Early years

Talbert attended the University of Texas at Austin where he was a two-way tackle. He missed the 1958 season with a broken leg. As a fifth year senior in 1961, he earned All-American and All-SWC honors.

In 1992, he was inducted into the Longhorns Hall of Honor.

Professional career

Dallas Cowboys (first stint)

Talbert was selected in the eighth round of the 1961 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. As a rookie in 1962, although he played on the defensive line, he was mostly the backup at right offensive tackle and got a chance to start in 4 games.

He was in the reserve officer program at Texas and had to miss the next 2 seasons because of military service in the Vietnam War. He returned in 1965 and played in all 14 games as a backup.

Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons selected him from the Cowboys roster in the 1966 NFL Expansion Draft. He was a two-year starter in Atlanta, before being traded on July 3, 1969, along with Errol Linden to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for Roy Schmidt, Jim Ferguson and Jerry Jones.

New Orleans Saints

Talbert was a two-year starter in New Orleans. On August 2, 1971, he was traded to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for defensive end Doug Moore and a fourth round draft choice.

Dallas Cowboys (second stint)

In 1971 he was a backup until replacing Ralph Neely in the starting lineup, after he was injured in a motorcycle accident. After spraining his ankle, he was first replaced with Forrest Gregg and later by Tony Liscio. He was able to be a part of the Super Bowl VI winning team and was eventually waived on September 7, 1972.

He was re-signed in 1973, but was waived on September 5 and placed on the team taxi squad, before being waived again on September 19.

Houston Texans/Shreveport Steamer (WFL)

Talbert was signed by the Houston Texans of the World Football League in 1974. After playing 11 games, the team relocated to Shreveport, Louisiana on September 18, where they were renamed as the Shreveport Steamer.

Personal life

His younger brother Diron Talbert also played in the NFL.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]