Bill Lenkaitis

Bill Lenkaitis (June 30, 1946 – August 27, 2016) played center and guard across 14 professional seasons in the AFL and NFL. A Penn State product, he began his career with the San Diego Chargers in 1968 before spending 11 seasons with the New England Patriots (1971–1981), earning a place on their 1970s All-Decade Team. He earned his dental degree from the University of Tennessee during his playing years and served as the Patriots' team dentist — at the time the only practicing dentist active in the league. Lenkaitis died of brain cancer in 2016 and was posthumously diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy.