Bill Pickel
Encyclopedia
William George Pickel is a former defensive tackle who played for twelve seasons in the National Football League
with the Los Angeles Raiders
(1983–1990) and the New York Jets
(1991–1994). Pickel attended St. Francis Prep. He played college football
for Rutgers University
. As a second round draft pick of the Raiders in 1983
, Pickel overcame injuries to win a Super Bowl
as a rookie
, and was a sack
threat during the early part of his career with the Raiders, making the 1985 All-Pro
team. He is currently 98th in career sacks with 56. A standout player, Pickel played nearly every Raider defensive snap in 1984 and 1985. He had a distinct 4-point stance, placing two hands down instead of the usual one, as was the case with other quick defensive tackles such as Bob Lilly
and Tom Keating (American football)
.
Pickel guest starred in a 1994 episode of Home Improvementhttp://www.hiarchive.co.uk/episode.php?s=3&e=18. He is noted for his volunteer work with the Joshua Frase Foundation, a non-profit group that supports research for centronuclear myopathy
.
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...
with the Los Angeles Raiders
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
(1983–1990) and the New York Jets
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
(1991–1994). Pickel attended St. Francis Prep. He 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...
for Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
. As a second round draft pick of the Raiders in 1983
1983 NFL Draft
The 1983 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983...
, Pickel overcame injuries to win a Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
as a rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
, and was a sack
Quarterback sack
In American football and Canadian football, a sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass, or when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and the intent of what he was going to do is unclear...
threat during the early part of his career with the Raiders, making the 1985 All-Pro
All-Pro
All-Pro is a term mostly used in the NFL for the best players of each position during that season. It began as polls of sportswriters in the early 1920s...
team. He is currently 98th in career sacks with 56. A standout player, Pickel played nearly every Raider defensive snap in 1984 and 1985. He had a distinct 4-point stance, placing two hands down instead of the usual one, as was the case with other quick defensive tackles such as Bob Lilly
Bob Lilly
Robert Lewis Lilly is a former American football defensive tackle in the National Football League and photographer. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980.-College career:...
and Tom Keating (American football)
Tom Keating (American football)
For the famous art forger of the same name, see Tom Keating.For the priest and author of the same name see Thomas Keating.Thomas Arthur Keating is a retired American collegiate and Professional Football player...
.
Pickel guest starred in a 1994 episode of Home Improvementhttp://www.hiarchive.co.uk/episode.php?s=3&e=18. He is noted for his volunteer work with the Joshua Frase Foundation, a non-profit group that supports research for centronuclear myopathy
Centronuclear myopathy
Centronuclear myopathies are a group of congenital myopathies where cell nuclei are abnormally located in skeletal muscle cells. In CNM the nuclei are located at a position in the center of the cell, instead of their normal location at the periphery....
.