James Bluford Price (September 17, 1940 – August 10, 2012) was a professional American football linebacker in the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...

for 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 ...

and Denver Broncos. He was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 3rd round (34th overall) of the

1963 NFL Draft The 1963 National Football League draft was held at the Sheraton in Chicago, Illinois, on Monday, December 3, 1962. The first overall selection was quarterback Terry Baker of Oregon State, the Heisman Trophy winner, taken by the Los Angeles Ram ...

. 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 ...

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a public land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama. With more than 24,600 undergraduate students and a total enrollment of more than 30,000 with 1,330 faculty members, Auburn is the second largest uni ...

Early years

Price attended

Ysleta High School Ysleta High School is a high school in the Ysleta Independent School District in Ysleta, El Paso, Texas. It is located on 8600 Alameda and is the second oldest school in the El Paso, TX area. Notable alumni * Jay J. Armes, private investigator an ...

, where he was a two-way player. He accepted a football scholarship from

, where he was a three-year starter at center and linebacker. As a sophomore, he was named the starter replacing graduated All-American Jackie Burkett, but suffered a dislocated right shoulder and missed 3 games, until returning to play against Georgia Tech. In 1962, he was named third-team All-SEC as a center.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys

Price was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round (34th overall) of the

and by the

in the sixth round (43rd overall) of the

1963 AFL Draft The 1963 American Football League draft was held in Dallas on Saturday, December 1, 1962. The Kansas City Chiefs drafted as the Dallas Texans, as their relocation would take place a few months later. With the first overall selection, they took B ...

. He signed with the Cowboys, but his play during training camp was disappointing and was released before the season started in September.

New York Jets

On September 5,

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...

, he signed as a free agent with the

(at the time the New York Titans) and became a starter. On January 1,

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

, he was part of the largest trade ever made in the

, when he was sent along with Dick Guesman, Ed Cooke, Charlie Janerette and

Sid Fournet Sidney Fredrick Fournet (August 27, 1932 – April 23, 2011) was an American collegiate and professional American football player who played defensive lineman for three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, and Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Fo ...

, to the Denver Broncos, in exchange for

Gene Prebola Eugene Nicholas Prebola (June 30, 1938 – December 10, 2021) was an American football tight end who played four seasons in the American Football League (AFL) with the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the ...

, Wahoo McDaniel, Gordy Holz and Bob Zeman.

Denver Broncos

, the Denver Broncos played him as a linebacker and

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

. He suffered a knee injury in the fourth game against the

Boston Patriots Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most ...

and was lost for the year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Price, Jim 1940 births 2012 deaths Players of American football from El Paso, Texas American football linebackers Auburn Tigers football players New York Jets players Denver Broncos players American Football League players People from Nettleton, Mississippi