Russ Francis All Pro TE dies in plane crash

[Inthend]

Russ Francis, a former NFL tight-end, passed away as a result of a plane crash in Lake Placid on October 1st at the age of 70. He was selected in the first round by the New England Patriots, the 16th overall pick, and signed in May.

 

During the Patriots 30–27 win in 1976 over the two-time defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers on September 26, Francis caught a 38-yard touchdown pass from Steve Grogan, Francis had a career-best 139 yards receiving. As a result, Howard Cosell proclaimed him the "All-World Tight End."

 

In 1980, Francis caught a 23-yard pass from Harold Jackson on a wide receiver reverse option play, in the Patriots 34–21 win over the New York Jets on November 2. He caught a 12-yard pass from WR Harold Jackson, on the same wide receiver reverse option play, in the Pats' 16–13 overtime loss to the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football on December 8.

 

In 1978, Francis had a career-longest 53-yard reception and 126 yards receiving in the Patriots 21–14 win over the Oakland Raiders at the Oakland Coliseum on September 24. That season, he led the Patriots in receptions with 39 catches for 543 yards.

 

Francis was a Pro Bowl selection for three consecutive seasons (1977–1979).

 

Following the 1980 season, Francis retired from professional football. Two things that Francis has said contributed greatly to this decision were, one, when the Patriots refused to give him his promised bonus for making the Pro Bowl (because his injury from a motorcycle accident kept him out of the game); and, secondly, when his roommate, Darryl Stingley, was paralyzed by a Jack Tatum hit in August 1978, the Patriots tried to cancel Stingley's medical insurance. Francis was the first teammate at Stingley's side immediately after the hit, and he has said it was tough to play after that. Francis was traded to the defending Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers for a draft pick that the Patriots used to select future Hall of Fame linebacker Andre Tippett.

 

After leaving the Patriots, Francis got a job with ABC Sports. While in Hawaii for the Pro Bowl, Francis interviewed Bill Walsh, the 49ers head coach. Walsh told him this was the only time in his life he would be able to play football, and that he would never get these years back and should not turn his back on this chance. Francis came out of retirement, after sitting out the 1981 season, joined the 49ers and eventually won a Super Bowl ring as a member of the 1984 49ers. Francis played a key role in San Francisco's win over the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX (5 catches for 60 yards). In 1985, Francis had a career-high 44 receptions. After being waived by the 49ers during the 1987 season, Francis signed with his old team, the Patriots, before the season's final game. His second tenure in New England was less successful than his first, however, and he played just one more season. Francis spent 1989 injured before being waived and retiring.

 

Condolences to his family and friends and may he Rest in Peace.

 

This article was directly sourced using Francis' Wikipedia page.

[blackhawkrush]

These small planes are going down like flies and people still use them.   

[BigMontanaSKY]

On 10/3/2023 at 10:08 AM, blackhawkrush said:

These small planes are going down like flies and people still use them.   

Glad you said this. 

 

The stats for small plane crashes are grim, especially when a pilot is either a novice or prone to getting disoriented.

[blackhawkrush]

2 hours ago, BigMontanaSKY said:

Glad you said this. 

 

The stats for small plane crashes are grim, especially when a pilot is either a novice or prone to getting disoriented.

Yeah, I remember there was a period of time when these little suckers were crashing every other day. Ridiculous.