Jones, Bertram H.
Football
b. Sept. 7, 1951, Ruston, LA
The son of William A. "Dub" Jones, a halfback with the Cleveland Browns from 1948 through 1955, Jones was a starting quarterback at Louisiana State in 1972 and 1973. He was a consensus All-American in 1972 and, although he didn't finish high in the Heisman Trophy voting as a senior, he was named college player of the year by The Sporting News.
The strong-armed, 6-foot-2, 220-pounder was the first-round draft choice of the NFL's Baltimore Colts in 1973. He spent most of his rookie year as a backup, but won the starting job during the 1974 season, when he lost a memorable passing duel to Joe Namath and the New York Jets. The Jets won the game 45-38 but Jones set an NFL record by completing 17 consecutive passes.
He led the Colts to three straight Eastern Division titles in the American Football Conference, from 1975 through 1977. Jones was named the league's most valuable player by the NFL Players' Association in 1976, when he completed 207 of 343 passes for 3,104 yards and 24 touchdowns.
Jones remained with the Colts through 1981 and spent the 1982 season with the Los Angeles Rams before retiring because of a chronic back problem. During his 10 seasons in the NFL, he completed 1,430 of 2,551 passes for 18,190 yards and 124 touchdowns. He also rushed for 11 touchdowns.