John Thomas Gildea (March 9, 1910 – November 20, 1979) was an

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 wi ...

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

, punter and halfback who played four 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 ...

with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants.

Early life

Gildea was born in Boston Run, Pennsylvania and attended Coaldale High School, later playing college football for St. Bonaventure University.

Professional career

Pittsburgh Pirates

Gildea played in 12 games in his first season with the Pirates, starting 10 of them. He threw for two or three

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...

s, depending on the source, and 20

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team ...

s, which led the league. He also finished third in the league in passing yards, and fifth in completions. Gildea was used less in the

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

and 1937 season where he was listed as a tailback. In 1936, he only completed nine passes for 147 yards and one touchdown, while having five more interceptions. In 1937, he passed for 288 yards and two touchdowns, alongside nine interceptions. He was selected second-team All-NFL by the

International News Service The International News Service (INS) was a U.S.-based news agency (newswire) founded by newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst in 1909.

at the end of the year. Gildea was also the Pirates' regular punter during his three seasons with the team, sharing duties in his final season with future

Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

John "Blood" McNally.

New York Giants

Gildea finished his career with the New York Giants in 1938, where he only recorded two yards on one

rushing attempt Rushing means a sudden forward motion, or a surge or onslaught. Rushing may refer to: Tactics * Rush (gridiron football), advancing the ball by running on offense. On defense, charging the quarterback or kicker is a pass rush. * Human wave att ...

in nine games, including two starts. Despite the statistics, he was selected to his only

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 ...

that year. The Giants won the NFL championship that season. Gildea was a non-factor in the championship game, missing his only extra point attempt in the first quarter, while

Ward Cuff Ward Lloyd Cuff (August 12, 1913 – December 24, 2002) was an American football halfback and placekicker in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Giants, Chicago Cardinals, and Green Bay Packers. He played college football at Marqu ...

handled most of the kicking and punting duties.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gildea, Johnny 1910 births 1979 deaths American football quarterbacks St. Bonaventure Brown Indians football players Pittsburgh Steelers players New York Giants players Players of American football from Pennsylvania Sportspeople from Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania