Imagine Julius Peppers moved inside to tackle and played like Warren Sapp. Imagine a few years later he moved to nose tackle and played like Vince Wilfork. Imagine Peppers did this as a sixth round pick. That is a rough approximation of what the Jets had in Joe Klecko. Klecko was a sixth rounder in 1977. He made the Pro Bowl at defensive end, defensive tackle, and nose tackle. Think about the different qualities one needs to succeed at those three very different positions. Sacks were not an official stat until 1982. It is estimated, though, that Klecko had over 20 in 1981. How many guys have the skills to do that and then play well on the nose?
Outrage over Curtis Martin's Hall of Fame snub in 2011 was legitimate. Curtis will make it in, though. It is almost criminal that we never hear Klecko's name considered for enshrinement. We may never see a player dominate the way he did. It is like Babe Ruth succeeding as a hitter and pitcher in baseball.
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