Kenny Easley

Kenneth Mason Easley Jr. (born January 15, 1959) is an American former football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons from 1981 to 1987.

He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was a three-time consensus All-American.

He returned two of them for touchdowns and was named as the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, the first safety awarded since Dick Anderson in 1973.

Born and raised in Chesapeake, Virginia, Easley graduated from its Oscar F. Smith High School in 1977.

He was the first player in the history of Virginia high school football to rush and pass for over 1,000 yards in a single season, and was named as an all-state and All-American selection at quarterback.

He started ten games as a true freshman in 1977, recording nine interceptions and was named to his first all Pac-10 squad.

His 93 tackles established a school-record for tackles by a true freshman.

Later, he became the first player in conference history to be honored as all-conference for four consecutive years.

Playing from 1977 to 1980, Easley finished his college career with a school-record 19 interceptions and 324 tackles, along with 45 punt returns for 454 yards.

Easley was a three-time consensus All-American selection (1978, 1979, 1980) and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 1980.

Easley was one of Seahawks defensive unit leaders and one of the finest defensive players in the NFL during the 1980s.

He was selected in the first round of the 1981 NFL draft, by the Seattle Seahawks, where he played his entire career.

Nicknamed "the Enforcer", Easley has been considered to be among the best defensive backs during his era and one of the Seahawks' all-time greatest players.

He also played basketball at the junior varsity level for UCLA and was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the tenth round of the 1981 NBA draft but did not play.

Easley was the fourth overall pick of the 1981 NFL draft, selected by the Seattle Seahawks.

He became an immediate starter as a rookie in 1981, recording three interceptions for 155 yards and one touchdown, earning him AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.

In 1983, the Seahawks hired former Buffalo Bills coach Chuck Knox as their head coach and Easley immediately became the "backbone" of Knox's defense.

In his first season playing for Knox, Easley won the AFC Defensive Player of the Year Award and recorded seven interceptions.

In 1984, Easley was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

He was a four-time All–Pro selection and was elected to the Pro Bowl five times in his career.

In 1984, Easley led the NFL in interceptions with ten, which tied a club record.

In 1984, during a 45–0 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the Kingdome on November 4, the Seahawks returned four interceptions for touchdowns, including one caught by Easley, breaking the record for most touchdowns scored from an interception in a game.

He also took over the role of the team's main punt returner when Paul Johns got injured earlier in the season.

After the season, Easley signed a five-year contract to stay with the Seahawks, averaging $650,000 a year plus incentives.

The contract made him one of the highest paid defensive players in the league.

In 1985, Easley was selected for his fourth consecutive Pro Bowl, a team record until defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy was selected for his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl in 1995.

Easley was injured for most of the 1986 season; he hurt his knee against the San Diego Chargers on October 11, and the next month, missed the remainder of the season due to ankle surgery.

Easley's career ended after the 1987 season, when he was diagnosed with severe kidney disease.

In December, Easley was rumored to be in the trading block as the Seahawks were attempting to get the first overall pick in the 1987 NFL draft from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in order to draft quarterback Vinny Testaverde.

In 1987, Easley was the Seahawks player representative and a leading figure in the 1987 NFL strike.

Seeking a new collective bargaining agreement with free agency a major factor, the head of the National Football League Players Association Gene Upshaw managed to convince Easley and hundreds of his fellow NFL players to go on strike.

As a response, the league decided to use replacement players to fill up their rosters, along with a few veterans who crossed the "picket line".

When former teammate Jim Zorn offered his services to the Seahawks, Easley said

"He obviously is either desperate to play in the NFL or desperate for money. Here's a guy who played in the NFL for a long time and who was adored and was admired by his fans and teammates. Now, he turns his back on us."

Easley also warned his fellow players that he was against the idea of using violence against the replacement players in order to prove a point.

His No. 5 jersey was retired by the Bruins, and in 1991 he was elected to the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame.

In 1996, Oscar F. Smith High School honored Easley and two other football graduates Ed Beard and Steve DeLong by naming its football stadium "Beard–DeLong–Easley Field" on September 6.

Allegedly recruited by 350 colleges, Easley selected University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and played for the Bruins football team.

He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1998, and was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017.

After retirement, Easley owned a Cadillac dealership and later, the Norfolk Nighthawks team from 1999 to 2003.