1972 Profile: Gerry Philbin

Defensive End
No. 81
Buffalo
"Philbin has been cut down by injuries in each of the last three seasons. Last year was his worst because it cost him four full games. But when he's right, he's all-star material.
He was at his peak in 1968 and 1969 when he made the AFL All-Star Game and helped the Jets win the Super Bowl. The best defensive end the Jets have ever had, Philbin was selected to the all-time All-AFL team when the old league came to an end. He's small for an end, but very quick and has excellent range. Gerry was drafted during the war between the leagues and chose the Jets over the Detroit Lions.
An easterner from Pawtucket, Rhode Island, he has a Long Island restaurant called 'The Goal Post.' He spends a lot of his free time turning kids off drugs.
Gerry says he's healthy again and predicts a big 1972 season."

-Jim Benagh, The Complete Handbook of Pro Football, 1972 Edition

"Possessed with good range and speed, Gerry is a very coachable player and works hard to improve himself. He played four years as a tackle at Buffalo, winning a host of honors, and was an All-America second-team pick.

Gerry is a fine after-dinner speaker."

-1972 Topps No. 113

"Philbin is an All-Pro defensive end, a member of the all-time All-AFL team as selected by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, twice an AFL All-Star, and a combined (AFL-NFL) All-Pro following the '68 campaign.
He went through another injury-ridden season in 1971, missing four games due to a knee injury. Gerry suffered ligament damage in his left knee at New England and was put on the move list, yet worked extremely hard to rehabilitate himself and was back in the lineup five weeks later against Baltimore and played a standout game. Gerry had two sacks the next week at Buffalo.
In 1970 he had a dislocated shoulder in the preseason, missing the first four championship games, and then suffered a sprained foot which slowed him over the second half of the year. He played with his arm in a harness for most of the year. Philbin had an outstanding season in 1969 before injuring his shoulder in the 12th game; again he dedicated himself to returning and was back for the playoff with Kansas City, dumping Len Dawson twice in that one.
One of the most dedicated men in the game, Gerry is a very coachable player. He has been a regular since 1965 after missing most of '64 with the first of his three shoulder injuries. He was drafted in the third round in 1964 by the Jets and the Detroit Lions.
Philbin majored in sociology and is a fine speaker, doing an excellent job of public relations for pro football. He was invited to the White House to meet with President Nixon regarding the drug abuse problem in the country, and in recognition of his anti-drug work.
His off-season time is spent as a restaurateur at Gerry Philbin's Goal Post in East Massapequa, Long Island. He has another Goal Post in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, his hometown."

-The New York Jets Official 1972 Yearbook, edited by Frank Ramos