| No. 89, 84, 85, 81 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Tight end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1957-02-09)February 9, 1957 Malden, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | May 16, 2006(2006-05-16) (aged 49) Haverhill, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 238 lb (108 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Everett(Everett, Massachusetts) | ||||||||
| College | Northeastern | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1979: 2nd round, 30th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Daniel Richard Ross (February 9, 1957 – May 16, 2006) was an American professionalfootball player who was atight end in theNational Football League (NFL) for theCincinnati Bengals (1979–1983, 1985),Seattle Seahawks (1985), andGreen Bay Packers (1986). He also played for theNew Orleans/Portland Breakers of theUnited States Football League (USFL) from 1984 to 1985.
Ross attendedEverett High School inEverett, Massachusetts, where, as a tight end, he starred on thefootball team.
Ross playedcollege football atNortheastern University inBoston from 1975 to 1978. He was named first-team selection on theCollege Football All-America Team in his senior year of 1978 while serving as team captain. He also earned the Bulger Lowe Award as the outstanding player inNew England and theHarry Agganis Award as New England's outstanding senior.[1]
Ross left Northeastern as the Huskies' all-time leader inreceptions (153), receivingtouchdowns (13) and receiving yards (2,343). He also set the single-season records for those categories as well, with 68 receptions for 988 yards and seven touchdowns in his senior season. After his senior year, Northeastern retired jersey No. 84 in his honor.[2]
After graduating college in 1979, he was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals with the 30th pick in the second round of the1979 NFL draft. Ross' best season was in1981, when he totaled 71 receptions for 910 yards and five touchdowns, helping lead the Bengals toSuper Bowl XVI. His 71 receptions were a single-season franchise record, and would remain so untilCarl Pickens had 99 in 1995.
Ross had an outstanding performance in theSuper Bowl, with a record 11 receptions for 104 yards and two touchdowns. His receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns were all the most by a tight end in Super Bowl history. However, the Bengals lost to theSan Francisco 49ers, 26–21, preventing Ross from being the likely winner of theSuper Bowl MVP award and first tight end to ever receive it.
In addition to his impressive Super Bowl performance, Ross was the Bengals' leading receiver in both playoff wins that year, with six receptions for 71 yards in their 28–21 win over theBuffalo Bills and five receptions for 69 yards in their AFC title win over theSan Diego Chargers, a game known as theFreezer Bowl and the coldest game ever played in the NFL.
Ross went on to make his first and onlyPro Bowl selection in1982 on the strength of 47 receptions for 508 yards and three touchdowns in the nine-game season shortened by a players strike.
In 1984, Ross briefly left the NFL to play for theNew Orleans Breakers and later thePortland Breakers in the newly formedUnited States Football League.
He returned to play for the Bengals in1985, and finished the season with theSeattle Seahawks.
Ross joined theGreen Bay Packers for the following season, and then retired in 1987.
In his eight NFL seasons, Ross recorded 290 receptions for 3,419 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns.
Ross later said that as a veteran of a small college not known for its football program, he was grateful for a chance to play in the big leagues. "Just getting drafted was a thrill. You don't expect it from the school I went to. At the time, you don't expect to play in the National Football League, and especially somebody taking you with the 30th overall pick. It's like 'oh geez they must see something I don't'."[3]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1979 | CIN | 16 | 16 | 41 | 516 | 12.6 | 41 | 1 |
| 1980 | CIN | 16 | 16 | 56 | 724 | 12.9 | 37 | 4 |
| 1981 | CIN | 16 | 16 | 71 | 910 | 12.8 | 37 | 5 |
| 1982 | CIN | 9 | 9 | 47 | 508 | 10.8 | 28 | 3 |
| 1983 | CIN | 16 | 15 | 42 | 483 | 11.5 | 30 | 3 |
| 1985 | CIN | 6 | 0 | 6 | 63 | 10.5 | 20 | 0 |
| SEA | 10 | 5 | 10 | 72 | 7.2 | 12 | 2 | |
| 1986 | GNB | 15 | 10 | 17 | 143 | 8.4 | 16 | 1 |
| 104 | 87 | 290 | 3,419 | 11.8 | 41 | 19 | ||
| Year | Team | Games | Receiving | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1981 | CIN | 3 | 3 | 22 | 244 | 11.1 | 19 | 2 |
| 1982 | CIN | 1 | 1 | 6 | 89 | 14.8 | 26 | 1 |
| 4 | 4 | 28 | 333 | 11.9 | 26 | 3 | ||
Ross later became president and co-owner of WPWB, an independent TV station inRiviera Beach, Florida. He was owner and president of Power House Supply, while also coachingPop Warner Football and participating in charity golf tournaments.[1]
In 2004, he was enshrined into theCollege Football Hall of Fame. Northeastern University also recognized the achievement with a halftime ceremony honoring Ross at the October 9, 2004, home game againstVillanova University. He was the first Northeastern University player enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.[1]
Dan Ross died at age 49 on May 16, 2006, after collapsing at his home inAtkinson, New Hampshire, shortly after returning from jogging. He died at Merrimack Valley Hospital inHaverhill, Massachusetts.[4]
He was survived by his wife, Joan, and two children, Jillian, then 23, and Dan Jr., then 22.[5]