Jerry Rhome

Jerry Byron Rhome (born March 6, 1942 in Dallas, Texas), graduate of Sunset High School (1960), is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League. He played for the Dallas Cowboys (1965–1968), the Cleveland Browns (1969), the Houston Oilers (1970), and the Los Angeles Rams (1971). He closed out his playing career in 1972 with the Canadian Football League Montreal Alouettes.

Early years
Rhome attended Sunset High School in Texas, where he played football for his father Byron Rhome. He also played basketball and baseball and was inducted into the Texas High School Hall of Fame.

He accepted a scholarship to play for Southern Methodist University, but transferred by the end of his sophomore year (1961) to the University of Tulsa after a 2-7-1 season. He starred at Tulsa where he would finish second in the 1964 Heisman Trophy voting in one of the closest votes ever recorded.

He held a number of NCAA records, including the most touchdowns in a game and in a season and the most passes without an interception in a year and in a career. Rhome also won the Sammy Baugh Trophy in 1964, had his No. 17 retired by the University of Tulsa and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1998.

Dallas Cowboys
Knowing that he had one more year of eligibility, the Dallas Cowboys drafted him as a junior in the 1964 NFL Draft, as would the Houston Oilers in the 1964 AFL Draft. This was a practice that the Cowboys had back then, drafting Roger Staubach also as a junior in the same draft.

Although he started his professional career in 1965 as the third quarterback behind Don Meredith and Craig Morton, he got a chance to start a game that same year against the Cleveland Browns ( 23-17 loss).

He would serve the team in a backup role until the start of the 1969 season when Roger Staubach joined the team, and at his request the Cowboys traded Rhome to the Cleveland Browns for a third round draft choice, that they would use to draft Charlie Waters in the 1970 NFL Draft.

Cleveland Browns
Rohme was a backup to Bill Nelsen during the 1969 season, but the information he provided about the Cowboys offense, helped the Browns beat them in a 38-14 Conference Championship playoff win.

He was traded the next season to the Houston Oilers in exchange for a third round draft choice, that they gave back to the Dallas Cowboys in payment for their original trade.

Houston Oilers
He would only play as a backup for the Houston Oilers for a year, before being released at the start of the 1971 season.

Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams claimed him off the waiver wire in 1971, where he was a backup for one year.

Personal life
After he finished his pro playing career, Rhome became an assistant coach at the University of Tulsa. His first of many NFL coaching jobs was with the Seattle Seahawks. He earned a Super Bowl ring while coaching for the Washington Redskins.