David Tuthill Jennings (June 8, 1952 – June 19, 2013) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

punter who played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) from 1974 to 1987. He played for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

and the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

. He later worked as a radio

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and t ...

for Jets and Giants games until 2007. He died of complications with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

in 2013.

Life and career

Jennings played both

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

and

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

and graduated from St. Lawrence University in 1974. As a high school student, he did not play

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 ...

. He

lettered Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

in both football and basketball at St. Lawrence, and was inducted to the St. Lawrence Saints hall of fame in 1988. After graduating from St. Lawrence, Jennings was not drafted, and briefly signed with the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...

as a practice squad member until he was released and recruited to the

as a free agent. He played for the Giants from 1974 to 1984, and then moved to play for the

from 1984 to 1987. During his professional career, he went to the 1978, 1979, 1980, and 1982

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

games. He also led the league for total punts in the 1979 season, and in punting yards in both the 1979 and 1980 seasons. He retired after the 1987 season. After his career playing professional football, Jennings began work as a radio

. He commented on Jets games from 1988 to 2001 for New York sports radio station WFAN. He then moved to commenting on Giants games from 2002 until 2007, when he was replaced by former Giants linebacker Carl Banks. During this time, Jennings worked as a game analyst alongside fellow WFAN Giants announcers

Bob Papa Robert L. Papa (born September 19, 1964) is an American sportscaster who is currently the radio play-by-play voice for the New York Giants of the National Football League. Papa also is the lead broadcaster for PGA Tour Champions events on Golf ...

and

Dick Lynch Richard Dennis Lynch (April 29, 1936 – September 24, 2008) was an American football defensive back in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins and the New York Giants. He was a one-time Pro Bowler in 1963, when he led the NFL ...

. In addition to his booth work, Jennings was a part of the Giants pre- and post-game shows, covering player interviews from the locker room. Dave Jennings was diagnosed with

in 1995, and publicly revealed his condition in 2005. It was speculated around when he retired from broadcasting in 2008 that fatigue due to Parkinson's may have been the cause of his change in broadcasting roles and eventual retirement. He was inducted into the Giants' Ring of Honor in 2011 as one of the best punters in the franchise's history. Jennings died due to complications with Parkinson's on June 19, 2013, eleven days after his 61st birthday.

References

1952 births 2013 deaths American football punters New York Giants announcers New York Giants players New York Jets announcers New York Jets players National Conference Pro Bowl players National Football League announcers St. Lawrence Saints football players Players of American football from New York City Neurological disease deaths in New Jersey Deaths from Parkinson's disease {{amfoot-punter-stub