Dexter Manley
Secretary of Defense: Redskins sack leader and two-time Super Bowl champion.
Dexter Keith Manley (born February 2, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Washington Redskins. He also played for the Phoenix Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as well as in the Canadian Football League (CFL) for the Ottawa Rough Riders. Manley played college football for the Oklahoma State Cowboys and was selected by the Redskins in the fifth round of the 1981 NFL draft.
Quick Facts
- Years active with team
- 1981–1989
- Pro bowl selections
- 1 (1986)
- All-pro honors
- Second-team All-Pro (1986)
- Signature partnership
- The 'Secretary of Defense' and Dave Butz
Lore & Background
Manley was nicknamed the "Secretary of Defense" during his time with the Redskins. He underwent brain surgery in June 2006 to treat a colloid cyst, first learned about in 1986 after he collapsed in a Georgetown department store. In May 2020, it was announced that Manley had tested positive for COVID-19. For many years, including his college football days and first few years of his pro career, Manley was functionally illiterate. The sight of teammate Joe Theismann breaking his leg on November 18, 1985 shook Manley, who at the time also had an addiction to cocaine. After the 1985 season ended in early 1986, Manley went to rehab and took reading classes at the Lab School of Washington; he studied there for five years. As of 2015, Manley was clean from drugs for nine years.
Reader's Guide
Manley was selected in the fifth round (119th overall) of the 1981 NFL draft by the Washington Redskins, where he played for nine seasons. He won two Super Bowl titles and was a Pro Bowler in 1986 when he recorded a Redskins single-season record of 18.5 sacks. In 1989, Manley failed his third drug test, with an opportunity to apply for reinstatement after one year. He then played for the Phoenix Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After he failed his fourth drug test, he retired on December 12, 1991. He had a series of arrests related to his drug problem and was ultimately convicted and served two years in prison. Officially, Manley had 97.5 quarterback sacks in his career. His total rises to 103.5 when the six sacks he had his rookie year of 1981, when sacks were not yet an official statistic, are included. Manley also played two seasons in the CFL with the Ottawa Rough Riders (1992 and 1993).
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