| No. 11, 15 | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Placekicker | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1941-03-28)March 28, 1941 Martinez, California, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Died | June 10, 2023(2023-06-10) (aged 82) Arvada, Colorado, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||
| High school | John Swett (Crockett, California) | ||||||||||||||||||
| College | Utah State | ||||||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 1963: 19th round, 259th overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||||||
| Career AFL/NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
James Bayard Turner (March 28, 1941 – June 10, 2023) was an American professionalfootballplacekicker who played in theAmerican Football League (AFL) andNational Football League (NFL) for theNew York Jets andDenver Broncos. He was a two-timePro Bowl selection with the Jets and a member of theirSuper Bowl III championship team. Turner was chosen for theAFL All-Time Second-team and theDenver Broncos Ring of Fame.
Turner was born and raised inMartinez, California.[1][2] He graduated fromJohn Swett High School in 1959. He played for the football team as aquarterback and was also afreestyle swimmer.[2] Turner attendedUtah State University, where he playedcollege football for theUtah State Aggies as both a quarterback andplacekicker.[3]
TheWashington Redskins of theNational Football League (NFL) selected Turner in the 19th round of the1963 NFL draft.[4] He signed with the Redskins,[5] but failed a tryout with the Redskins and was released. Turner signed with theNew York Jets of theAmerican Football League (AFL) as afree agent in1964.[6] He set then-league records with single-season totals of 145 points and 34field goals in1968.[1][7][8] Turner kicked for nine points, making two of three field goals, inthe AFL Championship Game win over theOakland Raiders.[9][10] He had 10 points in the Jets' 16–7 defeat of theBaltimore Colts inSuper Bowl III.[11][12] He was named to thePro Bowl in 1968 and1969.[13]
Following the 1970 season the Jets traded Turner to theDenver Broncos forBobby Howfield.[8] He scored four points in the Broncos' losing effort inSuper Bowl XII against theDallas Cowboys, connecting on a 47-yard field goal and anextra point following atouchdown run byRob Lytle.[14][15]
Turner finished his career with 304 of 488 (62%) field goals, 521 of 534 extra points and a touchdown on a 25 yard reception from a fake field goal,[16] giving him 1,439 total points.[13] Upon his retirement, he ranked second in field goals in NFL history, with only a fellow AFL veteran inGeorge Blanda having more; Turner now ranks in the top 35 for kickers four decades after his career ended.[17][18] He did not miss a game, playing in 228 consecutive contests.[11] His single-season scoring record was broken byMark Moseley in 1983, andAli Haji-Sheikh broke Turner's field goal record the same season.[1] He was inducted into theDenver Broncos Ring of Fame in 1988[19] and the Utah State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.[3]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Won theSuper Bowl | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Field Goals | Extra Points | Points | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FGA | FGM | Lng | Pct | XPA | XPM | Pct | ||||
| 1964 | NYJ | 14 | 27 | 13 | 50 | 48.1 | 33 | 33 | 100.0 | 72 |
| 1965 | NYJ | 14 | 34 | 20 | 49 | 58.8 | 31 | 31 | 100.0 | 91 |
| 1966 | NYJ | 14 | 35 | 18 | 45 | 51.4 | 35 | 34 | 97.1 | 88 |
| 1967 | NYJ | 14 | 32 | 17 | 48 | 53.1 | 39 | 36 | 92.3 | 87 |
| 1968 | NYJ | 14 | 46 | 34 | 49 | 73.9 | 43 | 43 | 100.0 | 145 |
| 1969 | NYJ | 14 | 47 | 32 | 50 | 68.1 | 33 | 33 | 100.0 | 129 |
| 1970 | NYJ | 14 | 35 | 19 | 42 | 54.3 | 28 | 28 | 100.0 | 85 |
| 1971 | DEN | 14 | 38 | 25 | 49 | 65.8 | 18 | 18 | 100.0 | 93 |
| 1972 | DEN | 14 | 29 | 20 | 49 | 69.0 | 37 | 37 | 100.0 | 97 |
| 1973 | DEN | 14 | 33 | 22 | 50 | 66.7 | 40 | 40 | 100.0 | 106 |
| 1974 | DEN | 14 | 21 | 11 | 43 | 52.4 | 38 | 35 | 92.1 | 68 |
| 1975 | DEN | 14 | 28 | 21 | 53 | 75.0 | 26 | 23 | 88.5 | 86 |
| 1976 | DEN | 14 | 21 | 15 | 47 | 71.4 | 39 | 36 | 92.3 | 81 |
| 1977 | DEN | 14 | 19 | 13 | 48 | 68.4 | 34 | 31 | 91.2 | 70 |
| 1978 | DEN | 16 | 22 | 11 | 45 | 50.0 | 35 | 31 | 88.6 | 64 |
| 1979 | DEN | 16 | 21 | 13 | 49 | 61.9 | 34 | 32 | 94.1 | 71 |
| Career | 228 | 488 | 304 | 53 | 62.3 | 543 | 521 | 95.9 | 1,433 | |
| Year | Team | GP | Field Goals | Extra Points | Points | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FGA | FGM | Pct | XPA | XPM | Pct | ||||
| 1968 | NYJ | 2 | 8 | 5 | 62.5 | 4 | 4 | 100.0 | 19 |
| 1969 | NYJ | 1 | 2 | 2 | 100.0 | – | – | – | 6 |
| 1977 | DEN | 3 | 6 | 3 | 50.0 | 7 | 7 | 100.0 | 16 |
| 1978 | DEN | 1 | 2 | 1 | 50.0 | 1 | 1 | 100.0 | 4 |
| 1979 | DEN | 1 | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | 100.0 | 1 |
| Career | 8 | 18 | 11 | 61.1 | 13 | 13 | 100.0 | 46 | |
In 1981, Turner joinedNBC Sports as acolor commentarysportscaster.[20]
Turner's widow, Mary Kay, is fromEl Sobrante, California.[2] They had three daughters and lived inArvada, Colorado.[18]
Turner died in Arvada, Colorado from heart failure on June 10, 2023, at the age of 82.[21][22]