No ‘garbage interceptions’ for Hall of Famer Johnny Robinson
Louis Riddick calls Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Johnny Robinson a throwback defensive back. (0:41)
Former Kansas City Chiefs safety Johnny Robinson is tied for 13th on the NFL’s all-time interception list, with 57 — one reason he will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Aug. 3.
But that statistic tells only part of his story. Robinson didn’t just have quantity when it came to interceptions, but quality.
He had two interceptions in the 1962 American Football League championship game. His goal-line pick and 72-yard return was arguably the biggest play of the 1966 AFL title game. Robinson also had a fourth-quarter interception in Super Bowl IV to help the Chiefs seal the franchise’s only undisputed championship.
“It was never garbage interceptions for Johnny,” said former Chiefs cornerback and Robinson teammate Emmitt Thomas, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2008. “We played a lot of press coverage, and he broke on the ball very well. He would get a great jump on the ball and go get it. A lot of the football that was played in the old AFL was passing football. The passing game was big. I think the old AFL had the first 100-catch receivers. They threw the ball around, and that gave all of us the chance to make some interceptions. Johnny was very good at that.”
Here’s how Robinson became so good at making interceptions and how that skill led to some of the biggest moments of his career.
Robinson was a running back in college at LSU and played as both a back and receiver in the early seasons of his pro career with the AFL’s Dallas Texans, who would later move to Kansas City and become the Chiefs.
Robinson was good enough on offense to rush for almost 900 yards and score 12 touchdowns at LSU and earn more than 1,800 scrimmage yards with 15 TDs in his first two seasons with the Texans. He credits this background for his success once he exclusively became a defensive player in 1963.
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Johnny Robinson: I believe that playing on offense my first two seasons as a halfback and flanker allowed me to get used to the speed of the game. It’s a much faster game in professional football. I caught a lot of passes on offense, and I ran a lot of pass routes, so I understood offense and defense. I had already played both ways in college, so I already knew how to play both offensive and defensive positions. I believe that [Chiefs] coach Hank Stram prolonged my career by moving me to safety.
Former Chiefs linebacker Willie Lanier, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1986: Johnny had played offense in college, and he played a little offense when he was with the Chiefs. Johnny had a way, in terms of playing defense, of understanding what one route might mean to another. He’s playing safety and trying to dissect what the receivers are doing, and he just understood as well as anybody when one does X, the other does Y. That helped him go about playing his position.
Emmitt Thomas, a quarterback in college before switching to defense with the Chiefs: I’m quite sure it helped him because I know it helped me. We had that offensive background, and that allowed us to understand what the offenses were trying to do to us. That gave us an edge when we switched to defense full time.
Robinson almost didn’t play in Super Bowl IV, the biggest game of his 12-year NFL career and of the Chiefs’ 59-season history.
Robinson: I had three broken ribs and separated cartilage that I received during the previous game that occurred the week before Super Bowl IV. I was defending a deep sideline pass. I jumped high to intercept the ball and came back down on top of a referee’s head. I knew I was hurt badly. The pain was intense. I was taken to be X-rayed. All I could think about was getting back onto the field to play and being mad that this had happened. I was examined by a physician, and the X-ray confirmed that I had broken my ribs and torn cartilage. The injury was severe, and it didn’t appear that I would be able to play the Super Bowl the following week.
Former Chiefs linebacker Bobby Bell, who entered the Hall of Fame in 1983: Knowing Johnny, that was funny to think he might not be able to play. A rib injury wasn’t going to hold him back, not on the biggest stage. Johnny just wanted them to tape him up and let him play. And then he went out there and had a great Super Bowl game. His interception iced the game for us.
Robinson: A thoracic surgeon tried to use novocaine to numb the pain, but all it did was make me dizzy. My brother, who was in residency at Tulane specializing in ophthalmology, told us about a medication that he used to relieve pain in eyes that would be much longer lasting. The Saints’ thoracic surgeon, who was being used as our team doctor, obtained the medicine. He gave me multiple injections to my torso. It did just what my brother said it would do. On the day before the Super Bowl IV game, I was injected again throughout my torso. I hadn’t practiced all week, so Coach Stram threw a football over the top of my head to see if I could catch it, which I did. I told him that I was playing the game. The only condition stipulated was that when the Chiefs’ defense came off the field, I was to sit next to the physician on the bench so he could monitor how I was doing. I was told that they were concerned that I might puncture my lung with broken ribs. I played the whole game, making a fumble recovery and an interception, thanks to my brother.
Neither of Robinson’s big plays was anything special. The interception came on an overthrow. Robinson was in the right place at the right time.
That was an apt description for his career. Robinson was known by teammates and opponents for being in the right place at the right time.
Thomas, who also had a fourth-quarter interception: We knew they had to throw the football to try to catch up. Johnny was able to play free, and that’s when he was at his best.
Former Chargers quarterback John Hadl: Johnny Robinson was the best I ever played against at the safety position. He was a hell of a player. He was a smart player and a good guy. He’d line up like he was in Cover 2 or Cover 3 and go strong side, and when the ball was snapped, he’d reverse around and go to center field, and if you took your eye off him, you didn’t know he was there. … I remember a play when the Chiefs were playing in the old [Kansas City] stadium. We had the ball near their goal line. Johnny was playing bump-and-run. I was stupid to throw the ball. … I wasn’t paying attention to his location totally, but I threw a quick out pass. He picked it off and started off down the sideline. And as I’m chasing him I hear coach [Sid] Gillman yell, ‘You better catch that son of a bitch!’ Gillman was on the sideline, and I could hear him clear as a bell. I can still hear him. I dove and caught Johnny’s leg and tripped him, and he fell.
Robinson: I remember it was such an incredible feeling to intercept a pass in Super Bowl IV. We knew we were a great team and a super defense. We had something to prove in that game. I had something to prove in that game. I was more than elated to make the interception to take away any hope of a Vikings comeback.
Lanier: On Tuesdays, we would watch film of the previous game. The film would look as if we played with 10 players. He would play so deep he wouldn’t show up in the film. So he had to have the ability to make interceptions, turn the ball over, give you an opportunity to take away a scoring chance for the opponent, give it back to your offense. That’s what he did as well as probably anybody who’s ever played the game.