Hall of Fame Safety Duo Represents Washington on All-Time Rankings List

The Washington Commanders franchise has had a strong history of safety play.

David Harrison | Jul 16, 2024

Sep 1973; Washington, DC, USA; FILE PHOTO; Washington Redskins defensive back (27) Ken Houston in action against the San Diego Chargers at RFK Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tony Tomsic-USA TODAY NETWORK NFL 100: Best players in Washington Redskins history / USA TODAY via Imagn Content Services,

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One of the greatest players in the history of the Washington Commanders franchise probably should have never been here in the first place.

Coming off of his fifth Pro Bowl appearance in six NFL seasons safety Ken Houston commanded attention on the field long before the Commanders name was even an idea.

Despite this, ahead of the 1973 NFL season, the Houston Oilers traded him to Washington for five players and Houston went on to have seven more Pro Bowl seasons over the course of eight years and was named First-Team All-Pro twice.

To this day the trade that sent the fourth-best safety of all-time out of Houston goes down as possibly the worst in that city's sports history, and one of the best the Commanders franchise has ever been a part of.

Former Washington Redskins safety Ken Houston is the lone Commanders representative on the all-time safeties list.

"The strong safety was still tremendous at forcing turnovers for George Allen's team, producing at least two interceptions in all but his final two seasons."
- Ian Valentino on Ken Houston

"Of Ken Houston's 14 professional seasons, only his final year at 36 was unremarkable. Otherwise, we're talking about the preeminent safety of the 1970s," Ian Valentino of 33rd Team wrote in his rankings column. "His first six years in Houston maximized his strength as a ballhawk. He tallied 25 interceptions and 10 defensive touchdowns in that span before he was traded to Washington. The strong safety was still tremendous at forcing turnovers for George Allen's team, producing at least two interceptions in all but his final two seasons."

On the flip side of past trades, the one that sent safety Paul Krause to the Minnesota Vikings might be the worst Washington has ever been involved in.

After spending four seasons with the franchise, two of which he made the Pro Bowl and was First-Team All-Pro, Krause was sent to the Vikings for linebacker Marlin McKeever and a seventh-round draft pick.

Krause went on to play 12 seasons for the Vikings, made it to six more Pro Bowls, and was First-Team All-Pro again in 1975. And he's the third-best safety on Valentino's list.

Ed Reed (No. 2) never played for Washington but did earn his reputation as one of the best the NFL has ever seen right up the road playing for the Baltimore Ravens until the last year of his career.

The best safety of all-time according to this list also never played for the Commanders franchise, but did have a 7-1 personal regular season record against it.

Ronnie Lott played 14 NFL seasons earning spots on the First-Team All-Pro roster six times and making it to 10 Pro Bowls. He started 20 career playoff games, is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2000, and won four Super Bowls in his career.

Hard to argue with that kind of resume. But Washington did hand Lott and his teammates a postseason loss in the 1983 NFC Championship Game.

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Published Jul 16, 2024

DAVID HARRISON

David Harrison has covered the NFL since 2015 as a digital content creator in both written and audio media. He is the host of Locked On Commanders and a graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. His previous career was as a Military Working Dog Handler for the United States Army. Contact David via email at david.w.harrison82@gmail.com or on Twitter @DHarrison82.