| January 19, 2004 | « Previous Story | HOME | Next Story » | Posted at 05:38 PM |
Drafted in the 17th round of the AFL draft in 1962, out of McNeese State, Sestak defied the odds and in his rookie season became the cornerstone of the dominating Bills defenses of the '60's. His tenacious, hard-nosed play earned him the respect of all his peers throughout the league. He won consensus All-AFL first team honors in 1963, 1964 and 1965 and he was the cornerstone of a top-rated defense that took the Bills to the AFL championships in 1964 and 1965.
Though his career ended prematurely because of chronic knee problems, Sestak made such a lasting impression that today the experts who study the game rate him along side Mean Joe Greene and Bruce Smith as among the best defensive linemen ever to play pro football. Sestak possessed the size, power and the speed of a running back to dominate games and intimidate opposition linemen. A testement to his athleticism, he scored 2 touchdowns on interceptions- as a defensive tackle! Unfortunatly, the AFL did not record QB sacks as a statistic. Many beleive he would have rivaled Bruce Smith's numbers 20 years later. He died prematurly in 1987.
- Buffalo Sports Hall Of Fame - Buzzard's Hall of Fame - Career stats