Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones - wikipedia Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones Jones signs autographs in January 2014. No. 72 Position : Defensive end Born : ( 1951 - 02 - 23 ) February 23, 1951 ( age 67 ) Jackson, Tennessee Height : 6 ft 9 in ( 2.06 m ) Weight : 271 lb ( 123 kg ) Career information High school : Jackson Central Merry High School, Jackson, TN College : Tennessee State NFL Draft : 1974 / Round : 1 / Pick : 1 Career history Dallas Cowboys ( 1974 -- 1978, 1980 -- 1989 ) Career highlights and awards 3 × Pro Bowl ( 1981 -- 1983 ) 3 × All - Pro ( 1981 -- 1983 ) Super Bowl champion ( XII ) Consensus All - American ( 1973 ) Career NFL statistics Sacks : 57.5 ( unofficially = 106 ) Fumble Recoveries : 19 Interceptions : 3 Player stats at NFL.com Player stats at PFR Ed Lee Jones ( born February 23, 1951 ), commonly known as Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones, is a retired American football player who played 15 seasons ( 1974 -- 1978, 1980 -- 1989 ) in the National Football League ( NFL ) for the Dallas Cowboys. In 1979, he briefly left football to attempt a career in professional boxing. Contents 1 Early years 2 College career 3 Professional career 3.1 Dallas Cowboys ( first stint ) 3.2 Boxing career 3.3 Dallas Cowboys ( second stint ) 4 Personal life 5 References 6 External links Early years Jones was born in Jackson, Tennessee. He attended Jackson Central Merry High School where he played baseball and basketball. He only played three football games, because his high school did not support the sport until his senior year. His basketball skills earned him All - America honors and scholarship offers from several Division I ( NCAA ) programs. He also had offers from Major League Baseball teams to play first base in their farm systems. As a senior, he fought a Golden Gloves boxing match, recording a knockout of his opponent in less than a minute. He stopped shortly after that, when his basketball coach read an article about the fight, and made him choose between basketball and boxing. College career He signed with Tennessee State University to play basketball, but left the team after two seasons, to concentrate on playing football under head coach John Merritt. The 6 ft 9 in ( 2.06 m ) Jones received his famous nickname during his first football practice, after a teammate mentioned that his pants did n't fit, because he was `` too tall to play football ''. In his new sport, he became a two - time All - American defensive lineman, playing on a team that only lost 2 games, en route to winning the black college football national championship in 1971 and 1973. Jones ranks third in school history in sacks in a season ( 12 ) and fifth in career sacks ( 38 ). In 1999, he was voted to the 50th Anniversary Senior Bowl All - Time Team. Professional career Dallas Cowboys ( first stint ) In the 1974 NFL Draft, for the first time in their history, the Dallas Cowboys had the first overall draft choice. The No. 1 selection was acquired from the Houston Oilers in exchange for Tody Smith and Billy Parks. The Cowboys ended up drafting Jones, making him the first football player from a historically black college to go that high in the NFL draft. He became a starter at left defensive end during his second season in 1975 and by 1977 he had helped the Cowboys win Super Bowl XII. After playing five years for the Cowboys from 1974 through 1978, Jones at 28 years old and in the prime of his athletic career, left football to attempt a professional boxing career. Boxing career A former Golden Gloves fighter in Tennessee, Jones would fight six professional bouts as a heavyweight, with a perfect 6 -- 0 record and five knockouts. Due to his high profile as a football player, all of Jones ' fights were televised nationally, by CBS. His pro boxing debut, held in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on November 3, 1979, was controversial. Despite giving away over fifty pounds, opponent Abraham Yaqui Meneses dropped Jones with a left hook in the sixth and final round, then hit him again ( illegally ) when Jones was down. Jones ' cornerman then entered the ring ( also illegally ) and attempted to revive his fighter with an ammonia bottle. Referee Buddy Basilico reasoned that since both fighters had broken the rules, he would punish neither of them, and let the fight go on. Jones survived the round and was awarded a narrow majority decision, causing the pro-Meneses crowd to boo loudly. The Meneses bout was the only one of Jones ' fights he would not win by knockout. But his other five opponents were journeymen at best, with the arguable exception of Mexican heavyweight champ Fernando Montes, whom Jones knocked out in just 44 seconds on November 24, 1979. After his last ring appearance on January 26, 1980, Jones announced he would return to play for the Dallas Cowboys. In a 2016 interview, Jones called boxing his favorite sport and said that fighting `` was probably the best decision ( he ) ever made, '' because his boxing training regimen made him a better football player. Dallas Cowboys ( second stint ) Jones playing with the Cowboys during the 1985 season. He returned to play for the 1980 season, replacing John Dutton at defensive end and performing better than his first stint with the team. Jones earned All - Pro and Pro Bowl honors three times from 1981 to 1983. He retired at the end of the 1989 season, having never missed a game, playing the most games by any Cowboys player ( 232 ) and being tied with Mark Tuinei and Bill Bates for most seasons ( 15 ). Jones was one of the most dominant defensive players of his era, playing in 16 playoff games and three Super Bowls. He was part of three NFC championship teams and the Super Bowl XII champion. His success batting down passes convinced the NFL to keep track of it as an official stat. The NFL did n't start recognizing quarterback sacks as an official stat until 1982 ; although the Cowboys have their own records, dating back before the 1982 season. According to the Cowboys ' stats, Jones is unofficially credited with a total of 106 quarterback sacks ( third most in team history ) and officially with 57. He is the fifth leading tackler in franchise history with 1,032. In 1985, he achieved a career high of 13 sacks. Personal life Jones was a guest referee at the World Wrestling Federation 's WrestleMania 2 pay - per - view in 1986. He refereed from outside of the ring during the 20 - man battle royale which included American football stars of the day. Jones starred in a GEICO commercial that initially aired in late 2009. The commercial rhetorically asks if Jones is indeed `` too tall, '' then confirms it by showing a nurse attempting to measure his height, but breaking the medical scale 's height rod when it does n't reach high enough. The nurse then mutters, `` I 'm just going to guesstimate. '' References ^ Jump up to : NFL.com, `` Too Tall Jones, DE ''. Nfl.com ( 2012 - 12 - 31 ). Retrieved on 2013 - 07 - 13. Jump up ^ EdTooTallJones.com, `` Ed ' Too Tall ' Jones, Bio '' Archived 2012 - 01 - 12 at the Wayback Machine... Edtootalljones.com. Retrieved on 2013 - 07 - 13. Jump up ^ Ed ( Too Tall ) Jones is a great athlete who has never lived -- 05.04. 81 -- SI Vault. Sportsillustrated.cnn.com ( 1981 - 05 - 04 ). Retrieved on 2013 - 07 - 13. Jump up ^ `` Twenty - six of the greatest names in NFL history make the elite club chosen by fans as part of the game 's 50th Game Celebration ''. Archived from the original on July 10, 2009. Retrieved 2013 - 07 - 13. CS1 maint : BOT : original - url status unknown ( link ). seniorbowl.com Jump up ^ `` Ed Jones ''. boxrec.com. Jump up ^ `` Ed ( Too Tall ) Jones vs. Abraham Yaqui Meneses ''. boxrec.com. Jump up ^ `` Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones : Boxing Was ' Best Decision ' ``. NESN. February 5, 2016 -- via YouTube. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Jump up ^ `` Cowboys Top 50 List : No. 26 Ed Too Tall Jones ''. Archived from the original on July 20, 2009. Retrieved 2009 - 07 - 20... dallascowboys.com ( June 18, 2009 ) Jump up ^ Geico ' Too Tall ' Jones on YouTube. Retrieved on 2013 - 07 - 13. External links Official website Professional boxing record for Ed Jones from BoxRec National Football League Draft number one overall picks Berwanger Francis C. Davis Aldrich Cafego Harmon Dudley Sinkwich Bertelli Trippi Dancewicz Fenimore Gilmer Bednarik Hart Rote Wade Babcock B. Garrett Shaw Glick Hornung Hill Duncan Cannon Mason E. Davis Baker Parks Frederickson Nobis Bu. Smith Yary Simpson Bradshaw Plunkett Patulski Matuszak Jones Bartkowski Selmon Bell Campbell Cousineau B. Sims Rogers K. Sims Elway Fryar Br. Smith Jackson Testaverde Bruce Aikman George Maryland Emtman Bledsoe Wilkinson Carter Johnson Pace P. Manning Couch Brown Vick Carr Palmer E. Manning A. Smith Williams Russell Long Stafford Bradford Newton Luck Fisher Clowney Winston Goff M. Garrett 1974 NFL draft first - round selections Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones Bo Matthews John Hicks Waymond Bryant John Dutton Carl Barzilauskas J.V. Cain Ed O'Neil Wilbur Jackson Bill Sandifer John Cappelletti Barty Smith Rick Middleton Randy Gradishar Don Goode Woody Green Fred McNeill Reuben Gant Henry Lawrence Dave Gallagher Lynn Swann Charley Young Bill Kollar Roger Carr Steve Riley Donald Reese Dallas Cowboys first - round draft picks Lilly Jordan Appleton Morton Niland Homan C. Hill D. Thomas To. Smith B. Thomas DuPree E. Jones Young R. White Henderson Kyle Dorsett Bethea Shaw Richards R. Hill Jeffcoat Cannon Brooks Sherrard Noonan Irvin Aikman E. Smith Maryland Harper Pritchett K. Smith R. Jones Carver LaFleur Ellis Ekuban R. Williams Newman Ware Spears Carpenter Spencer F. Jones Jenkins Bryant Ty. Smith Claiborne Frederick Martin B. Jones Elliott Charlton Dallas Cowboys 1974 NFL draft selections Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones Charley Young Danny White Cal Peterson Ken Hutcherson Andy Adrade John Kelsey Jim Bright Raymond Nester Mike Holt Bill Dulin Dennis Morgan Harvey McGee Keith Bobo Fred Lima Doug Richards Bruce Craft Gene Killian Lawrie Skolrood Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl XII champions 1 Efren Herrera 11 Danny White 12 Roger Staubach 18 Glenn Carano 20 Mel Renfro 21 Doug Dennison 25 Aaron Kyle 26 Preston Pearson 31 Benny Barnes 33 Tony Dorsett 35 Scott Laidlaw 36 Larry Brinson 41 Charlie Waters 42 Randy Hughes 43 Cliff Harris 44 Robert Newhouse 46 Mark Washington 50 D.D. Lewis 53 Bob Breunig 54 Randy White ( Co-MVP ) 56 Thomas Henderson 57 Bruce Huther 58 Mike Hegman 59 Guy Brown 61 Jim Cooper 62 John Fitzgerald 63 Larry Cole 64 Tom Rafferty 65 Dave Stalls 66 Burton Lawless 67 Pat Donovan 68 Herbert Scott 70 Rayfield Wright 71 Andy Frederick 72 Ed `` Too Tall '' Jones 73 Ralph Neely 75 Jethro Pugh 77 Bill Gregory 79 Harvey Martin ( Co-MVP ) 80 Tony Hill 83 Golden Richards 86 Butch Johnson 87 Jay Saldi 88 Drew Pearson 89 Billy Joe DuPree Head coach : Tom Landry Coaches : Ermal Allen Mike Ditka Jim Myers Dan Reeves Gene Stallings Ernie Stautner Jerry Tubbs Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ed_%22Too_Tall%22_Jones&oldid=827085703 '' Categories : 1951 births Living people American football defensive ends Dallas Cowboys players Tennessee State Tigers football players Tennessee State Tigers basketball players National Football League first overall draft picks National Conference Pro Bowl players Super Bowl champions People from Jackson, Tennessee Players of American football from Tennessee Basketball players from Tennessee Boxers from Tennessee American male boxers Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links CS1 maint : BOT : original - url status unknown All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from July 2013 NFL player missing current team parameter Infobox NFL biography articles missing alt text BoxRec template with ID same as Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Français Italiano Malagasy Edit links This page was last edited on 22 February 2018, at 18 : 08. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who did ed too tall jones play for
Answer: the Dallas Cowboys