Lawrence Taylor: The Greatest Defensive Player Ever
All I can say about Lawrence Taylor is that he’s the best defensive football player I’ve seen. I’ve said many times he’s the best player I’ve seen in my era defensively. Everyone else is a pretender.
Howie Long, Hall of Fame Defensive End
We had to try in some way have a special game plan just for Lawrence Taylor. Now you didn’t do that very often in this league but I think he’s one person that we learned the lesson the hard way. We lost ball games.
Joe Gibbs, Hall of Fame Head Coach
Nobody in the history of football has ever struck more fear into the heart of an offensive player than Lawrence Taylor. He was maniacal on the field, shredding through opponents with ease. He may have been an outside linebacker by trade, but he could’ve been a Pro-Bowler at any defensive position. At UNC, he lined up at nose tackle sometimes, and still managed to break through even the best offensive lineman. Even though LT was “just” 240 pounds, he was strong enough to overpower 300+ pound guards and tackles with relative ease.
Entire offenses built their game plans around him. You often hear of teams trying to throw away from a specific cornerback, such as the infamous “Revis Island” or what Jalen Ramsey is doing nowadays in LA, but it is unheard of for an offense to play to the opposite side of a pass-rusher. Yet that’s what LT made opposing teams do. Nobody ever could run his way. No quarterback could run to his side of the field. Any time someone would get close to him, it’s game over. Former Eagles guard Jerry Sisemore had this to say about the impact of Taylor. “We changed our entire blocking scheme because of him.” The only way an opposing team would stand a chance against the G-Men of the 80s would be to see where LT was lined up, and go the other way. Taylor made the Left Tackle-the quarterback’s blind side blocker-the most lucrative position in football following the QB himself. LT paved the way for players such as Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware, Derrick Thomas, and Khalil Mack. He revolutionized the game forever.
Lawrence Julius Taylor began his path to worldwide fame at the University of North Carolina as an ILB and Nose Tackle. He sat out his first season as a redshirt freshman and played poorly in his sophomore year, but his junior season was one of the best individual defensive seasons which college football has ever seen. Taylor notched a school-record 16 sacks while recording a whopping 22 TFL and recovering three fumbles. He was a Unanimous All-American and was named the ACC Player of the Year. That incredible season led to the 6"3 240-pound phenom being selected 2nd overall by the New York Giants in the 1981 NFL Draft.
Taylor made an immediate impact in the NFL, winning the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and becoming the only rookie to ever win the AP Defensive Player of the Year. He was already tormenting opposing offenses during his rookie season. While his first pro season was better than most players’ prime years, it was just a warmup for the defensive monster known as LT. After making five consecutive 1st Team All-Pro appearances to begin his NFL career and winning a second consecutive DPOY in 1982, he somehow hit another gear in 1986. This was the season that transcended him into the all-time great conversation. He was already on a trajectory to become an all-timer, but this was just the icing on the cake — and the cake wasn’t even close to being finished.
In 1986, Taylor broke the 20 sack plateau recording 20.5, a total that was easily the most of his illustrious career. That dominance led to him being the first defensive player since Alan Page in 1971 to win the NFL MVP. He won yet another DPOY, making him the first player to ever be a 3x winner of the award. (JJ Watt and Aaron Donald have since joined the illustrious club.) His ’86 dominance led the Giants to the postseason, where he returned a Joe Montana interception 34 yards for a touchdown in a 49–3 beat down of the Niners before blanking the defending champion Bears 17–0 in the NFC Championship Game. The combined 66–3 score propelled NYG to the Super Bowl, where Phil Simms played an immaculate game and LT received his first Super Bowl ring. This was Taylor’s peak season, and although he made four more Pro Bowls in his career, he could never re-create his historic 1986 season.
Taylor finished his career as one of the most accomplished players in NFL history, but more importantly, the most impactful defender to ever play the game. As I mentioned earlier, he revolutionized the way the game was played. David Bakhtiari just signed a 90+ million dollar deal with Green Bay to protect Aaron Rodgers’ blind side. Before Taylor, the inside linebacker was the sexy position to play. Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert, Mike Singletary, Chuck Howell, and Ray Nitschke were all considered the best defenders in the league, not the players who got dirty in the trenches. Taylor changed all of that. He inspired the next generation of players to want to play on the line and terrorize quarterbacks instead of playing the run up the middle. He paved the way for the defensive greats we see today.
Taylor finished his career as a DROY, 3x DPOY, NFL MVP, 10x Pro Bowler, and 8x First-Team All-Pro. While his play sharply declined following his 30th birthday due to a variety of reasons, his first 10 years might be the best 10-year career (of full productive seasons) of any player in football history, right up there with the great Jim Brown and his legendary career.
I have seen players get compared to LT, lately, it’s been, Micah Parsons. While I do think he can be a great NFL player, that’s just disrespectful.
There has never been, and will never be, another Lawrence Taylor.
