Former longtime New York Jets offensive linemen Marvin Powell and Jim Sweeney have died this week, the team announced Sunday.
Powell was a three-time All-Pro at right tackle and served as president of the NFL Players Association for two years during his 11-year NFL career, the first nine with the Jets. He died Friday, the Jets said. Powell was 67.
Sweeney was one of the Jets’ most durable players, starting 158 consecutive games during an 11-year stretch with the team, mostly at center. He died Saturday, the Jets said. Sweeney was 60.
The two were teammates with the Jets during the 1984 and ’85 seasons.
Powell, a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, was drafted by the Jets as the No. 4 overall pick in 1977 out of USC. He won a starting job as a rookie and became one of the franchise’s best and most-decorated players, selected to the Pro Bowl five straight seasons from 1979-83. Powell was an All-Pro in 1979, `81 and ’82.
Powell was also selected the Jets’ MVP by his teammates in 1979.
“Marvin was one of the best linemen I’ve ever seen,” former Jets wide receiver Wesley Walker told the team’s website. “He was just a physical specimen. He was just good. I just loved him.”
Powell played his last two seasons with Tampa Bay, finishing with 130 starts in 133 games.
Powell was also one of the league’s most respected players while serving as a player union rep, then was elected as vice president of the NFLPA before serving as president two years. The Fort Bragg, North Carolina, native worked as an intern at the New York Stock Exchange and earned his law degree from New York Law School in 1987.
Powell’s son Marvin III played nine games as a fullback for New Orleans in 1999.
Sweeney was a second-round pick out of Pittsburgh, where he was Dan Marino’s center, becoming the Jets’ center in 1988. His versatility and toughness made him one of the team’s most valuable players. Sweeney is survived by his wife Julie and their five children: Shannon, Liam, Aislinn, Kilian and Teagan.
No Comment