Mark Gastineau

The play had originally resulted in an incomplete pass by Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar so instead of having a 3rd-and-24 situation, the 15-yard penalty on Gastineau gave the Browns a first down at their own 33.

From there, the Browns drove the remaining 67 yards to a touchdown which cut the Jets' lead to 20–17.

Marcus Dell Gastineau (born November 20, 1956) is an American former football player who was a defensive end for the New York Jets from 1979 to 1988.

A five-time Pro Bowler, he was one of the quickest and most feared pass rushers of his generation; he was the first player to lead the NFL in sacks in consecutive seasons.

He entered Eastern Arizona Junior College in 1975 and earned All-America honors in his first season.

He transferred to Arizona State University, and spent just one season playing defensive end there before finally settling upon East Central Oklahoma State University, now East Central University, in Ada, Oklahoma.

He had 27 quarterback sacks in his college career, and earned Outstanding Defensive Lineman honors for the North in the 1979 Senior Bowl.

Gastineau became ECU's first-ever draft pick when the New York Jets selected him in the second round of the 1979 NFL Draft.

Connie Carberg, the first female NFL scout in history, was credited with helping the Jets discover Gastineau.

The team was coaching in the Senior Bowl and needed another defensive lineman on the roster due to a vacancy, so Carberg called several prospects before suggesting Gastineau to be the replacement based on a phone conversation with him.

He was projected to be an eighth round draft pick at the time, but due to his performance in the Senior Bowl and other pre-draft processes, the Jets selected him in the second round.

Gastineau was among the most talented and honored defensive linemen of his era.

He made the Pro Bowl five straight seasons (1981–1985) and finished his ten-year career with 74 sacks.

The four combined for 66 sacks in 1981, including twenty by Gastineau (In 1981 sacks were unofficial, but Gastineau's 20 sacks trailed Klecko by only half a sack), to lead the Jets to their first playoff game since 1969.

He was Second-team All-Pro in 1981 as well as being consensus All-AFC.

In November 1981, he, Klecko, Lyons and Salaam were invited to ring the ceremonial opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, which served as the inspiration for their nickname.

He was a First-team All-Pro in 1982–1984 and was consensus All-AFC in each of those years.

In New York, Gastineau was a key part of the famed "New York Sack Exchange," the Jets defensive line that also included Joe Klecko, Marty Lyons and Abdul Salaam.

With Klecko rupturing the patella tendon in his right knee in the second game of the strike shortened 1982 season against the New England Patriots, Gastineau became the new unofficial leader of the "Sack Exchange."

Though he was often double teamed, he finished the season with six sacks, and was voted the NFL Defensive Player of the Year by NEA (and awarded the George Halas Trophy).

The Jets made the playoffs again in 1982, losing the AFC Championship game to the Miami Dolphins.

The 1983 season started with Gastineau and the Jets' first round pick of the 1983 NFL Draft, quarterback Ken O'Brien, being arrested and charged with assault at Studio 54.

Despite this off-the-field indiscretion, Gastineau totaled 19 sacks to lead the NFL for the first time.

Gastineau was nationally famous for doing his signature "Sack Dance" after sacking an opposing quarterback.

The ban on the dance stemmed from a bench-clearing brawl in the third quarter of a 27–24 overtime win over the Los Angeles Rams at Shea Stadium on September 25, 1983 which began with a sack of Vince Ferragamo by Gastineau who was then shoved from behind by Jackie Slater, the right tackle he had beaten on the play.

One month later on October 21, a total of $15,750 in fines was assessed by the NFL against 16 Jets ($7,300) and 21 Rams ($8,450), with Gastineau incurring a $1,000 penalty.

However, he had to stop when the NFL declared it "unsportsmanlike taunting" in March 1984 and began fining players for it.

Gastineau had his best individual season with an NFL record 22 sacks (leading the NFL for the second year in a row), 69 tackles and one fumble recovery for a touchdown in 1984.

He was voted the UPI AFC Defensive Player of the Year, and was also named MVP of that season's Pro Bowl after tallying four sacks and a safety in that game.

New defensive coordinator Bud Carson installed a 3-4 defense for the 1985 season.

Gastineau shifted from left defensive end to right defensive end, although he did move him around to allow for mismatches.

Gastineau broke his hand early in that season but still finished second in the league with 13½ sacks and was voted All-Pro by the NEA.

The Jets finished 11–5 in 1985 to earn a wildcard spot in the playoffs along with fellow AFC East rivals, the New England Patriots.

Gastineau recorded a sack in the Jets' 26–14 loss to the Pats at the Meadowlands.

For the start of the 1986 season, Gastineau was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated alongside New York Giants star linebacker Lawrence Taylor.

Injuries limited Gastineau to just two sacks in ten games (his lowest total since his rookie season) as he was slowed by groin and abdominal muscle ailments and then by a damaged left knee that required arthroscopic surgery and forced him to miss the last five games of the regular season.

Gastineau rebounded in the postseason, however, recording a sack in the Jets 35–15 wildcard round victory over the Kansas City Chiefs and 2 1⁄2 more in the divisional-round playoff game against the Cleveland Browns.

Late in the fourth quarter of that game, though, with the Jets leading 20–10 and the Browns facing a second down and 24 from their own 18-yard line, Gastineau was called for a roughing the passer penalty.

Gastineau's sack record stood for 17 years until Michael Strahan broke it in 2001.

Gastineau was ranked the 8th greatest pass rusher in National Football League (NFL) history on NFL Network's Top 10 Pass Rushers.