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Kenny Easley
Kenneth Mason Easley Jr. (January 15, 1959 – November 14, 2025) was an American professional football player who spent his entire seven-year career as a safety for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1987. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was a three-time consensus All-American. He was selected by the Seahawks in the first round of the 1981 NFL draft. Nicknamed "the Enforcer", Easley has been considered among the greatest defensive backs of his era and as one of the Seahawks' greatest players.
Easley was a leader of the Seahawks' defense and was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1984. He was a four-time All-Pro selection and was elected to the Pro Bowl five times in his career. Easley's career ended after the 1987 season when he was diagnosed with severe kidney disease.
After retirement, Easley owned a Cadillac dealership and, later, the Norfolk Nighthawks team from 1999 to 2003. He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017.
Born on January 15, 1959, Kenny Easley was raised in Chesapeake, Virginia. He had sisters and his mother's name was Juanita. He graduated from its Oscar F. Smith High School in 1977. He was the first player in the history of Virginia high-school football to rush and pass for more than 1,000 yards in a single season, and was an all-state and All-American selection at quarterback. In 1996, Oscar F. Smith High School honored Easley and fellow graduates Ed Beard and Steve DeLong by naming its football stadium Beard-DeLong-Easley Field on September 6.
Recruited by as many as 350 colleges, Easley selected the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and played for the Bruins football team. He started ten games as a true freshman in 1977, recording nine interceptions and was named to his first All-Pac-10 squad. His 93 tackles established a school record for tackles by a true freshman. He later became the first player in conference history to be honored as all-conference for four consecutive years. Playing from 1977 to 1980, Easley finished his college career with a school-record 19 interceptions and 374 tackles, along with 45 punt returns for 454 yards.
Easley was a three-time consensus All-American selection (1978, 1979, 1980) and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 1980, when he recorded 105 tackles as a senior. He also played basketball at the junior-varsity level for UCLA and was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the tenth round of the 1981 NBA draft, but he did not play professionally.
Easley was the fourth overall pick of the 1981 NFL draft, selected by the Seattle Seahawks. He became an immediate starter as a rookie in 1981, recording three interceptions for 155 yards and one touchdown, earning him AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. In 1983, the Seahawks hired former Buffalo Bills coach Chuck Knox as their head coach and Easley immediately became the "backbone" of Knox's defense. In his first season playing for Knox, Easley won the AFC Defensive Player of the Year Award and recorded seven interceptions. In 1984, Easley led the NFL in interceptions with ten, which tied a club record. He returned two of them for touchdowns and was named as the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, the first safety awarded since Dick Anderson in 1973. In 1984, during a 45–0 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the Kingdome on November 4, the Seahawks returned four interceptions for touchdowns, including one caught by Easley, breaking the record for most touchdowns scored from an interception in a game. He took over the role of the team's main punt returner when Paul Johns got injured earlier in the season.
After the season, Easley signed a five-year contract to stay with the Seahawks, averaging $650,000 a year plus incentives. The contract made him one of the highest paid defensive players in the league. In 1985, he was selected for his fourth consecutive Pro Bowl, a team record until defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy was selected for his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl in 1995. He was injured for most of the 1986 season; he hurt his knee against the San Diego Chargers on October 11, and the next month, missed the remainder of the season due to ankle surgery. In December, Easley was rumored to be in the trading block as the Seahawks were attempting to get the first overall pick in the 1987 NFL draft from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in order to draft quarterback Vinny Testaverde.
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Kenny Easley
Kenneth Mason Easley Jr. (January 15, 1959 – November 14, 2025) was an American professional football player who spent his entire seven-year career as a safety for the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1987. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins and was a three-time consensus All-American. He was selected by the Seahawks in the first round of the 1981 NFL draft. Nicknamed "the Enforcer", Easley has been considered among the greatest defensive backs of his era and as one of the Seahawks' greatest players.
Easley was a leader of the Seahawks' defense and was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1984. He was a four-time All-Pro selection and was elected to the Pro Bowl five times in his career. Easley's career ended after the 1987 season when he was diagnosed with severe kidney disease.
After retirement, Easley owned a Cadillac dealership and, later, the Norfolk Nighthawks team from 1999 to 2003. He was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017.
Born on January 15, 1959, Kenny Easley was raised in Chesapeake, Virginia. He had sisters and his mother's name was Juanita. He graduated from its Oscar F. Smith High School in 1977. He was the first player in the history of Virginia high-school football to rush and pass for more than 1,000 yards in a single season, and was an all-state and All-American selection at quarterback. In 1996, Oscar F. Smith High School honored Easley and fellow graduates Ed Beard and Steve DeLong by naming its football stadium Beard-DeLong-Easley Field on September 6.
Recruited by as many as 350 colleges, Easley selected the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and played for the Bruins football team. He started ten games as a true freshman in 1977, recording nine interceptions and was named to his first All-Pac-10 squad. His 93 tackles established a school record for tackles by a true freshman. He later became the first player in conference history to be honored as all-conference for four consecutive years. Playing from 1977 to 1980, Easley finished his college career with a school-record 19 interceptions and 374 tackles, along with 45 punt returns for 454 yards.
Easley was a three-time consensus All-American selection (1978, 1979, 1980) and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 1980, when he recorded 105 tackles as a senior. He also played basketball at the junior-varsity level for UCLA and was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the tenth round of the 1981 NBA draft, but he did not play professionally.
Easley was the fourth overall pick of the 1981 NFL draft, selected by the Seattle Seahawks. He became an immediate starter as a rookie in 1981, recording three interceptions for 155 yards and one touchdown, earning him AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. In 1983, the Seahawks hired former Buffalo Bills coach Chuck Knox as their head coach and Easley immediately became the "backbone" of Knox's defense. In his first season playing for Knox, Easley won the AFC Defensive Player of the Year Award and recorded seven interceptions. In 1984, Easley led the NFL in interceptions with ten, which tied a club record. He returned two of them for touchdowns and was named as the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, the first safety awarded since Dick Anderson in 1973. In 1984, during a 45–0 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the Kingdome on November 4, the Seahawks returned four interceptions for touchdowns, including one caught by Easley, breaking the record for most touchdowns scored from an interception in a game. He took over the role of the team's main punt returner when Paul Johns got injured earlier in the season.
After the season, Easley signed a five-year contract to stay with the Seahawks, averaging $650,000 a year plus incentives. The contract made him one of the highest paid defensive players in the league. In 1985, he was selected for his fourth consecutive Pro Bowl, a team record until defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy was selected for his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl in 1995. He was injured for most of the 1986 season; he hurt his knee against the San Diego Chargers on October 11, and the next month, missed the remainder of the season due to ankle surgery. In December, Easley was rumored to be in the trading block as the Seahawks were attempting to get the first overall pick in the 1987 NFL draft from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in order to draft quarterback Vinny Testaverde.