Mike Stratton

This article is about the American football player. For the cancer researcher, see Michael Stratton.

Mike Stratton

refer to caption Stratton tackles Keith Lincoln in 1964 AFL Championship.
No. 58
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1941-04-10) April 10, 1941
Place of birth:	Vonore, Tennessee
Height:
Weight:
Career information
College:	Tennessee
AFL draft:	1962 / Round: 13 / Pick: 100
Career history
Buffalo Bills (1962–1972) San Diego Chargers (1973)
Career highlights and awards
6× AFL All-Star (1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968) 2× American Football League champion (1964, 1965) Buffalo Bills Wall of Fame AFL All-Time 2nd Team Most games played with same LB partners, 62 (Harry Jacobs and John Tracey)
Career NFL statistics
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

David Michael Stratton (born April 10, 1941) is an American former football player who was a linebacker in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL) for twelve seasons. He played professionally for the Buffalo Bills and San Diego Chargers.

Drafted out of the University of Tennessee in the 13th round of the 1962 AFL Draft, Stratton was selected as an AFL All-Star six straight seasons from 1963 through 1968. Lou Saban used him at linebacker, where with Harry Jacobs and John Tracey he filled out the AFL's best linebacking crew, playing together for 62 consecutive games from 1963 through 1967, a pro football record. They helped the formidable front four hold opposing teams without a 100-yard rusher for seventeen consecutive games in 1964 and 1965, a pro-football record 17 consecutive games without allowing a rushing touchdown, and achieved American Football League championships in both those years.

In the 1964 AFL championship game against the San Diego Chargers, he made the memorable "hit heard 'round the world". The Chargers led 7-0 and were marching toward another score when Stratton tackled the Chargers' Hall of Famer Keith Lincoln, putting him out of the game. The Bills shut out San Diego for the rest of the game, and won, 20-7. Stratton was selected to the All-Time All-AFL second team.

See also

• Other American Football League players

External links

• Stratton's 1965 Topps football card