Don Healy
Encyclopedia
Michael Donald Healy is a former American football
defensive tackle in the National Football League
for the Chicago Bears
and the Dallas Cowboys
. He also played professionally in the American Football League
for the Buffalo Bills
in 1962. Healy played college football
at the University of Maryland
and was drafted
in the third round of the 1958 NFL Draft
. He was also selected by the Dallas Cowboys
in the 1960 NFL Expansion Draft
. Healy holds the single season Cowboys record for fumble recoveries in a season, established when the season was 12 games long.
Healy played on the 1958 College All Star team that defeated the 1957 NFL Champion Detroit Lions. His teammates included Alex Karras
, Ray Nitschke
and Chuck Howley
.
Following his football career, Healy worked in sales, warehouse management and retail, owning his own automotive warehouse and parts stores throughout central Indiana. He currently lives in Naples, FL and is married to Genevieve Mary Shea. He is also a Deacon for St. Ann Catholic School in Naples Florida.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
defensive tackle in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
for the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
and the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
. He also played professionally in the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
for the Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional football team based in Buffalo, New York. They are currently members of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
in 1962. Healy played college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
at the University of Maryland
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
and was drafted
NFL Draft
The National Football League Draft is an annual event in which the National Football League teams select eligible college football players and it is their most common source of player recruitment. The basic design of the draft is each team is given a position in the drafting order in reverse order...
in the third round of the 1958 NFL Draft
1958 NFL Draft
The 1958 National Football League Draft was held on December 2, 1957 and January 28, 1958 .This was the last year in which the Lottery Bonus pick was used.-Player selections:-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:...
. He was also selected by the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
in the 1960 NFL Expansion Draft
1960 NFL Expansion Draft
The 1960 NFL Expansion Draft was a National Football League draft in which a new expansion team, named the Dallas Cowboys, selected its first players. The NFL awarded Dallas, Texas a franchise to compete for revenue with Lamar Hunt's Dallas Texans of the upstart American Football League...
. Healy holds the single season Cowboys record for fumble recoveries in a season, established when the season was 12 games long.
Healy played on the 1958 College All Star team that defeated the 1957 NFL Champion Detroit Lions. His teammates included Alex Karras
Alex Karras
Alexander George "Alex" Karras , nicknamed "The Mad Duck", is a former football player, professional wrestler, and actor, best known for his stint with the Detroit Lions of the National Football League from 1958–1962 and 1964-1970 and for his role as Mongo in the film Blazing Saddles...
, Ray Nitschke
Ray Nitschke
Raymond Ernest "Ray" Nitschke was a professional football player who played his entire career as a middle linebacker for the Green Bay Packers of the NFL. Wearing #66, he played fifteen seasons, from 1958-72....
and Chuck Howley
Chuck Howley
Charles Louis "Chuck" Howley is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League...
.
Following his football career, Healy worked in sales, warehouse management and retail, owning his own automotive warehouse and parts stores throughout central Indiana. He currently lives in Naples, FL and is married to Genevieve Mary Shea. He is also a Deacon for St. Ann Catholic School in Naples Florida.