Former Atlanta Falcons defensive end John Zook dies
The Atlanta Falcons mourned the loss of a former defensive end this past weekend.
John Zook died on Saturday morning after a battle with cancer. He was 72. Zook decided to stop his treatments at the beginning of this year, and according to AJC's Steve Hummer, a small group of his former Falcon teammates got on a Zoom call to say their goodbyes hours before his death.
Zook was the first Falcon in history to record a safety in 1971.
He played with the franchise from 1969-1975. All four of his career interceptions came in a Falcon uniform before he finished his final four seasons in St. Louis. All eight of Zook's career fumble recoveries, and his lone touchdown, also came in Atlanta.
The right defensive end teamed up with franchise legend and Hall of Famer Claude Humphrey on the line to create a lethal pass-rush combination. The 6-foot-4 Zook got along with the 6-foot-4 Humphrey better than anyone else on the roster, Humphrey told Hummer.
Unfortunately, the NFL didn't begin officially recording sacks until 1982. Tackles weren't recorded until 1994, and haven't been officially recorded until 2001.
In seven seasons, Zook started 97 games with the Falcons and missed zero games throughout his tenure. NFL seasons were 14 games back then. During the Falcons' 9-5 season in 1973, Zook became a Pro Bowler.
“He never played but full speed from snap one to snap 100," former University of Kansas coach Pepper Rodgers said, according to KU Sports. "He was the most full-speed player on every snap that you could imagine.”
Rodgers died 24 days before Zook did. The former coach and Georgia Tech quarterback was 88.
The Falcons dedicated a tweet in Zook's memory on Monday morning.
