Tommy McDonald played collegially at Oklahoma from 1954 to ’56 as a halfback.
Over his time there he ran for 1683 yards on 249 carries scoring 27 times, as well as catching 20 passes for 414 yards and 6 TDs.
3rd round pick of the 1957 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Played 7 seasons for the Eagles, leading the NFL in TDs in both ’58 (9) and ’61 (13).
In 1958 he caught 29 passes for 603 yards and a 91 yard long.
From 1958-1962 caught double digit TDs in every season, with 13 in both 1960 and ’61.
Broke the 1,000 yard barrier 3 times in his career: 1961 (1144), 1962 (1146) and later after he joined the Rams in 1965 (1036).
After being traded for three players, played the ’64 season with the Dallas Cowboys.
Traded to the Rams in exchange for a kicker in 1965, playing there through ’66.
Then in ’67 was traded to the Falcons and then signed with the Browns in ’68 before closing out his career.
Played WR, FL, and RHB over 12 seasons.
ACCOLADES:
Pro Bowl 1958-’62, ’65
Pro Football Hall of Fame 1998
National High School Hall of Fame
Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame
Philadelphia Hall of Fame
Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame
New Mexico Hall of Fame
College Football Hall of Fame
1956 Maxwell Award
Philadelphia Eagles 75th Anniversary Team
NOTES:
At the time of his retirement in ’69 McDonald was the last player to play without a facemask. He became an ambassador to the sport and of the Philadelphia Eagles- which makes this card seem all the more odd since he only played two seasons with the Rams. After his passing he was diagnosed with CTE.
EPITAPH:
9/24/2018- Tommy McDonald passed away peacefully surrounded by family at the age of 84.
In 51 contests he had 437 total tackles, 34 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, 7 interceptions, and 2 forced fumbles.
He’d be selected in the 2nd round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers.
Although injured early on his rookie year, he managed to finish with a respectable 61 tackles and 4 pass breakups.
Again injured early on in 2014, Te’o played well, finishing with 60 tackles, 1 sack, his first interception (-Tom Brady) and 3 pass breakups.
In 2015, Manti finished with 83 combined tackles, a pick and a forced fumble, despite missing 4 games mid season due to a lingering ankle injury.
Te’o appeared on the up and up, but tore his Achilles, ending his 2016 campaign just after 3 games.
He signed with New Orleans in 2017.
There in 10 starts he posted 62 combined tackles and a career high 7 tackles for loss.
In the playoffs he saw action in 2 games posting 15 combined tackles, a sack, and a tackle for loss.
He spent the next two years in New Orleans playing in 8 games.
Signed by the Chicago Bears in October of 2020.
Saw his only action of the season in the playoffs posting 6 tackles.
As of 2025 works as an analyst for NFL Network.
ACCOLADES:
Nagurski Award 2012
Lott Award 2012
Butkus Award 2012
Maxwell Award 2012
Walter Camp Award 2012
Bednarik Award 2012
Lombardi Award 2012
Unanimous All-American 2012
NOTES:
I think that if Manti had played at another school other than Notre Dame, he wouldn’t have faced the scrutiny that he did- despite his monster college output and fame that surrounded him. ND at the time was going through a renaissance of sorts, and it was popular again to hate on the school- so why not take it out on the school’s golden boy?
I wasn’t really sure what to make of what happened with everything that occurred. I think that it made for ‘better theater’ to unfortunately watch him get eviscerated and torn down.
I really feel for Manti. As a kid before it was a thing, I pretty much got catfished by a girl over the phone- and this was before the internet! It left me scarred with PTSD about girls, my confidence was completely shot and then I became dangerously depressed. I wasn’t equipped for that at 14- and it took me a lot of therapy to work through it. So yeah I get it- and that’s why I didn’t talk about it. Though his catfishing incident was part of his career, to me, it didn’t define him and he’s not letting it define him- despite his struggles with what happened.
After watching the Netflix documentary about him, I began spying out certified autographs of him through EBay. With the market showing signs of weakness, I was able to snatch up this patch autograph of him for under $8.00.
TAC
SAC
FUM
INT
YDS
AVG
TD
LG
307
1.5
1
2
11
5.5
0
11
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
