The Story And Significance Of John Hannah - Named To Ten Consecutive All-Pro Teams

John Allen Hannah, nicknamed "Hog", is an American former football guard who played in the National Football League for 13 seasons with the New England Patriots. He played college football at the University of Alabama, where he twice received All-American honors, and was selected fourth overall by the Patriots in the 1973 NFL Draft. Named by Sports Illustrated magazine in 1981 as "the best offensive lineman of all time", Hannah received nine Pro Bowl and seven first-team All-Pro selections. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1991 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1999. In 1991 he became the inaugural inductee of the New England Patriots Hall of Fame.

Hannah joined the Patriots in 1973 as the 4th overall pick in the 1973 NFL Draft. He played his entire professional career in New England. While considered somewhat short by NFL standards, Hannah made up for this with great speed and quickness as well as powerful legs. Hannah excelled as a pass protector, as a run blocker, and as the pulling guard on sweeps. Hannah's commitment to football was very high and he expected the same from each of his teammates, sometimes becoming quite angry if he felt they were not complying. Hannah started the first 13 games of his rookie season of 1973 until a freak leg injury forced him to miss the final game of the year. Along with tackle Leon Gray, the two formed what was generally considered the best guard/tackle tandem in the NFL during the mid to late 1970s. Gray and Hannah also combined with tight end Russ Francis to form one of the strongest left-side trios in the league. Hannah anchored the 1978 offensive line that set an NFL record with 3,165 rushing yards. The record breaking rushing attack of New England did not have a single 1,000 rusher, but did have four players run for more than 500 yards including quarterback Steve Grogan. The team rushing record would eventually be broken by the Baltimore Ravens some four decades later, but the 1978 Patriots also set a league record with 181 rushing first-downs, which still stands as of 2022.

Hannah missed only five games out of a possible 191 because of injuries during his career. He also missed the first three games of the 1977 season when he and Gray held out because of contract disputes. In the 1985 season Hannah helped guide the team to its first AFC title and Super Bowl appearance. Hannah retired from the NFL after playing in Super Bowl XX.

Hannah was named to ten consecutive All-Pro teams (1976–1985), and was named All-AFC 11 times (1974, 1976–1985). He was also selected to play in 9 Pro Bowls. He was voted the Seagram's Seven Crowns of Sports Offensive Lineman of the Year in 1978 and 1980 and won the NFLPA/Coca-Cola Offensive Lineman of the Year Award (voted on by NFL players) three times in four years (1978–1979, 1981). Hannah was also the winner of the Mack Truck Award for offensive line play five consecutive times (1977–81). He is also one of the few players to have been named to two different NFL All-Decade Teams (for the 1970s and 1980s). In 1994, he was then selected to the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team as the #1 guard on the team. In 2019, Hannah was then selected to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.

In 1991, he became the first Patriots player inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In 1999, he was ranked number 20 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking Patriot, the highest-ranking guard, and the second-ranked offensive lineman behind Anthony Muñoz. In 1991, he became the first player to be inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame.

Hannah became an assistant coach at Governor Dummer Academy in Massachusetts, leaving to accept the head coaching job at Somerville High School in 2004. While concurrently serving as the city's youth development coordinator, Hannah led the Somerville team through one winless season. He left to become a special assistant coach at his alma mater, Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 2005. He resigned from his coaching position at the conclusion of Baylor's 2005 football season.

Hannah's brothers Charley and David were also All-Conference linemen for the University of Alabama. Charley Hannah played in the NFL from 1977 to 1988 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Los Angeles Raiders. Charley was a member of the Super Bowl XVIII winning Raiders.

In the summer of 1972 after his junior year, Hannah married his high school sweetheart, Page Pickens, an Alabama cheerleader. They later had a son and a daughter who were raised in Boston.