Gregory Jay Clark (April 7, 1972 – July 7, 2021) 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 was a

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

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). He was selected by the 49ers in the third round of the

1997 NFL Draft The 1997 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 19–20, 1997, at the Paramount T ...

Career

A 6'5", 255-lb.

from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, Clark played in 5

seasons and his entire career with the 49ers from 1997 to 2001. He was widely recognized as one of the premier blocking tight ends in the NFL. Clark was recruited to Stanford University as a receiving tight end by Bill Walsh after being named a consensus First-team All-American from Ricks College. While at Stanford, Clark credited much of his development as a blocker to his coach Pat Morris. He received both athletic and academic honors while in college. He finished his professional career with 92 receptions, 909 yards receiving, and 4 touchdowns during the regular season. In addition, he caught two touchdowns in the 1998-99 playoff game against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

prior to

Terrell Owens Terrell Eldorado Owens (; born December 7, 1973), nicknamed T.O., is an American football wide receiver for the Knights of Degen of Fan Controlled Football (FCF). He previously played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. Regar ...

's last second catch from

Steve Young Jon Steven Young (born October 11, 1961) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons, primarily with the San Francisco 49ers. He also played for the Tampa Bay Buccane ...

to defeat the Packers. Clark was named to the 1999 USA Today All-Joe Team. Injuries forced him into early retirement, in 2001.

Death

Clark died from a self inflicted gunshot on July 7, 2021. He had experienced "

chronic traumatic encephalopathy Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse o ...

-like" symptoms prior to his suicide, later revealed in March 2022 to be CTE Stage III. He was one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.

References

1972 births 2021 deaths 2021 suicides People from Centerville, Utah Sportspeople from the Salt Lake City metropolitan area Players of American football from Utah Place of death missing American football tight ends Stanford Cardinal football players San Francisco 49ers players Players of American football with chronic traumatic encephalopathy {{tightend-1970s-stub