Gregory Townsend Sr. (born November 3, 1961) is a former

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 ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

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 ...

. He was drafted by the

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

in the fourth round of the

1983 NFL Draft The 1983 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 26–27, 1983, at the New York She ...

. Townsend also played for the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

Career

College career

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 ...

at Texas Christian.

Professional career

Los Angeles Raiders

Townsend was drafted by the

in the fourth round of the

. He was selected to 2

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 ...

s, and he was a 4-time

All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list th ...

selection. He won a

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

ring with the Raiders in 1984. Townsend was suspended twice during his time with the Raiders. Once for his participation in a brawl versus the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

on October 5, 1986, and another for being caught with marijuana in 1988.

Philadelphia Eagles

In 1994, he signed with the Eagles. He recorded 2 sacks during his lone season in Philadelphia.

Oakland Raiders

In 1997, he returned to the Raiders and played for the team that drafted him.

Legacy

Townsend is currently 24th on the NFL's all-time list for career sacks with 109.5. He is also the Raider's all-time sack leader. He also recovered 8 fumbles and returned three of them for touchdowns.

Personal

His son, Greg Townsend, Jr., played defensive end at

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses **South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

. and was signed as an undrafted free agent with Oakland Raiders. In 2012, Townsend partnered with Celebrity Publishing to release his memoir entitled "All Time."

References

1961 births Living people American football defensive ends American football linebackers American football defensive tackles TCU Horned Frogs football players Los Angeles Raiders players Philadelphia Eagles players Oakland Raiders players American Conference Pro Bowl players Players of American football from Los Angeles Players of American football from Compton, California 100 Sacks Club {{defensive-lineman-1960s-stub