Frederick William Cox (December 11, 1938 – November 20, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a

kicker Kicker or The Kicker may refer to: Sports * Placekicker, a position in American and Canadian football * ''Kicker'' (sports magazine), in Germany * Kicker, the German colloquial term for an association football player * Kicker, the word used i ...

for 15 seasons 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) for 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 expansi ...

. After playing college football for

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

, he was drafted by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

in the eighth round of the

1961 NFL Draft The 1961 National Football League draft took place at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia on December 27–28, 1960. The league would later hold an expansion draft for the Minnesota Vikings expansion franchise. This draft was also the first reg ...

and by the New York Titans in the 28th round of the 1961 AFL Draft. He was also the inventor of the

Nerf Nerf is a toy brand formed by Parker Brothers and currently owned by Hasbro. Most of the toys are a variety of foam-based weaponry, with other Nerf products including balls for sports such as American football, basketball, and baseball. The ...

football.

Early life

Cox was raised in

Monongahela, Pennsylvania Monongahela, referred to locally as Mon City, is a third class city in Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of the Pittsburgh, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is about south of Pittsburgh proper. The population was 4 ...

, outside

. His parents owned and operated a small grocery store, which is still in operation by his brother's family after four generations.

College

Cox played college football at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

and was drafted by the

in the 8th round of the

and the New York Titans in the 28th round of the AFL Draft that same year. He never ended up playing for either team.

Professional career

Cox is the Vikings' all-time leader in scoring (1,365 points) and field goals (282). He is also one of 11 Vikings players to have played in all four of their Super Bowl appearances during the 1970s. In his first season, he kicked 12 out of 24 field goals, the longest being 46 yards while also serving as a punter, kicking 70 of them for 2,707 yards (a 38.7 yard average). He did not have a field goal percentage lower than his first year rate until his last season. He led the NFL in scoring in 1969 with 121 points and again in 1970 with 125 and was named first-team All-Pro both years. He was also named NFC first-team All-Pro in 1971 with 91 points scored. He topped 100 points four times (1964-65, 1969-70) while having at least 90 in three other seasons (1971-73), with a top 10 finish in points scored ten times. In the playoffs, he was 11 of 18 on field goals and 38 for 40 on extra points in 18 games. The most he scored in those games was nine, which he did three times (the 1969 title game and the first two rounds of the 1973 playoffs). In those Super Bowls, he went 0 for 2 on field goals while making 4 of 5 on extra points. In 1970, he was the NFC kicker in the Pro Bowl game. At the time of his retirement, Cox was the NFL's second all-time leading scorer (with 1,365 points) behind

George Blanda George Frederick Blanda (September 17, 1927 – September 27, 2010) was an American football placekicker and quarterback who played professionally in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Blanda played 26 seaso ...

Personal

Cox was first married to Elayne Darrall Cox. Their four children are Darryl Cox, Susan Cox Biasco, Fred A. Cox, and Kim Ok-soon. He was later married to Bonnie Hope Cox. Following his NFL career Cox became a licensed chiropractor in 1972 after receiving his degree in the practice from Northwestern Health Sciences University. His annual chiropractic earnings of about $100,000 were, Cox said, about double what he made as a football player. Cox maintained his professional practice in Buffalo, Minnesota. In 1972, he invented a soft football, which later became the

football after he sold the idea to Parker Brothers. Tens of millions of Nerf football have been sold, first for Parker Brothers and then for Hasbro, which acquired it in 1991, bringing Cox and his partners decades of generous royalties.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cox, Fred 1938 births 2019 deaths People from Monongahela, Pennsylvania American chiropractors American football placekickers 20th-century American inventors Players of American football from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area Minnesota Vikings players National Conference Pro Bowl players Pittsburgh Panthers football players Toy inventors Inventors from Pennsylvania