Credit: U.S. Army Materiel Command – Chris Putnam
Being the die-hard Los Angeles Raiders fan that I am, I was personally devastated the moment I witnessed “Bo” Jackson walking off of the field favoring his left leg, after having been tackled by Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Kevin Walker during the 1991 N.F.L. A.F.C. Divisional Playoff Game. The game was held on a Sunday afternoon on January 13, 1991 at the historic, iconic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before a packed, mostly-Raider sellout crowd.
-
Ben & Jerry’s x Nike SB Dunk Low Top Pro QS Men’s Sports Shoes – Sizes 36-40
$107.99 Select options -
Ben & Jerry’s x Nike SB Dunk Low Top Syracuse Men’s/Women’s Skateboarding Sports Sneakers Sizes 36-45
$88.99 Select options -
Sale!
Luminous Flat Shoelaces
$0.52 – $0.66 Select options -
Nike Air Jordan 4 Retro Men’s/Women’s Basketball Shoes
$102.99 Select options
During this era in L.A. Raider history (mid-to-late eighties until the early nineties), the Raiders roster was blessed with future N.F.L. Hall of Famers including running back Marcus Allen, Olympic gold-medalist wide receiver Tim Brown, defensive end Howie Long, strong safety Ronnie Lott and the Raiders were perennial N.F.L. playoff contenders. Along with the catastrophic damage inflicted on Jackson’s body (and future N.F.L. prospects) by his untimely hip injury, the Raiders near-future prospects were likewise dramatically devastated. The injury was later revealed to have caused a degenerative bone condition in Jackson’s hip called avascular necrosis.
Results
-
#1. Which football player won the 1991 Associated Press N.F.L. Regular Season Most Valuable Player Award?
The Los Angeles Raiders went on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals, 20-10, but would eventually suffer defeat without their superstar running back in the ensuing round at the hands of the then-powerful Jim Kelly-led Buffalo Bills. The Raiders offense was substantially weaker during their subsequent lackluster loss to the Buffalo Bills in the next round sans Jackson. Consequently, the two-headed monster of (Bo Jackson and Heisman trophy-winner Marcus Allen) was dissolved, thereby destroying the Raiders spirit and rendering their Super Bowl ambitions null and void. Prior to Bo Jackson’s hip injury, Los Angeles Raiders owner Al Davis was on the verge of turning the Los Angeles Raiders into a Super Bowl-caliber N.F.L. team. At the time of Jackson’s hip injury, the Raiders franchise had not won an N.F.L. Super Bowl title since 1976 (as the Oakland Raiders under then head coach John Madden). With legendary N.F.L. Hall of Fame head coach John Madden at the helm, the Oakland Raiders finished the 1976 N.F.L. regular season with a stellar 13-1 record.
Among Bo Jackson’s countless athletic achievements is that he is the only player to have played in Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game and be named to the National Football League’s Pro Bowl. Unfortunately, Jackson was never able to reach his fullest potential N.F.L. career-wise and was forced to retire prematurely from the N.F.L. (at 28 years old), due to his severe, rare hip injury. In retrospect, I look back and often wonder if the Raiders (assuming their other starters avoided injury) could of won a couple of Super Bowls, and possibly established an N.F.L. dynasty had Jackson never sustained his injury. It’s too bad that I will never be able to find out.
Below are some Vincent “Bo” Jackson career statistics and highlights:
Vincent “Bo” Jackson Short Biography and Fast Facts
| Vincent "Bo" Jackson’s Short Biography and Fast Facts | |
|---|---|
| Full name: Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson | |
| Position: | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | November 30, 1962 |
| Bessemer, Alabama | |
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight: | 227 lb (103 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | McCalla (AL) McAdory |
| College: | Auburn |
| N.F.L. Draft: | 1986 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1 |
Vincent “Bo” Jackson Career Highlights and Awards
| Vincent "Bo" Jackson’s Career Highlights and Awards | |
|---|---|
| Career highlights and awards | |
| N.F.L. Pro Bowl (1990) | |
| Heisman Trophy (1985) | |
| Walter Camp Award (1985) | |
| Sporting News Player of the Year (1985) | |
| U.P.I. Player of the Year (1985) | |
| 2× Consensus All-American (1983, 1985) | |
| 3× First-team All-SEC (1982, 1983, 1985) | |
| Auburn Tigers No. 34 retired |
Vincent “Bo” Jackson N.F.L. Career Statistics
| Vincent "Bo" Jackson’s N.F.L. Career Statistics | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | Rushing | Receiving | |||||||||
| GP | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1987 | L.A. Raiders | 7 | 81 | 554 | 6.8 | 91 | 4 | 16 | 136 | 8.5 | 23 | 2 |
| 1988 | L.A. Raiders | 10 | 136 | 580 | 4.3 | 25 | 3 | 9 | 79 | 8.8 | 27 | 0 |
| 1989 | L.A. Raiders | 11 | 173 | 950 | 5.5 | 92 | 4 | 9 | 69 | 7.7 | 20 | 0 |
| 1990 | L.A. Raiders | 10 | 125 | 698 | 5.6 | 88 | 5 | 6 | 68 | 11.3 | 18 | 0 |
| Totals | 38 | 515 | 2782 | 5.4 | 92 | 16 | 40 | 352 | 9.1 | 27 | 2 |
Vincent “Bo” Jackson career-ending hip injury play – 1991 N.F.L. A.F.C. Divisional Playoffs – Cincinnati Bengals vs Los Angeles Raiders (L.A. Memorial Coliseum – Los Angeles, California – January 13, 1991)
Click here to view N.F.L. Legends – Vincent “Bo” Jackson career highlights
Cincinnati Enquirer Special – Bengals 50 – The Curse of Bo Jackson
E.S.P.N. Special – Bo Jackson: “I’d tell my kids to play any sport aside from football.”
Vincent ” Bo” Jackson N.C.A.A. College Football Highlights – Auburn Tigers Legend
Vincent “Bo” Jackson Highlights – Kansas City Royals (M.L.B.) and Los Angeles Raiders (N.F.L.)
Vincent “Bo” Jackson Highlights – The Greatest Two Sports Athlete Ever
Click here to view N.F.L. 100 Greatest – #25 Bo Jackson runs through tunnel after 91-yard touchdown
Click here to view N.F.L. 100 Rewind – Bo Jackson
N.F.L. – Vincent “Bo” Jackson Career Highlights
Click here to view YouTube video
Sources: Wikipedia–https://www.en.wikipedia.org, E.S.P.N.–https://www.espn.com, N.F.L.–https://www.nfl.com, Los Angeles Raiders–https://www.raiders.com/, Cincinnati Bengals–https://www.bengals.com/, Cincinnati Enquirer–https://www.cincinnati.com, Dailymotion–https://www.dailymotion.com, YouTube–https://www.youtube.com
