Sidney Thornton (September 2, 1954 – January 29, 2023) was an American professional football player who was selected by the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Stee ...

in the 2nd round (48th overall) of the

1977 NFL Draft The 1977 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 May 3–4, 1977, at the Roosevelt Hote ...

. A 5'11", .

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. The ...

from

Northwestern State University Northwestern State University of Louisiana (NSU) is a public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the Univ ...

in Louisiana, he played in 6 NFL seasons from 1977 to 1982 for the Steelers, winning two Super Bowl titles with the team. Thornton returned to pro football in 1984, playing one season with the Oklahoma Outlaws and rushing for 288 yards on 101 carries (2.9 yard per carry average). He was second on the team in rushing, finishing behind Ernest Anderson. Anderson rushed for ten more yards during the season than Thornton, however, Thornton led Outlaws in rushing touchdowns, with four. Thornton died on January 29, 2023, at the age of 68.

References

* 1954 births 2023 deaths American football running backs Northwestern State Demons football players Pittsburgh Steelers players Players of American football from New Orleans {{runningback-1950s-stub