The New York Giants were an NFL afterthought in the 1970s. By 1972, they were in the middle of an 18-year postseason drought, and very few fans got to see them play every week thanks to the league’s draconian television blackout rule.
What got buried under the headlines of the Giants’ incessant losing in the ’70s was the strength of their defense. That defense was built steadily throughout the decade with the drafting of linebackers Brad Van Pelt, Brian Kelley and Harry Carson and defensive end George Martin. But that actually began in 1972 when they drafted Grambling defensive tackle John Mendenhall and traded for Cleveland Browns defensive end Jack Gregory.
That June, the Giants sent their first- and second-round selections in the 1973 draft to the Browns in exchange for Gregory and defensive back Freddie Summers. It was par for the course for the Giants to trade draft capital away for veteran players back then, but this is one of the instances where it worked out for them.
Gregory became the player the Giants built their defense around. The 6-foot-5, 255-pound Mississippi native made an immediate impact in coordinator Jim Garrett’s unit. The Giants finished 8-6 in 1972, and the Big Blue defense began an impressive run that would last years.
“Gregory played in 96 games for the Giants from 1972-78. He was credited with 75.5 sacks with the team, though sacks did not become an official statistic until 1982,” wrote Giants.com’s Michael Eisen last year after Gregory’s death at age 74. “In his first season with the Giants, Gregory led the NFL with 21.0 sacks, was selected to the Pro Bowl, and was named All-NFL by United Press International and the Pro Football Writers. He had 15 sacks in 1975.”
Gregory was used as a rover in the Giants’ scheme, lining up all over the line of scrimmage as to not get himself double-teamed.
From the website Pro Football Journal:
In 1973 and 1974 he recorded 9 and then 9½ sacks and followed that up with 14 in 1975, again among the NFL leaders and he was an honorable mention All-NFC selection. He was off some in 1976 (4½ sacks) but had a nice comeback season in 1977 but dropped off in 1978, finishing with just 2½ sacks.
In the summer of 1979 Gregory, in a battle for his right end position with Gary Jeter, walked out of Giants camp and a day later demanded a trade, which he was granted — to the Browns, his original team.
Gregory was 35 in 1979, which ended up being his last year in the NFL, but his time with the Giants is not forgotten by fans who remember the “Wilderness Years” of the 1970s. He was the player that opponents had to account for. With the players mentioned above, along with the likes of Spider Lockhart, Willie Williams, Pete Athas, Pat Hughes and Troy Archer, the Giants put together one of the league’s top defenses.
Gregory was one of the few Giants who played for the team in its four home venues (Yankee Stadium, Yale Bowl, Shea Stadium, Giants Stadium) of the 1970s.
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