radio broadcasts. He was paired with former college teammateJim Brandstatter, who did play-by-play, on Michigan games. Brandstatter was Dierdorf's backup on the offensive line, atstrong tackle.[48][49] Dierdorf and Brandstatter both retired from broadcasting after the 2021 season.
In 1994 and 1995, Dierdorf was a finalist for election to thePro Football Hall of Fame, but he narrowly missed the required 29 votes on both occasions. In January 1996, he received the required vote count and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[50]
In addition to his election into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996, other honors for Dierdorf include:
Dierdorf and his wife, Debbie, continue to live in St. Louis. They have two children: Dana, born c. 1981, and Katie, born c. 1986.[2]
Dierdorf was the co-proprietor, along with former CardinalsquarterbackJim Hart, of Dierdorf and Hart's, a St. Louis steakhouse which closed in 2013 after almost 30 years in business.[58] Dierdorf also is one of the investors ofKTRS radio inSt. Louis.
