State Your Case: Leslie O'Neal, Master Technician

Some players come into the NFL ready to play with physical qualities that allow them to compete at a high level - possessing size or speed and quickness that is rare.

Then there's Leslie O'Neal.

He was NFL-ready when he joined the league, too, but not because of anything physical. He was a master of defensive-line techniques, and that made him rare.

"I've never seen a more natural pass rusher," his line coach Gunther Cunningham told the media after the San Diego Chargers made O'Neal the eighth overall draft pick in 1986. "If there's a better one that's come out of college I'd like to see him."

Undersized for his position (around 255 pounds), O'Neal was extremely quick and had natural strength. But where he excelled was with moves that take most defensive ends years to perfect.

He was praised for the use of his hands in rushes and could convert speed to power in one step. He could get to the corner, too, yet had the strength to push a tackle backward to collapse a pocket.

Essentially, the total package.

"Great, great rusher," said one scout. "He never lets up. Has a God-given ttechnique for slipping guys."

"He knows all the moves," said another, "and when to use them. When he takes (the) outside he likes speed and a rip. He likes a twist and a rip. He doesn't stay blocked."

It was good stuff.

So was his career. In 13 NFL seasons, O'Neal produced 132-1/2 sacks, tied for 14th all-time with ... get this ... Lawrence Taylor. Of the Hall-of-Fame eligible players ranked ahead of O'Neal, only John Abraham (133-1/2) and Jared Allen (136) haven't been enshrined.

But Allen will be.

He's been a Hall-of-Fame finalist his three years of eligibility, finishing in the  Top 10 for the Class of 2023. Leslie O'Neal has never been a finalist in 19 years of eligibility. Worse, he's been a semifinalist only once (2018).  

That's hard to fathom when you consider his resume. Playing in the same era as Reggie White, Bruce Smith, Chris Doleman, and Richard Dent - all Hall of Famers -- it was difficult to be a first-team All-Pro. But O'Neal was voted second-team All-Pro three times - once by AP (1994) and twice by NEA (1990 and 1992).

He was also voted to six Pro Bowls, the same number as Lee Roy Selmon, Jason Taylor, Claude Humphrey and Carl Eller and more than Willie Davis, Richard Dent, Fred Dean and Charles Haley.

All are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Leslie O'Neal is in the Chargers' Hall of Fame.

What makes his record more astonishing is that he missed nearly two years after suffering a serious knee injury his rookie season. Through 13 weeks of 1986, he had 12-1/2 sacks, three forced fumbles and two interceptions. But a torn ACL ended his season in a 17-3 defeat of Indianapolis, with a second surgery keeping him sidelined until October, 1988.

He didn't start until the last game that year.

After an offseason where he worked out on his own, O'Neal was moved to outside linebacker in the Chargers' 3-4 defense ... and he didn't miss a beat. It was a slightly different role -- with O'Neal still an edge rusher but "out of traffic" -- and it suited him. He led all AFC linebackers in sacks and made or assisted on five tackles for losses of Eric Dickerson in a game in Indianapolis.

In his three-year stint as a rush backer, O'Neal averaged 11-1/2 sacks and two forced fumbles per season. He also made his first two Pro Bowls. Then, in 1992 under legendary defensive coach Bill Arnsbarger, he was back to a 4-3 defesive end and set a career-high with 17 sacks.

He was the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for December and had a monster performance in an AFC playoff defeat of Kansas City, with two sacks, an interception and praise from the Boston Globe's Peter May.. 

"Tyrannosaurus Rex on the line," May called O'Neal's performance.

Led by O'Neal and Hall-of-Fame linebacker Junior Seau, the Chargers' defense began playing a leading role in San Diego. In fact, in O'Neal's last four years there (1992-95), only two NFL teams allowed fewer rushing yards, and no one allowed fewer yards per rush.

It was a textbook example of solid team defense, with O'Neal demonstrating he was much more than an elite pass rusher; he was a two-way end -- a goal he set for himself when he first joined the Bolts.

"I'd like to be a complete player," he said as a rookie. "They talk about defensive ends and different players. They say this guy is good against the pass, and this guy is good against the run. I want to be good in both areas."

He was.

After leaving southern California O'Neal spent his final four seasons in Missouri, two in St. Louis and two in Kansas City, racking up his final 27 sacks to push his career total to 132-1/2. Included were seven seasons with double-digit numbers, including six with 12-1/2 or more in each.

In O'Neal's era -- call it from 1983 when Dent entered the NFL through 2003 when Bruce Smith retired -- he ranked seventh in sacks. Moreover, from 1992 through 1997 the only defensive end with more sacks was Smith, the NFL's all-time leader.

He had 76. O'Neal had 71.

Leslie O'Neal was a marvelous player who had flawless pass-rush techniques but was overshadowed by some of the best-ever defensive ends. Nevertheless, he made a strong Hall-of-Fame case for himself.

You just heard it. It's time Hall-of-Fame voters do, too.