Tag Archives: Redskins

Putting the “foot” in football

The ’50s were a nasty time to be a pro football player, the early part of the decade in particular. Until 1955 a ball carrier could get up after he was knocked down and try to gain more yardage — as long as his forward progress hadn’t been stopped, that is. This, predictably, this led to plenty of late hits, piling on and assorted other crimes and misdemeanors.

If you want a glimpse of what the environment was like, check out this photo from 1952. It shows Hugh McElhenny, the 49ers’ Hall of Fame back, lying (facemaskless) on the ground and Redskins middle guard Jim Ricca giving him a boot — or something — to discourage him from any further frolicking.

The cutline reads: “After San Francisco’s Hugh McElhenny fell, following his catch of Y.A. Tittle’s pass, Washington’s Jim Ricca (55) demonstrated one version of the ‘foot part’ in football. Ricca got a placekick squarely in McElhenny’s shoulder and made sure of stopping the play, good for eight yards. Watching with mixed emotions are 49ers Bill Johnson (53) and Billy Wilson (84).”

(That’s the same Bill Johnson, by the way, who later coached the Bengals — Tiger Johnson.)McElhenny kicked

I interviewed Johnson once after he’d retired and asked him about the time he was ejected from a game against the Bears. He pleaded guilty to taking a cheap shot at Chicago linebacker George Connor, another guy who’s in Canton.

“He were down on the goal line,” Johnson said, “and I didn’t even wait for the snap. I just fired out and drove him against the goal post [which was situated at the front of the end zone then]. I can still see the post swaying back and forth [from the impact].”

And what exactly provoked this outburst?

“Just didn’t like the way he carried himself.”

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the 1950s. Rugged, man, rugged.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

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Bears 73, Redskins 0: an annotated play-by-play

On Dec. 8, 1940, the Chicago Bears barreled into Washington’s Griffith Stadium and beat the Redskins 73-0 in the NFL championship game — the biggest smackdown in league history. What follows is an attempt to recreate that game, with the help of newspaper accounts, play by plays, video highlights and my own interviews with some of the players. The figures might be a yard off here and there, but they’re mostly accurate. (You’d be amazed at how inexact record keeping was in the prewar years.)

I’ve inserted comments and notes throughout to (hopefully) add to your reading pleasure. Enjoy.


Bears end Ken Kavanaugh: “I bought 26 tickets for friends of mine from Arkansas, Louisiana and around Chicago, and I think three of ’em were picked up. So when we get to Washington, I’ve got 23 tickets at $4 a head in my pocket. Our bus arrives at the stadium, and I go out in front and start selling the tickets. It takes me about a half-hour or so, but I finally get rid of them.
“Later I’m in the locker room getting dressed, and [coach George] Halas says, ‘Where the hell have you been, eating another sandwich?’ He used to get on me because I’d eat a sandwich before games. We didn’t have any pregame meal or anything, you see. We just went out and played. Anyway, I said, ‘George, I had 23 tickets to sell at $4 apiece, and I don’t know if we’re going to make that much playing this game, so I was out front selling ’em. Are we ready to go out [for warmups]?’ And he says, ‘In about 10 minutes.’ And I said, ‘Well, that’s all I need.'”

Note: Kavanaugh needn’t have worried. The winning Bears each received $873.99, which would have more than covered the cost of the 23 tickets he got stuck with. 

Weather: Sunny, 40 degrees.

Attendance: 36,034.

FIRST QUARTER

Bears win toss, elect to receive.

Note: Among the officials were referee Red Friesell (he of the famous Fifth Down in the Cornell-Dartmouth game earlier that year) and linesman Irv Kupcinet (the Chicago Times sportswriter and erstwhile Philadelphia Eagle).

(Sound of whistle blowing.)

Redskins kick 55 yards from WAS 40 to CHI 5. Ray Nolting to CHI 25 for 20 yards.
1-10-C25 George McAfee up the middle to CHI 32 for 7 yards.
2-3-C32 Bill Osmanski left end for 68 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Jack Manders extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 7, WASHINGTON 0, 2 plays, 68 yards.

Note: Osmanski’s way was paved by one of the greatest blocks of all time. Bears end George Wilson wiped out not one but two Redskins along the sideline.

Osmanski headline

Bears kick 56 yards from CHI 40 to WAS 4. Max Krause to CHI 40 for 56 yards.
1-10-C40 Jimmy Johnston right tackle to CHI 34 for 6 yards.
2-4-C34 Johnston right tackle to CHI 28 for 6 yards.
1-10-C28 Ed Justice left tackle to CHI 26 for 2 yards.
2-8-C26 Johnston right end to CHI 26 for no gain.
3-8-C26 Sammy Baugh pass to Charlie Malone dropped at CHI 5.
4-8-C26 Bob Masterson 32 yard field goal is NO GOOD.

Comment: Dropping a Baugh pass took some doing. Sammy laid it out there on a pillow. Malone somehow managed, though.

1-10-C20 McAfee left end to CHI 24 for 4 yards.
2-6-C24 Nolting right tackle to CHI 27 for 3 yards.
3-3-C27 Osmanski right tackle to CHI 49 for 22 yards.
1-10-C49 Nolting up the middle to WAS 48 for 3 yards.
2-7-W48 Nolting up the middle to WAS 45 for 3 yards.
3-4-W45 McAfee left end to WAS 39 for 6 yards.
1-10-W39 Nolting right tackle to WAS 37 for 2 yards.
2-8-W37 McAfee left tackle to WAS 31 for 6 yards.
3-2-W31 McAfee left guard to WAS 28 for 3 yards.
Timeout #1 by CHI
1-10-W28 Nolting right tackle to WAS 27 for 1 yard.
2-9-W27 Osmanski right tackle to WAS 21 for 6 yards.
3-3-W21 McAfee to WAS 19 for 2 yards.
4-1-W19 Nolting through tackle to WAS 14 for 5 yards.
1-10-W14 Sid Luckman flat pass to Nolting to WAS 2 for 12 yards.
1-2-W2 Osmanski right tackle to WAS 2 for no gain.
2-2-W2 Osmanski right tackle to WAS 2 for no gain.
FUMBLES (Erny Pinckert hit), RECOVERED by CHI-Joe Stydahar at W3.
Stydahar to W1 for 2 yards.
3-1-W1 Luckman up the middle for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.
Bob Snyder extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 14, WASHINGTON 0, 17 plays, 80 yards.

Comment: A 17-play drive. Ouch. The Redskins went with a five-man line on defense pretty much the whole way. That’s what had worked for them earlier in the season, when they shut down the Bears’ revolutionary T formation in a 7-3 victory. As teams would soon learn, though, the T — in the early stages, at least — was most vulnerable to a seven-man front, which made it easier to pressure the passer and turn sweeps inside.

Bears kick 60 yards from CHI 40 to end zone, Touchback.
1-10-W20 Baugh flat pass to Johnston to W14 for -6 yards.
2-16-W14 Baugh pass incomplete over middle. (Bulldog Turner nearly intercepts.)
3-16-W14 Baugh pass through hands of Bob McChesney at W42.
4-16-W14 Baugh punts 28 yards to W42 (partially blocked).

Comment: Are you getting the impression this isn’t the Redskins’ day? They’ve already had two drops, a missed field goal, a near INT and a deflected punt. And it’s still the first quarter.

1-10-W42 Joe Maniaci left end for 42 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Phil Martinovich extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 21, WASHINGTON 0, 1 play, 42 yards.

Note: This was essentially the same play Osmanski scored on. Again, a five-man line wasn’t as effective against the wide stuff the T threw at you (thanks, among other things, to the quick-strike capability of the man-in-motion).

Bears kick out of bounds. Redskins ball at WAS 45.
1-10-W45 Frank Filchock flat pass to McChesney. FUMBLES,
RECOVERED by WAS-Bo Russell at WAS 39 for -6 yards.
2-16-W39 Filchock pass incomplete to Bob Hoffman.
3-16-W39 Filchock long pass incomplete to Wilbur Moore.
4-16-W39 Filchock punts 36 yards to CHI 25, McAfee to CHI 42 for 17 yards.

Comment: Baugh shared the quarterback duties with Filchock, so it was never unusual to see Frankie come into the game. Despite the change, though, the Redskins continued to kill themselves on first down. They’d begun two straight series with a 6-yard loss — and would begin their next with an interception.

1-10-C42 Luckman overthrows lateral pass to Nolting,
ball goes out of bounds at CHI 28 for -14 yards.
2-24-C28 Luckman quick-kicks 58 yards to WAS 14. Moore to WAS 20 for 6 yards. Quarter ends.

Comment: A rare goof by the Bears. So what did they do? They played it safe with a three-touchdown lead and punted on second down. Welcome to 1940s strategy.

SECOND QUARTER

1-10-W20 Filchock long pass for Moore INTERCEPTED by Scooter McLean at 50. No return.

Note: McLean dropkicked an extra point in the ’41 title game — the last successful dropkick in the NFL until Doug Flutie booted one for the Patriots in 2005.

1-10-50 Harry Clark right tackle to WAS 49 for 1 yard.
2-9-W49 Off fake reverse, Maniaci right tackle to WAS 43 for 6 yards.
3-3-W43 Maniaci right guard to WAS 39 for 4 yards.
1-10-W39 Luckman pass to Maniaci to WAS 11 for 28 yards.
1-10-W11 McLean FUMBLES handoff from Luckman,
RECOVERED by WAS-McChesney at W19 for -8 yards.

Comment: Another reminder the Bears didn’t play a perfect game.

1-10-W19 Filchock up the middle to WAS 22 for 3 yards.
2-7-W22 Filchock pass incomplete down middle to Dick Todd.
3-7-W22 Filchock flat pass to Hoffman to WAS 29 for 7 yards.
1-10-W29 Filchock long pass to Wayne Millner to CHI 29 for 42 yards.
1-10-C29 Filchock pass incomplete to Todd.
2-10-C29 Filchock pass incomplete (Dick Plasman pressuring him).
3-10-C18 Filchock pass to Millner to CHI 18 for 11 yards.
Timeout #2 by CHI
1-10-C18 Filchock pass batted down by Plasman.
2-10-C18 Filchock pass to McChesney dropped at CHI 5.
3-10-C18 Filchock pass incomplete to Moore in end zone.
4-10-C18 Filchock pass incomplete to McChesney.

Note: McChesney reportedly played with his right hand in a splint. That might explain his problems on the second down play.

1-10-C18 Manders right end to CHI 18 for no gain.
2-10-C18 Luckman pass to Bobby Swisher to WAS 46 for 36 yards.
1-10-W46 McLean left end to WAS 26 for 20 yards.
1-10-W26 Osmanski runs to WAS 26 for no gain.
2-10-W26 McLean runs to WAS 24 for 2 yards.
3-8-W24 Luckman pass to Plasman at WAS 12 knocked down by Todd
4-8-W24 Martinovich 32-yard field goal is NO GOOD.

Note: Plasman, a 6-foot-3, 218-pound end, was the last NFLer to play without a helmet. He went bareheaded through the ’41 season. As he explained it, whenever he looked up for a pass, “the flap [of his headgear] always fell down over my eyes so that I couldn’t follow the flight of the ball. . . . One day, after a pass bounced off my chest, Halas said I wouldn’t have to wear a helmet anymore.”

1-10-W20 Filchock scrambles to WAS 37 for 17 yards.
1-10-W37 Filchock pass nearly intercepted by Plasman.
2-10-W37 Filchock long pass to Millner INTERCEPTED by Nolting at CHI 34.
Nolting for 10 yards to CHI 44.

Note: The Redskins’ eight interceptions are still the all-time record for the postseason. But get this: In the previous year’s title game, the Packers threw six INTs and won, 28-0. It was, indeed, a different time. Offenses were much looser with the ball.

1-10-C44 Nolting right tackle to WAS 47 for 9 yards.
2-1-W47 Nolting up the middle to WAS 42 for 5 yards.
1-10-W42 Osmanski runs to WAS 42 for no gain.
2-10-W42 Luckman laterals to Osmanski, who runs to WAS 31 for 11 yards.
1-10-W31 Nolting right tackle to WAS 28 for 3 yards.
2-7-W27 Osmanski runs to WAS 29 for -2 yards.
3-9-W29 Luckman pass to Ken Kavanaugh in end zone for 29 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Snyder extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 28, WASHINGTON 0, 7 plays, 56 yards.

Comment: Kavanaugh was surrounded by so many top players during his years with the Bears that he’s never been properly appreciated. Look at it this way: 52 of his 168 receptions in the NFL, regular season and postseason, went for touchdowns — 31 percent. You won’t find a higher TD rate in league history (among receivers with that many catches, anyway). Jerry Rice’s rate was less than half that.

Bears kick 60 yards to goal line. Filchock to WAS 25 for 25 yards.
1-10-W25 Filchock pass incomplete to Millner.
2-10-W25 Baugh pass complete over middle to Andy Farkas to WAS 44 for 19 yards.
1-10-W44 Baugh pass to Johnston to CHI 49 for 7 yards.
2-3-C49 Baugh pass to Hoffman to CHI 48 for 1 yard.
3-2-C48 Baugh long pass incomplete to Johnston.
4-2-C48 Baugh pass complete over middle to Johnston to CHI 41 for 7 yards.
1-10-C41 PENALTY on WAS, delay of game5 yardsenforced at CHI 41.
1-15-C46 Baugh long pass complete to Malone to CHI 5 for 41 yards.
1-5-C5 PENALTY on WAS, delay of game5 yardsenforced at CHI 5.
1-10-C10 Baugh pass to Farkas INTERCEPTED by Osmanski at CHI 6. Half ends.

Note: Judging from the newspaper stories, the Redskins were penalized for calling timeouts they didn’t have, not for taking too much time to get off plays. When you were out of timeouts in those days, you either faked an injury or took a five-yard penalty.

THIRD QUARTER

Bears kick 35 yards from CHI 40 to WAS 25. Malone to WAS 34 for 9 yards.
1-10-W34 Johnston right end to WAS 34 for no gain.~~PENALTY on WAS, holding, 15 yards, enforced at WAS 34.
1-25-W19 Baugh flat pass to Johnson INTERCEPTED by Hamp Pool at WAS 19.~~Pool for 19 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Plasman extra point is GOOD.
CHIGAGO 35, WASHINGTON 0.

Note: No fewer than 11 players in the game — enough for a team — went on to be NFL or AFL head coaches. Pool (Rams) was one, along with teammates Scooter McLean (Packers), Bob Snyder (Rams), Joe Stydahar (Rams), Bulldog Turner (New York Titans), George Wilson (Lions, Dolphins) and, on the Redskins side, Sammy Baugh (New York Titans, Houston Oilers), Turk Edwards (Redskins), Frank Filchock (Broncos), Wayne Millner (Eagles) and Dick Todd (Redskins). Stydahar (1951 Rams) and Wilson (’57 Lions) even won championships.

Bears kick from CHI 40. PENALTY on CHI, offside, 5 yards, enforced at CHI 40.
Bears kick from CHI 35 to end zone. Ed Justice FUMBLES and recovers, Touchback.
1-10-W20 Baugh pass to Malone to WAS 31 for 11 yards.
1-10-W31 Baugh flat pass to Masterson to WAS 38 for 7 yards.
2-3-W38 Baugh pass to Johnston incomplete.
PENALTY on CHI, Pass Interference, Spot of Foul, enforced at WAS 43 — No Play.
1-10-W43 Johnston up the middle to WAS 46 for 3 yards.
2-7-W46 Baugh pass to Justice to 50 for 4 yards.
3-3-W50 Baugh FUMBLES snap. RECOVERED by WAS-Johnston for -16 yards.
4-19-W34 Baugh long pass to Malone incomplete.

Notes: Down 35-0, the Redskins went for it on fourth-and-forever in their own territory. This is how bad becomes worse. . . . Botched snaps by Washington in this quarter resulted in losses of 16 and 17 yards — and soon were followed by Bears touchdowns.,

1-10-W34 On reverse, Nolting right end to WAS 23 for 11 yards.
1-10-W23 Nolting up the middle for 23 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Plasman extra point is NO GOOD.
CHICAGO 41, WASHINGTON 0, 2 plays, 34 yards.

Comment: Two plays, 68 yards. One play, 42 yards. Two plays, 34 yards. (And later: one play, 2 yards.) The Redskins defense sure got the ball back quickly for the offense.

Bears kick 60 yards to end zone, Touchback.
1-10-W20 Seymour left tackle to WAS 20 for no gain.
2-10-W20 Roy Zimmerman pass INTERCEPTED by McAfee at WAS 34.
McAfee for 34 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Stydahar extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 48, WASHINGTON 0.

Redskins quarterback Roy Zimmerman: “A nightmare [day]. I had two interceptions run back for touchdowns. On that one [by McAfee], I broke [teammate] Charley Malone’s ribs trying to make the tackle. I was coming at [McAfee] from an angle, Charley was coming up from behind, and I hooked [McAfee] with my arm and got swung into Charley and broke his ribs.” (You can see the collision at the end of the clip.)

Comment: Had the game had been played in the 1920s, the officials probably would have shortened the last two periods from 15 minutes to 12 or 10. Back then, the attitude was: No sense belaboring the obvious.

Bears kick 60 yards to end zone. Zimmerman to WAS 33 for 33 yards.
1-10-W33 Bob Seymour left guard to WAS 34 for 1 yard.
2-9-W34 Zimmerman pass to Seymour incomplete.
3-9-W34 Zimmerman pass to Masterson to WAS 49 for 15 yards.
1-10-W49 Ray Hare left end to CHI 44 for 7 yards.
PENALTY on CHI, offside, 5 yards, enforced at WAS 49 — No Play.
1-5-C46 Seymour right end to CHI 31 for 15 yards.
1-10-C31 Zimmerman sacked at CHI 43 for -12 yards.
PENALTY on CHI, roughing the quarterback, 15 yards, enforced at CHI 43.
1-10-C28 Zimmerman pass to Hare in end zone incomplete.
2-10-C28 Zimmerman pass to Masterson to CHI 16 for 12 yards.
1-10-C16 Seymour runs to CHI 16 for no gain.
2-10-C16 Zimmerman back to pass, rushed, throws it away.
3-10-C16 Zimmerman pass to Masterson incomplete.
4-10-C16 Zimmerman overthrows Dick Farman in end zone on guard-eligible play

Comment: A guard-eligible play. Imagine that. (And naturally, Farman was wide open.) Such trickery was possible, though, in the Redskins’ single wing, where the unbalanced line looked like this:

E  G  C  G  T  T  E

To make the guard eligible for passes, all you had to do was have the weak side end (in this case, Bob Masterson) line up as the wingback — and move the right halfback to the line of scrimmage (to give you the required seven linemen). This turned the guard into, technically, the end. Observe:

G  C  G  T  T  E      RHB

E

The Redskins had beaten the Eagles two years before with a guard-eligible play to 6-1, 247-pound Bill Young. Farman was a little more ambulatory at 219.        

1-10-C20 McAfee right tackle to CHI 24 for 4 yards.
2-6-C24 Osmanski right end to CHI 26 for 2 yards.
3-4-C26 McAfee halfback option pass to wide-open Plasman, who drops it.
4-4-C26 McAfee punts 38 yards out of bounds to WAS 36.

Comment: Things were starting to get chippy. In this series, Bears back Ray Nolting, who went 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, threw a punch at Redskins tackle Wee Willie Wilkin, a 6-4, 261-pound monster. Nolting was a tough nut. Bob Snyder once told me that in his first scrimmage with the Bears, he was lying on the ground after being tackled, thinking the play was over, only to have Nolting come along and unload on him. When Snyder complained about his new teammate’s lack of, uh, fraternity, Nolting was unmoved. “What did ya expect me to do,” he said, “kiss ya?”

1-10-W36 Zimmerman runs to WAS 38 for 2 yards.
2-8-W38 Bad center snap RECOVERED by WAS-Zimmerman at WAS 21 for -17 yards.
3-25-W21 Zimmerman pass over the middle to Seymour INTERCEPTED by Bulldog Turner at WAS 24.
Turner for 24 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Maniaci extra point is BLOCKED by Clyde Shugart.
CHICAGO 54, WASHINGTON 0.

Comment: The Bears were having their jollies at this point, letting everybody but the trainer try a PAT. It wasn’t unusual in the single-platoon era for a club to use multiple kickers in a game, but the Bears used seven.


Bears quarterback Sid Luckman: “When the score got to be 54-0, somebody in the huddle said, ‘Ah, let’s take it easy on ’em. That’s enough.’ And you know, 10 guys jumped down his throat. This is not an exaggeration. This is a true fact.”

Bears kick 39 yards to WAS 21. Pinckert to WAS 31 for 11 yards.
1-10-W31 Zimmerman pass over middle to Hare dropped.
2-10-W31 Zimmerman flat pass to Seymour to 50 for 19 yards.
PENALTY on WAS, offside, 5 yards, enforced at WAS 31 — No Play.
2-15-W26 Zimmerman pass to Seymour to WAS 33 for 7 yards.
3-8-W33 Zimmerman pass to Sandy Sanford incomplete.
4-8-W33 Zimmerman punts 61 yards to CHI 6. Clark to CHI 15 for 9 yards.

Comment: Zimmerman, the Redskins’ No. 3 quarterback, threw 12 passes in the game. That’s as many as he threw in any of his three seasons with the team. But Redskins coach Ray Flaherty was so desperate he was willing to try anybody. Zimmerman, by the way, developed into a fine passer-punter-kicker after he was traded to the Eagles in 1943. In fact, the three Washington quarterbacks were as good a group as you’ll find. Baugh is iconic, of course — even though he was dreadful on this day — and Filchock had a passer rating of 111.6 in ’39 (when he completed a stunning 61.8 percent of his throws). Frankie also took the Giants to the title game in ’46.

1-10-C15 Clark right end to CHI 26 for 11 yards. Quarter ends.

FOURTH QUARTER

1-10-C26 Gary Famiglietti left tackle to CHI 29 for 3 yards.
2-7-C29 Famiglietti off tackle to CHI 32 for 3 yards.
3-4-C32 Clark up the middle to CHI 42 for 10 yards.
1-10-C42 On end-around, Bob Nowasky to CHI 48 for 7 yards.
2-3-C49 Solly Sherman left end to CHI 49 for no gain.
PENALTY on WAS, slugging, 15 yards, enforced at CHI 49 — No Play.
1-10-W36 Sherman sacked by Millner at WAS 44 for -8 yards.
2-18-W44 Clark runs to WAS 44 for no gain.
3-18-W44 Sherman to Famiglietti to Clark on reverse to end zone for 44 yards
Famiglietti extra point NO GOOD.
CHICAGO 60, WASHINGTON 0, 7 plays, 74 yards.

Comment: The Redskins apparently didn’t like that end-around Chicago ran with a 54-0 lead. On the next snap, one of them slugged a Bear. Chicago responded by scoring yet another touchdown — on a third-and-18 reverse. You don’t see retribution like this anymore.

Bears kick 48 yards to WAS 12. Filchock to WAS 24 for 12 yards.
1-10-W24 Filchock pass to Millner to WAS 36 for 12 yards.
PENALTY (unspecified) on WAS, 15 yards, enforced at WAS 27 — No Play.
1-22-W12 Filchock pass to McChesney incomplete.
PENALTY on CHI, Pass Interference, Spot of Foul, enforced at WAS 19 — No Play. 
1-10-W19 Filchock sacked, FUMBLES, RECOVERED by CHI-Jack Torrance at WAS 2.

Note: Torrance was nothing special as a tackle, but he held the world shot put record longer than any man in modern times — almost 14 years — after throwing it 57 feet, 1 inch, in 1934.

1-10-W2 Famiglietti left guard for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
Sherman pass to Maniaci in end zone, extra point is GOOD.
CHICAGO 67, WASHINGTON 0, 1 play, 2 yards.

Note: After Famiglietti’s score, the referee informed the Bears that the Redskins had run out of footballs. So rather than kick the last ball into the stands, they passed on their final two PAT attempts.

Bears kick 55 yards to WAS 5. Farkas to WAS 40 for 35 yards.
1-10-W40 Filchock pass to Millner to WAS 48 for 8 yards.
2-2-W48 Filchock long pass off hands of Bears’ Chet Chesney, INTERCEPTED by Maniaci.
Maniaci to WAS 42.

Note: That’s the same Chet Chesney who was elected to Congress from Illinois’ 11th District in 1948.

1-10-W42 Maniaci left tackle to WAS 37 for 5 yards.
PENALTY on CHI, offside, 5 yards, enforced at WAS 42 — No Play.
1-15-W47 Snyder sacked by Millner at CHI 43 for -10 yards.
2-25-C43 Snyder pass to Kavanaugh to CHI 45 for 2 yards.
3-23-C45 Snyder pass to Joe Mihal on tackle-eligible play to WAS 41 for 14 yards.
4-9-W41 Snyder pass to Maniaci to WAS 21 for 20 yards.
1-10-W21 Clark left end to WAS 13 for 8 yards.
2-2-W13 Maniaci right guard to WAS 6 for 7 yards.
1-6-W6 Maniaci right tackle to WAS 1 for 5 yards.
2-1-W1 Clark runs for 1 yard, TOUCHDOWN.
Snyder’s pass to Maniaci in end zone knocked down, extra point NO GOOD.
CHICAGO 73, WASHINGTON 0, 8 plays, 58 yards.

Comment: I’ve sometimes wondered whether Millner truly belongs in the Hall of Fame. After all, he caught just 124 passes in seven seasons and never led the league in any receiving category. But as this game shows, he was a terrific two-way end. He led all receivers with six grabs for 94 yards (depending on your source) and also had two sacks. This, after having a huge title game against the Bears in ’37 (nine catches, 160 yards, touchdowns of 55 and 78). The guy was clearly a prime-time player.

Bears kick returned to WAS 40.
1-10-W40 Filchock pass to Millner to CHI 48 for 12 yards.
1-10-C48 Filchock pass to Millner to CHI 39 for 9 yards.
2-1-C39 Filchock long pass to Millner INTERCEPTED by Maniaci, laterals to Clark at CHI 35.
PENALTY on CHI, forward lateral, 15 yards, enforced at CHI 35.

Note: Up 73-0, the Bears are LATERALING and trying to score again.

1-10-C20 Snyder flat pass to Famiglietti to CHI 31 for 11 yards.
1-10-C31 Snyder fakes pass and runs up the middle to CHI 33 for 2 yards.
GAME OVER.

Marshall headline

Comment: As if the lateral on the interception wren’t enough, the Bears called a pass and a fake pass on the last two plays. They basically taunted the Redskins the entire second half. Afterward, Washington owner George Preston Marshall accused his players of quitting, but then he thought about it some more and decided: “They simply lost their heads.” That sounds about right.

One final thought on the Biggest of Blowouts: The Bears were even better the next season, when Sid Luckman had another year of experience and they added Norm Standlee, a Nagurskiesque fullback. But a game like this, well, you only have one of those.

Sources: The Washington PostThe Official NFL EncyclopediaThe National Forgotten League, pro-football-reference.com.

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A quarterback crushes a 91-yard punt

Passing (for 207 touchdowns) and running (for 4,928 yards) are what Randall Cunningham will be most remembered for in his NFL career. But what happened Dec. 3, 1989 — 25 years ago today — shouldn’t be overlooked, either. That’s when he got off a 91-yard punt, the fourth longest in league history, to help the Eagles beat the Giants, 24-17.

We’re not talking about a quick kick, either, though Cunningham was helped by a 25 mph wind that gusted to 35. As you can see in this photo, it was a conventional punt, with him receiving the snap just inside the field of play.

Photo of Cunningham's punt

Here’s how The New York Times described it:

Early in the fourth quarter, the Giants almost broke the 17-17 tie when Erik Howard sacked Cunningham and drove him into the Eagles’ end zone. The officials spotted the ball on the 2-yard line, making it fourth down and 33 yards to go for a first down.

Usually, Max Runager would have punted for the Eagles. But Cunningham, an outstanding punter in college, told Coach Buddy Ryan of the Eagles he wanted to punt, and Ryan let him.

It was a good decision. The ball sailed to the Giants 39 and bounced to the 7 before an apparently baffled [Dave] Meggett picked it up and returned it 9 yards.

Two plays later, the Giants gave up the ball again. Golic sacked Simms and stripped the ball, and Mike Pitts recovered for the Eagles on the Giants’ 7-yard line. Three plays later, from the 2, Byars squirmed into the end zone for the winning touchdown.

And here’s how it looked in the play-by-play:Cunningham punt, 4th Q

Cunningham was, as the Times said, a very good punter at UNLV, an All-American who averaged 45.2 yards for his career. But by the late ’80s the NFL had become so specialized — and rosters so large — that position players weren’t needed to punt. A pity.

There were, after all, quite a few passer-punters in pro football’s early days, including Hall of Famers Sammy Baugh, Sid Luckman, Bob Waterfield and Norm Van Brocklin. They grew up, remember, in the era of the single wing, and the best tailbacks were triple threats who could run, pass and kick. When Cunningham boomed his 91-yarder, though, the league hadn’t had a starting QB pull double duty since the Cowboys’ Danny White in 1984. We may never see another.

Oh, well. At least Randall reminded everybody of The Way It Used To Be. And if anyone needed a refresher course, he blasted an 80-yarder five years later. That one was a quick kick — out of the shotgun, on third and 12 from the Philadelphia 4.Cunningham's 80-yard quick kick, 1994

Something just dawned on me: Cunningham’s 91-yard punt was exactly 90 yards longer than the one Redskins QB Joe Theismann shanked against the Bears in 1985. Washington’s regular punter, Jeff Hayes, had just gotten hurt, and Theismann — who hadn’t punted in college — volunteered for the job.

Wisely, coach Joe Gibbs never gave him another opportunity. The boot, from right around the goal line, veered out of bounds at the Washington 14. The Bears scored on the next play and went on to win, 45-10.Theismann's 1-yard punt

“They told me to kick it right,” Theismann said, “and I did. Dead right.”

Source: pro-football-reference

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Trading draft picks for coaches

There were more reports over the weekend that the 49ers might trade Jim Harbaugh after the season — perhaps to the Raiders, perhaps to some other desperate team. If it happens, it’ll be fascinating to see what the going rate is for a top coach. After all, Harbaugh has guided his club to the NFL’s Final Four three years running; the list of guys who’ve done that isn’t very long.

I’ve dug up nine cases of head coaches being dealt for draft picks — all since the 1970 merger. The moral of the story seems to be this: If you think you’re going to get much in return for a coach, you’re kidding yourself. Pennies on the dollar is more like it. The coaches generally do well with their new teams, but the picks are another matter.

By my count, these nine coaches have been traded for a total of 19 selections — five first-rounders, five second-rounders, five third-rounders and four later-rounders. The vast majority of them are/were utterly forgettable players who did little to improve the club that drafted them. Indeed, only two were ever voted to the Pro Bowl — DE Shaun Ellis and KR Leon Washington, once each. (Ellis made it a second time as an alternate.)

A breakdown of the 10 deals:

● 1970 — Don Shula from the Colts to the Dolphins for a 1971 No. 1 (22nd overall). Shula took Miami, then a fifth-year franchise, to five Super Bowls, winning two. He’s now, of course, in the Hall of Don McCauley cardFame.

Who the Colts drafted: RB Don McCauley, who rushed for 2,627 yards in his 11 seasons in Baltimore, many of them as a short-yardage back.

● 1978 — Don Coryell from the Cardinals to the Chargers for a 1980 No. 3 (81st). Coryell returned San Diego to relevance with his Air Coryell offense and led the Chargers to back-to-back AFC title games (1980-81). He’s been a semi-finalist for Canton the last four years.

Who the Cardinals drafted: LB Charles Baker, who spent his entire 8-year career with St. Louis and started 62 games.

● 1997 — Bill Parcells from the Patriots to the Jets for four picks. Parcells turned a 1-15 Jets team into an AFC finalist in two seasons.

Who the Patriots drafted:

1999 No. 1 (28th) — LB Andy Katzenmoyer: 13 starts in two seasons, 3.5 sacks.

1998 No. 2 (52nd) — WR Tony Simmons: nine starts in three seasons, 56 catches.

1997 No. 3 (61st) — RB Sedrick Shaw: one start in two seasons, 236 rushing yards.

1997 No. 4 (97th) — OG Damon Denson: four starts in three seasons.

● 1999 — Mike Holmgren from the Packers to the Seahawks for a 1999 No. 2 (47th). Holmgren guided Seattle to its first Super Bowl and fielded six playoff teams in 10 seasons.

Who the Packers drafted: DB Fred Vinson. Vinson spent one year in Green Bay, then was sent to Seattle (and old friend Holmgren) in exchange for RB Ahman Green. So if you want to look at it that way — that the Packers got Green for Holmgren — go ahead. Injuries kept Vinson from playing a single down for the Seahawks. Green, on the other hand, went to four straight Pro Bowls in Green Bay and set a franchise record by rushing for 1,883 yards in 2003.

(Note: Holmgren also was traded for a second-round pick in 1992, when the Packers hired him. But he was the Niners’ offensive coordinator then, not a head coach.)

● 2000 — Bill Belichick from the Jets to the Patriots for three picks (the Pats receiving two lower selections as change). In New England, Belichick has

Shaun Ellis

Shaun Ellis

finished what Parcells started, transforming the Pats into the Team of the 2000s. Under him, they’ve won three Super Bowls, lost two and appeared in eight AFC championship games.

Who the Jets drafted:

2000 No. 1 (16th) — The Jets moved up to 12 to get Ellis, a mainstay at LDE for 11 seasons.

2001 No. 4 (101) — DB Jamie Henderson: three seasons, one start, one interception.

2001 No. 7 (206) — DE James Reed: five seasons, 32 starts, seven sacks.

● 2001 — Marty Schottenheimer from the Chiefs to the Redskins for two picks. Schottenheimer lasted just one season in Washington, going 8-8 (with eight wins in his last 11 games). Owner Dan Snyder fired him after trying — and failing — to get Marty to replace one of his assistants.

Who the Chiefs drafted:

2001 No. 3 (77th) — WR Snoop Minnis: two seasons, 34 catches, one touchdown.

2002 No. 3 (84th) — You’ll love this: They sent the third-rounder to the Rams as compensation for coach Dick Vermeil, who took the Kansas City job in ’01. So you had one pick being used two acquire two different coaches.

● 2001 — Vermeil from the Rams to the Chiefs for two picks. Vermeil posted a 44-36 record in his five seasons in K.C. but failed to win a playoff game.

Who the Rams drafted:

2001 No. 2 (42nd) — LB Tommy Polley: four seasons, 49 starts, four interceptions.

2002 No. 3 (84th) — RB Lamar Gordon: two seasons, 526 rushing yards.

● 2002 — Jon Gruden from the Raiders to the Bucs for four picks and $8 million. With Gruden — complemented by a great defense — Tampa Bay went to its first Super Bowl in ’02 and blew out Oakland. He didn’t win another playoff game with the Bucs, though, and was dumped after seven seasons with a barely-over-.500 record (60-57).

Who the Raiders drafted:

2002 No. 1 (21st) — CB Phillip Buchanon (after trading up to 17): three seasons, 11 INTs.

2002 No 2  (53rd) — OT Langston Walker: five seasons, 33 starts.*

2003 No. 1 (32nd) — DE Tyler Brayton: five seasons, six sacks.

2004 No. 2 (45th) — C Jake Grove: 5 seasons, 46 starts.

*Returned to Raiders for two more seasons (2009-10) at the end of his career.

● 2006 — Herman Edwards from the Jets to the Chiefs for a 2006 No. 4 (117th). Edwards went due south in his three years in Kansas City – 9-7, 4-12 and 2-14.

Who the Jets drafted: Washington, who in four seasons rushed for 1,782 yards and returned four kickoffs for TDs.

And now there’s a chance Harbaugh may be on the market — though everybody’s denying, denying, denying at this point. The thing is, 12 years ago, the Bucs were insisting they wouldn’t give up draft picks for Gruden, as you can see here:

Jan. 22, 2002 AP story

Jan. 22, 2002 AP story

Three weeks later, the deal got made.

"I'm not angry. I'm not yellin'."

“I’m not angry. I’m not yellin’.”

Sources: pro-football-reference.com, prosportstransactions.com.

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J.J. Watt, scoring machine

Make that five touchdowns this season for the Texans’ J.J. Watt, the defensive end with a nose for the end zone. His latest — and third TD catch — came Sunday on a 1-yard pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick in Houston’s 45-21 win over the Titans.

How can I put Watt’s feat in perspective? Maybe this way:

RUNNING BACKS WHO HAD 350 TOUCHES IN A SEASON AND FEWER THAN 5 TDS

Year Back, Team Rushing Receiving Touches TD
1998 Barry Sanders, Lions 343-1,491 37-289 380 4
2009 Steven Jackson, Rams 324-1,416 51-322 375 4
2003 Curtis Martin, Jets 323-1,308 42-262 365 2
2005 Reuben Droughns, Browns 309-1,232 39-369 353* 2
1994 Jerome Bettis, Rams 319-1,025 31-293 350 4

*Includes five kickoff returns.

Or maybe this way:

RECEIVERS WHO HAD 85 CATCHES IN A SEASON AND FEWER THAN 3 TDS

Year Receiver, Team Rec Yds TD
2001 Keyshawn Johnson, Bucs 106 1,266 1
2013 Kendall Wright, Titans 94 1,079 2
2009 Jason Witten, Cowboys 94 1,030 2
1985 Art Monk, Redskins 91 1,226 2
2013 Harry Douglas, Falcons 85 1,067 2

OTHER NOTABLES

Year Receiver, Team Rec Yds TD
2007 Donald Driver, Packers 82 1,048 2
1998 Michael Irvin, Cowboys 74 1,057 1
1996 Henry Ellard, Redskins 52 1,014 2

For the record, there have been 43 1,000-yard backs who scored fewer touchdowns than Watt has. (I’m not talking about fewer rushing touchdowns; I’m talking about fewer total touchdowns.) There also have been 13 1,000-yard receivers who had fewer TD catches than he has.

If you weren’t impressed with Watt before, you’d darn well better be now. I mean, if this keeps up, he’ll start drawing double coverage.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

Texans defensive end J.J. Watt scores his fifth TD of the season -- and third receiving -- Sunday vs. the Browns.

Texans defensive end J.J. Watt scores the fourth of his five TDs this season vs. the Browns in Week 11.

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The NFL’s All-Time Drinking Team

With the holiday season upon us, it might be a good time to roll out an idea that’s been rattling around in my head: the NFL’s All-Time Drinking Team. Let’s face it, the connection between pro football and alcohol — in stadiums, at tailgate parties, in sports bars and living rooms — has always been stronger than 100-proof whiskey. It’s in this spirit, if you’ll pardon the expression, that I present the following squad:

● Bob Margarita, B, Bears, 1944-46 — Was a big help to Chicago during the war years, when manpower was scarce. Best reason to raise a glass to him: In ’45 he finished third in the NFL in rushing yards (463), 10th in receiving yards (394) and, on the other side of the ball, tied for second in interceptions (6).

● Tom Beer, TE, Broncos/Patriots, 1967-72 — The 32nd player picked in the ’67 draft. (In other words, when Denver made what today would be the last selection in the first round, it said, Tom Beer football card“Beer, please, bartender.”) Best reason to raise a glass to him: In a ’68 game against the Pats he caught five passes for 98 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown, in a 35-14 Broncos win.

● Rich Martini, WR, Raiders/Saints, 1979-81 — Scored TDs in his second and third pro games. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He played special teams for the Raiders in their run to the title in 1980.

● Ed Champagne, T, Rams, 1947-50 — Appeared as a backup in the NFL championship game his last two seasons. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He was fined $300 by the league in 1950 — which was a lot of money back then — after he pushed an official while protesting a call. The Long Beach Press-Telegram said Champagne, who was ejected, “blew his cork.”

● Herb Stein (T-E, Buffalo/Toledo/Frankford/Pottsville, 1921-22, ’24-26, ’28) and Russ Stein (T-E, Toledo/Frankford/Pottsville/Canton, 1922, ’24-26) — Hey, you can’t drink beer without a couple of Steins, right? These rugged brothers were all-stars in the NFL’s early years. (The first five teams Herb played on posted a combined record of 44-9-7.) Best reason to raise a glass to them: They starred on the ’25 Pottsville Maroons club that got gypped out of the title because of a dubious league ruling.

● Terry Barr, WR, Lions, 1957-65 — OK, so there’s an extra “r.” It was either him or Garvin Mugg (T, Lions, 1945), and Mugg played only three NFL games. Barr, on the other hand, was a fine all-Terry Barr football cardaround talent who, in addition to his offensive exploits, intercepted three passes and returned a kickoff for a touchdown in 1958. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He had back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons in 1963 and ’64 and went to the Pro Bowl both years.

● Bourbon Bondurant, T-K, Evansville/Bears, 1921-22 — Believe it or not, Bourbon was his given name. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He kicked six extra points for the Crimson Giants in 1921.

● Napoleon “Let’s Roll Out The” Barrel, C, Oorang Indians, 1923 — If that wasn’t his nickname, it should have been. At 5-foot-8, 200 pounds, Barrel was even shaped a little like a barrel. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He played for the Oorang Indians, a team made up of Native Americans (the most famous of which was Jim Thorpe). Oorang, by the way, wasn’t a tribe, it was the name of a kennel near Marion, Ohio, that specialized in Airedales and sponsored the franchise for two seasons. Some of Barrel’s other teammates were Joe Little Twig, Ted Lone Wolf and Long Time Sleep (otherwise known as Nick Lassa).

● Jack Daniels, TB, Milwaukee, 1925 — His NFL career lasted just one game, but there’s no way you can leave him off the squad. Best reason to raise a glass to him: That Badgers juggernaut he played on finished 0-6 and was outscored 191-7. If anybody needed a drink, it was Jack Daniels.

● Darryl Tapp, DE, Seahawks/Eagles/Redskins/Lions, 2006-present — Our All-Time All-Drinking roster wouldn’t be complete without one current player. Best reason to raise a glass to him: He

Darryl Tapp celebrates a sack with the Seahawks.

Darryl Tapp celebrates a sack with the Seahawks.

had four sacks and a forced fumble in Seattle’s 33-6 victory over the Rams in 2007.

● Joe Brandy, coach, Minneapolis, 1924 — Brandy’s Marines were another of the pre-draft, pre-revenue sharing Have Nots, going 0-6 and putting up just 14 points. Best reason to raise a glass to him: At Notre Dame he played under Knute Rockne and in the same backfield with George Gipp.

Reserves:

● Jarvis Redwine, RB-KR, Vikings, 1981-83

● Chris Port, G-T, Saints, 1991-95

● Ken Vinyard, K, Falcons, 1970

● Michael Jameson, DB, Browns, 2002-04

● Gerry Sherry, FB, Louisville, 1926

● Arnold Ale, LB, Chiefs/Chargers, 1994, ’96

● Sam Adams, father (G-T, Patriots/Saints, 1972-81) and son (DT-DE, Seahawks/Ravens/Raiders/Bills/Bengals/Broncos, 1994-2007) (You could pour a Sam Adams into each of the Steins.)

● Scott Case, DB, Falcons/Cowboys, 1984-95

● Ted Ginn, WR/KR, Dolphins/49ers, 2007-12 (Sorry, it’s the closest I could come to gin.)

Home field: Where else but Tampa Stadium (a.k.a. The Big Sombrero before it was demolished)?

The Big Sombrero photo

Source: pro-football-reference.com

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Joe Morgan: Bang for the touch

If you’re a frequenter of this site, you know I’m always on the lookout for the oddball game — the “snowflake.” Saints wide receiver Joe Morgan had one of the all timers Monday night against the Ravens.

Here’s what Morgan did the first time he touched the ball:Morgan 1

And here’s what he did the second time he touched the ball: Morgan 2That’s it. There was no third time he touched the ball. He finished with one rush for 67 yards and one reception for 62. Do the math and you get 129 yards from scrimmage — again, on two touches. That’s insane. It’s also something no one else has done since at least 1960.

In fact, only eight other players in that period have had even a 20-yard gain both rushing and receiving, never mind a 60-yarder, in a two-touch game. It’s just really unusual. (Note: I’ve excluded anybody who might have returned a punt or kickoff in the same game. I’m being strict about this: two touches — period.)

ONE RUSH FOR 20+ YARDS, ONE RECEPTION FOR 20+ YARDS IN A GAME

Date Player, Team Opponent Rush Catch Total
11-24-14 WR Joe Morgan,Saints Ravens 67 62 129
12-12-71 WR Mel Gray, Cardinals Eagles 38 80* 118
9-3-95 WR Leslie Shepherd, Redskins Cardinals 26 73* 99
10-1-00 WR Eddie Kennison, Bears Packers 52 21 73
12-17-60 RB Nyle McFarlane, Raiders Broncos 23 49* 72
11-2-03 WR Donald Driver, Packers Vikings 45 26 71
11-15-09 WR Robert Meachem, Saints Rams 41 27* 68
11-10-96 WR Rocket Ismail, Panthers Giants 35 30 65
11-2-80 WR Leonard Thompson, Lions 49ers 30 30 60

*touchdown

(In a 1981 game against the Saints, the Cardinals’ Roy Green had one rush for 44 yards, one reception for 28 and one interception for 29. A performance like that certainly deserves mention, even if the pick disqualifies him from this list.)

What makes Morgan’s night all the sweeter is that touches have been so rare for him in his two NFL seasons. He’s had just 14 — 12 catches, 2 rushes. But he’s gotten a lot of yardage out of those opportunities, including 10 gains of more than 25 yards. Average gain on receptions and rushes combined: 36.9 yards (14/516).

Nobody does that. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Joe Morgan.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

The Saints' Joe Morgan doing what he does best, making big plays.

The Saints’ Joe Morgan doing what he does best, making big plays.

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Sideline extracurriculars

From the look of the things, 49ers wideout Anquan Boldin and Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett exchanged some Hard Consonants on the Washington sideline Sunday. They may even have uttered a few vowels.

Late in the game, as you can see in this clip, Boldin was driven out of bounds by cornerback Greg Ducre and free safety Trenton Robinson after a 10-yard catch. When he “pushed,” as he put it, one of the defenders off him, lips started flapping. Line judge Byron Boston actually stepped between principals to make sure the situation didn’t escalate.

The 49ers' Anquan Boldin and Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett debate the proper way to baste a turkey.

The 49ers’ Anquan Boldin and Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett debate the proper way to baste a turkey.

Afterward, Boldin claimed to be unaware of what set Haslett off. “A guy tried to hit me late on the sideline,” he said, “and I pushed him off. [Haslett] had some words for whatever reason. I don’t even give that a second thought. He don’t . . . he’s irrelevant.”

(For the record, Haslett was the 51st pick in the ’79 draft, a linebacker out of Indiana (Pa.) taken by the Bills. Mr. Irrelevant, who went 279 picks later to the Steelers, was wide receiver Mike Almond from Northwest Louisiana.)

I bring all this up for a couple of reasons: 1. Who doesn’t love a little sideline flare-up, be it inter-team or intra-team? 2. These episodes can involve so much more than just foul language.

In fact, long before Haslett joined the Bills, a Buffalo coach was accused of punching an opposing quarterback after he’d run out of bounds. It allegedly happened in a 1961 game against the New York Titans — whose descendants, the Jets, meet the Bills tonight in Detroit (thanks to the avalanche of snow that fell on Orchard Park last week).

The coach was Buster Ramsey, a crusty former all-pro guard with the Chicago Cardinals. The quarterback was Al Dorow, one of the better scramblers in that period. And the owner who leveled the charge against Ramsey was Harry Wismer, the famous sportscaster who owned the Titans (back in the days when franchises could be bought out of petty cash). Here’s The New York Times’ description of the incident:

9-18-61 NYT game story

Sounds like a nasty game, doesn’t it? And AFL Commissioner Joe Foss — this was before the league had merged with the NFL — had a ringside seat.

Anyway, the Times said Ramsey “shoved” Dorow — which was bad enough, I suppose. But Wismer upped the ante, claiming Ramsey “slugged” his QB “and cost us the game,” which the Ramsey football cardBills wound up winning 41-31.

Dorow seconded the motion, saying, “Ramsey was the first one on me and knocked me down with a punch. A player cannot lay his hands on an official and certainly a coach should not be permitted to punch a rival player.”

(I’m not sure what the word “rival” is doing there. Is Al suggesting it was OK in that era for a coach to punch his own player?)

It only got worse. When the Bills sent the Titans a copy of the game film, Wismer accused them of splicing out the fight. He fired off a wire to Buffalo general manager Dick Gallagher — that Gallagher released to the media – that read: “Received doctored up film of Titan[s]-Buffalo game. Amazed you would cut out episode of Ramsey slugging our quarterback Dorow.”

Gallagher’s reply: “Film shipped intact. Nothing cut out. Shocked at your accusation.”

Wismer was having none of that. “The film they sent us shows Ramsey going for Dorow,” he told The Associated Press. “Just about the time he gets to him, the scene shifts. They say they didn’t cut it. I say the fight isn’t in the film. Dorow got hit on the side of the jaw by Ramsey, and he will testify so.”

But beyond that, he went on, “Coaches are supposed to stop trouble, not start it. Ramsey’s actions in Buffalo could have incited a riot.”

The Titans owner went as far as to demand a lifetime ban for Ramsey — or at the very least a suspension. The Bills coach, meanwhile, continued to maintain his innocence. “I did not swing at Dorow football cardAl Dorow or any other New York player,” he said. “Harry Wismer’s statement that I did substantiates a belief I have long held . . . that he is full of hot air.”

How great was pro football in the ’60s?

Dorow got such a going over in the Buffalo bench area, the Times reported later in the week, that the team physician, Dr. James Nicholas, “said it was extremely doubtful that [he] would be able to play against Denver.” The most severe of the quarterback’s injuries, Nicholas said, was a “lumbar-sacral strain, which left him with a weakness in one leg.”

Lumbar-sacral strain or not, Dorow did indeed play the next Sunday against the Broncos, throwing three touchdown passes in a 35-28 New York win. As for Ramsey, he wasn’t suspended and probably wasn’t even fined. The AP put the matter to bed this way:

9-22-61 Foss letter to Buster

That wasn’t quite the end of it, though. The teams still had to play each other again on Thanksgiving at the Polo Grounds. In the days leading up to the game, Wismer asked the New York police commissioner to put a detail behind the Buffalo bench to maintain the peace. “We still remember the terrific beating Dorow took at the hands of Ramsey and the Buffalo players in the game at Buffalo Sept. 17,” he said.

The Titans took the rematch 21-14, with Dorow tossing for one TD and running for another. Best of all, everybody lived to tell about it – though, if you examine the box score, you’ll see Dorow was sacked six times for 66 yards. That can’t be good for the lumbar-sacral area.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

Wismer asks for protection

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The Jonas Gray Chart of the Day

First off, I’d like to thank NFL statisticians for making this post possible. On Monday morning it wasn’t — because, at that point, the Patriots’ Jonas Gray was credited with 38 carries for 199 yards in the 42-20 whupping of the Colts. On further review, however, Gray’s numbers were revised to 37 carries for 201 yards. This raises the question (since it happened with Jonas): How many times has a back’s first 100-yard rushing game been a 200-yard game?

I would have guessed a couple. To my shock, I came across eight other instances, including one in the Super Bowl.

BACKS WHOSE FIRST 100-YARD RUSHING GAME WAS A 200-YARD GAME

Date Running Back, Team Opponent Att Yds Avg TD Prev. High
11-16-14 Jonas Gray, Patriots Colts 37 201 5.4 4         86
10-23-11 DeMarco Murray, Cowboys Rams 25 253 10.1 1         34
9-22-96 LeShon Johnson, Cardinals Saints 21 214 10.2 2         42
10-14-90 Barry Word, Chiefs Lions 18 200 11.1 2         31
1-31-88 Timmy Smith, Redskins Broncos 22 204 9.3 2         72
11-30-87 Bo Jackson, Raiders Seahawks 18 221 12.3 2         98
9-2-84 Gerald Riggs, Falcons Saints 35 202 5.8 2         72
11-26-78 Terry Miller, Bills Giants 21 208 9.9 2         97
12-16-56 Tommy Wilson, Rams Packers 23 223 9.7 0         NA

Smith’s 200-yard game, of course, came in the Redskins’ 42-10 blowout of the Broncos in Super Bowl XXII — a day better remembered for Doug Williams’ four touchdown passes in Washington’s 35-point second quarter. He’d carried the ball in only four regular-season games before coach Joe Gibbs turned to him in the playoffs because of an injury to George Rogers.

Not all of these backs were rookies, by the way. Word was in his second year and Johnson and Riggs in their third. (Word’s big game came after he’d served prison time for cocaine distribution, which caused him to miss the previous season.)

I turned up several near misses, too — guys who rushed for 200-plus yards the second time they hit triple figures. That group includes such household names as Jim Brown, Tony Dorsett, James Wilder, Priest Holmes and Arian Foster.

In fact, Brown’s 237 yards set a single -game NFL rushing record. The same goes for Wilson, whose 223-yard day came in the ’56 season finale. “Touchdown Tommy,” as he was called, was such an obscure rookie — and reporters paid so much less attention to these things — that the Los Angeles Times didn’t even mention his feat until the fifth paragraph of its game story.

The Long Beach Press-Telegram, meanwhile, touched on it at the end of the fourth graph, but didn’t provide any details until the 11th. Don’t believe me? See for yourself:

Long Beach Press-Telegram headlineScreen Shot 2014-11-21 at 3.18.13 PM

Screen Shot 2014-11-21 at 3.18.51 PM

Screen Shot 2014-11-21 at 3.19.11 PM

A running back breaks the single-game rushing mark, and we’re 300 words into the story before the reporter tells us how many yards he gained. That should be in the record book, too.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

The Redskins' Timmy Smith keeps the Broncos' Tony LIlly at arm's length in Super Bowl 22.

The Redskins’ Timmy Smith keeps the Broncos’ Tony Lilly at arm’s length in Super Bowl 22.

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Running back consistency

Thanks to the Cardinals’ uncooperative defense in Week 9, DeMarco Murray’s quest to be the first NFL back to rush for 100 yards in every game of a season has been quashed. That said, 100 yards — as nice and round a number as it is — is still just a number. Would it surprise you to learn that no back has rushed for even 75 yards in all of his team’s games? I mention this because the Cowboys’ Murray had 79 against Arizona, so the feat is still within reach.

Indeed, only two other backs have gotten as far as DeMarco has — 75-plus rushing yards in each of the first 10 games. They are: Terrell Davis with the 1997 Broncos and Edgerrin James with the 2005 Colts. (Jim Brown, O.J. Simpson and Eric Dickerson didn’t even do it the years they broke the single-season rushing record.)

Sure, 75 yards is as arbitrary as 100, but it might be considered, at the very least, a “quality start.” Gaining that many yards week in and week out shows a fairly high level of consistency, does it not? Here are the backs who’ve come closest to doing it in every game of a season:

MOST GAMES WITH 75 OR MORE RUSHING YARDS, SEASON

Year Running back, Team 75+ Low Game
2004 Corey Dillon, Patriots 15 79 vs. Bills
2011 Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars 15 63 vs. Texans
2012 Adrian Peterson, Vikings 15 60 vs. Colts
2008 Adrian Peterson, Vikings 15 32 vs. Saints
2003 Jamal Lewis, Ravens 14 68 vs. Jaguars
1985 Marcus Allen, Raiders 14 50 vs. Chiefs
2012 Alfred Morris, Redskins 14 47 vs. Vikings
2012 Marshawn Lynch, Seahawks 14 41 vs. Patriots
1984 Eric Dickerson, Rams 14 38 vs. 49ers
1983 Eric Dickerson, Rams 14 37 vs. Redskins
2009 Chris Johnson, Titans 14 34 vs. Colts
1992 Barry Foster, Steelers 14 25 vs. Bears
1997 Barry Sanders, Lions 14 20 vs. Bucs
1973 O.J. Simpson, Bills 13* 55 vs. Dolphins

*14- game season (so only once did he fall below the 75-yard threshold).

If you’re confused by Dillon’s line, let me explain: He missed a game that season. In the other 15, he rushed for 75 or more yards (gaining, on his worst day, 79 against Buffalo in Week 3. So he rushed for 75+ in every one of his games but not in every one of New England’s games.

Regardless, it’s an impressive accomplishment. Consider: The Patriots went 17-1 (postseason included) in the games Dillon played, capped by their Super Bowl win over the Eagles. And in the one they lost — 29-28 to the Dolphins — they blew an 11-point lead in the last three minutes. That’s how close he came to a perfect season. You’d have to think his utter reliability had something to do with it.

Source: pro-football-reference.com

Corey Dillon tries to sidestep the Jets' David Barrett.

Corey Dillon tries to sidestep the Jets’ David Barrett.

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