Roy Lee Jefferson (born November 9, 1943) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) for 12 seasons with the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. Founded in 1933 P ...

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

, and

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Utah Utes The Utah Utes are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams that represent the University of Utah, located in Salt Lake City. The athletic department is named after the Ute tribe of Native Americans in the Unite ...

. During 162

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of S ...

games in the NFL, he had 451 receptions for 7,539 yards and 52

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

. He played in Super Bowls V and VII.

Early life

Jefferson was born on November 9, 1943, in

Texarkana The Texarkana metropolitan statistical area (MSA), as defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget, is a two-county region anchored by the Twin cities (geographical proximity), twin cities of Texarkana, Texas (population 37,33 ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. He grew up in southern

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and graduated from

Compton High School Compton High School is a high school in Compton, California, United States, part of the Compton Unified School District. History Compton Union High School opened in 1896. Both the high school and Compton Junior High School were severely damag ...

in 1961. He played basketball and football at Compton. His Compton High football team jersey number 80 was retired in 2018, in the school's hall of fame jersey retirement celebration. In 2016, Jefferson was one of five Compton alumni honored in a "Golden Five" ceremony, celebrating those Compton alumni who played in the Super Bowl.

College football

He played college football at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

, where he was on the varsity from 1962-64, leading the team in scoring each one of those years. He was also named to the all-

Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the Western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Washington (state), Washington. Due to ...

(WAC) team on offense in those three years. In 1963, he led the WAC in pass receptions (29),

receiving yards The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

(435), and receiving touchdowns (4), and was third in average yards per reception. He was the only unanimous first team selection to the all-WAC team. In

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 Patria ...

as a senior, Jefferson received All-WAC honors again, and was named the Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year under head coach Ray Nagel, the 1964 WAC coach of the year. He was second in voting for

United Press International United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...

's (UPI) WAC player of the year (behind Stan Quintana). He was also an

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

(AP)

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honorable mention. Jefferson played on both sides of the ball, as both receiver and running back on offense, as well playing defensive back. He was also the team's

placekicker In gridiron football, the placekicker (PK), or simply kicker (K), is the player responsible for attempts at scoring Field goal (football), field goals and extra points. In most cases, the placekicker also serves as the team's kickoff specialist ...

. In his senior season (1964), Jefferson had 21 pass receptions, three

interceptions 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 bu ...

, and kicked 17 extra points and two

field goals A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. Consequently, a ...

. Making key pass receptions, he led the Utes to a 32–6 victory in the

Liberty Bowl The Liberty Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in late December or early January since 1959. For its first five years, it was played at Philadelphia Municipal Stadium in Philadelphia before being held at Atlantic Cit ...

over favored

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, to finish with an overall 9–2 record that year. The game was played indoors on natural grass at the convention center in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

, and featured shortened end zones. Jefferson received the Amizich Award for outstanding lineman (as an end) at Utah in his senior season. He was to play in the 1964 East-West Shrine game, but an injury in the Liberty Bowl kept him out of the game.

Professional career

Jefferson was a 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m), 195 lb (88 kg) receiver, who was nicknamed "Sweet Pea".

Pittsburgh Steelers

Selected in the second round of the 1965 NFL draft, 18th overall, Jefferson spent his first five NFL seasons with the

(1965–1969). In

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

, Jefferson led the NFL in receiving yards with 1,074, and tied for the league lead in punt returns (28). His 58 receptions and 11 touchdowns were both 2nd highest in the NFL that season. He was third in punt return average (9.8 yards/return) and scored one touchdown on a punt return. Jefferson finished the 1969 season with a career-high 67 receptions for 1,079 yards and nine touchdowns, and became the first Steelers receiver to post back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. In his five Steelers' seasons, Jefferson started 56 of the 65 regular season games in which he played, with 199 receptions for 3,671 yards (18.4 average) and 29 touchdowns. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1968 and 1969. In 1968, he was named second-team All Pro by the

(AP),

Newspaper Enterprise Association The Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA) is an editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1902. The oldest syndicate still in operation, the NEA was originally a secondary new ...

(NEA), and

(UPI), and first-team All Conference by ''The Sporting News''. He was named 1st Team All-Pro by the AP, NEA, UPI, ''Pro Football Weekly'', and the

New York Daily News The ''Daily News'' is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, New Jersey. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson in New York City as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Tabloid (newspaper format ...

in 1969. Jefferson was named to the Pittsburgh Steelers Legends team in 2007, as one of the best 24 Steelers players prior to 1970.

Baltimore Colts

Despite being the Steelers' best offensive player, conflicts with head coach Chuck Noll as the team's player representative resulted in a trade to the

for Willie Richardson and a

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...

fourth-round selection (104th overall– Dwight White) in an exchange of receivers who had fallen out of favor with their old teams on August 20,

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

. With the Colts for only one season, Jefferson helped them reach and win

Super Bowl V Super Bowl V was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion 1970 Baltimore Colts season, Baltimore Colts and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion 1970 Dallas Cowboys season, Dallas Cowboys ...

. He finished the

regular season with 44 receptions for 749 yards and seven touchdowns. He caught a 45-yard touchdown pass from

Johnny Unitas John Constantine Unitas (; May 7, 1933 – September 11, 2002) was an American professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Colts. Nicknamed "J ...

in the Colts 17–0 divisional playoff win over the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

, and caught a 9-yard touchdown pass from Unitas while dragging a defender into the endzone. Jefferson had three receptions for 52 yards in the Colts 16–13 victory over the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...

in the Super Bowl. After coming from the 1–13 Steelers in 1969, and winning the Super Bowl with the Colts in 1970, his one year with the Colts was his favorite season in the NFL. His Colts teammate and roommate John Mackey was his hero. Mackey was the first president of the

National Football League Players Association The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is the labor unions in the United States, labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by executive directo ...

(NFLPA), and Jefferson was one of the NFL players most prominently involved with the NFLPA as a player representative, and in the 1974 players' strike.

Washington Redskins

A contract dispute with the Colts ended with Jefferson being dealt along with ninth-round draft picks in

1973 Events January * January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...

(218th overall– Rick Galbos) and

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

(213th overall–traded to

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

for Joe Sweet) to the

for Cotton Speyrer and a 1973 first-rounder (25th overall–traded to

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

for Marty Domres) on July 31, 1971. He spent six seasons with the Redskins under head coach George Allen, helping them reach

Super Bowl VII Super Bowl VII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Washington Redskins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

, and retired after the 1976 season. In his first Washington season, he caught 47 passes (his high with the team), and was selected to play in the 1971 Pro Bowl. The AP and ''Pro Football Weekly'' named Jefferson first team All-Conference. Over the next three years, he caught 119 passes for nearly 1,800 yards. The team reached the playoffs in five of his six years in Washington. In 2012, he was selected as one of the 80 greatest Washington players.

After football

After his retirement from football, Jefferson has remained in the

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

area, in

Annandale, Virginia Annandale () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia. He had a leading role in the

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

blaxploitation In American cinema, Blaxploitation is the film subgenre of action movie derived from the exploitation film genre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the black civil rights movement, the black power movement, ...

feature film '' Brotherhood of Death''. The film, shot in

Montgomery County, Maryland Montgomery County is the most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, Maryland ...

, was about three small-town African-American men who go to fight in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

, then return to the U.S. to battle racial injustice in their hometown. It is one of Quentin Tarantino's favorite films. In the ensuing years, his endeavors have included owning a chain of

barbecue Barbecue or barbeque (often shortened to BBQ worldwide; barbie or barby in Australia and New Zealand) is a term used with significant regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods that employ live fire and smoke to coo ...

restaurants with the last closing in 1992 and owning a

catering Catering is the business of providing food services at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park, festival, filming location or film studio. History of catering The earliest account of major service ...

business. As of 2006, he was working in the real estate business. He reported that he and his wife had three children and four grandchildren.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Personal life

In early 1965, Jefferson led a march protesting racial bias in Salt Lake City, in front of the headquarters of

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

. Jefferson is the cousin of tight end Marv Fleming; they were teammates in high school and college, but were on opposing sides during

. Jefferson left Utah for the NFL in 1965, but returned to school in the off-seasons and completed his bachelor's degree in June 1970.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jefferson, Roy 1943 births Living people Sportspeople from Texarkana, Arkansas American football wide receivers Compton High School alumni Utah Utes football players Pittsburgh Steelers players Baltimore Colts players Washington Redskins players Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players National Conference Pro Bowl players NFL announcers