George “Butch” Henry Atkinson Jr. is a former professional football player for the Oakland Raiders. He played defensive back and Kick returner both in Morris Brown in college and in the AFL and NFL. He currently works as a Oakland Raiders broadcaster and also hosts another show on television called Behind the Shield and is a spokesperson for a clothing department store in Oakland, California

 

 

 

 

• 2x American League All Star (1968, 1969)

• He won the Super bowl XI championship in 1977

• He also played for the Denver Broncos in 1979

• Atkinson appears on broadcasts such as, “Top Ten”

• Career NFL statistics in 1979:

  • 30 interceptions

  • 448 INT yards

  • 2 Touchdowns

 

 

 

 

Career highlights: “In a regular-season game in 1976 vs. the Steelers the Raiders' arch-rival, Atkinson hit an unsuspecting Lynn Swanin the back of the head with a forearm smash, even though the ball had not been thrown to Swann. The hit rendered Swann unconscious with a concussion. Atkinson had also hit Swann in a similar manner in the

previous season's AFC championship game, which also gave Swann a concussion. After the second incident, Steeler's coach Chuck Noll referred to Atkinson as part of the "criminal element" in football. Atkinson subsequently filed a $2 million defamation lawsuit against Noll and the Steelers, which Atkinson lost.”

 

 

 

More info:

• http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/A/AtkiBu00.htm

• http://www.fantasyfootballchallenge.com/152-991/george-atkinson-faqs.html

• http://www.nfl.com/player/georgeatkinson/2508723/profile