The Story And Significance Of Jim Parker - First Full-Time Offensive Lineman inducted Into Pro Football Hall Of Fame

James Thomas Parker was an American football player who played at the offensive tackle and guard positions.

Parker grew up in Macon, Georgia, and played college football for Woody Hayes at Ohio State University from 1954 to 1956. He helped Ohio State win a national championship in 1954. As a senior in 1956, he was a unanimous All-American and won the Outland Trophy.

Parker played professional football in the National Football League for the Baltimore Colts from 1957 to 1967. He played on Baltimore's NFL championship teams in 1958 and 1959 and was selected as a first-team All-Pro in nine of his eleven seasons in the NFL.

Parker was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1974.

Parker was selected by the Baltimore Colts in the first round of the 1957 NFL Draft as the eighth player selected overall. The Colts, with quarterback Johnny Unitas, relied on a passing offense very different from the running offense of Ohio State. Nevertheless, Parker soon came to be known as the premier pass blocker in the game.

From 1957 until 1962, Parker played as an offensive tackle. He was selected to five Pro Bowl teams in those six years. In 1963 Parker moved to the offensive guard position, as a favor to his college coach Woody Hayes, to make room for another former Buckeye, Bob Vogel. Parker was selected to three more Pro Bowls from the guard position.

Parker has been called "the best pure pass-blocker who ever lived. Knew all the tricks — the quick push-off, the short jab — that are legal now."

Parker injured his knee during a game against the Philadelphia Eagles on September 24, 1967. The injury ended Parker's streak of 139 consecutive games played for the Colts. He appeared in only three games in 1967 and announced his retirement in December 1967, explaining that he had been in pain since the injury and the knee had not improved. He noted at the time: "I feel I can't do it. I can't slide to my right and I can't run."

Parker received numerous honors for his contributions to the sport. He got many honors including his jersey No. 77 being retired by the Colts. In August 1969, Parker was named to the NFL's 1950s All-Decade Team. In September 1969, he was selected by the Football Writers Association of America as one of two guards on the all-time All-America team consisting of players from the modern era starting in 1920. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973, his first year of eligibility. He was the first full-time offensive lineman so inducted. In 1974, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Also in 1974, he was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame. In 1977, he became a charter inductee in the Ohio State Varsity O Hall of Fame. In August 1994, he was named to the National Football League 75th Anniversary All-Time Team selected by a 15-person panel of NFL and Pro Football Hall of Fame officials, former players, and media representatives. In August 1999, Parker was ranked number 24 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. He ranked second among guards behind John Hannah, and third among offensive linemen behind Hannah and Anthony Muñoz. Also in August 1999, Parker was selected as an offensive guard on the Sports Illustrated college-football All-Century team. In 2007, he was selected by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at the No. 1 spot on its list of the top 25 all-time professional football players from Georgia. In 2019, he was named to the National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.