Billy Waddy (February 19, 1954 – January 21, 2022) was an American professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
player who played
wide receiver for seven seasons for the
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...
and the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
.
Waddy was a legitimate deep threat, who averaged 16.4 yards per catch over the course of his career. Relying on his speed and agility, Billy made big plays in one of the most significant games of his career—the Rams' shocking 21-19 upset of Dallas in the 1979 divisional playoffs, where he scored a game-winning 50-yard TD with less than two minutes to play.
Several weeks later, in
Super Bowl XIV against Pittsburgh, the threat of him getting open deep down the field was a constant concern to the Steelers' defensive coaches—and for good reason, as he caught three passes for 75 yards, including a 50-yard completion from quarterback
Vince Ferragamo
Vince Anthony Ferragamo (born April 24, 1954) is an American former gridiron football player. He played professionally as a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) and the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Early years
Born in Torrance, ...
. Late in the fourth quarter, with the Rams trailing 24-19, Waddy was wide open, streaking down the left side of the field on a play where the inexperienced Rams quarterback could not spot him, and threw an interception underneath in the middle of the field, essentially ending Los Angeles' chances in the 31-19 loss.
He died in
New Brighton, Minnesota
New Brighton is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. It is a suburb of the Twin Cities. The population was 22,753 at the 2020 census.
History
In the mid 18th century, Mdewakanton Dakota tribes lived in the vicinity of New Brighto ...
, on January 21, 2022, at the age of 67.
References
1954 births
2022 deaths
American football wide receivers
Colorado Buffaloes football players
Los Angeles Rams players
Minnesota Vikings players
People from Wharton, Texas
Players of American football from Texas
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