- Fred Dean
NFLretired
name=Fred Dean
|position=Defensive end
number=71, 74
birthdate=Birth date and age|1952|2|24Arcadia, Louisiana
debutyear=1975
finalyear=1985
draftyear=1975
draftround=2
draftpick=33
college=Louisiana Tech
teams=
*San Diego Chargers (1975-1981)
*San Francisco 49ers (1981-1985)
stat1label=Sacks
stat1value=93
stat2label=Games
stat2value=141
stat3label=INT
stat3value=1
nfl=DEA237308
highlights=
* 4xPro Bowl selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1983)
* 4xAll-Pro selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1983)
* 4x All-Conference selection (1979, 1980, 1981, 1983)
* 2xSuper Bowl champion (XVI, XIX)
* 1981UPI NFC Player of the Year
HOF=261
CollegeHOF=Frederick Rudolph "Fred" Dean (born
February 24 ,1952 ) is a Hall of FameAmerican football player in theNational Football League . His career started with theSan Diego Chargers in 1975 and ended with theSan Francisco 49ers after the 1985 season. Dean was born in Arcadia, the seat ofBienville Parish in northLouisiana . His family moved twenty miles west to Ruston, where he graduated fromRuston High School .College career
Dean was a standout at
Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, having spurned an opportunity to play for legendary coachEddie Robinson at nearbyGrambling State University , which at the time was sendingAfrican American players to the NFL on a yearly basis. Dean excelled as an All-Southland Conference defensive tackle during his collegiate football career at Louisiana Tech.NFL career
In 1981, he was acquired in a mid--season trade and eventually helped the
San Francisco 49ers win twoSuper Bowl s in the 1980s. His first game as a 49er was a key match-up against theDallas Cowboys . Dean played after only a couple of practices and was still able to apply pressure and repeatedly hurriedDanny White when he was not recording one of his 3 sacks, in a game won by the 49ers, 45-14. His first action of the season as a 49er was noted by author Tom Danyluk as "the greatest set of downs I have ever seen unleashed by a pass rusher". [http://books.google.com/books?id=Gc5XDDEgrRUC&printsec=frontcover&dq=fred+dean+danny+white&sig=YzdsxMpADdDvrj3FboME5ReRqNg#PPA205,M1] In what had been a game of possum,Bill Walsh , the 49er head coach, said to John Madden, who covered the game, "Fred (Dean) just got here . . . If he plays, he won't play much". [http://books.google.com/books?id=5fkygqMiHpcC&dq=fred+dean+danny+white&q=fred+dean&pgis=1]His next home game for the 49ers was against the
Los Angeles Rams . The game was won by the 49ers and the first win against the Rams inCandlestick Park , 20-17, as Dean sackedPat Haden 5 times. He ended the season with 13 sacks, 12 with the 49ers and 1 with the Chargers, prior to his trade.The 49ers would go on to win the Super Bowl that year, and
Steve Sabol (NFL Films) is quoted in 2006 as saying that Dean's acquisition was the last meaningful in-season trade, in that it affected the destination of the Lombardi Trophy. San Diego's defense collapsed when Dean departed, giving up 40 points in a loss to theCincinnati Bengals in the regular season, and 65 total points in playoff games vs. theMiami Dolphins and Bengals. The Charger defense would not return to the top half of the NFL rankings again until the unit was rebuilt in the late 1980s, and the club did not have an effective pass rusher untilLeslie O'Neal was drafted in 1986.In 1983 Dean recorded 17 sacks to lead the NFC and recorded a then-NFL record of 6 in one game, setting that mark during the 49ers’ 27-0 shutout of the
New Orleans Saints onNovember 13 , 1983. The 17 sacks was a Dean career high, bettering his 1978 total of 15-1/2 with the Chargers. [ [http://www.profootballhof.com/hof/member.jsp?player_id=261 Member - Pro Football Hall of Fame ] ] He followed that 1978 season by adding nine sacks in 1979 and 10.5 in 1980. He had recorded 7 sacks as a rookie in 1975. Dean's career sack total, with his unofficial numbers included, is 93.5. [ [http://49ers.pressdemocrat.com/default.asp?item=739566 49ers.pressdemocrat.com] ]Dean was also a key player on the 49ers 1984
Super Bowl team, mostly used as a situational pass rusher. During the 1984 season, Dean was reunited with his Charger teammate,Gary "Big Hands" Johnson .Dean is a member of the
Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame . OnAugust 2 ,2008 , Dean was elected to the NFLPro Football Hall of Fame .References
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