Pro Football Hall of Famer Kenny Easley, one of the top safeties in college and NFL history, died on Friday. He was 66.
On Saturday, the Seattle Seahawks announced the death of Easley, who spent his entire seven-year NFL career (1981-87) with the team from before a kidney ailment forced him to retire at age 28.
“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Seahawks Legend Kenny Easley,” the Seahawks said in a statement. “Kenny embodied what it meant to be a Seahawk through his leadership, toughness, intensity, and fearlessness. His intimidating nature and athletic grace made him one of the best players of all-time.”
Easley was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and a member of the 1980s All-Decade Team. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017 and the College Hall of Fame in 1991.
Easley was NFL Defensive Player of the Year when he led the NFL with 10 interceptions in 1984. He also was a three-time first-team All-Pro and had 32 interceptions in 89 career games, returning three for touchdowns.
“Kenny Easley would have been a dominant safety in any era,” Hall of Fame president and CEO Jim Porter said in a statement. “When he was enshrined in 2017, he took his rightful place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame and embraced his football immortality.
“Kenny possessed excellent ball skills, but make no mistake: His biggest strengths were his fearlessness and intensity. If you had the ball as an opposing offensive player, he was going to hit you hard — and you were going to feel it for a while.”
After his forced retirement, Easley sued the Seahawks, claiming large doses of ibuprofen prescribed by the team damaged his kidneys. The two sides later settled out of court. Easley underwent a kidney transplant in 1990.
Easley later reconciled with the franchise and was placed in the Seahawks’ Ring of Honor in 2002, and his No. 45 was retired by the team in 2017.
The Seahawks selected Easley with the No. 4 overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft after he was a three-time consensus All-American at UCLA and became the first player in Pac-10 history to be first-team all-conference four times (1977-80).
Easley still holds the school record of 19 interceptions and ranks fifth with 374 tackles. He finished ninth in Heisman Trophy balloting in 1980.
“We mourn the passing of Bruin legend Kenny Easley. Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and all who were inspired by him,” UCLA said in a statement on Saturday.”
