| No. 91 | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positions | Defensive end Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1964-05-07)May 7, 1964 (age 61) Little Rock, Arkansas, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 275 lb (125 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Hall(Little Rock) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Oklahoma State (1982–1985) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1986: 1st round, 8th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Leslie Claudis O'Neal (born May 7, 1964) is an American former professionalfootball player who was adefensive end andlinebacker for 13 years in theNational Football League (NFL). He spent the majority of his career with theSan Diego Chargers before finishing with theSt. Louis Rams and theKansas City Chiefs. He was a three-timeAll-Pro and six-timePro Bowl selection during his pro career.
O'Neal was a two-timeAll-American playingcollege football for theOklahoma State Cowboys. He joined the Chargers after they selected him in the first round with the eighth overall pick in the1986 NFL draft. He was namedNFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, but suffered a major knee injury at the end of his first season. He returned within two years, and finished his career as the Chargers all-time leader insacks.
O'Neal playedcollege football for theOklahoma State Cowboys, and twice earnedAll-American honors.[1] He was aBig Eight Defensive Player of the Year, and earned All-Big Eight honors for three consecutive years. He finished his Cowboys career ranked fifth all-time in tackles with 351.[2]
On March 11, 2020, O’Neal was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame as a player.[3] He is Oklahoma State's sixth member of the Hall of Fame.[4]
O'Neal was chosen in the first round with the eighth overall pick in the1986 NFL draft by theSan Diego Chargers.[5] He was named theNFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in1986 after recording12+1⁄2sacks for the season, including a team-record five on November 16 against theDallas Cowboys.[6] However, his season ended prematurely due to a knee injury that sidelined him for almost two seasons.[1]
He returned during the1988 season on October 16, and returned to his dominant formthe following season, when he again had12+1⁄2 sacks, and was rewarded with the first of sixPro Bowl selections.[1] O'Neal led the Chargers in sacks every season from1990 through1995,[1] earning three second-teamAll-Pro selections in that span.[2] In 1992, he led theAmerican Football Conference (AFC) with a career-high 17 sacks.[7] He played his final four seasons with theSt. Louis Rams andKansas City Chiefs.[1]
He finished his Chargers career as the team's all-time leader in sacks (105+1⁄2). He was named to theChargers 40th and50th anniversary teams, and was inducted to theChargers Hall of Fame as well as theOklahoma Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.[1][8] Through the 2013 season, he ranked 10th all-time in the NFL in sacks with (132+1⁄2), tied withLawrence Taylor when excluding the 9.5 sacks the latter accumulated in his rookie season due to not being an official statistic that time.[1]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR | ||||
| 1986 | SD | 13 | 13 | 82 | – | – | 12.5 | 2 | 22 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 1987 | SD | Missed season due to injury | ||||||||||||
| 1988 | SD | 9 | 1 | 28 | – | – | 4.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1989 | SD | 16 | 16 | 96 | – | – | 12.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1990 | SD | 16 | 16 | 81 | – | – | 13.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1991 | SD | 16 | 16 | 68 | – | – | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1992 | SD | 15 | 15 | 78 | – | – | 17.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||
| 1993 | SD | 16 | 16 | 56 | – | – | 12.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1994 | SD | 16 | 16 | 60 | 47 | 13 | 12.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | ||
| 1995 | SD | 16 | 16 | 48 | 36 | 12 | 12.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1996 | STL | 16 | 16 | 54 | 39 | 15 | 7.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| 1997 | STL | 15 | 14 | 43 | 35 | 8 | 10.0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1998 | KC | 16 | 13 | 45 | 32 | 13 | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1999 | KC | 16 | 10 | 28 | 22 | 6 | 5.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Career | 196 | 178 | 767 | 211 | 67 | 132.5 | 3 | 27 | 1 | 21 | 16 | |||
Defensive end Leslie O'Neal, who led the American Football Conference with a career-high 17 sacks last year, signed a three-year contract with the San Diego Chargers yesterday.