Leo Joseph Wisniewski (born November 6, 1959) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

for the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) from 1982 to 1984. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Penn State Nittany Lions The Penn State Nittany Lions are the athletic teams of Pennsylvania State University, except for the women's basketball team, known as the Penn State Lady Lions basketball, Lady Lions. The school colors are navy blue and white. The school mascot ...

and was selected by the Colts in the second round of the

1982 NFL draft The 1982 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 27–28, 1982, at the New York Sh ...

Early life

After going to high school at Fox Chapel Area High School in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, Wisniewski attended

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

where he played nose tackle. Over his four years at Penn State he recorded 102

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

and 11 QB sacks.

Professional career

Wisniewski was selected in the second round (28th overall pick) in the

by the

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

. In 1982, Wisniewski spent the first two games of the strike shortened season on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

, but started at nose tackle the final seven. He was credited with 52 total tackles (32 solo) and 2.5 QB sacks. In 1983, Wisniewski played in 15 games ( started 14) and made 95 total tackles (50 solo) and 5.0 QB sacks. He missed the game against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

(September 25, 1983) with a strained knee. In 1984, his final year, Wisniewski started in 14 of the 16 games, but missed the final two games on the injured reserve with a knee injury. He made 88 total tackles (51 solo) and 7.0 QB sacks.''Indianapolis Colts 1985 Media Guide'', pages 69–70.

Personal life

Leo's brother

Steve Wisniewski Steve Wisniewski (born April 7, 1967), nicknamed "the Wiz", is an American former professional American football, football player who was a Guard (gridiron football), guard for 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Los Angel ...

was a two-time

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

at Penn State as an

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line ( ...

, and an 8-time

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

er with the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

. Leo's son

Stefen Stefen is a masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: *Stefen Fangmeier Stefen Markus Fangmeier (born December 9, 1960, in El Paso, Texas, United States) is an American visual effects supervisor and film director. He worked o ...

is a former

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

and

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

in the NFL.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wisniewski, Leo 1959 births Living people Sportspeople from Hancock, Michigan Players of American football from Houghton County, Michigan Players of American football from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania American football defensive tackles Penn State Nittany Lions football players Baltimore Colts players Indianapolis Colts players