As a rookie linebacker and long snapper with the Dallas Cowboys in 1984, Steve DeOssie assumed a mentality of being “crazy all the time.” A second-year teammate, however, made an important impression. Defensive end Jim Jeffcoat showed DeOssie that it was possible to assume a separate mentality off the field.
“I saw a different side of professional football in a guy like Jim,” DeOssie recently recalled, “a guy who could be tough and aggressive and play good defense and still be a good, solid not-crazy family guy.”
Earlier that year, DeOssie and his wife at the time, Dianna, welcomed boy and girl twins, Zak and Christina.