Jean Fugett: Around the NFL
By Jean Fugett; thanks to Charlie Campbell – @draftcampbell
WalterFootball.com is proud to partner with former Redskins and Cowboys tight end Jean Fugett, Jr. Esq. Fugett grew up in Baltimore, Maryland and attended Amherst College. He was the last pick of the 13th round in the 1972 NFL Draft. Fugett made the Cowboys as a backup to future Hall of Famer Mike Ditka. Fugett eventually became a starter for Tom Landry’s Cowboys and started in Super Bowl X. He made the Pro Bowl in 1977.
As a free agent, Fugett went from being the lowest-paid starting tight end to the highest-paid with the Washington Redskins. While playing for legendary Redskins coach George Allen, Fugett attended law school at George Washington University at night.
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During and after his playing days, Fugett worked with CBS, the Washington Post and other media. He went on to serve as Director and Vice-Chair of the McCall Pattern Company Management Committee, founded a Baltimore law firm and partnered with Fanfone in Europe. After the death of his brother Reginald F. Lewis in 1993, Fugett took over TLC Beatrice International Foods, the largest black-owned and black-managed business in the world at the time. Fugett has served on committees with the NFL Players Association and on the Leadership Council for the American Diabetes Association Maryland Chapter. |
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WalterFootball.com would like to thank Redskins president Bruce Allen and senior vice president/executive producer of media Larry Michael for connecting us to Fugett. Now, let’s let Jean take over.
Offensive Player of the Week: Jay Cutler, QB, Chicago Bears
Defensive Player of the Week: Marcus Williams, S, New York Jets
Goat of the Week: Gregg Williams, defensive coordinator, St. Louis Rams
Coach of the Week: Mike Zimmer, head coach, Minnesota Vikings
We are at the midpoint of the season – time flies. In the first half, we were looking at teams falling on their own sword and getting eliminated. Now, inspired by college football’s Final Four rankings, our NFL Final Four rankings! If the NFL had a NCAA type playoff, this is how I would rank teams today with eight games left.
Charlie Campbell says his top four are:
Carolina and Green Bay have met; Carolina certainly had the home-field advantage last week. If they meet in Green Bay, the outcome could be different, but right now, the Panthers are undefeated. At this pace, they will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. I have the Cardinals at No. 3, and I have Minnesota at No.4. Someone from the NFC East will have to show up, but we’ll probably have to wait a month to know who the East representative will be. The odds-makers in Vegas still like Seattle even though they are 4-4. They are two games behind Arizona, but still the odds-makers like the Seahawks. Atlanta and all the teams in the NFC East are alive, but for most in the NFC now, they are playing for next year. In the AFC, this is how I would seed it.
Looking at the rest of the AFC, I think the Steelers and Raiders are right there with the Colts for the fourth seed. The Jets are also a candidate. Charlie has his top four:
Elimination List (Four or more losses except NFC East) Chicago Bears Detroit Lions New Orleans Saints Tampa Bay Buccaneers Dallas Cowboys San Francisco 49ers Baltimore Ravens Cleveland Browns Kansas City Chiefs San Diego Chargers Buffalo Bills Miami Dolphins Tennessee Titans Jacksonville Jaguars Houston Texans |
Former Redskin and Cowboy tight end Jean Fugett was a Pro Bowler in 1977 and a starter in Super Bowl X. |
AFC
In the AFC this week, the Patriots suffered a significant blow with running back Dion Lewis going out for the season. That will put even more pressure on Tom Brady and Bill Belichick to figure out how to get points out of that offense.
LeSean McCoy looked good, but now he’s injured again with a shoulder issue. When the Bills have McCoy and Sammy Watkins in the game at the same time, they have a true double-threat offense. If a healthy Tyrod Taylor is playing, that turns Buffalo into a triple-threat offense.
I have Oakland alive at 4-4 and Kansas City on the elimination list at 3-5, and yet they are only one game away. So, the Raiders clearly are not over the hump yet.
Denver has not played that great lately, but they still have a great record and a great quarterback. I think going into the playoffs they will be disadvantaged due to Manning’s age.
NFC
The Cowboys have to be put on the elimination list with six losses. They have to play their way off of it, and it is doubtful that they will.
I was really surprised that Colin Kaepernick was benched for Blaine Gabbert, a former high pick and a former bust. What a shock to have him lead a bad 49er team to an upset win over the Atlanta Falcons, a team many thought were on its way to the playoffs. You have to wonder about the weaknesses that the Falcons have if Blaine Gabbert can throw touchdown passes on them. Blaine Gabbert made his first start in over two years. How can anyone know about the 49ers’ future at the quarterback position? However, they play the Seattle Seahawks on November 22 and Kaepernick has lost his last four starts against Seattle. Who do you think will start that game for San Francisco?
Looking at the way that Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was knocked out of the game Sunday raises a lot questions. When I played, it was a team’s goal to knock the quarterback out of the game. Like in the old NFL films with Al Davis shouting to put the quarterback down and put him down hard. That’s what the NFL was all about and was preached to the defensive line, but you have to keep it clean and do it within the rules.
A few years back, the Saints and their coach Gregg Williams were severely penalized for putting bounties on players to get injured and rewarding the players who injured those players. You have to wonder if Williams is encouraging his players to knock the opposing quarterback despite the 15-yard penalty.
To hear an opposing head coach in Mike Zimmer go after Williams like that for a late hit is something new and refreshing, and makes you wonder what is being said in the Rams’ defensive meeting room and at NFL HQ.
Maybe things change over time. I know I had a bounty on me during the ’70s, and maybe teams still target players today. With backup play so poor, it has to be very tempting to target the starting QB – penalty or not.
LOADING COMMENTS.
Jean Fugett: Around the NFL - 12/17
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Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 7 Recap - 10/29
Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 5 Recap - 10/15
Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 4 Recap - 10/8
Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 3 Recap - 9/30
Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 2 Recap - 9/23
Jean Fugett: Jean Fugett's Around the NFL Week 1 Recap - 9/16
Jean Fugett's 2015 NFL Season Preview - 9/10
NFL Picks - Dec. 13
2025 NFL Mock Draft - Dec. 11
NFL Power Rankings - Dec. 9
2026 NFL Mock Draft - Nov. 29
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
