One of the most overlooked positions in the National Football League is the fullback position. Even more so as of lately, with the fullback becoming rarer and rarer, many people forget the importance of a quality fullback. One fullback that really played the position the way it should be played was Jon Ritchie, who played for the Raiders and the Eagles between the years of 1998-2004. Ritchie embodied everything that a fullback should be. He was a fantastic blocker, an imposing competitor, and a team-oriented kind of player. The style that Ritchie had as a player, truly fit the teams that he played for. When I think of the most insane fans in the NFL, I cannot help but think about the Raiders and the Eagles. Their smashmouth, take nothing from anybody attitude, is exactly the kind of player that Ritchie was on the field. He was the guy that opposing defenses stayed up for at night. They did not lose sleep because of his quickness or amazing hands, but because of his psychotic demeanor, and his ability to knock people to the turf like pancakes. Just looking at Ritchie's face said it all. Ricthie's trademark scab on his forehead, which he would rip off before every game, made this scary player look the part that he played on the field. He was everything that a tough football team needed to set the tone, and there was nobody at the fullback position better at it than him.

When you look at Jon Ritchie's career stats, there is nothing that really stands out. He finished his career with 150 receptions, a total of 1,184 yards, and a total of 7 touchdowns. When most people see those stats, they just assume that he did not have much of a contribution to the league. But that is exactly where Ritchie differs from the pack. The things that Ritchie contributed went way beyond the box score, as they do for most great fullbacks. And even though he may not have gotten the same recognition that the big stat guys got, he never took any plays off, and he worked that much harder to help his team win football games.   

During his NFL career, Jon Ritchie appeared in 2 Super Bowls; losing in both contests. The first time he lost to the Bucs, as a member of the Raiders, and the second time, he lost to the Patriots, as a member of the Eagles. Because of how hard Ritchie played, he was only able to spend 7 seasons in the NFL, as he got an awful knee injury that could not be repaired. Although Ritchie only played a total of 7 NFL seasons, he definitely made his mark on the league, and he left a legacy that will not soon be forgotten.