Lawrence Taylor

Quick Facts

Full Name	Lawrence Taylor
Occupation	Football Player
Date Of Birth	Feb 4, 1959(1959-02-04)
Age	65
Birthplace	Willamsburg
Country	United States
Birth City	Virginia
Horoscope	Aquarius

Lawrence Taylor Biography

Lawrence Taylor is one of the most popular and richest Football Player who was born on February 4, 1959 in Willamsburg, Virginia, United States. New York Giants linebacker known as “LT” who is considered by many to be the greatest linebacker ever. He was a 2-time Super Bowl Champion, 10-time Pro Bowl selection, and the 1986 NFL Most Valuable Player. He retired with 132.5 career sacks and 1,088 tackles.

He and fellow Pro Football Hall of Famer Phil Simms formed the backbone of the Giants in the 1980s and early 1990s.

After graduating from Lafayette High School in 1977, Taylor attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he was a team captain, and wore No. 98. Originally recruited as a defensive lineman, Taylor switched to linebacker before the 1979 season. He had 16 sacks in his final year there (1980), and set numerous defensive records. He was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American and the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year in 1980. While there the coaching staff marveled at his intense, reckless style of play. “As a freshman playing on special teams, he’d jump a good six or seven feet in the air to block a punt, then land on the back of his neck”, said North Carolina assistant coach Bobby Cale. “He was reckless, just reckless.” UNC later retired Taylor’s jersey.

After an All-American career at the University of North Carolina (UNC) (1978–1981), Taylor was drafted by the Giants as the second overall selection in the 1981 NFL Draft. Although controversy surrounded the selection due to Taylor’s contract demands, the two sides quickly resolved the issue. Taylor won several defensive awards after his rookie season. Taylor is both the first and currently only NFL player to win the AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year award in his rookie season. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Taylor was a disruptive force at outside linebacker, and is credited with changing defensive game plans, defensive pass rushing schemes, offensive line blocking schemes, and offensive formations used in the NFL. Taylor produced double- digit sacks each season from 1984 through 1990, including a career-high of 20.5 in 1986. He also won a record three AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards and was named the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) for his performance during the 1986 season. Taylor is one of only two defensive players in the history of the NFL to have ever won the NFL MVP award (the other one being Alan Page in 1971) and no defensive player has won since him. He was named First-team All-Pro in nine of his first ten seasons. Taylor was a key member of the Giants’ defense, nicknamed “The Big Blue Wrecking Crew”, that led New York to victories in Super Bowls XXI and XXV. During the 1980s, Taylor, fellow linebackers Carl Banks, Gary Reasons, Brad Van Pelt, Brian Kelley, Pepper Johnson, and Hall of Famer Harry Carson gave the Giants linebacking corps a reputation as one of the best in the NFL.

His first son, Brandon, was born in 1991. He was married to Deborah Belinda Taylor from 1981 to 1996 and Maritza Cruz from 2001 to 2005. He married his third wife Lynette Taylor in 2007.

Lawrence Taylor Net Worth

Lawrence Taylor is one of the richest Football Player from United States. According to our analysis, Wikipedia, Forbes & Business Insider, Lawrence Taylor 's net worth $200 Thousand. (Last Update: December 11, 2023)

He played college football at the University of North Carolina, where he was an All-American in 1980. He was taken second overall in the 1981 NFL Draft.

His off-field career was fraught with legal issues and controversy, particularly regarding his abuse of cocaine.

Lawrence Julius Taylor (born February 4, 1959), nicknamed “L.T.”, is an American former professional football player. Taylor played his entire professional career as a linebacker for the New York Giants (1981–1993) in the National Football League (NFL). He is considered one of the greatest players in the history of American football, and has been ranked as the greatest defensive player in league history by former players, coaches, media members, and news outlets such as the NFL Network and Sporting News.

Height, Weight & Body Measurements

Lawrence Taylor height 6 ft 3 in Lawrence weight Not Known & body measurements will update soon.

Who is Lawrence Taylor Dating?

According to our records, Lawrence Taylor married to Lynette Taylor , Maritza Cruz , Deborah Belinda Taylor. As of December 1, 2023, Lawrence Taylor’s is not dating anyone.

Relationships Record : We have no records of past relationships for Lawrence Taylor. You may help us to build the dating records for Lawrence Taylor!

In the 1981 NFL Draft, Taylor was drafted by the NFL’s New York Giants in the first round as the 2nd pick overall. In a poll of NFL General Managers (GMs) taken before the draft 26 of the league’s 28 GMs said if they had the first selection they would select Taylor. One of the two GMs who said they would not take Taylor was Bum Phillips, who had just been hired as coach and general manager by the New Orleans Saints. As fate would have it for Taylor, the Saints were also the team who had the first pick in the draft. Giants GM George Young predicted before the draft that he would be better than NFL legends such as Dick Butkus: “Taylor is the best college linebacker I’ve ever seen. Sure, I saw Dick Butkus play. There’s no doubt in my mind about Taylor. He’s bigger and stronger than Butkus was. On the blitz, he’s devastating.”

Facts & Trivia

Lawrence Ranked on the list of most popular Football Player. Also ranked in the elit list of famous people born in United States. Lawrence Taylor celebrates birthday on February 4 of every year.

Washington Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs developed the two tight end offense and the position of h-back to prevent Taylor from blitzing into the backfield unhindered. “We had to try in some way have a special game plan just for Lawrence Taylor. Now you didn’t do that very often in this league but I think he’s one person that we learned the lesson the hard way. We lost ball games.” His skills changed the way offensive coaches blocked linebackers. In the late ’70s and early ’80s, a blitzing linebacker was picked up by a running back. However, these players were no match for Taylor. The tactic employed by San Francisco 49ers head coach Bill Walsh in the 1982 playoffs, using an offensive guard to block Taylor, was copied around the league. However, this left a hole in pass protection that a blitzing middle linebacker could exploit. Later, Walsh and other coaches began using offensive tackles to block Taylor. Later it became common for offensive linemen to pick up blitzing linebackers. In addition to the changes in offensive schemes Taylor influenced, he also introduced new defensive techniques to the game such as chopping the ball out of the quarterback’s hands rather than tackling him.

What ended Lawrence Taylor's career?

Taylor had originally failed a drug test for cocaine in 1987, but the NFL didn’t reveal this information, as was policy, until he failed his second test the following year. Taylor gave up drugs in 1988, because a third failed drug test would have ended his career.

How did Lawrence Taylor change the game?

“Lawrence Taylor transformed the outside linebacker position from read-and- react…to attack mode. His strength and speed factored in with his aggressive mentality, which made him special,” said New York Times best selling author Randy Williams, author of America’s Game: The NFL at 100.

Why is Lawrence Taylor mentioned in the blind side?

What is his role in the story? Though he’s not an actual character in the story, Lawrence Taylor’s The Blind Side role helps set up the premise of the story. Lawrence Taylor was a left tackle whose size and athleticism changed how coaches, players, and even recruiters looked at football.

Is Lawrence Taylor a Hall of Famer?

Taylor was named All-NFC ten times, elected to ten Pro Bowls, named Defensive Player of the Year three times, and was named to the NFL’s 75th Anniversary Team in 1994. LT was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on January 30, 1999 and formally inducted into the Hall of Fame on August 7, 1999.

Who has the most sacks in NFL history?

Sack Leaders
RKPLAYERSACKS
1| Bruce Smith| 200
2| Reggie White| 198
3| Kevin Greene| 160