James Althoff (born September 27, 1961) is an American former 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

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

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 played

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 ...

Winona State University Winona State University (Winona) is a public university in Winona, Minnesota. It was founded as First State Normal School of Minnesota in 1858 and is the oldest member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. It was the first no ...

. During his senior season, he was named an NAIA All-American.

Professional career

After graduation, he rejected an offer from USFL's

Michigan Panthers The Michigan Panthers were a professional American football team based in the Detroit, Michigan area. The Panthers competed in the United States Football League (USFL) as a member of the Western Conference and Central Division. The team played i ...

but later played semi-professionally for a team in Delavan, Wisconsin. He attended an NFL-staffed tryout camp in Pennsylvania which led to the

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

signing him for their preseason camp but he was cut before the start of the season. After the

1987 NFL players strike The National Football League Players Association, or NFLPA, is a labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by president J. C. Tretter and executive director De ...

begun, he signed with the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

of the NFL during the, appearing in four games with three starts. He was cut by the bears in August 1988, prior to the start of the season. In February 1989, he signed with 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. ...

prior to the 1989 season but was cut in August before the start of the season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Althoff, Jim 1961 births Living people Players of American football from Illinois American football defensive tackles Winona State Warriors football players Chicago Bears players