Contemplating John Jefferson

[Evan]

Been contemplating John Jefferson, and would like to get reflections from the Forum on these questions:

1. For pure excitement and entertainment during his San Diego years, where do you put Jefferson in the pantheon of all-time WRs?

2. When the trade to Green Bay happened in Sept. 1981, Jefferson had been holding out, but do you remember any rumors of Jefferson being traded, or was the news a shock to you?

3. Did the trade make sense to you? If San Diego wanted to trade him out of the AFC, it seemed like lots of other NFC teams had a dire need for a TD-making WR (Detroit, Tampa Bay, Chicago, Los Angeles, NY Giants, etc), and the Packers (with Lofton) did not.

4. At the time, did you think the trade would make Green Bay a contender at the level of Dallas, Philadelphia, and Atlanta who were the class of the NFC at the start of the 1981 season?

5. What do you attribute Jefferson falling short of expectations in Green Bay, and was there any way it could have worked out differently (different coach, different QB, etc.)?

6. Style question: I believe Jefferson started wearing what became his trademark goggles at some point in the 1978 season after being poked in the eye (sounds like NBA star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's story too). Then at some point in Green Bay I believe he stopped wearing them. Anyone know when and why he stopped wearing the goggles?

7. Jefferson's last three catches were with the Browns in 1985. Has anyone seen a picture of him in a Browns uniform on the Internet? I'd love to get a copy if you have one.

8. The ending of Jefferson's career was kind of mystery. This article in the LA Times gave some explanations, do you think any of them are spot-on, or were other factors in play? http://articles.latimes.com/1985-12-18/ ... -jefferson

9. Jefferson's last NFL action was with Houston in the 1986 pre-season before being released on Sept. 3. Anybody remember anything about him during that pre-season? Was there any hope left for him contributing at that point? FYI, here's a link to a picture of him in an Oiler uniform if you're interested. https://www.ebay.com/itm/1986-Houston-O ... Swg8taKhtU

Thanks!

[zachary stephen]

Been contemplating John Jefferson, and would like to get reflections from the Forum on these questions:

7. Jefferson's last three catches were with the Browns in 1985. Has anyone seen a picture of him in a Browns uniform on the Internet? I'd love to get a copy if you have one.

Thanks!

Not in uniform but ...

[Jay Z]

3. Did the trade make sense to you? If San Diego wanted to trade him out of the AFC, it seemed like lots of other NFC teams had a dire need for a TD-making WR (Detroit, Tampa Bay, Chicago, Los Angeles, NY Giants, etc), and the Packers (with Lofton) did not.

Jefferson and Howard Slusher overestimated their bargaining position. At the time, the San Diego Chargers system was unique. 2 WR and a TE in the top 5 in the NFL in receptions. The other 2 were from the 49ers, and that team relied far more on short passing than the Chargers did. There was no where else in the NFL that threw the ball down the field with the same frequency as the Chargers.

The NFC teams you listed all had a heavy emphasis on the run, except for the Giants. The Giants were still lousy and had a decent deep threat in Earnest Gray. The rest all ran the ball too, and all still made heavy use of the two back pro set, where both backs would get some carries. San Diego was simply way ahead of the rest of the NFL.

The Packers were willing to throw the ball around, but they had a superior deep threat in Lofton. Jefferson wasn't going to be an ideal post or fly pattern deep threat anyway. I think anywhere Jefferson is traded, his numbers are going to fall to the 50s in receptions with fewer touchdowns at best. Which is about what he did in Green Bay anyway.

[L.C. Greenwood]

John Jefferson was a fantastic talent, and I do remember the shock of he being traded to Green Bay. Having starred at Arizona State and with the Chargers, Jefferson probably was surprised as well. I can imagine he was expecting to be the number one WR wherever he was traded. There was a rumor Jefferson let his conditioning slip, hence the lower than expected numbers with the Packers. It was disappointing to see him fade from the scene, because he had HOF potential.

[Bryan]

Been contemplating John Jefferson, and would like to get reflections from the Forum on these questions:

1. For pure excitement and entertainment during his San Diego years, where do you put Jefferson in the pantheon of all-time WRs?

4. At the time, did you think the trade would make Green Bay a contender at the level of Dallas, Philadelphia, and Atlanta who were the class of the NFC at the start of the 1981 season?

5. What do you attribute Jefferson falling short of expectations in Green Bay, and was there any way it could have worked out differently (different coach, different QB, etc.)?

1) Not sure of the exact spot, but I rank it very high. As Facenda says, "He made catches that must be considered state-of-the-art". Lance Alworth racked up 1000-yard seasons with the Chargers in the AFL, but he was an anomaly. Jefferson and Largent were the first WRs after Alworth to consistently top the 1000-yard mark.

4) Not top level, but I thought the offense would resemble Air Coryell (with a healthy Eddie Lee Ivery, of course).

5) This is JMO, but Jefferson was kind of a specific talent. He was good at adjusting to the ball and catching the ball. He was not particularly big, fast, or good at catching the ball over the middle or in a crowd. Air Coryell was great for JJ, because the system itself pretty much got Jefferson 'open' or, at least, facing single coverage. Joiner and Winslow did the dirty work over the middle which allowed JJ to operate on the edges of the defense. I'm not sure Jefferson would have had success had he gone someplace other than Green Bay...he was a tweener who wasn't really fast enough to be a deep threat, wasn't big enough to consistently get beat up over the middle, and wasn't a great YAC guy. A contemporary WR who reminded me of Jefferson was Preston Dennard, who had great hands but wasn't quite as athletic as JJ. If Dennard had ended up on the Chargers in 1978 and Jefferson the Rams, perhaps their statistics would have been reversed.

[nicefellow31]

Been contemplating John Jefferson, and would like to get reflections from the Forum on these questions:

7. Jefferson's last three catches were with the Browns in 1985. Has anyone seen a picture of him in a Browns uniform on the Internet? I'd love to get a copy if you have one.

Thanks!

Not in uniform but ...

Forget J.J. what about the hot buttered cheese steak sandwich? Do they still sell those. Also a sad picture of Don Rogers who would be gone in another year.

I was 14 in 1981 and I recall the talk was that the Packers were going to have the best set of WR's in the league.

[Citizen]

There was a rumor Jefferson let his conditioning slip, hence the lower than expected numbers with the Packers.

According to Dick Corrick, who ran the Packers' player personnel back then, Jefferson had already lost a step by the time he got to Green Bay. He never had sprinter's speed to begin with, so developing plays that would get him open became a real problem. The simplest answer is probably that San Diego's system was uniquely suited to his talents, and his expiration date accelerated after he was traded.

[L.C. Greenwood]

There was a rumor Jefferson let his conditioning slip, hence the lower than expected numbers with the Packers.

According to Dick Corrick, who ran the Packers' player personnel back then, Jefferson had already lost a step by the time he got to Green Bay. He never had sprinter's speed to begin with, so developing plays that would get him open became a real problem. The simplest answer is probably that San Diego's system was uniquely suited to his talents, and his expiration date accelerated after he was traded.

Thanks for the insight, I wasn't aware of that. What we don't know is Jefferson's work ethic while as a Charger, whether it was at the level of other talented wide receivers who kept excelling into their 30s.