Oilers Young Guns | The Football Autograph Encyclopedia

Cards: Pro Set 1991 WC, Classic 1991
Acquired: TTM 2011, C/o Home
Sent: 8/25/11 Received: 2/21/12 (180 days)
Previous Post: Darryll Lewis

Darryl Lewis was a player on the Oilers I liked to watch a lot, as he outperformed expectations despite his size. A consensus All-American and Jim Thorpe Recipient in 1991, great hands, productivity, deceptive speed, and leaping allowed Lewis to keep pace with many of the best wide receivers in the game and well into his career as a professional. A member of the Houston Oilers Young Guns secondary, Lewis played for the Oilers/Titans, Chargers, and Broncos over an 11 season career. I got his autograph via the team back in 1993 on my birthday, and always wanted to circle back around and get his again on these two cards I had. He did some coaching at Oregon State with Mike Riley but unfortunately Lewis has had legal issues and had been detained for a few years. Recently he has been granted his release.

Since I had always wanted to get his autograph on this Pro Set card, I went ahead and took a shot at the former Oiler/ Charger DB where he lives near San Diego. This Classic 1991 card I had is probably among the ugliest ever produced outside of the Fleer 1991 entry. These cards are both considered error cards as they misspell Darryll’s name as “Darryl”.

Cards: Pro Set 1991, Action Packed Rookies 1991, Star Pics 1991.
Acquired: TTM 1993, In Person, Houston Oilers training camp 1994.
See Also: Lewis, Darryll (2)

On my birthday in 1993 I received Darryll’s autograph in the mail. It was a really nice treat. The next year at Oiler training camp in San Antonio he gave me his autograph on a card. I’d swear he was as tall as me.

The 1990 Jim Thorpe Award winner did not go until the second round as the defensive back class was considered weak that year and Lewis was also thought to be undersized. The Oilers, who had long been burned the previous 2 seasons on defense drafted Lewis, Michael Dumas, and Steve Jackson in the 1991 draft. In the end this draft provided a bevvy of defensive backfield ballhawk talent, including Eric Turner, Aeneas Williams, Todd Scott, Henry Jones, along with Darryll. It was Lewis who would form with holdover Cris Dishman and become a devastating duo at cornerback. Lewis made up for his height disadvantage with pure speed and his leaping skill. By 1994, he also became known for soft hands and a nose for the ball at the critical moment, notching at least 4 picks in 6 straight seasons.

Lewis would play for the Oilers, Chargers, and Broncos briefly over a 10 year career making the Pro Bowl in 1996. Unfortunately Lewis’ post NFL life has been marred by personal problems. After resigning from Oregon State as a DB assistant coach, he has had run ins with the law including a tragic car chase caught on tape in 2005, where meth was found in his vehicle. He pleaded guilty to the charges in 2006 and was sentenced to 32 months in prison. He currently he lives in the San Diego area.

Games 142 Tac 404 Sac 5 FF 0
Int 32 Yds 555 Lg 98T TD 5

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