Stone Johnson
.jpg) Johnson at the 1960 Olympics | |
| No. 33 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Running back |
| Personal information | |
| Born | April 26, 1940 Dallas, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | September 8, 1963 (aged 23) Wichita, Kansas, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 180 lb (82 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | James Madison (Dallas, Texas) |
| College | Grambling |
| AFL draft | 1963: 14th round, 105th overall pick |
| Career history | |
* Offseason or practice squad member only | |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
Stone Edward Johnson (April 26, 1940 — September 8, 1963) was an American sprinter and professional football player. Selected 105th overall in the 1963 American Football League draft out of Grambling College, he was a kick returner and running back for the Kansas City Chiefs during the 1963 preseason. Three years earlier at age twenty, Johnson was a 200-meter finalist in the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome and was also a brief world record holder.[1]
In the Chiefs' fifth and final preseason game on August 31 against the Houston Oilers in Wichita, Kansas, rookie Johnson suffered a fractured vertebra in his neck while blocking during a first quarter kickoff return.[2] Rushed to St. Francis Hospital in Wichita for immediate surgery, he died there eight days later at the age of 23.[2][3][4] Although he was only on the team's active roster during preseason, his jersey number 33 was retired.[5][6]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]
- ↑ Miller, Jeff (August 31, 2013). "Stone Johnson died 50 years ago from injury in NFL (AFL preseason) game". USA Today. Retrieved July 6, 2026.
- 1 2 "Stone Johnson of K.C. Chiefs has neck break". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. September 2, 1963. p. 15 – via Google News Archive.
- ↑ "K.C. rookie star dead from injury". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. (Kansas). Associated Press. September 9, 1963. p. 12 – via Google News Archive.
- ↑ "Stone Johnson dies of broken neck". The Baltimore Afro-American. September 14, 1963. p. 23. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
- ↑ "Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame". Kansas City Chiefs. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
- ↑ "Chiefs History: 1960's". Kansas City Chiefs. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
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- 1940 births
- 1963 deaths
- Track and field athletes from Dallas
- Players of American football from Dallas
- American football running backs
- Grambling State Tigers football players
- Olympic track and field athletes for the United States
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics
- Kansas City Chiefs players
- Sports deaths in Kansas
- American men sprinters
- American Football League players
- 20th-century African-American sportsmen
- 20th-century American sportsmen
- NFL players with retired numbers
- Grambling State Tigers men's track and field athletes
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- American football running back, 1940s birth stubs