| No. 78, 60 | |||||||
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| Position | Defensive tackle | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | (1961-07-07)July 7, 1961 (age 64) Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | ||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
| Listed weight | 275 lb (125 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Warren Mott (MI) | ||||||
| College | Tulsa | ||||||
| NFL draft | 1985: 12th round, 309th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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Dean Edward Hamel (born July 7, 1961) is an American former professionalfootball player who was adefensive tackle in theNational Football League (NFL) for theWashington Redskins andDallas Cowboys. He playedcollege football for theTulsa Golden Hurricane and was selected in the 12th round of the1985 NFL draft.
Hamel attendedWarren Mott High School. He began his college career atCoffeyville Community College as anoffensive tackle in 1980, where he blocked for futureHeisman Trophy winnerMike Rozier.[1] He was named an honorable-mention junior collegeAll-American in his second season.
He transferred to theUniversity of Tulsa, where he was anoffensive lineman as a junior. He was converted into adefensive tackle in his senior season, registering 44 tackles, 4 tackles for loss and 3 sacks. He was a backup in both years.
Hamel was selected by theWashington Redskins in the 12th round (309th overall) of the1985 NFL draft, even though he wasn't a starter in college.[2] As a rookie, he was given the nicknametazmanian devil and was named the starter atright defensive tackle for the last eight games of the season. In his first start against theAtlanta Falcons, he had 9 tackles and 3 sacks, including asafety againstquarterbackJoe Montana.[3] He collected 63 tackles, 6 sacks (third on the team) and receivedNFL All-Rookie honors.
The next season, he also started 8 games, registered 37 tackles and was named to theAll-Madden Team because of hisspecial teams play. He returned to a backup role for the next two years, playing mainly onspecial teams and in short-yardage situations.[4]
In1987, he played all of the second half and made a key tackle in the NFC championship game, with theMinnesota Vikings at the Redskins' two-yard line to avoid being tied on the scoreboard. He was also a member of the RedskinsSuper Bowl XXII Championship team. In1988, he made 14 tackles, 2 sacks and was third on the team inspecial teams tackles.
In1989, he was chosen to replace the retiredDave Butz atleft defensive tackle,[5] but walked out oftraining camp threatening to retire, after dealing with the emergence of rookieTracy Rocker and having a poor preseason game against theBuffalo Bills.[6] After the incident, head coachJoe Gibbs refused to allow him to return and traded him to theDallas Cowboys in exchange for a fifth round draft choice (#110-Junior Robinson).[7]
In1989, Hamel was acquired to help compensate for the retirement ofRandy White and the season ending injury ofMark Walen. Initially he was named the starter atright defensive tackle and was switched to the left side for the last 9 games. He posted 68 tackles, 3.5 sacks (second on the team), 28 quarterback pressures (second on the team) and one pass defensed.
In1990, he suffered a sprained right knee in practice on October 10 and was placed on theinjured reserve list. He returned for the eleventh game against theLos Angeles Rams. He started 11 games atleft defensive tackle, recording 33 tackles, one sack, 5 quarterback pressures, one pass defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
In June1991, he injured his back while weightlifting and never fully recovered. The Cowboys placed him on theinjured reserve list and released him after a couple of weeks on August 26.[8]
Hamel resides inLenoir, North Carolina and works at a plant in the area. He has 3 children, the oldest being Megan Eadus, Melanie Hamel and Dylan Hamel. His son Dylan played collegebaseball atAppalachian State.[9]