Baughan was selected in the second round (20th overall) of the 1960 NFL draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, additionally being chosen as a first-round pick in the 1960 AFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders.[1] He joined the Eagles and became a starter immediately at the rightside linebacker position, starting nine of 12 games in his rookie season as the Eagles went on to win the 1960 NFL Championship over the Green Bay Packers, which remained the team's last league title until Super Bowl LII in the 2017 season.[1][3] He was chosen to his first Pro Bowl that year, posting three interceptions in the game, and was also the runner-up for the NFL's rookie of the year award.[4][5] He went on to play the following 10 years in the NFL and was an All-Pro selection in seven of those years.[4] Baughan played his first six years with the Eagles and earned Pro Bowl selection in all but one of those years.[4] During a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1965, he helped the Eagles set a team record with nine interceptions in the 47–13 win, with six of those points coming off an interception by Baughan which he returned for the only score of his career.[6]
By 1966, the number of games the Eagles won had sharply declined and Baughan decided that he wanted out of Philadelphia. However, George Allen, who was entering his first season as an NFL head coach with the Los Angeles Rams, won the right to Baughan's services by sending two players (linebacker Fred Brown and defensive tackle Frank Molden[7]) to the Eagles in return. Baughan and Allen would develop a strong relationship, spending extensive time studying game film together. Baughan would later state that he learned more about football from Allen than anyone else.[8] Baughan was chosen to be the Rams' defensive captain and was in charge of signal calling for the unit.[9] He was selected for the Pro Bowl in each of his first four seasons with the Rams and was also a first-team All-Pro choice three times.[4] After an injury-plagued 1970 season, in which he played in only 10 games, Baughan retired from the NFL.[4][10]
In 1974, Allen, now the head coach of the Redskins, talked Baughan into a brief return to the NFL as a player-coach.[13] He appeared in two games, mainly as a backup to Chris Hanburger.[13][4] At the conclusion of that season, Baughan retired.[4] He finished with 18 interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown) and 10 fumble recoveries in 147 games played; Baughan also unofficially posted 24.5 sacks.[4]
Coaching career
After retiring from the NFL, Baughan served as the defensive coordinator at his alma mater, Georgia Tech, from 1972 to 1973.[14] Following his brief return to playing in 1974, he went back into coaching by becoming the defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Colts in 1975.[13] During his time with the Colts, the team won three straight AFC East divisional championships from 1975 to 1977.[15] He left the Colts in 1980 and then served through 1982 as the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions.[15]
Baughan was named head coach of the Cornell Big Red college football team in 1983.[16] He led them to the Ivy League championship in 1988, their first since 1971.[17] However, he was forced to resign before the next season after information surfaced about an affair he had with an assistant coach's wife.[18] Baughan then coached a team in Japan in 1989 before returning to the NFL in 1990 as linebackers coach of the Minnesota Vikings.[19] Following two years with Minnesota, he coached the linebackers for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1992 to 1995, and then served in that same role with the Baltimore Ravens from 1996 until retiring after 1998.[14]
Despite his NFL accomplishments, Baughan has not been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Several sources have considered him among the best players not inducted.[10][26][27][28][29] In 2005, he was named to the Professional Football Researchers Association's Hall of Very Good in the association's third HOVG class, an honor for the best players not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[30] He was reportedly a favorite among Hall of Fame selectors for the class of 2020, but was not elected.[31] He was also a finalist for the classes of 2023 and 2024, but missed selection both times.[32][33]
