Curley Culp was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013.
A sixtime Pro Bowl selection, Culp played in 179 games during his NFL career with the Kansas City Chiefs (1968-1974), Houston Oilers (1974-1980) and Detroit Lions (1980-81). He was considered the prototypical nose tackle and helped pioneer the 3-4 defense.
Hailing from Arizona State, where he was an All-American in both football and wrestling, Culp was selected in the second round of the 1968 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos, who intended to use him as an offensive guard. However, his brief stint in Denver ended when he was traded to the Chiefs, who inserted him permanently on the defensive side.
In 1969, the Chiefs won Super Bowl IV, and Culp was an instrumental member of one of the league's top defenses. He helped the Chiefs defeat the Oakland Raiders in the AFL Championship Game and the Minnesota Vikings in the Super Bowl.
In 1974, during his seventh campaign in Kansas City, Culp was traded to the Oilers along with a first-round draft pick (used to select Robert Brazile) in exchange for John Matuszak.
The move paid almost immediate dividends for the Oilers, who previously suffered through 1-13 records in both 1972 and 1973.
In 1975, Culp's first full season in Houston, he helped the Oilers to a record of 10-4,the first winning mark for the club in eight years.
With Culp anchoring the defense, the Oilers finished with the AFC's top-ranked run defense (third in the NFL). Individually, Culp produced arguably the finest season of his career, recording 11.5 sacks and earning NFL Defensive Player honors by the Newspaper Enterprise Association.
Culp continued as a leader of the Oilers defense that culminated in back-to-back appearances in the AFC championship games in 1978 and 1979. He was named to one AFL All-Star Game and five Pro Bowls during his career.
Culp also was picked as a first-team All-Pro in 1975 and a second-team selection in 1971, 1977, 1978, and 1979. He was selected first- or second-team All-AFC five times. "Curley Culp was perhaps the strongest man I ever lined up against," said Raiders Hall of Fame center Jim Otto.
Culp used his strong wrestling background to create havoc for opposing guards and centers.
He was the 1968 NCAA heavyweight wrestling champion and was named to the U.S. Olympic wrestling team that year. Culp joined a 2013 Hall of Fame class that included offensive linemen Larry Allen and Jonathan Ogden, wide receiver Cris Carter, coach Bill Parcells, linebacker Dave Robinson and defensive lineman Warren Sapp.
