Vote Now! - Author Poll Does Joe Klecko Deserve to Be in the HOF? Yes No vote to see results Its been over a decade and Joe Klecko has yet to have his name officially mentioned with the greats in the Hall of Fame. Joe Klecko was a DE, DT and NT who played 12 seasons in the NFL from 1977-1988, mainly with the Jets. Klecko made the Pro Bowl four times, the All Pro team twice and is the only player in NFL history to be elected to the Pro Bowl at three different positions. Joe Klecko was tough and physical as a player who gave his all for the team and did whatever it took to win a game. He was one of the anchors of the very popular ?New York Sack Exchange? in the early 80?s and was feared by many offensive linemen. Just ask Hall of Fame offensive lineman Anthony Munoz who said: ?In my 13 seasons, Joe is right there at the top of the defensive ends I had to block, up there with Fred Dean, Lee Roy Selmon and Bruce Smith.? Munoz went on to say, ?Joe was the strongest guy I ever faced, He had perfect technique but he was such an intense, smart player...He was the leader, the guy who kept that unit together.? During Klecko?s 10 years with the Jets, he helped lead them to four playoff appearances in 1981, ?82, ?85 and ?86. In his 11 years he racked up 24 sacks, 91 tackles and nine fumble recoveries. Munoz isn?t the only player who admires Klecko; HOF OL Joe DeLamielleure is also an advocate for Klecko to the Hall of Fame. ?I had to block Joe Greene and Merlin Olsen when I was playing and, believe me, Joe Klecko was equal to those two guys?. We need to get Joe Klecko in the Hall of Fame.? Note that all the players DeLamielleure and Munoz compared Klecko to are Hall of Famers, yet Klecko continues to not get the call from the hall. With all that being said it is ridiculous Joe Klecko is not in the Hall of Fame. Two Hall of Fame OL compare him to greats like Joe Greene and Bruce Smith, some of the greatest D-linemen of all time. And again, he is the only player in NFL history to make the Pro Bowl at three different positions, yet he continues to get shunned by voters. Justice needs to be served here, LET JOE KLECKO INTO THE HALL OF FAME!!! Checkout many more of my articles at NFLtouchdown.com! -Cole
Yeah Klecko should be in the hall of fame. Honestly I don't think he'll make it though. The Jets biggest possibilities to win a Super Bowl while he was anchoring them were 1982 and 1986. In 1982 he was out for almost the entire strike shorted season with an injury and in 1986 his late season injury took the heart out of the Jets defense during their collapse. It's not fair given his accomplishments and the teams he was on but ultimately I think he's going to fail to get the votes, between the voters who reflexively vote against Jets (and that definitely happens) and the fact that his career was interrupted in so many crucial ways. 4 seasons shortened by injuries is a lot. You don't get HoF votes based on how your team declined when you left, only based on what they did while you were available.
if klecko gets in with those stats, we need to contact gastineau, because he will walk in the door first. sure klecko had a big heart and all, but gastineau was the f---ing man back in the day! to beat it all gastineau played hurt too, and had more impact plays than klecko. gastineau changed alot about the NFL, did klecko?
I agree Gastineau should also be considered, but those stats can't be correct. In 1981 alone Klecko had 20-1/2 sacks, that was the breakout year of the Sack Exchange, Gastineau had 21, the team had 66. Maybe because it was the following year, 1982, when sacks became an offical stat, but someone needs to make that distinction because those numbers as they are stated don't do justice to Klecko and won't do justice to Gastineau, either.
Those sack totals are incomplete b/c the sack wasn't an official stat until 1982. gastineau was a better pass rusher than Klecko, Klecko was a better football player than gastineau.
They still kept the stats unofficially, I wonder if they can be tracked down for their careers. I have the 1981 stats I posted just in my head from memory (don't ask me what I had for lunch yesterday), but what about the rest? Klecko was drafted in 1977, Gastineau in 1979--that's a good chunk of their careers not counted, especially considering 1981.
Klecko had 78, the sack wasn't an official stat until 1982 and in '81 he had 20.5 and '80 he had double digit sacks as well. gastineau officially has 74 but he really had about 107.
Klecko did his knee in Week 2 of the 1982 season, then came back as a DT and later a NT when Bud Carson switched the D to the 3-4, so his sack numbers dropped off. He made the Pro Bowl at all three positions but wasn't called on for sacks much after 1981, largely because Gastineau was there, who set the record in 1984 with 22 sacks and was solid up until he retired in 1988.
Found it Klecko sacks totals 1977 - 8 1978 - 8 1979 - 7 1980 - 10.5 1981 - 20.5 1982 - 2 1983 - 6.5 1984 - 3 1985 - 7.5 1986 - 4 1987 - 1 1988 - 0 Total - 78
Klecko was a nice player for the Jets. As far as the hall of fame, there are alot of Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills, and New England Patriots players who should be in before Klecko. Bob Keuchenberg (Fins) played in a super bowl with a broken arm, in more playoff games, and was All Pro and all NFL many times during his career and neutralized Klecko during his playing days as a OG for Fins. He is more deserving by a long shot.
The reality is Klecko was really good but Winston Hill and Marvin Powell belong in the HOF ahead of Klecko who is a marginal candidate at best.
Thanks. You can see how his career changed after the knee in 1982, although he did get 7-1/2 in 1985. I was at a game that year where he destroyed Blair Bush, a decent center for Seattle. He really re-invented himself playing in the middle of the line because his speed was compromised after the injury. He used to line up crooked to gain an advantage, but he did jump offsides a little too much.
Marvin Powell was a greart LT but he simply wasnt a household name..mainly b/c of Anthony munoz overshadowing him. Hill however, has the resume but unfortunately his name has not stood the test of time.
