View source for Tom Addison

{{Short description|American football player (1936–2011)}}
{{distinguish|Tom Addison (baseball)|Thomas Addison}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name        = Tom Addison
| image       =
| image_size  = 
| alt         = 
| caption     = 
| number      = 53
| position    = [[Linebacker]]
| birth_date  = {{Birth date|1936|4|12}}
| birth_place = [[Lancaster, South Carolina]], U.S.
| death_date  = {{Death date and age|2011|6|14|1936|4|12}}
| death_place = [[Bluffton, South Carolina]], U.S.<ref>[http://www.espn.com.au/nfl/news/story?id=6665616 Former New England Patriots LB Tom Addison dies] Retrieved 2018-06-16.</ref>
| height_ft   = 6
| height_in   = 2
| weight_lbs  = 230
| high_school = [[Lancaster High School (Lancaster, South Carolina)|Lancaster (SC)]]
| college     = [[South Carolina Gamecocks football|South Carolina]]
| draftyear   = 1958
| draftround  = 12
| draftpick   = 141
| pastteams   =
* [[Boston Patriots]] ([[1960 American Football League season|1960]]–[[1967 American Football League season|1967]])
| highlights  =
* 3× All-AFL ([[1960 American Football League All-League Players|1960]], 1963, 1964)
* 4× AFL All-Star (1961–1964)
* [[New England Patriots|Boston Patriots All-1960s Team]]
| pfr         = A/AddiTo00 
}}
'''Thomas Marion Addison''' (April 12, 1936 &ndash; June 14, 2011) was an American professional [[American football|football]] [[linebacker]], sports labor leader, and is a member of the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame.

== Playing career ==
Addison attended the [[University of South Carolina]] and was drafted by the [[History of the Indianapolis Colts|Baltimore Colts]] of the [[National Football League]] (NFL) and the [[Ottawa Rough Riders]] of the [[Canadian Football League]] (CFL), but chose to sign in 1960 with the [[Boston Patriots]] of the newly formed [[American Football League]] (NFL), playing his entire pro career with the Patriots.

Considered a leader of the newly formed team, Addison was selected as team captain, and was named to the [[American Football League All-Star games|AFL All-Star]] team for four straight years(1961–1964), as well as being one of the first players ever selected to be a Patriot All-League player (in [[1960 American Football League All-League Players|1960]]). He was also a [[Sporting News]]' All-League player in [[1963 AFL season|1963]] and [[1964 AFL season|1964]], and an [[American Football League All-Star games|AFL Eastern Division All-Star]] in [[1961 AFL season|1961]] and [[1962 AFL season|1962]].  With 16 career interceptions (returning one for a touchdown), he was considered by some {{who|date= November 2010}} to be the best AFL linebacker against the run in the mid-1960s.

Addison played in every Patriots' game from 1961 to 1966 (84 games), and was adding to this total when he sustained what proved to be a career-ending knee injury. On June 18, 1968, he was released by the Patriots after team doctors stated that he would risk further damage by playing after having undergone two knee operations. Addison was selected by a Patriot fan vote in 1971 as a member of the Patriots' All-1960s (AFL) Team.

==Labor leadership==
On January 14, 1964, players in the American Football League formed the AFL Players Association, and Addison was elected the union's first president.<ref>"Players in A.F.L. Form Own Union." ''New York Times.'' January 16, 1964.</ref>

In search of protection for the players, Addison put together a request package of benefits that included insurance and a player pension plan. As president, Addison had the intimidating task of meeting with the team owners to communicate the request. Upon entering the meeting room, Addison approached the long oval table, where the stern-faced owners were awaiting. With [[Southern United States|Southern charm]], he looked up at the owners, smiled, and said "Well, I'm not trying to be the next [[Jimmy Hoffa]]!" This broke the tension, and started a period of perhaps the most positive relationship between owners and players in team sports history.{{citation needed|date=February 2009}}

With a players association in place, players newly drafted by American Football League teams in the "war between the leagues" could be assured that they would have representation and protection in the AFL that was the equal of that in the older league.  Addison's work was an important element in the survival of the league, and helped the AFL to be able to compete for top talent, and to establish itself as the future of [[Professional Football]].{{citation needed|date=February 2009}}

==See also==
* [[List of American Football League players]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Baltimore Colts 1958 draft navbox}}
{{1960 Boston Patriots}}
{{Patriots1960s}}
{{NFLPA presidents}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Addison, Tom}}
[[Category:1936 births]]
[[Category:2011 deaths]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Lancaster, South Carolina]]
[[Category:People from Bluffton, South Carolina]]
[[Category:Players of American football from South Carolina]]
[[Category:American football linebackers]]
[[Category:South Carolina Gamecocks football players]]
[[Category:Boston Patriots players]]
[[Category:American Football League All-Star players]]
[[Category:American Football League All-League players]]
[[Category:American trade union leaders]]