Gerry Philbin Dies at 83, Former NFL All-Pro DE Won Super Bowl III with Jets

Former New York Jets All-Pro defensive end Gerry Philbin has died at 83, ESPN's Rich Cimini reported Wednesday.

Philbin, a Rhode Island native, played college football at Buffalo and was drafted by the Jets in the 1964 AFL draft. The Detroit Lions also drafted him in the NFL draft. He played with New York from 1964 to 1972, winning an AFL championship in 1968 and the third Super Bowl in 1969. He spent the final year of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1973.

Cimini noted that while sacks weren't recorded as an official stat until 1982, Philbin unofficially recorded 64.5 over the course of his career, the fourth-most in Jets history. He had a career-high 19 sacks in 1968.

Philbin stood at just 6'2", 245 pounds, but still thrived at his position.

"I got the most out of how hard I worked, because I was a little disadvantaged with size and overcame it," Philbin told Jim Gehman of NYJets.com in 2018. "And then just accomplishing most of my goals that I set. I wanted to be an All-Star. I wanted to win the Super Bowl. And the personal goals of getting elected to the All-Time AFL Team. And then finally, becoming a Ring of Honor recipient with the Jets. All those things I cherish a lot."

Philbin was an AFL All-Star in 1968 and 1969 and was named first-team defensive end on the all-time All-AFL squad. He was inducted into the Jets' Ring of Honor in 2011.