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Greg Landry

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Greg Landry
No. 11
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born:(1946-12-18)December 18, 1946
Nashua, New Hampshire, U.S.
Died:October 4, 2024(2024-10-04) (aged 77)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Nashua
College:UMass
NFL draft:1968 / round: 1 / pick: 11
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Passing attempts:2,300
Passing completions:1,276
Completion percentage:55.5%
TD–INT:98–103
Passing yards:16,052
Passer rating:72.9
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Gregory Paul Landry (December 18, 1946 – October 4, 2024) was an American professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) and United States Football League (USFL) from 1968 to 1984. He played college football for the UMass Minutemen from 1965 to 1967 and was selected in the first round of the 1968 NFL draft with the 11th overall pick. Landry played in the NFL for the Detroit Lions, Baltimore Colts and Chicago Bears. He became an assistant coach after his playing career. Landry is considered a forerunner of the dual threat quarterback.

Early life

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Landry was born on December 18, 1946 in Nashua, New Hampshire to Alvin and Felixa "Fannie" (Worsowicz) Landry, both of whom were factory workers. Fannie's parents had emigrated from Poland. He attended Nashua Senior High School, graduating in 1964, and earned a scholarship to the University of Massachusetts (UMass). The UMass team won two Yankee Conference championships, with Landry leading the conference in both rushing and passing twice. Landry still has the school record for quarterback efficiency rating, 145.4, set in 1965.[1][2][3] The team's record with Landry was 20-7, and 14-1 in the Yankee Conference.[4]

He played in the North-South Shrine Game before the 1968 draft.[1][2] He was in the 1968 Chicago Charities All Star Game, playing with the collegians against the NFL champion Green Bay Packers. Landry threw a touchdown pass to future Lions teammate Earl McCullough.[3]

He was selected All-Yankee Conference for two seasons.[5] In 1980, he was inducted into the UMass Hall of Fame.[6] In 1996, he was named to the Yankee Conference 50th Anniversary team.[4]

Playing career

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Detroit Lions

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Landry was selected in the first round of the 1968 NFL/AFL draft (eleventh overall) by the Detroit Lions, and was the first quarterback taken in that draft.[1] No UMass player has ever been taken higher in the draft.[4] With the Lions in 1971, he passed for 2,237 yards and 16 touchdowns, was named first team All-Pro, and went to his only Pro Bowl that year.[1] In 1976, Landry passed for 2,191 yards and 17 touchdowns and was named the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year.[6] He established a couple of passing records with the Lions.[citation needed]He was benched by Lions head coach Tommy Hudspeth late in 1977 and supplanted by Gary Danielson as the starting quarterback the following year.[7]

Landry's request to be traded was granted when he was acquired by the Colts from the Lions for fourth- and fifth-round selections in 1979 (88th and 131st overall–Ulysses Norris and Pittsburgh center Walt Brown respectively) and a 1980 third-round pick (62nd overall–Mike Friede) on April 29, 1979.[7][8] During his 11 years with the Lions, he had a 40-41-3 record, and passed for 12,451 yards and 80 touchdowns.[1][6]

Baltimore Colts, USFL, and Chicago Bears

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During his three seasons with the Colts, he played brilliantly in 1979 despite a 5–11 record after a season-ending injury to starting quarterback Bert Jones. Landry passed for a career best 2,932 yards and 15 touchdowns that season.[9] He then played for George Allen on the Chicago Blitz and Arizona Wranglers in the United States Football League (USFL) in 1983 and 1984. He started one game as an emergency quarterback for the Chicago Bears in 1984 before retiring as a player.[10]

Dual threat quarterback

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Landry was also notable as a rusher; in the 1970 opener at Green Bay, he ran for 76 yards on a quarterback sneak,[11] which was for a time the longest rush by a quarterback in NFL history.[12] Over his entire career, Landry passed for 16,052 yards, had 98 touchdown passes and 103 interceptions; and he rushed for another 2,655 yards and 21 touchdowns,[6] exceeding 500 yards on the ground in both 1971 and 1972,[1] as well as averaging ten yards per carry in 1970 and scoring 9 touchdowns in 1972.[13] He ranks fifth on the all-time Lions career passing yardage list (12,451), and ranks fourth in touchdown passes with 80.[14]

Landry is considered a forerunner of the modern dual threat quarterbacks, who are both runners and passers. There were running quarterbacks in his era who could scramble and run when a play broke down, such as Fran Tarkenton; but unlike those quarterbacks, the Lions designed running plays for the 6'4" physically imposing Landry. The Lions even ran option plays with his Lions running backs Steve Owens and Altie Taylor. In 1971, Sports Illustrated writer Tex Maule said Landry "probably has ... the pro offense of the future, only he has it right now."[15][1]

Coaching career

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Landry began his coaching career in 1985 handling the Cleveland Browns quarterbacks, and later joined Mike Ditka's staff as quarterback coach in 1986, following the Bears' rout of the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX. With the Bears, he was also the wide receivers and tight ends coach before taking over as offensive coordinator from 1988 to 1992.[1][16]

Following the 1992 season, Landry was hired as the offensive coordinator at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign for two seasons. The 1994 Illinois Fighting Illini had the second-best passing offense in the Big Ten Conference, which carried the team to a 30–0 win in the Liberty Bowl over East Carolina.[17]

The following year, Landry returned to the Lions as quarterback coach, helping them to become the top offensive unit in the NFL and guiding Scott Mitchell to record-setting passing numbers that season.[10] He retired from coaching after the 1996 season[10] to become a local radio host.[4]

Personal life

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Landry met his wife Jeannine Burger at UMass. She was a gymnast and led UMass to a national gymnastics title in 1973. She was a two time All-American and the first female All-American at UMass. In 1981, she was the first female inducted into the UMass Hall of Fame. They had been married 47 years at the time of his death. They have five children and 18 grandchildren.[4][18][19][1] From 2000 to 2021, Landry and his son Greg Jr. operated a manufacturer's representative business for automotive suppliers.[4]

Death

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Landry died in Detroit on October 4, 2024, at the age of 77.[1][20]

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg Lng TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg Lng TD
1968 DET 4 2 0–2 23 48 47.9 338 7.0 80 2 7 45.7 7 39 5.6 14 1
1969 DET 10 7 5–2 80 160 50.0 853 5.3 43 4 10 48.3 33 243 7.4 26 1
1970 DET 12 6 5–1 83 136 61.0 1,072 7.9 58 9 5 92.5 35 350 10.0 76 1
1971 DET 14 14 7–6–1 136 261 52.1 2,237 8.6 76 16 13 80.9 76 530 7.0 52 3
1972 DET 14 14 8–5–1 134 268 50.0 2,066 7.7 82 18 17 71.8 81 524 6.5 38 9
1973 DET 7 7 2–4–1 70 128 54.7 908 7.1 84 3 10 52.5 42 267 6.4 18 2
1974 DET 5 3 1–2 49 82 59.8 572 7.0 45 3 3 77.9 22 95 4.3 19 1
1975 DET 6 3 2–1 31 56 55.4 403 7.2 36 1 0 84.2 20 92 4.6 14 0
1976 DET 14 12 5–7 168 291 57.7 2,191 7.5 74 17 8 89.6 43 234 5.4 28 1
1977 DET 11 11 4–7 135 240 56.3 1,359 5.7 39 6 7 68.7 25 99 4.0 13 0
1978 DET 5 5 1–4 48 77 62.3 452 5.9 20 1 1 77.4 5 29 5.8 19 0
1979 BAL 16 12 2–10 270 457 59.1 2,932 6.4 67 15 15 75.3 31 115 3.7 17 0
1980 BAL 16 1 1–0 24 47 51.1 275 5.9 32 2 3 56.6 7 26 3.7 14 1
1981 BAL 11 0 – 14 29 48.3 195 6.7 34 0 1 56.0 1 11 11.0 11 0
1984 CHI 1 1 1–0 11 20 55.0 199 10.0 55 1 3 66.5 2 1 0.5 1 1
Career 146 98 44–51–3 1,276 2,300 55.5 16,052 7.0 84 98 103 72.9 430 2,655 6.2 76 21

Honors

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In 2012, Landry was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame, with former Lions teammate and Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver Charlie Sanders giving the induction speech.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Williams, Alex (October 8, 2024). "Greg Landry, Scrambling All-Pro Quarterback, Is Dead at 77". New York Times.
  2. ^ a b "In Memoriam: Greg Landry". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c "Greg Landry, National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame". Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "UMass football legend Greg Landry remembered". Daily Hampshire Gazette. October 11, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  5. ^ "'End of a dream'". Nashua Telegraph. (New Hampshire). Associated Press. January 31, 1968. p. 18.
  6. ^ a b c d Sam, Doric. "Greg Landry Dies at 77: Lions Legend Won 1976 NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Saylor, Jack. "Greg Landry gets his wish–Lions trade him," Detroit Free Press, Monday, April 30, 1979. Retrieved November 3, 2020
  8. ^ 1979 NFL Draft Pick Transactions, May 3 (Rounds 1–6) & 4 (Rounds 7–12) – Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved November 3, 2020
  9. ^ "Catching up with … former Colts quarterback Greg Landry". Baltimore Sun. September 7, 2017. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  10. ^ a b c Bianchi, Nolan. "Former Lions quarterback, assistant coach Greg Landry dead at 77". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  11. ^ "Lions annihilate Packers, 40-0; Mann boots four field goals". Ludington Daily News. (Michigan). UPI. September 21, 1970. p. 5.
  12. ^ "Quarterback Sneak of 76 Yards Makes Landry a Top Rusher". The New York Times. September 27, 1970. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  13. ^ "Greg Landry Stats - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  14. ^ "Detroit Lions Career Passing Leaders". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  15. ^ Maule, Tex (December 13, 1971). "LOOK WHAT'S AFOOT, Now it's a pro quarterback, of all things. Detroit's Greg Landry runs so well he has the entire NFL dropping back to contemplate the options". Sports Illustrated. 35 (24): 18–21.
  16. ^ "Greg Landry, the former NFL quarterback and Chicago Bears offensive coordinator under Mike Ditka, dies at 77". Baltimore Sun. October 5, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  17. ^ "Greg Landry Profile | University of Illinois 150 Years". uofi150.news-gazette.com. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  18. ^ "Greg Landry, National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame". Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  19. ^ "Jeannie Burger (1981) - Hall of Fame". University of Massachusetts Athletics. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  20. ^ Risdon, Jeff (October 4, 2024). "Former Lions QB and coach Greg Landry passes away". Lionswire. Retrieved October 5, 2024.
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