The St. Louis Rams will retire No. 75, the number of Hall of Fame defensive end David "Deacon" Jones, this season, the team announced today.  Jones played for the Rams from 1961-71.

Rams’ owner Chip Rosenbloom released a statement saying, "Deacon Jones left an indelible mark on the Rams organization as one of the best defensive players in NFL history.  For more than 10 seasons, the No. 75 Rams jersey represented hard work, determination and defensive dominance.  We take great pride in honoring Deacon and his wife, Elizabeth, by retiring his number."

I didn’t realize Jones, known as the Secretary of Defense, came up with the term "sack the quarterback."  He recorded a team-best 159.5 sacks with the Rams and 173.5 for his career.    He registered 21 sacks during the 1967 season, and reached double-digit sack totals seven times, including three 20-sack seasons.

He was alos the first defensive lineman to record 100 solo tackles in a single season (1967) and was voted the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year twice (1967, 1968).  Jones was voted to the Pro Bowl nine times, including seven straight with the Rams (1964-70).  He was voted to the NFL’s all-Decade team in the 1960s and was selected to the NFL’s 75 th Anniversary team in 1994.  Jones was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980.

Story courtesy of St. Louis Rams.