Best NFL Players of All Time: John Hannah. Ranking the Top Players in History. Place a bet on an NFL football game now.

Best NFL Players of All Time: John Hannah

When John Hannah was playing offensive line for the New England Patriots, he was full of energy. Not the joy of a guy who took on his duty, did it well, and felt justified and satisfied. No, with Hannah, it went a little farther. Hannah wasn’t merely attempting to keep you out of the way or protect his quarterback. His intention was to physically destroy you and crush your will.

Hannah changed on the football field even though he didn’t look horrible. He played for the Patriots from 1973 to 1985, when they progressed from being a depressing disappointment to an almost fantastic team. But Hannah was the meanest man alive for all the time he was on the pitch.

He would pound defensive linemen with his forearms, opening up huge spaces for running backs like Andy Johnson and Sam “Bam” Cunningham. Both were skilled athletes, and Cunningham was on the verge of stardom. Hannah was 6-foot-3 and 265 pounds, which was fairly average for a guard in his era, but his aggressive blocking made him known as one of the NFL’s toughest players. Neither player would have taken any action without it.

Hannah likes to think of himself as the “greatest offensive lineman alive,” although he downplays the title most of the time. Hannah is a seven-time first-team All-Pro selection and a nine-time Pro Bowl player.

Hannah replies, “There have been too many outstanding offensive linemen for anyone to call me that.”

He does not, however, dispute that he always left it all on the field and gave it everything he had. He applied the hard ethic that his father Herb, an offensive tackle who played 12 games for the New York Giants in 1951, had instilled in him at the University of Alabama, where he played NCAA football under the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant.

Hannah put up with it, but part of the famous coach’s reputation will always be the struggles and severe methods he imposed on his players. Bryant put his players through a tough fitness regimen and required them to run long distances on days when the Alabama sun reached 100 degrees in order to prepare them for the season. Bryant was indifferent to the athletes as they performed their exercises. Hannah recalled his teacher warning him, “You’re going to pass out long before you feel like you’re going to die, even though you feel like you’re going to throw up.” You had no choice but to do what he said. That was what the law required.

Bryant would often put players from the first and second teams in a circle to decide who would win a close position struggle. The winner was always the one who started first. In all those fights, nobody ever beat Hannah.

Hannah, the fourth overall pick in the 1973 NFL draft, immediately gave the Patriots a presence on the offensive line. Despite having potential and raw tools going into the draft, he feels head coaches Chuck Fairbanks and Raymond Berry were able to get the best performance out of him.

Chuck was extremely well-organized, said Hannah. He showed me that although you can make plans, they won’t come to pass until you surround yourself with accomplished individuals and listen to sensible counsel.” When you do it, your plans become final.

Hannah’s regular teachers were NFL offensive line coaches Red Miller and Jim Ringo. Hannah said, “Red taught me to be grateful for what I had and to give it my all at every opportunity.” The best way to be happy is to do what you enjoy most in life. For me, that meant going pro in football. I was enjoying every second of it.

“With Jim, it was all about embracing your current situation and making improvements to it. He was quite clear in what he was saying: after you lay the groundwork, you have to keep moving forward to keep from regressing. I agreed with that interpretation.

Though Hannah feels his coaches took advantage of him, Fairbanks, Berry, Miller, and Ringo all lauded Hannah as the most focused offensive lineman they had ever seen. Hannah was a player who never need motivation from others.

“I played with great players and coached quite a few,” Berry said.John was the most dedicated and hardworking player I know, both on the field and in practice. It was a great privilege to be his mentor.

Hannah said that during his first season, he recognized he was in the NFL when the Patriots were facing the Chicago Bears and Dick Butkus was on the other side of the line of scrimmage. Hannah said, “It was his last year and he couldn’t move around very well anymore.” But he could still deliver a vicious strike. He hit harder than anyone I had ever encountered. He was harsh and cruel, but if you could get beyond practicing with Butkus, you could overcome anything.

Howie Long, Joe Klecko, Fred Smerlas, Bob Lilly, Randy White, and Merlin Olsen were some of the hardest men Hannah has ever fought. It’s interesting to note that the Patriots and Oakland Raiders’ rivalry originated from their shared distaste and competitive spirit.

The Patriots’ 48–17 hammering of the Raiders in New England during the 1976 regular season—which the Raiders thought the Patriots “rubbed it in”—was the starting point for the rivalry the three clubs. In the divisional playoffs that season, the Raiders narrowly defeated the Patriots 24–21 in a game that featured several controversial calls, including a roughing-the-passer penalty against Patriots defensive end Ray “Sugar Bear” Hamilton during Oakland’s game-winning drive.

The Raiders’ Long confronted Hannah, and despite their apparent animosity, it was anything but dirty. Even if future Hall of Famers struck out sharply at each other, they remained polite.

Forever said, “That was John Hannah.” There was, in my perspective, a sincere aspect of respect. He is among the all-time great offensive linemen because of the way he played.

Best NFL Players of All Time: John Hannah Stats

Regular Season

Year	Age	Tm	Pos	No.	G	GS	Int	Yds	FF	Fmb	FR	Yds	TD	Sk	Sfty	AV
1973	22	NWE	LG	73	13	13				0	1	0	0	0		7
1974	23	NWE	LG	73	14	14				0	1	0	1	0		9
1975	24	NWE	LG	73	14	14								0		6
1976*+	25	NWE	LG	73	14	14								0		15
1977	26	NWE	LG	73	11	11								0		10
1978*+	27	NWE	LG	73	16	16				0	2	0	0	0		13
1979*+	28	NWE	LG	73	16	16				0	1	0	0	0		15
1980*+	29	NWE	LG	73	16	16								0		17
1981*+	30	NWE	LG	73	16	16				0	2	0	0	0		14
1982*	31	NWE	LG	73	8	8								0		9
1983*+	32	NWE	LG	73	16	16				0	3	0	0	0		12
1984*	33	NWE	LG	73	15	15								0		12
1985*+	34	NWE	LG	73	14	14								0		10
Career					183	183				0	10	0	1	0		149

Playoffs

Year	Age	Tm	Pos	G	GS	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	Fmb	FR	Yds	TD	Sk
1976	25	NWE	LG	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	0
1978	27	NWE	LG	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	0
1982	31	NWE	LG	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	0
1985	34	NWE	LG	4	4			0			0	0	0	0	0	0

 

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