1969 Joe Don Looney “One of the Wackiest NFL Players of All-Time” New Orleans Saints Original TYPE I Photo

Joe Don Looney was one of football's wildest characters. An All-American at Oklahoma, he helped win the 1962 Big Eight title before becoming a 1964 NFL first-round pick. His bizarre antics, defiance of coaches and alleged punching of an Oklahoma assistant made him notorious, although the coach denied the incident. He played for four NFL teams, served in Vietnam, and later joined a controversial Hindu spiritual movement. Tragically, Looney died in a motorcycle accident in 1988 at just 45.

Offered a 7.5 x 9.5 Inch original TYPE I photo of Joe Don Looney during his last stop in the NFL after he tried to make an NFL comeback (he spent the 1968 in Viet Nam serving in the U.S. Army).  Original paper caption on the back showing him sitting on the bench with an ice pack. Dated September 9, 1969.

Original photos of Looney are few and far between (mostly because he spent a lot of his NFL career on the “suspended” list).  It’s too bad, Al Davis never picked him up as he would have fit right into their “culture.”