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Early-day pro football historians agreed that a 16-year-old quarterback from Indiana College in Pennsylvania, John Brallier, had become the first pro football player when he accepted $10 and cakes" (expenses) to play for the Latrobe, PA, town team against neighboring Jeannette on September 3, 1895. Pro Football Hall of Fame was opened in 1963 in Canton, further research uncovered the Pudge Heffelfinger payment by the Allegheny Athletic Association in 1892 and thus negated the Latrobe claim as the birthplace of pro football. Today, Brallier is ranked no higher than seventh in line among the early-day players accepting pay to play. Listed below are the first seven players known to have been openly paid to play football:
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Pop Warner was hired by the
University of Georgia as its new head football coach at a salary of
$34 per week.
While at Georgia, Warner also coached Iowa
State University. He coached teams from two schools simultaneously on
three occasions: Iowa State and Georgia during the 1895 and 1896
seasons, Iowa State and Cornell in 1897 and 1898, and Iowa State and
Carlisle in 1899
John W. Heisman was coaching at Auburn when
he observed what would come to be known as a "forward pass"
for the first time. Technically, the play was illegal. During a game
between Georgia and North Carolina in 1895. Toward the end of the
game, North Carolina, with its back to the goal, was forced to punt.
The fullback retreated until the crossbar of his goal was just above
his head. Georgia rushed him mercilessly, and in desperation, he
lobbed the ball forward to one of his teammates, who caught it and
ran for a touchdown." Though Georgia's coach, Pop Warner,
disagreed with the decision, the referee held fast to the opinion
that the fullback could have fumbled the ball, allowing the touchdown
to count.
Heisman realized almost immediately
that such a pass could open up the field during a game, and wrote to Walter
Camp who was then the chair of the rules committee, petitioning
him to make it legal. After years of campaigning, and due to the rise
of public opinion against football due to the compounding of serious
injuries and death, Camp and his committee finally relented. In 1906
the forward pass was confirmed as a legal play in the game of
football. In his later years writing for Collier's, a popular
American magazine, especially during the 1920s and 1930s, Heisman
recalled that with the change that one play brought, "American
football had come over the line which divides the modern game from
the old. Whether it was my contribution to football or Camp's is,
perhaps, immaterial. Football had been saved from itself."
Not to be outdone by The Pittsburgh Athletic Club (PAC) in 1893, the The Allegheny Athletic Association (AAA) decided to have the first completely pro team, but only played two games that season.
They went out of existence on their own
terms fielding a team in defiance of the AAU's ban from their
competing against other AAU members.
1897
The Latrobe Athletic Association paid all of its players for the whole season, becoming the first fully professional football team.
1898
A touchdown was changed from four points to five points.
ALSO
Some Historians would have you believe that the following took place in 1899, when in fact it is documented to have taken place in 1898 . . .
The longest running pro team began. The team
began as a neighborhood group that gathered to play football in a
predominantly Irish area of Chicago's South Side, playing under the
name Morgan
Athletic Club (presently
known as The Arizona
Cardinals). The
team later was acquired by Chris O'Brien, a painting and decorating
contractor, and soon its playing site changed to nearby Normal Field,
prompting the new name Normals. Later became the Racine
Cardinals (playing at 61st and Racine Streets ),
the Chicago Cardinals,
the St. Louis Cardinals, the Phoenix
Cardinals, and, in 1994, the Arizona
Cardinals. The team remains the oldest continuing
operation in pro football.
Though no longer a player, Walter Camp remained a fixture at annual rules meetings for most of his life.
It has been noted that
Walter Camp gets the credit for inventing the All-America Team, but
the mythical honor-eleven is one thing the "Father of American
Football" did not sire.
A gentleman named
Caspar W. Whitney came up with the idea while writing for a small
magazine called This Week's Sport in 1889. Whitney was a friend of
Camp and may well have asked his advice on selections, but he was an
authority on his own and published the first A.A. team under his own by-line.
In 1890, again for This Week's Sport, and from 1891 through 1896 for Harper's Weekly, Whitney continued to make his popular annual selections. Camp didn't get into the All-America business until 1897, when Whitney was off on a world sports tour. During the season, Camp sat in for Whitney at Harper's when it came time to immortalize another eleven athletes.
The next year, Whitney
was back at Harper's and later he made selections for Outing
Magazine. However, once Camp had made the plunge he liked the A.A.
waters, for he began selecting teams for Collier's and continued to
do so until his death in 1925.
Camp's reputation
was so great that fans soon forgot all about Caspar Whitney.
Eventually, people began to assume that Camp had created the idea,
just as many people think Henry Ford invented the automobile. Whether
intentionally or not, Camp fostered the mistake by publishing
Whitney's 1889-96 selections alongside his own later ones.
Unfortunately, he neglected to include Whitney's name.
The Walter Camp
Foundation continues to select All-American teams in his honor.
1899
Pop Warner coached at
the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania from 1899-1903
1900
College football expanded greatly during the
last two decades of the nineteenth century. In 1880, only eight
universities fielded intercollegiate teams, but by 1900, the number
had expanded to 43.
Several major rivalries date from this time
period, including
Army-Navy (1890),
Minnesota-Wisconsin (1890),
the Border
Showdown between Kansas-Missouri (1891),
California-Stanford's Big
Game (football) (1892),
the Iron Bowl
between Alabama-Auburn (1893),
Michigan-Ohio State (1897).
William C. Temple took over the team payments for the Duquesnes Country and Athletic Club, becoming the first known individual club owner.
Star players that emerged in the early
twentieth century include Jim Thorpe, Red Grange, and Bronko
Nagurski; these three made the transition to the fledgling NFL and
helped turn it into a successful league.
1901
The
Panhandles were originally formed by the Pennsylvania Railroad
Athletic Association in Columbus.
1902
Baseball's Philadelphia Athletics, managed
by Connie Mack, and the Philadelphia Phillies formed
professional football teams, joining the Pittsburgh Stars in the
first attempt at a pro football league, named the National
Football League (not the same as the modern NFL league) .
November 21 - The Athletics won the
first night football game ever played, 39-0 over Kanaweola AC at
Elmira, New York.
All three teams claimed the pro championship for the year, but the league president, Dave Berry, named the Stars the champions. Pitcher Rube Waddell was with the Athletics, and pitcher Christy Mathewson a fullback for Pittsburgh.
The first World Series of pro football,
actually a five-team tournament, was played among a team made up of
players from both the Athletics and the Phillies, but simply named
New York; the New York Knickerbockers; the Syracuse AC; the Warlow
AC; and the Orange (New Jersey) AC at New York's original Madison
Square Garden. New York and Syracuse
played the first indoor football game before 3,000, December 28.
Syracuse, with Glen (Pop) Warner at guard, won 6-0 and went on to win
the tournament.
1903
The Franklin (Pa.) Athletic Club won the
second and last World Series of pro football over the Oreos Athletic
Club of Asbury Park, New Jersey; the Watertown Red and Blacks; and
the Orange Athletic Club.
Pro football was popularized in Ohio when the Massillon Tigers, a strong amateur team, hired four Pittsburgh pros to play in the season-ending game against Akron. At the same time, pro football declined in the Pittsburgh area, and the emphasis on the pro game moved west from Pennsylvania to Ohio.
1904
A field goal was changed from five points to four points.
Ohio had at least seven pro teams, with Massillon winning the Ohio Independent Championship, that is, the pro title. Talk surfaced about forming a state-wide league to end spiraling salaries brought about by constant bidding for players and to write universal rules for the game. The feeble attempt to start the league failed.
The Canton Athletic Club was organized in November of 1904 to operate baseball and football teams, but the emphasis was on football and the goal was to beat the Massillon Tigers, who had won two straight Ohio championships.
It seems unclear throughout The Internet as to the dates for Charles Follis becoming The First Black (African-American) Pro Football Player.
Some Websites claim:
The first known African-American to play pro football was Charles
Follis, with the Shelby Athletic Club in 1902.
while other Websites claim:
Charles W. Follis, first African American to play professional
football April 10th 1910
Upon Research into the actual date, these
facts were found in:
Biographical Dictionary of American Sports
Football
edited by David L. Porter
FOLLIS, Charles W. "The Black Cyclone"
professional athlete, became football's first black (African-American)
pro when he signed to play for the Shelby (OH) Athletic Club under
manager Frank Schiffer in 1904.
Many historians have, however, indicated
Charles "Doc" Baker of the Akron (OH) Indians
(1906-1908) or Henry McDonald of Rochester (NY) in 1911 as the first
black (African-American) pro.
Pop Warner, coach of the Carlisle Pennsylvania Indian School football team, sees Jim Thorpe playing around with some other boys on the track. Warner invites Thorpe to watch football practice.
After a few minutes, Thorpe tells Warner that he can't be tackled. Thorpe takes the ball and begins running up and down the field, knocking some would be tacklers over, and leaving others in his dust.
A Native American member of Oklahoma's Sac and Fox Tribe, Thorpe transforms the nothing school into one of the country's football juggernauts. Thorpe can do everything on the football field better than any player ever has.
Even though Carlisle defeated such football powers as Harvard, Penn, Lehigh, and Army, it is never ranked in the college football polls because of its status as a vocational school rather than a college.
Thorpe went on to lead the Canton Bulldogs
to the
1916 pro
football championship.
1905
The Canton Athletic Club, later to become known as the Bulldogs, became a professional team. Massillon again won the Ohio League championship.
To bolster its team, Canton hired seven players away from the Akron Athletic Club, including player-coach Bill Laub. For the game against Massillon, they added even more outside players, including halfback Willie Heston. A three-time All-American, Heston had scored somewhere between 90 and 100 touchdowns for the University of Michigan. Reportedly, he was paid $600 for that one game, but Massillon held him in check and won again, 14-4.
In the early 1900s college football
games were popular sports spectacles,
but the professional game attracted limited
public support.
College games were
extremely rough, and in 1905, 18 college football deaths are reported
and well over 100 serious injuries. The public was outraged, and
there was even a White House conference. President Teddy Roosevelt
calls on representatives from Yale, Harvard, and Princeton at mid-season
and tells them he will abolish the sport if it doesn't become safer.
December 28 - 62 schools met in New
York City to discuss rule changes to make the game safer. As a result
of this meeting, the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the
United States, later named the National
Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), was formed
There were more safety precautions and
equipment after this point.
Under the leadership of Walter
Camp, the teams establish new rules to open the game up.
As a result, football authorities revamped
the game, and many of the rougher tactics were outlawed.
Obviously, a lot more pads are worn now, and
football helmets are required. A neutral zone is established, linemen
have to play on the line, games are shortened from 70 to 60 minutes,
and another official is added.
From this committee came the legalization of
the forward pass. One of the pioneers
of the forward pass was John W. Heisman of which The
Heisman Trophy was named after and Coach Pop Warner who still today
has youth football leagues endorsed with his name.
Along with the introduction of the forward
pass came the ban of the wedge formation. The wedge was a popular
formation, which included Princeton's "V-formation wedge,"
Harvard's "flying wedge"
and Yale's "tackles back" formation. Also prohibited was
the locking of arms by teammates in an effort to clear the way for
their ball carriers.
College coaches such as Amos Alonzo Stagg,
Pop Warner, Bob Zuppke, and Knute Rockne developed many of the early
offensive techniques and play formations. Following very few
historical precedents, these men invented unique strategies that
changed the nature of football forever.
Alonzo Stagg
was instrumental in developing the between-the-legs snap from center
to quarterback, the player in motion in the backfield before the snap
of the ball, the onsides kick, the early T-formation, the huddle, the
tackling dummy and many other innovations.
Knute Rockne introduced the
"shift", with the backfield lining up in a T formation and
then quickly shifting into a box formation to the left or right just
as the ball was snapped. It remained a staple in the Notre Dame
playbook until it was discarded by Frank Leahy in 1942 in favor of
the T.
1906
The forward pass
was legalized. The first authenticated pass completion in a pro game
came on October 27, when George (Peggy) Parratt of
Massillon threw a completion to Dan (Bullet) Riley in a
victory over a combined Benwood-Moundsville team.
Initially the
first forward pass happened in 1895.
Pop Warner unbalanced his line, placing four players on one side of the center and two on the other side, while shifting the backfield into a wing formation. The quarterback functioned as a blocker, set close behind the line and a yard wide of the center. At the same depth, but outside the line, was the wingback. Deep in the backfield was the tailback, who received most of the snaps, and in front and to the side was the fullback. This formation became known as the single-wing, and it remained footballs basic formation until the 1940s.
Sometime during the 1906 season, the Canton team became known as the Bulldogs. The squad had been further improved through the addition of four former Massillon players.
Arch-rivals Canton and Massillon, the two best pro teams in America, played twice, with Canton winning the first game but Massillon winning the second and the Ohio League championship. A betting scandal and the financial disaster wrought upon the two clubs by paying huge salaries caused a temporary decline in interest in pro football in the two cities and, somewhat, throughout Ohio.
The Massillon newspaper reported that Canton
coach Blondy Wallace had tried to bribe some Massillon players to
throw the game. When that failed, the story continued, Wallace had
decided to throw the game the other way. The report was probably
groundless, but it helped to kill football in both Canton and
Massillon for some years. An even bigger factor may have been the
amount of money the team spent on players.
1907
Pop Warner returned to Cornell for three
seasons, and returned again to Carlisle in 1907.
During his second tenure at Carlisle, Warner
coached one of the most famous American athletes, Jim
Thorpe.
1909
A new team, called the Canton Professionals,
was organized. Despite the name, it was made up entirely of local
players and the pay was undoubtedly small.
1912
A touchdown was increased from five points to six points.
Some Historians would have you believe that the following took place in 1912, when in fact it is documented to have taken place in 1915 . . .
Jack Cusack, pro football pioneer revived a strong pro team in Canton, The Canton Bulldogs).
Jim Thorpe, a former football and track star at the Carlisle Indian School (Pa.) and a double gold medal winner at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, played for the Pine Village Pros in Indiana.
Knute Rockne is considered to be the father
of the forward pass in football.
Rockne was not the first coach to use the
forward pass, but he helped popularize it, especially on the East
Coast. Most football historians agree that a few schools, notably
Saint Louis University, Michigan, and Minnesota, had passing attacks
in place.
Few of the major Eastern teams used
the pass, however. In the summer of 1913, while he was a life guard
on the beach at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, Rockne and his college
teammate and roommate Gus Dorais worked on passing techniques. That
fall, Notre Dame upset heavily favored Army, 35-13, at West Point
thanks to a barrage of Dorais-to-Rockne passes. The game played an
important role in displaying the potency of the forward pass and
"open offense" and convinced many coaches to consider
adding a few pass plays to their play books.
1914
Pop Warner was hired by the University of Pittsburgh, where he coached his teams to 33 straight major wins and three national championships (1915, 1916 and 1918). He coached Pittsburgh from 1915 to 1923 to a 60-12-4 record.
In 1914, the first roughing-the-passer penalty was implemented
Massillon made the first move to strengthen
its team, hiring several players away from the Akron
Pros and Canton followed suit by signing most of the
other Akron players. Jack Cusack, who had become manager of the
Canton team,
also restored the old Bulldog name.
As the first of two Canton-Massillon games approached, Cusack scored a major coup by signing the great Jim Thorpe for $250 a game. However, Thorpe played only sparingly in the first game, at Massillon, and the Tigers won, 16-0. For the second game, Thorpe took over as coach, played the entire game, and kicked two field goals in a 6-0 win.
Even after the formation of The NCAA in 1905
to establish safety in the organization of Football relating to
serious injuries and deaths; it is evident that the game of football
remains a serious safety factor as it is indicated in the "The
Cleveland Plain Dealer" newspaper.
Click
on image to enlarge
Reprinted from The Cleveland Plain Dealer
1916
Canton became much stronger when Cusack brought in a number of players including former Carlisle teammate Pete Calac to complement Thorpe. The Bulldogs went undefeated (9-0-1), beat Massillon 24-0. Won the Ohio League championship, and was acclaimed the pro football champion.
The Akron Burkhardts were formed, that
played in Akron, Ohio were named after a local family of brewers that
sponsored the team.
1917
Most teams, including Canton and Massillon, sat out the 1918 season because of World War I and the influenza epidemic. In the meantime, Jack Cusack left Canton for the oil business in Oklahoma and Ralph Hay took command of the The Canton Bulldogs.
1918
In 1918, the rules on eligible receivers
were loosened to allow eligible players to catch the ball anywhere on
the field-previously strict rules were in place only allowing passes
to certain areas of the field.
1919
Canton again won the Ohio League championship, despite the team having been turned over from Cusack to Ralph Hay. Thorpe and Calac were joined in the backfield by Joe Guyon.
Earl (Curly) Lambeau and George Calhoun organized
the Green
Bay Packers. Lambeau's employer at the Indian Packing
Company provided $500 for equipment and allowed the team to use the
company field for practices. The Packers went 10-1.
1920
The 1920 NFL season was the 1st regular season of the National Football League.
Over the last twenty years, chaos grew. Salaries were rising, and the players were abandoning teams and contracts and running to the highest bidder. College players were playing both college and pro, teams were disbanding and forming throughout every season, and the sport lacked organization.
August
20 - A league in which all the
members would follow the same rules seemed the answer.
An organizational
meeting, at which the
Akron
Pros (formerly known as The
Akron Bruokhardts), |
The teams pledged not to
use any student player who still had college eligibility left, as the
goodwill of the colleges was believed to be essential to the survival
of the professional league.
September
17 - A second organizational meeting
was held in Canton, The teams were from four states -
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Chicago Cardinals(APFA) Head Coach was Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback, John Leo "Paddy" Driscoll from 1920 to 1922.
The name of the league
was changed to the
American Professional
Football Association (APFA) -
*the birth of the National
Football League.
(It would not be
changed to National Football League until
1922).
September 17
- The Decatur Staleys (later
be recognized
as The Chicago Bears)
were made a charter member of the NFL
Footballs First President
Hoping to capitalize on his fame, the members elected Jim Thorpe of the Bulldogs as APFA's first president, solely because he was the most famous name in the game.
Stanley Cofall of
Cleveland was elected vice president. A membership fee of $100 per
team was charged to give an appearance of respectability, but no team
ever paid it. Scheduling was left up to the teams, and there were
wide variations, both in the overall number of games played and in
the number played against APFA member teams.
Four other teams
The Chicago Tigers played
only in the first year of the league.
The Tigers' main claim to
fame is that they helped start the tradition of playing on
Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1920,
when they were defeated by the Decatur Staleys (later the Chicago Bears).
On September
26, the first game featuring an APFA
team was played at Rock Island's Douglas Park. A crowd of 800 watched
the Independents defeat the St. Paul Ideals 48-0. A week later,
October 3, the first game matching two APFA teams was held. At
Triangle Park, Dayton defeated Columbus 14-0, with Lou Partlow of
Dayton scoring the first touchdown in a game between Association
teams. The same day, Rock Island defeated Muncie 45-0.
By the beginning of
December, most of the teams in the APFA had abandoned their hopes for
a championship, and some of them, including the Chicago Tigers and
the Detroit Heralds, had finished their seasons, disbanded, and had
their franchises canceled by the Association.
Four teams:
Akron |
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron is the only undefeated
team in the Association. |
The American Professional Football Association was officially organized to begin play in the fall.
Here are the original teams:
Akron Professionals
Buffalo All-Americans
Canton Bulldogs
Chicago Cardinals
Chicago Tigers
Cleveland Tigers
Columbus Panhandles
Dayton Triangles
Decatur Staleys
Detroit Heralds
Hammond Pros
Muncie Flyers
Rochester (N.Y.) Jeffersons
Rock Island Independents
Women became active in
cheerleading in the 1920s.
The University of
Minnesota cheerleaders began to incorporate gymnastics and tumbling
into their cheers
1921
The 1921 NFL season was
the 2nd regular season of the National
Football League
(then called the
American Professional Football Association).
April 30
- At the league meeting in Akron, the championship of the 1920 season
was awarded to the Akron
Pros. The APFA was reorganized, with
Joe Carr of the Columbus Panhandles
named president and Carl Storck of Dayton secretary-treasurer. Carr
moved the Association's headquarters to Columbus, drafted a league
constitution and by-laws, gave teams territorial rights, restricted
player movements, developed membership criteria for the franchises.
The league would play under the then-rules of college football, and
official standings were issued for the first time so that there would
be a clear champion.
The distinction between
"league games" and "non-league" games seems to
have begun in 1921 when standings were finally kept. In 1920, all
games apparently counted. For the record, however, the only accepted
members of the APFA were Canton, Akron, Cleveland, Dayton, and
Columbus in Ohio, the short-lived Muncie Flyers and Hammond in
Indiana, the Tigers and Racine Cardinals, both of Chicago, the
Decatur (Ill.) Staleys, Rochester and Buffalo in New York, and the
Detroit Heralds.
The Association's membership increased to 22 teams, including the Green Bay Packers, who were awarded to John Clair of the Acme Packing Company.
A number of teams had financial difficulties. Some of the teams that played during the previous season, including the Chicago Tigers, had disbanded. The Association did increase to 22 teams, but 4 teams (Brickley's New York Giants, the Cincinnati Celts, the Tonawanda Kardex, and the Washington Senators) could only last just this year. The Muncie Flyers also disbanded after the season, and even though the Cleveland Tigers changed their name to the Cleveland Indians, it still did not help them from folding after the season too.
October 16, Jim Conzelman takes over as coach of Rock Island Independents from Frank Coughlin-only mid-game coaching change in NFL history.
December 4 - The
First Forfeited Game
Washington Senators were
awarded the contest by Referee C.A. Metsler when the Rochester
Jeffersons refused to take the field on account of weather
conditions. The visiting team, had all of the advertised stars on
hand, but would not risk their injuring themselves on account of
slipping on the snow-covered field.
The contract signed by
the visitors contains a clause to the effect "that if both teams
have arrived on the field of play, and it is found that said field is
too wet for play, the question of cancellation shall rest solely with
the manager of the home team."
As Manager Jordan had his
Washington team on hand, and felt that he should not disappoint the
400 or so faithful fans who were on hand. In view of the Jeffs'
refusal to take the field, there was nothing left for Referee Metsler
to do but give the locals the game, 1 to 0.
So
how come the game doesn't show up in the record book?
Teams that fold between 1921 and 1922 seasons:
New York Brickleys Giants |
The Detroit Heralds was reorganized and renamed the Tigers, after the major league baseball team, in 1921, but things didn't get any better. After a win and a tie in their first two games, the Tigers lost the next five, along with a lot of money. Some players quit because they didn't get paid and the team folded before playing out its schedule.
Teams that join the APFA for the 1921 season:
Detroit Heralds
became the Detroit Tigers. |
Player-coach
Fritz Pollard of the Akron
Pros became the first black (African-American)
head coach.
Thorpe moved
from Canton to the Cleveland
Indians, but he was hurt early in the
season and played very little.
A.E. Staley turned the
Decatur Staleys over to player-coach George
Halas, who moved the team to Cubs Park
in Chicago. Staley paid Halas $5,000 to keep the name Staleys for one
more year. Halas made halfback Ed (Dutch)
Sternaman his partner.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
The Staleys claimed the APFA championship with a 9-1-1 record, as did Buffalo at 9-1-2. Carr ruled in favor of the Staleys, giving Halas his first championship Champions (they had one fewer tie game than the Buffalo All-Americans).
History of the Coin Toss
The coin toss has been a part of professional football since its start in 1892. While the procedure has been relatively unchanged over the years, the following is a history of change made to the pre-game procedure.
Previously: Captains of each team handled the coin toss themselves.
1922
After admitting the use of players who had college eligibility remaining during the 1921 season, Clair and the Green Bay management withdrew from the APFA, January 28. Curly Lambeau promised to obey league rules and then used $50 of his own money to buy back the franchise. Bad weather and low attendance plagued the Packers, and Lambeau went broke, but local merchants arranged a $2,500 loan for the club. A public nonprofit corporation was set up to operate the team, with Lambeau as head coach and manager.
June
24 - The American Professional
Football Association officially changed their name to the
National
Football League
and
is the 3rd regular season.
The NFL fielded 18 teams during the season, including new league teams such as the Green Bay Packers, the Milwaukee Badgers, the new Oorang Indians of Marion, Ohio, an all-Indian team featuring Thorpe, Joe Guyon, and Pete Calac, and sponsored by the Oorang dog kennels. Also included were the Racine Legion, and the Toledo Maroons.
Meanwhile the Chicago
Staleys changed their name to the Chicago Bears after it moved from
Decatur to Chicago in 1921.
November 27 -
The Chicago Bears went on to make the NFL's first player transaction
by purchasing tackle Ed Healey's contract from the Rock Island
Independents for $100.
The Canton Bulldogs, led by player-coach Guy Chamberlin and tackles Link Lyman and Wilbur (Pete) Henry, emerged as the league's first true powerhouse and were named the 1922 NFL Champions after ending the season with a 10-0-2 record.
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron
is the only undefeated team in the Association. |
Teams that join the NFL for the 1922 season:
Milwaukee Badgers
Marion Oorang Indians
Racine Legion
Toledo Maroons
Teams that fold between the 1922 and 1923 seasons:
Evansville Crimson Giants
Columbus Panhandles
After the 1922 season,
Columbus Panhandles franchise owner Joe F. Carr discontinued the
franchise because of cost and salary demands.
1923
The 1923 NFL season was the 4th regular season of the National Football League.
For the first time, all of the franchises considered to be part of the NFL fielded teams. Thorpe played first for Oorang, then for the Toledo Maroons. Against the Bears, Thorpe fumbled, and Halas picked up the ball and returned it 98 yards for a touchdown, a record that would last until 1972.
Coach Zuppke ran single- and double-wing
formations at the University of Illinois, often sending four or five
receivers downfield in pass patterns. At Notre Dame in 1923 and 1924,
Rockne instituted his famous Four Horsemen offense. Rockne set up the
backs in a four-square, box alignment on one side. Then, in what was
called the Notre Dame Shift, the backs would shift out of the box and
into a single or double wing.
Canton had its second consecutive undefeated season, going 11-0-1 for the NFL title.
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron
is the only undefeated team in the Association. |
Duluth
Kelleys
St. Louis All-Stars (play
only the 1923 season)
A
New Cleveland Indians (play only
the 1923 season)
Columbus Tigers
After the
"Panhandles" folded in 1922, a new team was organized by
local businessmen called the Columbus Tigers and played from 1923-1926.
NFL teams that fold between the 1923 and 1924 seasons:
Canton Bulldogs
Cleveland Indians
Louisville Brecks
Marion Oorang Indians
Racine Legion
St. Louis All-Stars
Toledo Maroons
1924
The 1924 NFL season was
the 5th regular season of the National Football League.
The league had 18
franchises, including new ones in Kansas City (Kansas
City Blues), Kenosha (Kenosha
Maroons),
and Frankford, a section
of Philadelphia
(Frankford Yellow Jackets).
Though the Frankford
Yellow Jackets origin goes back perhaps as far as 1899. Its home
was Yellow Jacket Field in Frankford, a section of Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, located in the northeastern part of the city, noted
chiefly for the elevated subway line that terminates there. The
Yellow Jackets won the NFL title in 1926, and were co-founded and
co-owned throughout their existence by Bert Bell and Lud Wray
Before the season, the owner of the now-defunct Cleveland Indians bought the Canton Bulldogs and "mothballed" it, taking the team's nickname and players to Cleveland for the season. The new team, the Cleveland Bulldogs, won the 1924 NFL title with a 7-1-1 record.
Buffalo All-Americans
change their name to Buffalo Bisons
Teams that join the NFL for the 1924 season:
Cleveland
Bulldogs
Frankford
Yellow Jackets
Kansas
City Blues
Kenosha
Maroons (play
1924 season only)
Teams that fold between the 1924 and 1925 seasons:
Louisville Brecks
Oorang Indians
St. Louis All Stars
Toledo Maroons
Cleveland Indians
Kenosha Maroons
Minneapolis
Marines
Columbus Tigers
1925
The 1925 NFL season was
the 6th regular season of the National Football League.
Five new franchises were
admitted to the NFL
1. The New
York Giants,
who were awarded to Tim
Mara and Billy Gibson for $500 on August
1;
2. The Detroit
Panthers, featuring Jimmy
Conzelman as owner, coach, and tailback;
3. the Providence
Steam Roller;
4. a new Canton
Bulldogs team (which the
NFL considers this 1925-1926 Canton Bulldogs to be the same team as
the 1920-1923 team.);
5. and the Pottsville
Maroons, who had been perhaps the most
successful independent pro team.
The NFL established its first player limit, at 16 players.
Strategically, the early NFL game was hardly distinguishable from college football of the time. There was no attempt to break away from college playbooks or rulebooks, and for several years the NFL followed the NCAA Rules Committee recommendations. In the leagues early years, players considered the low-paying NFL a part-time job and held other jobs during the day. Thus, while college coaches could drill their players daily for hours, professional football coaches arranged practices in the evenings, sometimes only three or four times a week.
Late in the season, the
NFL made its greatest coup in gaining national recognition. Shortly
after the University of Illinois season ended in November, The
legendary All-America halfback Harold
(Red) Grange made his professional
debut and signed a contract to play with the Chicago Bears. On
Thanksgiving Day, a crowd of 36,000-the largest in pro football
history-watched Grange and the Bears play the cross-town rival
Chicago Cardinals
to a scoreless tie
at Wrigley Field.
Thereafter, professional
football attracted larger numbers of first-rate college players, and
the increased patronage made the league economically viable.
At the beginning of December, the Bears left on a barnstorming tour that saw them play eight games in 12 days, in St. Louis, Philadelphia, New York City, Washington, Boston, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Chicago. A crowd of 73,000 watched the game against the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds, helping assure the future of the troubled NFL franchise in New York. The Bears then played nine more games in the South and West, including a game in Los Angeles, in which 75,000 fans watched them defeat the Los Angeles Tigers in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
March 14 - Walter Camp died
1925 NFL Championship controversy
Controversy surrounds who
actually won the 1925 NFL Championship.
Officially, the Chicago
Cardinals are listed as the 1925 NFL
champions because they finished with the best record. But many Pottsville fans
claim that the Maroons are
really the champions. The Maroons and the Cardinals were the top
contenders for the title, with Pottsville winning a late-season
meeting between them, 21-7. But the Maroons scheduled a game against
a team of University of Notre Dame All-Stars in Philadelphia (and
winning 9-7) on the same day that the Frankford
Yellow Jackets were scheduled to play
a game in the same city. Frankford protested, saying that it was
violating their protected territory rights.
Although NFL president Joe Carr warned the Maroons in writing that they faced suspension if they played in Philadelphia, the Maroons claim that Carr approved the game during a telephone call, and played anyway. In response, Carr fined the club, suspended it from all league rights and privileges (including the right to play for the NFL championship), and re-turned its franchise to the league.
*In 2003 the NFL decided to again examine the case regarding the 1925 championship. But in October the NFL voted 30-2 not to reopen the case. Thus the Cardinals are still listed as the 1925 NFL champions.
The Kansas City Blues change their name to the Kansas City Cowboys
The Canton Bulldogs re-enter the NFL after an inactive 1924 season
Racine Legion is inactive for 1925 season
Teams that join the NFL for the 1925 season:
New
York Giants
Providence
Steam Roller
Pottsville
Maroons
Detroit
Panthers
a new Canton
Bulldogs
Teams that fold between the 1925 and 1926 seasons:
Kenosha
Maroons
Minneapolis
Marines
Cleveland
Bulldogs
Rochester Jeffersons
and with Racine
Legion mothballing.
The Rock Island Independents leave the NFL for the rival AFL at end of the season.
1926
The 1926 NFL season was the 7th regular season of the National Football League
Grange's manager, C.C.
Pyle, told the Bears that Grange wouldn't play for them unless he was
paid a five-figure salary and given one-third ownership of the team.
The Bears refused. Pyle leased Yankee Stadium in New York City, then
petitioned for an NFL franchise. After he was refused, he started the
first American Football League. It lasted one season and included
Grange's New York Yankees and eight other teams. The AFL champion
Philadelphia Quakers
played a December
game against the New York Giants, seventh in the NFL, and the Giants
won 31-0. At the end of the season, the AFL folded.
Halas pushed through a rule that prohibited any team from signing a player whose college class had not graduated.
The NFL grew to 22 teams, including the Duluth Eskimos, who signed All-America fullback Ernie Nevers of Stanford, giving the league a gate attraction to rival Grange. The 15-member Eskimos, dubbed the Iron Men of the North, played 29 exhibition and league games, 28 on the road, and Nevers played in all but 29 minutes of them.
Frankford edged the Bears for the championship, despite Halas having obtained John (Paddy) Driscoll from the Cardinals. On December 4, the Yellow Jackets scored in the final two minutes to defeat the Bears 7-6 and move ahead of them in the standings.
Teams that join the NFL for the 1926 season:
Hartford
Blues
Los
Angeles Buccaneers
Brooklyn
Lions
The Brooklyn Lions
was formed as the NFL countermove to the original American
Football League, which also planned to
field a team in Brooklyn called the Brooklyn Horsemen.
In the months before the
regular season began, both leagues battled with each other for fan
support and the right to play at Ebbets Field. The NFL emerged as the
winner, as the Lions signed the lease to use the stadium on July 20.
Neither the Lions or the
Horseman had much success. In fact, both teams merged just after four
games into the regular season.
The team finished the NFL
season as the Brooklyn Lions.
But both the Lions and
the Horsemen folded following the season.
The Akron
Pros change their name to the Akron Indians,
which had been an earlier
Akron semi-pro team.
The
Racine Tornadoes (formerly the
Racine Legion) re-enter the NFL.
The Duluth Kelleys become
the Duluth
Eskimos
The
Louisville Colonels (formerly the
Louisville Brecks) re-enter the NFL as
a road team out of Chicago.
Teams that fold between the 1926 and 1927 seasons:
Kansas City Cowboys
Los Angeles Buccaneers
Buffalo Rangers
Detroit Panthers
Hartford Blues
Brooklyn Lions
Milwaukee Badgers
Akron Indians
(formerly the Akron Pros
/ Akron Burkhardts)
Racine Tornadoes
Columbus Tigers
Canton Bulldogs
Hammond Pros
Louisville Colonels
1927
The 1927 NFL season was the 8th regular season of the National Football League
At a special meeting in Cleveland, April 23, Carr decided to secure the NFL's future by eliminating the financially weaker teams and consolidating the quality players onto a limited number of more successful teams. The new-look NFL dropped to 12 teams, and the center of gravity of the league left the Midwest, where the NFL had started, and began to emerge in the large cities of the East. One of the new teams was Grange's New York Yankees, but Grange suffered a knee injury and the Yankees finished in the middle of the pack.
The
New York Giants won their first
NFL Championship with an 11-1-1 record
The cross-town rival New
York Giants posted 10 shutouts in 13 games.
Teams that join the NFL for the 1927 season:
Cleveland
Bulldogs (play only the 1927 season)
New
York Yankees were added from the American Football League
and Buffalo Rangers
returned to the Buffalo Bisons name.
Teams that fold between the 1927 and 1928 seasons:
Buffalo Bison
Cleveland Bulldogs
Duluth Eskimos
Akron Indians
(formerly the Akron Pros
/ Akron Burkhardts)
Kansas City Cowboys
Los Angeles Buccaneers
Detroit Panthers
Hartford Blues
Brooklyn Lions
Canton Bulldogs
Milwaukee Badgers
Racine Tornadoes
Columbus Tigers
Hammond Pros
and Louisville Colonels.
1928
The 1928 NFL season was the 9th regular season of the National Football League.
Grange and Nevers both
retired from pro football, and Duluth disbanded, as the NFL was
reduced to only 10 teams.
Experiencing financial
problems, the Buffalo Rangers did not participate in league play.
The Providence Steam Roller of Jimmy Conzelman and Pearce Johnson won the championship, playing in the Cycledrome, a 10,000-seat oval that had been built for bicycle races.
Providence Steam Roller -
the team, which played in a stadium made primarily for bike racing,
hold the distinction of being the last team to win an NFL title
(1928) that is no longer part of the league.
The
Detroit Wolverines are granted an NFL franchise but play only
the 1928 season
(the Wolverines have
the best lifetime winning percentage (.778) of any franchise in NFL history)
1929
The 1929 NFL season was the 10th regular season of the National Football League. The league increased back to 12 teams.
July 27 - Chris O'Brien sold the Chicago Cardinals to David Jones.
July 28 - The NFL added a fourth official, the field judge
November 28 - Chicago Cardinals running back Ernie Nevers scores an NFL record 40 points. He rushes for an NFL record six touchdowns and adds four extra points to tally all of the Cardinals' points in their 40-6 victory over the Chicago Bears.
Grange and Nevers returned to the NFL. Nevers scored six rushing touchdowns and four extra points as the Cardinals beat Grange's Bears 40-6, November 28. The 40 points set a record that remains the NFL's oldest.
According to NFL.com
November 3
- Providence became the first NFL team
to host a game at night under floodlights, against the Cardinals
The Chicago Cardinals defeated the Providence Steam Roller, 16-0.
The Steam Rollers game under floodlights was actually the second game of a four-games-in-six-days fiasco. Providence had originally scheduled to play the Chicago Cardinals on Sunday, November 3, 1929, but heavy rains made the Cyclodrome field unplayable. Since neither team wanted to lose a payday, the historic night game was hastily scheduled for November 6 at nearby Kinsley Park Stadium, where floodlights recently had been installed.
Although the Steam Roller lost 16-0, the game was declared a success because 6,000 fans attended. The local newspaper reported that the ball, which had been painted white for the night game, "had the appearance of a large egg," and whenever either team passed, "there was a panicky feeling that the player who made the catch would be splattered with yellow yolk." The floodlights, the newspaper concluded were "just as good as daylight for the players. The next year, floodlights were permanently installed in the Cyclodrome.
November
3 or
November 6
or
September 24th, 1930
CAN
ANYBODY VERIFY THIS DATE?
The Greenbay
Packers added back Johnny
"Blood" McNally, tackle
Cal Hubbard, and guard Mike Michalske, and won their first NFL
championship, edging the New York Giants, who featured quarterback
Benny Friedman.
Teams that join the NFL for the 1929 season:
Buffalo Bisons (play
1929 season only)
Minneapolis Red Jackets
Staten Island Stapletons
Orange Tornadoes
Boston Bulldogs (play
only 1929 season -
- the Bulldogs were in
reality the Pottsville Maroons relocated, inactive for the 1928 season)
Teams that fold between the 1929 and 1930 seasons:
1930
The 1930 NFL season was the 11th regular season of the National Football League.
Prior to the season,
Brooklyn businessmen William B. Dwyer and John C. Depler bought the Dayton
Triangles,
moved it, and renamed it
the Brooklyn Dodgers.
The Orange Tornadoes
relocated to Newark and Buffalo Bisons and Boston Bulldogs dropped
out. Portsmouth Spartans were a new team
Opposed to NFL.com - It
is claimed in other records that on
September 24
- Portsmouth Spatans beat the Brooklyn Dodgers at home in the
first NFL night game played in front of portable lights
University Stadium.
Was It
November 3, 1929 or
November 6, 1929
or
September 24th, 1930
CAN
ANYBODY VERIFY THIS DATE?
The Packers edged the New York Giants for the title as the Green Bay Packers were named the NFL champions for the second straight year after finishing the season with the best record.
But the most improved
team was the Bears. Halas retired as a player and replaced himself as
coach of the Bears with Ralph Jones, who refined the T-formation by
introducing wide ends and a halfback in motion. Jones also
introduced rookie All-America fullback-tackle Bronko Nagurski.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
The Giants defeated a
team of former Notre Dame players coached by Knute Rockne 22-0 before
55,000 at the Polo Grounds, December 14. The proceeds went to the New
York Unemployment Fund to help those suffering because of the Great
Depression, and the easy victory helped give the NFL credibility with
the press and the public.
Teams that join the NFL for the 1930 season:
The Orange Tornadoes change their name to the Newark Tornadoes
The Dayton Triangles, the
last of the NFL's original franchises, was purchased by William B.
Dwyer and John C. Depler prior to the season, moved it to Brooklyn,
and renamed it the Brooklyn Dodgers.
This franchise is not
related to the Brooklyn Dodgers franchise that played in the
All-America Football Conference from 1946 to 1948.
Another NFL team that played in Brooklyn was
the Brooklyn
Lions in 1926.
Teams that fold between the 1930 and 1931 seasons:
Minneapolis Red Jackets
Newark Tornadoes
In the 1930s,
cheerleaders began performing pom-pom routines and using paper poms,
still the most widely
recognized cheerleading prop.
1931
The 1931 NFL season was
the 12th regular season of the National Football League.
The NFL decreased to 10 teams due to financial hardships caused by the Great Depression. Even the Frankford Yellow Jackets had to fold midway through the season.
Carr fined the Bears, Packers, and Portsmouth $1,000 each for using players whose college classes had not graduated.
The Greenbay Packers were named the NFL champions for the third consecutive time after finishing the season with the best record beating out the Spartans, who were led by rookie backs Earl (Dutch) Clark and Glenn Presnell.
The Cleveland Indians join the NFL (play 1931 season only)
The Frankford Yellow Jackets disband during 1932 season
Teams that fold between the 1931 and 1932 seasons:
Minneapolis Red Jackets
Newark Tornadoes
Cleveland Indians
Providence Steam Roller
Frankford Yellow Jackets
1932
The 1932 NFL season was the 13th regular season of the National Football League.
July 9 - George Preston Marshall, Vincent Bendix, Jay O'Brien, and M. Dorland Doyle were awarded a franchise for Boston. Despite the presence of two rookies-halfback Cliff Battles and tackle Glen (Turk) Edwards-the new team, named the Boston Braves, lost money and Marshall was left as the sole owner at the end of the year.
With the loss of
Providence Steam Rollers,
Cleveland Indians
and Frankford
Yellow Jackets,
league membership dropped
to eight teams, the lowest in NFL history.
Official statistics were kept for the first time.
December 18, 1932
From the start of the National Football League in 1920, every league championship was determined based on the regular season standings. Then in 1932, the Portsmouth Spartans and the Chicago Bears finished the season in the first-ever tie for first place - so, for the first time in NFL history, a one-game playoff was staged to determine the 1932 championship.
However, a blizzard with deep snow and sub-zero wind chill, blew into Chicago and made it impossible to play the game at Wrigley Field. So, the game was moved indoors at Chicago Stadium and played on a modified field only 60 yards long and 30 feet narrower. The end zones were not regulation size and the sidelines butted up against the stands.
The Bears proceeded to shutout the Spartans, 9-0. The lone touchdown of the game was a disputed pass play from Bronko Nagurski to Red Grange. Rules at the time stipulated that a forward pass had to be thrown from at least five yards behind the line of scrimmage. The Spartans contested that Nagurski did not drop back five yards before firing the jump pass to Grange. The play stood and the Bears later added a safety to put the final touches on their victory.
The game became an earmark for a new era in pro football. Because of the cramped quarters of the unusual venue, several NFL rules changes were employed for the following season.
As it was, if the ball
went out of bounds or a player was tackled near the sideline, the
next play began right there snug, against the line. Teams had to use
a precious play just to get the ball back toward the center of the field.
In 1933, the rule
regarding the use of inbound lines or hashmarks was re-written to
require that the ball be spotted on the hashmarks on every play.
Another rule change that season was the movement of the goal posts from the end line to the goal line. On February 25, 1933, the NFL discontinued the use of the Collegiate Rules Book and began to develop its own rules. The most significant change was that the forward pass became legal anywhere behind the scrimmage line.
The Staten Island
Stapletons fold between the 1932 and 1933 seasons
1933
The 1933 NFL season was the 14th regular season of the National Football League.
February 25 NFL officials adopted rules specifically for the NFL and discontinued the use of collegiate rules.
The NFL, which long had followed the rules of college football, made a number of significant changes from the college game for the first time and began to develop rules serving its needs and the style of play it preferred. The innovations from the 1932 championship game-inbounds line or hashmarks and goal posts on the goal lines-were adopted. Also the forward pass was legalized from anywhere behind the line of scrimmage, February 25.
Major rule changes
|
July 8 -, the NFL was divided into two divisions for the first time and the winners of each division were to play a championship game to determine the league champion.
1933 season teams:
Boston Redskins
Green Bay Packers
Brooklyn Dodgers
New York Giants
Chicago Bears
Chicago Cardinals
Portsmouth Spartans
Teams that join the
NFL for the 1933 season:
Three new franchises joined the NFL league
July 8 - the Pittsburgh Pirates of Art Rooney,
Originally named Pirates after the citys major league baseball team, Owner Art Rooney Sr. changed the team name to Steelers in 1940 to more properly represent the citys dominant steel industry
July 9 - the Philadelphia Eagles
are awarded its dormant Philadelphia franchise to a syndicate headed by former Frankford Yellow Jackets owners Bert Bell and Lud Wray.
Bell and Wray reactivated
the franchise under the name "Philadelphia Eagles."
However, because of the time gap since the
Yellow Jackets' demise in
1931
(and the fact that
virtually no players from their 1931 roster played for the 1933 Eagles),
the NFL officially treats
the two franchises as separate entities despite the commonality and
continuity of their ownership.
and the third franchise
to joine the NFL league
which is the now
de-funct NFL team
the Cincinnati Reds
The Staten Island Stapletons suspended operations for a year, but never returned to the league.
Halas bought out
Sternaman, became sole owner of the Bears, and reinstated himself as
head coach.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
Marshall changed the name
of the Boston Braves to the Boston Redskins.
David Jones sold
the Chicago Cardinals to Charles W. Bidwill.
October 8
- Boston Redskins running back Cliff Battles becomes the first player
to top 200 yards in a game, rushing for 215 yards in a 21-20 victory
over the New York Giants.
Due to the success of the 1932 NFL Playoff Game, Marshall and Halas pushed through a proposal that divided the NFL into two divisions, for the first time, with the winners of each division playing in a championship game to determine the NFL champion.
October 8 -
Harry Newman of The New York Giants ran for 108 yards against the
Boston Redskins. The Giants' first 100 yard game
First NFL Championship Game
The season ended when the the Western Division champion Chicago Bears defeated the Eastern Division champion New York Giants in the first ever NFL Championship Game 23-21 at Wrigley Field, December 17.
1934
The 1934 NFL season was
the 15th regular season of the National Football League.
The First NFL Thanksgiving
Radio Executive,
George.A. Richards purchased the Portsmouth Spartans for $8,000; The
Spartans were members of the NFL from 1930 to 1933. Detroit gets it's
5th and final (now existing) football franchise when Richards
moved them to Detroit, and renamed them the Detroit
Lions.
Previous Football
Franchise's in Detroit:
1920 Detroit
Heralds |
When the Monsters of the
Midway came into the University of Detroit Stadium to face the Lions
on Thanksgiving Day, November 29, 1934, no one had any idea that they
were starting a tradition. The game was the brainchild of Lion owner
George A. Richards. Being the owner of WJR, Richards had contacts in
the booming radio industry. He used those contacts to garner the help
of NBC Radio president Deke Aylesworth in setting up a 94 station
network to broadcast the Lion / Bear tussle live coast-to-coast
becoming the first NFL game broadcast nationally, with Graham McNamee
the announcer for NBC radio.
Richards felt that
the game would give pro football excellent exposure, and Papa Bear
George Halas agreed. Therefore, the game was on, and both squads
proved more than ready to spoil the other teams Thanksgiving dinner.
The Lions first ever
sellout crowd of 26,000 witnessed one of the great games in Lion
history on that landmark day. Detroit got the early lead in the first
quarter on a two yard Ace Gutowsky TD run that was set up by a Buster
Mitchell 27 yard interception return. Dutch Clark provided the PAT.
The Bears answered back to tie the game in the second stanza with a
14 yard TD.
The Bears cut the Lion
lead to 16-13 in the third quarter when Jack Manders kicked field
goals of 15 and 42 yards. The game remained there until late in the
final period, when a Glenn Presnell pass was intercepted by Joe
Zeller, who brought it back to the Detroit 4-yard line. Two plays
later, the Bears scored on a play that was all too familiar to the
Lions, a two-yard Nagurski flea flicker. The pass went to future Bear
Hall of Famer, Bill Hewitt.
A desperate, Clark led,
final drive fell short, and the Bears prevailed 19-16.
In describing the loss,
Leo Macdonell of the Detroit Times wrote, "It
was a heartbreak for the Lions and their followers, and with a heavy
heart they feast over the crumbs of a game that put the Detroit team
out of the running for the championship honors."
Times sports editor Bud
Shaver added that, "Many
Thanksgiving Days will roll into eternity before 26,000 Detroiters
will forget that one in which the Chicago Bears knocked the Detroit
Lions out of a chance for the National Football League Championship
at U-D Stadium."
In addition, the Lions'
first Thanksgiving Day proved to be such a success, both on the field
and at the box office that it became an annual event. Nearly
seventy-years later, it has become as big a part of America's
Thanksgiving as the turkey and pumpkin pie.
Rookie Beattie Feathers of the Bears became the NFL's first 1,000-yard rusher, gaining 1,004 on 101 carries.
Professional football gained new prestige when the Bears were matched against the best college football players in the first Chicago College All-Star Game, August 31. The game ended in a scoreless tie before 79,432 at Soldier Field.
The Cincinnati Reds
franchises that joined the NFL league in the 1933 season and played
the first 8 games of the 1934 season was suspended for not paying
league dues.
The St. Louis Gunners,
an independent
team, joined the NFL by buying the Cincinnati Reds franchise and went
1-2 the last three weeks and folding after 1934 season.
October 7
- Detroit Lions Glenn Presnell kicked a 54-yard field goal, an NFL
record at the time.
The record stood for 19 years UNTIL September
27 1953 by Baltimore's Bert Rechichar who boots a record
56-yard field goal against Chicago.
The record would stand for 17 years until Tom Dempsey nailed a 63-yarder
on Nov. 8 1970.
The season ended with The 1934
National Football League Championship Game,
also known as The Sneakers Game,
was played at the Polo Grounds in New York City on December 9, 1934.
The final score was
New York Giants 30,
Chicago Bears 13.
A freezing rain the night before the game froze the Polo Grounds's field, much like the Ice Bowl years later. After a remark made by one of the players, an equipment man was sent to Manhattan College to borrow sneakers for the team to have better footing.
The New York Giants started the game wearing their regular cleats, but trailed 10-3 midway though the third quarter. So it was decided to switch out of the cleats for the sneakers. Then after the Bears increased their lead to 13-3, Giants quarterback Ed Danowski threw a touchdown pass to Ike Frankian to make the score 13-10. On the Giants next drive, running back Ken Strong scored on a 42-yard touchdown run. Later an 11-yard run by Strong was turned into another touchdown for the Giants. Finally the Giants closed it out with Danowski's 9-yard touchdown run. The game ended with the Giants ahead: 30-13.
December 10 - The player waiver rule was adopted
The NFL splits into
divisions as follows:
EASTERN DIVISION
Boston Redskins |
WESTERN DIVISION
Chicago Bears |
Major rule changes
A hand-to-hand forward pass made behind the line of scrimmage that becomes incomplete (hits the ground before it is caught) is to be ruled as a fumble.
Same number of games for every team.
1935
The 1935 NFL season was the 16th regular season of the National Football League.
All-America end Don Hutson of Alabama joined the Green Bay Packers.
November 3 - Philadelphia and Boston combine to throw an NFL record 11 interceptions.
The season ended when the Detroit Lions defeated the New York Giants 26-7 at University of Detroit Stadium, Detroit, Michigan, December 15 in the 1935 NFL Championship Game.
Major rule changes
The inbounds lines or hashmarks were moved closer to the center of the field, 15 yards from the sidelines.
May 19 - The NFL adopted Bert Bell's proposal to hold an annual draft of college players, to begin in 1936, with teams selecting in an inverse order of finish.
New York City's Downtown
Athletic Club awarded the first Heisman Trophy to Chicago halfback
Jay Berwanger, who was also the first ever NFL Draft pick in 1936.
The trophy was designed by sculptor Frank Eliscu and modeled after
NYU player Ed Smith. The trophy recognizes the nation's "most
outstanding" college football player and has become one of the
most coveted awards in all of American sports
1936
The 1936 NFL season was the 17th regular season of the National Football League.
For the first time since the league was founded, there were no team transactions; neither a club folded nor did a new one join the NFL. This was also the first year in which all league teams played the same number of games.
As it stood, players were
free to sign with any club. This tended to make the stronger teams
even stronger and created much disparity in the NFL.
The previous year on May
19 of 1935, the league owners adopted a plan for a college player
draft. Proposed by Bert Bell, the Eagles owner and future NFL commissioner.
The idea called for a
draft whereby the weaker teams would have the first choice at top
college prospects. The teams would draft in reverse order of their
finish with the league champions from the previous season picking last.
The draft had nine rounds.
The Eagles made
University of Chicago halfback and Heisman Trophy winner Jay
Berwanger the first player ever selected in the NFL draft, February
8. The Eagles traded his rights to the Bears, but Berwanger never
played pro NFL football.
Legendary college
coach Paul Bear Bryant was the fourth-round pick of the
Brooklyn Dodgers in 1936. He, too, never played pro ball.
The first player
selected to actually sign was the number-two pick, Riley Smith of
Alabama, who was selected by Boston.
Since that time, there
has been a college draft held every year resulting in a competitively
balanced league.
The popularity of the professional game slowly began to equal its college rival after the NFL instituted its first player draft.
As many talented
college players opted to play in the NFL, the professional game also
drew more fans.
The Chicago Bears, the
Chicago Cardinals, the Detroit Lions, the Green Bay Packers, and the
New York Giants were some of the leagues dominant teams during
the period.
Outstanding players included
and
|
A rival league was
formed, and it became the second to call itself the American Football League.
The Boston Shamrocks
were its champions.
The NFL season ended December 13 when the Green Bay Packers defeated the Boston Redskins 21-6 in the 1936 NFL Championship Game. For the only time in NFL history, the team with the home field advantage declined to play at their own stadium in Boston and instead elected to play at a neutral site. The decision was due to poor attendance, the Redskins moved the game from Boston to the Polo Grounds in New York City.
Major rule changes
The penalty for an
illegal forward pass that is thrown beyond the line of scrimmage is
five yards from the spot of the foul.
1937
The 1937 NFL season was the 18th regular season of the National Football League.
The 1937 draft was increased to 10 rounds.
The Cleveland Rams joined the league as an expansion team. Meanwhile, the Redskins relocated from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. - therefore becomming The Washington Redskins
The NFL season ended when the Redskins signed TCU All-America tailback Sammy Baugh, who led them to a 28-21 victory over the Bears in the 1937 NFL Championship Game at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois, December 12.
The Los Angeles Bulldogs had an 8-0 record to win the AFL title, but then the 2-year-old league folded.
Major rule changes
All players are required to wear numerals on their jerseys whose color must be in sharp contrast with the jersey color. The numbers on the front must be at least 6 inches while the ones on the back must be at least 8 inches.
If a kickoff goes out of bounds, the ball is put in play either on the opponent's 35-yard line or 10 yards from the spot where it crossed the sideline.
The penalty for an illegal forward pass that is thrown beyond the line of scrimmage is a loss of down and five yards from the spot of the foul.
A team known as the
Cincinnati Bengals, the closest link to today's modern-era team, was
formed as a member of the rival American Football League. It was that
team's nickname which was later adopted by
today's NFL franchise.
The 1937 Bengals finished with a 2-4-2 record in their first year, but the AFL folded after the season.
1938
The 1938 NFL season was the 19th regular season of the National Football League.
A twist is added to the draft procedure with only the five teams that finished lowest in the previous season were permitted to make selections in the second and fourth rounds.
Rookie Byron (Whizzer) White of the Pittsburgh Pirates led the NFL in rushing.
Marshall, Los Angeles Times sports editor Bill Henry, and promoter Tom Gallery established the Pro Bowl game between the NFL champion and a team of pro all-stars.
The NFL season ended when the New York Giants defeated the Green Bay Packers in the 1938 NFL Championship Game at Polo Grounds, New York City, December 11.
The first
NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Center, Mel
Hein of the New York Giants
Major rule changes
At the suggestion of Halas, Hugh (Shorty) Ray became a technical advisor on rules and officiating to the NFL.
A new 15-yard penalty for roughing the passer is enacted.
If a kickoff goes out of bounds, the receiving team may opt to take possession of the ball at their own 45-yard line.
The penalty for a second forward pass during a play is changed from 5 yards and a loss of down to just 5 yards.
The Cincinnati Bengals continued as an independent team after the 2nd attempt of a rival league (AFL) folded. The Bengals played three NFL teams in 1938. They beat the Chicago Bears, 17-13, and the Pittsburgh Pirates, 38-0, and tied the Chicago Cardinals, 7-7.
1939
The 1939 NFL season was the 20th regular season of the National Football League.
The draft was expanded to
20 rounds.
Adding a twist to the
procedure with only the five teams that finished lowest in the
previous season were permitted to make selections in the second and
fourth rounds.
Before the season, NFL
president since 1921 - Joseph Carr died in Columbus, May 20. Carl
Storck was named acting president, May 25.
The First Televised Game
October 22 = NBC televises a pro football game for the first time, featuring the Philadelphia Eagles and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn.
A meager crowd of 13,050 were on hand at Brooklyns Ebbets Field on that now-historic day when the Philadelphia Eagles fell to Brooklyns Dodgers 23-14.
Five hundred-or-so fortunate New Yorkers who owned television sets witnessed the game in the comfort of their own homes, over NBCs experimental station W2XBS.
While few people owned television sets in 1939. Many watch the telecast on monitors while visiting the RCA Pavilion at the Worlds Fair in New York where it was scheduled as a special event.
"It was a cloudy
day, when the sun crept behind the stadium there wasnt enough
light for the cameras," according
to Allen (Skip)
Walz, the NBC play-by-play announcer. "The
picture would get darker and darker, and eventually it would go
completely blank, and wed revert to a radio broadcast."
Such
an occurrence would create a furor today,
but in 1939 it was simply
technology at its best.
The season ended when the Green Bay Packers defeated the New York Giants 27-0 in the 1939 NFL Championship Game, at State Fair Park, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, December 10. NFL attendance exceeded 1 million in a season for the first time, reaching 1,071,200.
The NFL Most Valuable
Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Halfback,
Parker Hall of the Cleveland Rams
The New York Giants
defeated the Pro All-Stars 13-10 in the first Pro Bowl, at Wrigley
Field, Los Angeles, January 15.
Major rule changes
The penalty for an ineligible receiver who touches a forward pass is 15 yards and a loss of down.
The penalty for an ineligible receiver who is downfield prior to a forward pass being thrown is 15 yards and a loss of down.
If a kickoff goes out of bounds after only being touched by members of the receiving team, the receiving team takes possession of the ball at that inbounds spot.
The penalty for a second forward pass during a play is changed from 5 yards and a loss of down to just 5 yards.
1940
The 1940 NFL season was the 21st regular season of the National Football League.
A six-team rival
league, the third to call itself the American Football League, was formed,
and the Columbus
Bullies won its championship.
Once again the
Cincinnatti Bengals joined an AFL league. They recorded 1-7-0 and
1-5-2 marks in 1940 and 1941, respectively. That AFL suffered the
fate of the two AFLs before it, folding after the 1941 season as the
United States entered World World II. Only this time, the Bengals
folded along with it.
UNTIL
1967
T-formation with a man-in-motion. It was the first championship carried on network radio, broadcast by Red Barber to 120 stations of the Mutual Broadcasting System, which paid $2,500 for the rights.
Art Rooney sold the Pittsburgh Pirates - to be named the Pittsburgh Steelers - to Alexis Thompson, December 9, then bought part interest in the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Pittsburgh Pirates along with the Philadelphia Eagles and the now-defunct Cincinnati Reds football team joined the NFL as 1933 expansion teams, after Art Rooney, Sr. paid a $2,500 fee.
Chicago Bears, End, Dick Plasman was the last player to appear in a game without a helmet.
The season ended December
8 when the Chicago Bears defeated the Washington Redskins in the 1940
NFL Championship Game, 73-0 as Chicago
wins the title before 36,034 in Griffith Stadium, Washington, D.C.
This game currently
stands as the most onesided victory in NFL history.
Sparked by a comment made by Redskins owner George Preston Marshall, who had said three weeks earlier that the Bears were crybabies and quitters when the going got tough, Chicago crushed Washington, 73-0.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Halfback,
Ace Parker of the Brooklyn Dodgers
Major rule changes
The penalty for a forward pass not from scrimmage is 5 yards.
Penalties for fouls that occur prior to a pass or kick from behind the line of scrimmage are enforced from the previous spot. However, penalties for fouls during a free ball or when the offensive team fouls behind their line are enforced from the spot of the foul.
Fouls enforced in the field of play cannot penalize the ball more than half the distance to the offender's goal line.
If the offensive team commits pass interference in their opponent's end zone, the defense has the choice of 15 yards from the previous spot and a loss of down, or a touchback.
In the early 1940's, when men went to war, women not only went to work, but also on to the cheerleading squads. Cheerleading then became more of a female sport. When the men returned from war, new twists and turns were added. Gymnastics were always done by men, while the girls danced which gave rise to dance teams.
1941
The 1941 NFL season was
the 22nd regular season of the National Football League.
Before the season, Elmer Layden was named the first Commissioner of the NFL, March 1; Storck, the acting president, resigned, April 5. NFL headquarters were moved to Chicago.
Bell and Rooney traded
the Eagles to Thompson for the Pittsburgh Pirates, then re-named
their new team the Pittsburgh
Steelers. Homer Marshman sold the Rams
to Daniel F. Reeves and Fred Levy, Jr.
THE NFL ON PEARL HARBOR DAY
Three scheduled NFL games
were under way when the Japanese first attacked Pearl Harbor at 12:55
p.m. ET on Sunday, December 7, 1941.
The public address
announcer at New York's Polo Grounds, where fans were celebrating
"Tuffy Leemans' Day" in honor of their star running back,
interrupted his commentary to tell all servicemen to report to their units.
The same was done at
Chicago's Comiskey Park. At Washington's Griffith Stadium, the
announcer paged high-ranking government and military personnel who
were in attendance, but did not mention the attack. Reporters were
told to check with their offices.
NFL Games Played on December
7, 1941
Home teams in Capital Letters
Chicago Bears 34,
CHICAGO CARDINALS 24
Brooklyn Dodgers
21, NEW YORK GIANTS 7
WASHINGTON REDSKINS
20, Philadelphia Eagles 14
On Monday, December 8,
America officially entered World War II.
First NFL Divisional
Playoff Game
The Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers finished the regular season tied in the NFL Western Division on December 14, setting up the first divisional playoff game in league history. The Bears won 33-14.
The Chicago Bears then went on to defeat the New York Giants, 37-9, in the NFL 1941 Championship Game, December 21.(two weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor)
Columbus again won the championship of the AFL, but the two-year-old league then folded.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Wide
receiver, Don Hutson of the Green Bay Packers
The league by-laws were revised to provide for playoffs in case there were ties in division races, and sudden-death overtimes in case a playoff game was tied after four quarters. An official NFL Record Manual was published for the first time.
Major rule changes
The penalty for illegal shift is 5 yards.
The penalty for illegal kick or bat is 15 yards.
Whenever a player is
ejected from the game, his team is penalized 15 yards.
1942
The 1942 NFL season was the 23th regular season of the National Football League.
Before the season, many players left for service in World War II, thus depleting the rosters of all the teams. Halas left the Bears in midseason to join the Navy, and Luke Johnsos and Heartley (Hunk) Anderson served as co-coaches as the Bears went 11-0 in the regular season.
World War II obviously had a dramatic effect on the entire nation. It forced an immediate change in what was a peaceful way of life, including the concept of sports and how they would be presented and played. The NFL, in a March 24, 1942 news release, attempted to explain its plan and role during the national crisis.
The release stated that until federal authorities decided greater benefits would accrue from some other policy, professional football's wartime effort would center about normal operations with an emphasis on participation in civilian emergency activities.
Commissioner Elmer Layden offered the following statement:
"From Aristotle's time on down we have been told, and it has been demonstrated, that sports is necessary for the relaxation of the people in times of stress and worry. The National league will strive to help meet this need with the men the government has not yet called for combat service, either because of dependents, disabilities, or the luck of the draw in the Army draft."
Just as Americas general population rallied behind the United States World War II effort, so too did the National Football League.
Hundreds of players joined the effort through enlistment, as the NFL organizationally looked for additional ways to make a difference. One such endeavor was the selling of War Bonds, an activity that generated $4,000,000 worth of sales for the effort in 1942 alone.
The NFL also donated the revenues from 15 exhibition games to service charities. The games produced a total purse of $680,384.07. It was reported to be the largest amount raised by a single athletic organization.
After 10 years, The
Pittsburgh Steelers posted their first winning record, 7-4 under head
coach Walt Kiesling.
First Undefeated NFL Team
The Chicago Bears sailed through the 1942 NFL schedule undefeated and untied. The reigning NFL champs, the Bears, were favorites to win their third consecutive title when they met the Washington Redskins in the 1942 Championship game.
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron
is the only undefeated team in the Association. |
The season ended when the Washington Redskins defeated the Chicago Bears 14-6 in the 1942 NFL Championship Game, December 13 at Griffith Stadium, Washington, D.C.
The Redskin victory had an extra measure of satisfaction, since it was the same Bears team that two years earlier humiliated Washington 73-0 in the 1940 title game.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
for the second time in a
row is awarded to Wide receiver, Don Hutson of the Green Bay Packers
Major rule changes
The use of flags on flexible shafts to mark the intersections of goal lines and side lines becomes mandatory.
A clarification to the offsides rule is added: The center or snapper is not offsides unless a portion of his body is ahead of the defensive team's line.
A half cannot end on a
double foul. Instead, the period will be extended by one untimed down.
1943
The 1943 NFL season was the 24th regular season of the National Football League.
As more players left to serve in World War II, three teams were affected by the depleted rosters.
The Cleveland Rams, with co-owners Reeves and Levy in the service, were granted permission to suspend operations for one season, April 6. Levy transferred his stock in the team to Reeves, April 16.
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh were granted permission to merge for one season, June 19. The team, known as Phil-Pitt (and called the Steagles by fans), divided home games between the two cities, and Earle (Greasy) Neale of Philadelphia and Walt Kiesling of Pittsburgh served as co-coaches. The merger automatically dissolved the last day of the season, December 5.
Ted Collins was granted a franchise for Boston, to become active in 1944.
October 24
- the Green Bay Packers became the first team in National Football
League history to intercept nine passes in a single game. The
feat came in their 27-6 victory over the Detroit Lions..
1943
PLAYOFFS
Sammy Baugh led the league in passing, punting, and interceptions. He led the Redskins to a tie with the Giants for the Eastern Division title, and then to a 28-0 victory in a divisional playoff game.
The season ended when the Chicago Bears defeated the Washington Redskins 41-21 in the 1944 NFL Championship Game, December 26.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to
Quarterback, Sid Luckman of the Chicago Bears
Major rule changes
The NFL adopted free substitution, April 7. Enacted in response to the depleted rosters of the World War II period, any or all of the players may be replaced by substitutes after any play.
This feature of the game led to the modern two-platoon system, in which one group of 11 players enters the game to play offense and a second group enters to play defense. |
The wearing of helmets becomes mandatory for all players.
Approved a 10-game schedule for all teams.
The 1944 NFL season was the 25th regular season of the National Football League.
Collins, who had wanted a
franchise in Yankee Stadium in New York,named his new team in Boston
the Boston Yanks,
joining the league as an
expansion team and added to the Eastern Division.
Team owner Ted
Collins picked the name "Yanks" because he originally
wanted to run a team that played at New York City's Yankee Stadium.
Unfortunately, the Yanks could only manage a 2-8 record during its
first regular season.
The Brooklyn
Dodgers changed their name to Brooklyn Tigers.
Both the Cleveland Rams and the Philadelphia Eagles resumed their traditional operations.
The Chicago Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers were granted permission to merge for one year under the name Card-Pitt, April 21. The combined team played half of their home games in each city.Phil Handler of the Cardinals and Walt Kiesling of the Steelers served as co-coaches. The merger automatically dissolved the last day of the season, December 3.
The NFL season ended when the Green Bay Packers defeated the New York Giants 14-7 at Polo Grounds, New York City, December 17 in the 1944 NFL Championship Game.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Halfback,
Frank Sinkwich of the Detroit Lions
The All-America Football Conference (AAFC)
The All-America
Football Conference (AAFC) was an 8 team professional American
football league that challenged the rival National Football League
from 1946 to 1949.
The league was
created in June 1944 and began play in 1946.
Looking for name recognition and establish credibility, the AAFC chose popular former University of Notre Dame standout Jim Crowley as its first commissioner on November 21, 1944.
June 4th two days prior to D-Day, a group described by the A.P. as "men of millionaire incomes" met in St. Louis to organize a new professional football league. They had been called together by Arch Ward, the innovative sports editor of the Chicago Tribune and organizer of the college and baseball All-Star games.
The initial
meeting, attended by representatives of Buffalo, Los Angeles, New
York, San Francisco, Chicago and Cleveland (for whom Ward carried
a proxy) led to a second organizational meeting on September
3, 1944 in Chicago.
|
Also present was Mrs.
Eleanor Gehrig, widow of the baseball Hall of Famer, who later became
a league executive.
It was reported that
Detroit, Philadelphia and Boston were also interested in the new league.
Major rule changes
The free substitution rule is modified so that substitutes do not have to report to the officials before a play.
Coaching from the bench was legalized, April 20. Communication between the players and coaches on the field is permitted as long as the coaches are in the designated areas along the sidelines, and that they do not cause a delay in the game.
If the offensive team commits pass interference in their opponent's end zone, it is just a distance penalty and no longer an automatic touchback.
The 1945 NFL season was the 26th regular season of the National Football League.
After the Japanese surrendered ending World War II, a count showed that the NFL service roster, limited to men who had played in league games, totaled 638, 21 of whom had died in action.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals resumed their traditional operations.
The Brooklyn Tigers and
the Boston Yanks then merged for this one season. The combined team,
known simply as The Yanks, played half of their home games in each
city. The team was coached by former Boston head coach Herb Kopf.
After Brooklyn Tigers
owner Dan Topping announced his intentions to withdrew from the NFL
and join the new All-America Football Conference In December, his NFL
team was immediately revoked after the season and all of its players
on its active and reserve lists were assigned to the Yanks, who
once again became the Boston Yanks.
This concludes using
"Tigers" as the name of any football teams, after 6 have
employed the name in the past.
1903 Massillon
Tigers |
Halas rejoined the Bears late in the season after service with the U.S. Navy. Although Halas took over much of the coaching duties, Anderson and Johnsos remained the coaches of record throughout the season.
Steve Van Buren of Philadelphia led the NFL in rushing, kickoff returns, and scoring.
The season ended December
16, 1945,
Washington Redskins vs.
Cleveland Rams,
1945 NFL
Championship Game at Cleveland
Stadium, Cleveland
The Rams scored a safety when Redskins quarterback Sammy Baugh, throwing the ball from his own end zone, hit the goal posts (which were on the goal line between 1927 and 1973). The two points was the margin of victory as the Rams won 15-14. After the game, the rules were changed so that when a forward pass thrown from one's own end zone hits the goal posts, it is instead ruled incomplete.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to rookie
Quarterback, Bob Waterfield of the Cleveland Rams
Major rule changes
The inbounds lines or hashmarks were moved from 15 yards away from the sidelines to nearer the center of the field-20 yards from the sidelines.
The player who extends his arms under the center must receive the snap or the offensive team will be penalized for a false start.
When a snap is muffed by the receiving player and then touches the ground, it is legally a fumble.
During an extra point attempt, the ball is spotted at the 2-yard line, but the offense may opt to have it be placed further from the goal line.
After a kicked punt crosses the line of scrimmage, the kicking team may recover the ball if it touches a member of the receiving team before they control the ball themselves.
The 1946 NFL season was the 27th regular season of the National Football League.
December 31 - President Truman officially proclaims end of WW-II.
Before the season, Elmer Layden resigned as NFL Commissioner and Bert Bell, co-founder of the Philadelphia Eagles, replaced him.
The contract of Commissioner Layden was not renewed, and Bert Bell, the co-owner of the Steelers, replaced him, January 11. Bell moved the league headquarters from Chicago to the Philadelphia suburb of Bala- Cynwyd.
The NFL took on a truly
national appearance when the Rams became the first NFL team based on
the West Coast after Reeves was granted permission by the league to
move his NFL champion Rams from Cleveland, Ohio to Los Angeles.
Cleveland Rams became
Los Angeles Rams
First African-Americans to play in the NFL
March 21 - Halfback Kenny Washington and end Woody Strode (May 7) signed with the Los Angeles Rams to become the first African-Americans to play in the NFL in the modern era.
Also at this time Guard Bill Willis on August 6 and back Marion Motley on August 9 joined the All American Football Conference (AAFC) with the Cleveland Browns.
While The Cleveland
Browns were founded in 1946 as a charter member of the
All-America Football Conference under owner Arthur 'Mickey'
McBride. The team was to be named the Cleveland Panthers, but a
semi-pro team was using that name and threatened to sue if the AAFC
club used it as well.
A contest was held and
most of the entries submitted wanted the name Browns, because the
extremely popular Paul Brown was the team's head coach.
Brown is considered
the "father of the modern offense,"
and many consider Paul Brown to be the the greatest football coach in
history. Such claims are backed by significant evidence: Brown
dominated as a gridiron general on every major level - high school,
college, and professional.
he became the first
coach for Arthur 'Mickey' McBride's
new All America Football Conference franchise, the Cleveland Browns.
December 22
- The rival All-America Football Conference began play with eight
teams, a rival league which was actually formed
in 1944.
The league was
absorbed by its competitor (The NFL) in 1950.
The All-America
Football Conference (AAFC) was established as a rival to the NFL. The
new league included the:
Brooklyn Dodgers,
1946-1948
Buffalo Bisons, 1946;
Chicago Rockets,
1946-1948; Cleveland Browns, 1946-1949 Los Angeles Dons, 1946-1949
Miami Seahawks, 1946;
New York Yankees,
1946-1948; San Francisco 49ers, 1946-1949 |
The most powerful team in the new league was the Cleveland Browns, coached by football innovator Paul Brown.
Although talented, the
quarterbacks of the 1930s and early 1940s seldom completed more than
50 percent of their passes. A major cause of these low percentages
was the primitive nature of pass-blocking strategies. With little
protection, passers always had to throw while avoiding incoming
rushers. Brown installed a blocking system that radically transformed
the passing game. He changed the system by arranging the linemen in
the form of a cup that pushed most pass-rushers to the outside and
provided a safe area, called a pocket,
from which the quarterback could pass.
Using the strategy,
Brown coached Cleveland to four AAFC championships from 1946 to 1949.
The Browns became a
charter member of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) in 1946,
with Paul Brown as head coach and general manager. Cleveland
dominated the AAFC, losing just four regular-season games while
winning every championship during the leagues four-year
existence. The Browns boasted several future Hall of Fame members,
including quarterback Otto Graham, tackle-placekicker Lou Groza, end
Dante Lavelli, and halfback Marion Motley.
The Cleveland Browns,
coached by Paul Brown, won the AAFC's first championship, defeating
the New York Yankees 14-9 at Cleveland Stadium.
Backs Frank Filchock and Merle Hapes of the Giants were questioned about an attempt by a New York man to fix the championship game with the Bears. Bell suspended Hapes but allowed Filchock to play.
The NFL season ended when the Chicago Bears defeated the New York Giants, 24-14, at Polo Grounds, New York City, December 15 in the1946 NFL Championship Game.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
(The Joe Carr Trophy
awarded by the NFL)
is awarded to Halfback,
Bill Dudley of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Bill Dudley led the NFL
in rushing, interceptions, and punt returns.
Major rule changes
January 11
A forward pass that strikes the goal posts is automatically ruled incomplete. This is sometimes known as the "Baugh/Marshall Rule" after Washington Redskins quarterback Sammy Baugh and team owner George Preston Marshall. In the previous year's NFL Championship Game, the Rams scored a safety when Baugh, throwing the ball from his own end zone, hit the goal posts (which were on the goal line between 1927 and 1973). The two points was the margin of victory as the Rams won 15-14. Marshall was so mad at the outcome that he was a major force in passing this rule change.
The free substitution rule was repealed and substitutions were limited to no more than three players at a time.
The receiving team is permitted to return punts and missed field goal attempts from behind their own goal line.
The penalty for an invalid fair catch signal is 5 yards from the spot of the signal.
A fair catch signal is valid when it is made while the ball is in flight.
AAFC added a fifth official, the sideline judge.
History of the Coin Toss
The coin toss has been a part of professional football since its start in 1892. While the procedure has been relatively unchanged over the years, the following is a history of change made to the pre-game procedure.
Previously: The referee performed the toss.
Change: Note was added to the rule
that stipulated that the toss was to be made prior to either team
leaving field after their pre-game warm up.
1947
The 1947 NFL season was the 28th regular season of the National Football League.
(AAFC) The Cleveland Browns again won the AAFC title, defeating the New York Yankees 14-3.
Charles Bidwill, Sr., owner of the Chicago Cardinals, died April 19, but his wife and sons retained ownership of the team. The cardinals went on to end the season when they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 28-21, in the NFL Championship Game on December 28.
(AAFC) The original incarnation of the Baltimore Colts started in the All-America Football Conference in 1946 as the Miami Seahawks. After a 3-11 season, they moved to Baltimore in 1947.
(AAFC) Buffalo Bisons were renamed Buffalo Bills.
Major rule changes
A fifth official, the Back Judge, is added to the officiating crew.
When a team has less than 11 players on the field prior to a snap or kick, the officials are not to notify them.
An illegal use of hands penalty will be called whenever a defensive player uses them to block the vision of a receiver during any pass behind the offensive team's line.
During an unsuccessful extra point attempt, the play becomes dead as soon as failure is evident.
Roughing the kicker will not be called if he kicks after recovering a loose ball or fumble on the play.
All teams are required to use prescribed standard yardage chains, down boxes, and flexible shaft markers.
A bonus choice was
instituted for the first time in the NFL draft.
One team each year would
receive the first pick before the first round began. This bonus pick,
which continued through 1958, was selected by lottery and each team
was eligible for the pick only once.
The Chicago Bears
won a lottery and the rights to the first choice and drafted back Bob
Fenimore of Oklahoma A&M.
The NFL
received competition in the second half of the 1940s when the rival
All-America Football Conference also held a college draft. Secrecy
became a new element to the annual player draft as clubs from both
leagues battled to sign the college stars.
History of the Coin Toss
The coin toss has been a part of professional football since its start in 1892. While the procedure has been relatively unchanged over the years, the following is a history of change made to the pre-game procedure.
Previously: Note was added to the rule that stipulated that the toss was to be made prior to either team leaving field after their pre-game warm up.
Change: Coin toss was moved to thirty minutes before the start of the game
1947
PLAYOFFS
The 1947 National Football League
season resulted in a tie for the Eastern Division championship
between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The
division championship game was played on December 21, 1947 at
Pittsburgh's Forbes Field. The winner of that game would travel to
Chicago to play in the championship game against the Chicago
Cardinals on December 28.
1948
The 1948 NFL season was the 29th regular season of the National Football League.
The (AAFC) Cleveland
Browns became the first professional football team to complete an
entire season undefeated - 24 years before the 1972 Miami Dolphins of
the NFL would accomplish the task.
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron
is the only undefeated team in the Association. |
In 1948 Cleveland was home to three professional teams: The Indians, Browns and Barons. In that year all three teams would win the championship title of their respective leagues. No other city can claim three championship teams in one year.
January 15 - Fred Mandel sold the Detroit Lions to a syndicate headed by D. Lyle Fife.
During the season,
Halfback Fred Gehrke painted horns on the Los Angeles Rams' helmets,
making the first modern helmet emblem in pro football.
After suffering through
three more losing seasons and financial woes, Yanks owner Ted Collins
asked the NFL to fold the Boston Yanks for a new franchise in New
York City.
This new team would be
called the New York Bulldogs.
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Jock Sutherland died suddenly during a scouting trip. Sutherland had led the Steelers to an 8-4 recordand a ashare of the Eastern Division title in 1947.
The season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chicago Cardinals 7-0 during a blizzard at Shibe Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 19 in the 1948 NFL Championship Game.
Major rule changes
January 14
Plastic helmets are prohibited. This rule was enacted because critics argued that they were being used more as a weapon than protection.
A flexible artificial tee is permitted at the kickoff.
When the intended passer is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, the game clock will stop temporarily until any receivers who have gone down field have had a reasonable time to return.
When the offense is called for delay of game, the defense may decline the 5-yard distance penalty.
If a foul occurs behind the line during a backwards pass or fumble, the penalty is enforced from the spot of the pass or fumble.
It is illegal to bat or punch the ball while it is in a player's possession.
All officials are equipped with whistles, not horns.
The penalty flag was first used in the NFL, September 17, in a game between the Green Bay Packers and the Boston Yanks.
1949
The 1949 NFL season was the 30th regular season of the National Football League.
Prior to the season, Boston Yanks owner Ted Collins asked the league to fold his team due to financial woes, and give him a new one in New York City. This new team would be called the New York Bulldogs, sharing the Polo Grounds with the Giants.
January 15 Alexis Thompson sold the champion Eagles to a syndicate headed by James P. Clark
As the season came to
a close, The AAFC played its season with a one-division, saw the
number of franchises drop to seven and the number of team's games
drop to 12, with many AAFC teams in financial trouble due to
escalating player salaries.
The NFL also found its
teams in difficulty, and on December 9, Bell announced a merger
agreement in which three AAFC franchises;
The
Cleveland Browns, |
(AAFC) Brooklyn
Dodgers merged with New York for 1949 season
(AAFC) New York Yankees merged with Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming Brooklyn/New York Yankees.
The other AAFC teams
ceased to be as the Buffalo Bills were merged with the Browns, the
New York Yankees were split among the New York Giants and the New
York Bulldogs and the Los Angeles Dons mixed with the L.A. Rams.
The Chicago Rockets
were renamed Chicago Hornets -
however the team was
not one of the AAFC teams that merged with the National Football
League prior to the 1950 season.
George Taliaferro was the first black (African-American) player ever drafted by an NFL team (Chicago Bears - 13th round - 1949), but he was not the first black (African-American) draftee to play in the NFL - that would be Wally Triplett of Penn State but only because George Taliaferro signed, instead, with the Los Angeles Dons of the (AAFC) All-American Football Conference.
First African-American drafted by an NFL club: George Taliaferro,
halfback (Indiana). Picked by the Chicago Bears in the thirteenth
round of the 1949 draft but elected to sign with the Los Angeles Dons
of the AAFC. Played with the Dons 1949; New York Yanks 1950-51;
Dallas 1952; Baltimore 1953-54; Philadelphia 1955.
First African-American draftee to play in the NFL: Wally Triplett,
halfback (Penn State). First name star from a predominantly African-American college: Paul (Tank) Younger, fullback-linebacker (Grambling). Los Angeles Rams 1949-1957; Pittsburgh 1958 |
The final game in the
history of the All America Football Conference
(1946-1949) is generally regarded as the final championship game that
took place on December 11, 1949 at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland,
Ohio. In that game, the Cleveland Browns would win their fourth
consecutive AAFC title. The Browns were the only team to ever win the
AAFC championship, having won it four straight years from 1946
through 1949. In that final championship game, the Browns defeated
the San Francisco 49ers, 21-7.
One notable difference between the |
The NFL had two 1,000-yard rushers in the same season for the first time-Steve Van Buren of Philadelphia and Tony Canadeo of Green Bay.
The NFL season ended when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Los Angeles Rams In a heavy rain 14-0 on December 18 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles in the 1949 NFL Championship Game.
Major rule changes
January 20
The free substitution
rule (any or all of the players may be
replaced by substitutes after any play)
was re-adopted for one year. The rule was previously adopted
in 1943 in response to the depleted
rosters during World War II, but repealed
in 1946.
1950
The Golden age of football came in the 1950's, this was a time of change. The teams were gaining more and more fans and they were also making more money. This started to change aspects of the game, aspects like; player's salary, Television coverage and stadium size.
The 1950 NFL season was the 31st regular season of the National Football League.
Television brought a new
era to the game. The Los Angeles Rams became the first NFL team to
have all of its games - both home and away - televised. The
Washington Redskins became the second team to put their games on TV.
Other teams arranged to have selected games televised.
February 1.- Curly Lambeau, founder of the franchise and Green Bay's head coach since 1921, resigned under fire
The merger prior to the season with the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) expanded the league to 13 teams.
The merged league briefly flirted with the name "National-American Football League", but restored the name "National Football League" a few months later.
March 3 - The American and National conferences were created to replace the Eastern and Western divisions
Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers began play
The NFL establishes the following alignment:
AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Chicago Cardinals
Cleveland Browns
New York Giants
Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
Washington Redskins
San Francisco 49ers
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
(1st) Baltimore Colts
began play
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Los Angeles Rams
New York Bulldogs became
New York Yanks
The Baltimore Colts folds after 1950 season
The New York Bulldogs change their name to the New York Yanks and divided the players of the former AAFC Yankees with the Giants. A special allocation draft was held in which the 13 teams drafted the remaining AAFC players, with special consideration for Baltimore, which received 15 choices compared to 10 for other teams.
Three AAFC teams -
Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Colts - joined
the NFL intact.
The merger allowed the
former 4-time AAFC champion Browns, the 49ers, and the Colts to
survive. Without the agreement, those teams along with the entire
AAFC would have folded due to financial difficulties.
In the first game of
the season, former AAFC champion Cleveland
defeated
NFL champion Philadelphia 35-10.
For the first time,
deadlocks occurred in both conferences and playoffs were necessary.
The Browns defeated the Giants in the American and the
Rams defeated the Bears in the National.
October 2
- Bob Shaw established an NFL record with five touchdown catches as
the Chicago Cardinals defeated the Baltimore Colts 55-13.
The record was tied in 1981 by San Diego
Chargers Kellen Winslow
and again in 1990 by San Francisco 49ers, Jerry Rice.
October 29 -
Detroit Lion's Wally Trippett established an NFL record with 294
kickoff return yards against Los Angeles.
The record has since been
broken by Tyrone Hughes but Trippett's average of 73.5 yards per
return still stands.
304 yards by Tyrone Hughes, New Orleans vs.
L.A. Rams, Oct. 23, 1994
December 3
- Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Tom Fears celebrates his 27th
birthday by making an NFL record 18 receptions for 189 yards and two
touchdowns in the Rams' 51-14 victory over Green Bay Packers.
1950
PLAYOFFS
Home team in capitals
American Conference Playoff Game
CLEVELAND 8, N.Y. Giants 3
National Conference Playoff Game
LOS ANGELES 24, Chi. Bears 14
Cleveland Browns
defeated Los Angeles Rams 30-28 in the 1950
NFL Championship Game, December
24.
Major rule changes
January 20
The free substitution rule (any or all of the players may be replaced by substitutes after any play) was restored on a permanent basis. This changed paved the way for player specialization in pro football, including three separate units for each team: offensive team, defensive team, and special teams.
If a backwards pass or fumble goes out of bounds before it is recovered, the team that had control of the ball last maintains possession.
1951
The 1951 NFL season was the 32nd regular season of the National Football League.
January 14 - The Pro Bowl game which sat dormant since 1942, was revived under a new format matching the all-stars of each conference at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The American Conference defeated the National Conference 28-27
Prior to the season,
Baltimore Colts owner Abraham Watner faced financial difficulties,
and thus gave his team and its player contracts back to the league
for $50,000. Baltimore's former players were made available for
drafting at the same time as college players, January
18.
However, many Baltimore
fans started to protest the loss of their team. Supporting groups
such as its fan club and its marching band remained in operation and
worked for the team's revival
(which
eventually led to a new Baltimore team in 1953).
The Rams reversed their television policy from 1950 to having all of its games - both home and away - televised to televising ONLY road games after half the normal fan population were showing up for Home Games.
Television was a new technological devise that took the country by storm, in the early 50's 8 million televisions would be sold a year. Radios were a thing of the past; the television revolutionized the sport of football and the country.
For the first time, the
NFL Championship Game was televised across the nation, December 23.
The DuMont Television Network paid $75,000 to broadcast the game.
Viewers coast-to-coast watched the Los Angeles Rams defeat the
Cleveland Browns 24-17 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles.
September 28
- One of the greatest opening day performances came when Hall of Fame
quarterback Norm Van Brocklin of the Los Angeles Rams threw for a
record 554 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Rams to a 54-14
victory over the New York Yanks.
The mark still stands as
the greatest single passing effort in National Football League history.
Van Brocklin received
the start that day when veteran Bob Waterfield, also a member of the
Hall, was injured. The two quarterbacks were entrenched in a fierce
battle for the starting role.
The
"Dutchman," as Van Brocklin was nicknamed, made the most of
his opportunity. He completed 27 of 41 passes and tossed five
touchdowns - four of which went to fellow Hall of Famer Elroy
"Crazylegs" Hirsch - en route to a easy 54-14 win over the
New York Yanks.
Major rule changes
January 18
The Pro Bowl game, dormant since 1942, was revived under a new format matching the all-stars of each conference at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The American Conference defeated the National Conference 28-27, January 14.
No offensive tackle, guard, or center would be eligible to catch or touch a forward pass.
Aluminum shoe cleats are banned.
1952
The 1952 NFL season was the 33rd regular season of the National Football League.
January 19
- New York Yanks became Dallas Texans
Prior to the
season, New York Yanks owner Ted Collins sold his team back to the
NFL. A few days later, a new team was then awarded to an ownership
group in Dallas, Texas after it purchased the assets of the Yanks, January
24.
However, the new Dallas
Texans went 1-11, and was sold back to the league midway through the season.
The Texans
inaugural game actually began on an optimistic note - they scored
first. Just minutes into the game the Texans recovered a punt fumbled
by a Giants defensive back. Two plays later the Texans scored.
Sequence photos of the scoring pass-play show that the nearest Giants
defender was the same defensive back who had set up the drive with
his fumble - Tom Landry. The Texans missed the extra point (something
they would do six more times during the season) and the Giants went
on to win 24-6.
For the team's last five
games, the the commissioner's office operated the Texans as a road
team, using Hershey, Pennsylvania as a home base. Their final three
"home" games were held at the Rubber Bowl in Akron, Ohio.
After the season ended, the league folded the Texans, the last time
an NFL team failed.
|
The New York Giants used their 1st draft pick to select Southern Califonia's Frank Gifford
The Pittsburgh Steelers abandoned the Single-Wing for the T-formation, the last pro team to do so.
1952
PLAYOFFS
Home team in capitals
National Conference Playoff Game
December 28.
DETROIT 31, Los Angeles 21
The Detroit Lions go on to win their first NFL championship in 17 years, defeating the Cleveland Browns 17-7 in the 1952 NFL championship game
Major rule changes
Offensive players will not be called for illegal motion as long as they do not move forward prior to the snap.
The penalty for offensive pass interference is 15 yards from the previous spot, unless the result on a fourth down play is a touchback.
A player who commits a palpably (obviously) unfair act is ejected from the game.
1953
The 1953 NFL season was the 34th regular season of the National Football League.
Dallas Texans became new
Baltimore Colts
A Baltimore, Maryland
group headed by Carroll Rosenbloom was granted an NFL team, and was
awarded the holdings of the defunct Dallas Texans organization,
January 23.
The new team was named the Colts
after
the previous team that folded after the 1950 NFL season.
The team put together
the largest trade in league history, acquiring 10 players from
Cleveland in exchange for five.
The NFL formally
reinstates the dead Dallas Texans franchise as the Baltimore Colts
January 24 - The names of the American and National conferences were changed to the Eastern and Western conferences,
September 27
- Baltimore Colts's Bert Rechichar boots a record 56-yard field goal
against Chicago.
Previously held by Detroits
Glenn Presnell who kicked a 54-yard field goal October 7, 1934
Rechichar's
record would
stand for 17 years until New Orleans Saints, Tom
Dempsey nailed a 63-yarder on Nov. 8 1970.
Willie Thrower became NFL's first black (African-American) quarterback when he appeared in a game for the Chicago Bears on Oct. 18; never appeared in another game and it would be 15 years before another African-American quarterback would take a snap in a pro game.
March 28 Jim Thorpe died
New York Giants coach Steve Owen ended a 24 year coaching career with a 153-108-17 record.
June 10 - Mickey McBride, founder of the Cleveland Browns, sold the franchise to a Cleveland syndicate for $600,000 headed by Dave R. Jones, June 10, 1953
November 12 - The NFL policy of blacking out home games was upheld by Judge Allan K. Grim of the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia
December 27 - The season ended when the Detroit Lions defeated the Cleveland Browns 17-16 in the 1953 NFL Championship Game for the second year in a row at Briggs Stadium, Detroit, Michigan
Major rule changes
The definition of illegal
motion is clarified. A player must be moving directly forward at the
snap to be considered illegally in motion.
1954
The 1954 NFL season was the 35th regular season of the National Football League.
The Canadian Football League began a series of raids on NFL teams, signing quarterback Eddie LeBaron and defensive end Gene Brito of Washington and defensive tackle Arnie Weinmeister of the Giants, among others.
Fullback Joe Perry of the 49ers became the first player in league history to gain 1,000 yards rushing in consecutive seasons.
September 7 - Pop Warner died of Throat cancer in Palo Alto, California at the age of 83.
Weeb Ewbank named head
coach for Colts
September. 26
- Colts ordered plastic facemasks for helmets for first time
December 26 - The season ended when the Cleveland Browns turned around and defeated the Detroit Lions 56-10 in the 1954 NFL Championship Game at Cleveland Stadium, Cleveland, OhioMajor rule changes
Whenever it is raining,
or whenever the field is wet and slippery, the offensive team can
request a new, dry playable ball at any time.
1955
The 1955 NFL season was the 36th regular season of the National Football League.
The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Louisville quarterback Johhny Unitis on the 9th round. They then cut Unitis without letting him appear in a preseason game.
The Baltimore Colts made
an 80-cent phone call to Johnny Unitas and signed him as a free agent.
October 1
- Baltimore Colt's Alan Ameche becomes the first rookie in league
history to top 100 yards rushing in his first two games after
totaling 153 yards against Detroit. He had 194 yards in his debut vs.
The Chicago Bears.
August 28 - The sudden-death overtime rule was used for the first time in a pre-season game between the Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants at Portland, Oregon. The Rams won 23-17 three minutes into overtime.
The bout laid the foundation for the NFL to adopt the overtime rule for regular season games, finally being approved in 1974
NBC televises a college football game between Miami and Georgia Tech - the first broadcast of a football game in color.
NBC paid $100,000 to
replace DuMont as the national television network for the NFL
Championship Game.
Quarterback, Otto Graham,
played his last game as the Cleveland Browns
defeated the Los Angeles Rams 38 -14 in the 1955
NFL Championship Game,
December 26 at Los Angeles Memorial
Coliseum, Los Angeles.
Graham had
quarterbacked the Browns to 10 championship-game appearances in 10 years.
Major rule changes
The ball is dead immediately when the ball carrier touches the ground with any part of his body except his hands or feet while in the grasp of an opponent.
A new exception is made in regards to scoring a safety: When a defender intercepts a pass, his intercepting momentum carries him into his own end zone, and he is stopped before returning the ball back into the field of play, then the ball will be next put in play at the spot of the interception.
The sudden-death overtime
rule was used for the first time in a preseason game between the Rams
and Giants at Portland, Oregon, August 28.
The Rams won 23-17 three minutes into overtime.
1956
The 1956 NFL season was
the 37th regular season of the National Football League.
CBS became the first network to broadcast some NFL regular season games to selected television markets across the nation.
The NFL Players Association was founded.
The New York Giants moved from the Polo Grounds to Yankee Stadium.
Cleveland Browns coach Paul Brown tries out the first wireless communication between coach and quarterback. A citizens band radio receiver is placed inside the helmet of QB George Ratterman. Brown attempts to relay plays to him via a transmitter on the sidelines. The effort fails when Ratterman's receiver picks up a conversation between two women.
George Halas retired as
coach of the Chicago Bears, and was replaced by Paddy Driscoll.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
December 30
The season ended when the
New York Giants crushed the Chicago Bears in the 1956
NFL Championship Game, 47-7 at Yankee
Stadium, New York City.
Major rule changes
It is now illegal to grab an opponent's facemask (other than the ball carrier).
When an offensive interior lineman takes a three point stance prior to the snap, he may not move until the snap.
The ball is dead immediately when the ball carrier is contacted by a defensive player and then touches the ground with any part of his body except his hands or feet.
Using radio receivers to communicate with players on the field is prohibited.
Players are prohibited from using any artificial medium to assist in the execution of a field goal or an extra point attempt. This change is sometimes referred to as the "Lou Groza Rule" after the Cleveland Browns' hall of fame offensive tackle and placekicker. Groza would always carry a 72-inch rolled piece of adhesive tape in his helmet. Before each kick attempt, he would use it as a directional aid by unrolling the tape on the ground from the line of scrimmage to the point where the ball would be spotted for the kick.
Meanwhile, the league started to use a natural leather ball with white end stripes, instead of the white ball with black stripes, for night games.
In the draft, the number of rounds stayed at 30 throughout the decade of the 1950s. By the middle of the decade, the NFL once again felt the squeeze of competition as the Canadian Football League was attempting to gain popularity by signing big-name college stars from the United States. In order to combat the threat, the NFL held early drafts from 1956-1959. The first four rounds of the drafts were held in late November or early December and rounds 5-30 were held in January.
1957
The 1957 NFL season was the 38th regular season of the National Football League.
Pete Rozelle was named general manager of the Los Angeles Rams.
Sept. 29 - Horseshoes placed on the side of Colts helmets for first time.
October 28 - Anthony J. Morabito, founder and co-owner of the San Francisco 49ers, died of a heart attack during a game against the Chicago Bears at Kezar Stadium.
November 10 - An NFL-record crowd of 102,368 saw the 49ers at Rams game in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
November 24 - Cleveland rookie Jim Brown rushes for an NFL record 237 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Browns to a 45-31 victory over the Los Angeles Rams.
The NFL Most Valuable Player Award
As awarded by the
Associated Press
Is awarded to Running
Back, Jim Brown of the Cleveland Browns
1957
PLAYOFFS
Home team in capitals
Western Conference Playoff Game
December 22 - The Detroit Lions came from 20 points down to post a 31-27 playoff victory over the San Francisco 49ers
December 29 - The season ended when the Detroit Lions crushed the Cleveland Browns 59-14 in the 1957 NFL Championship Game.
Major rule changes
During sudden-death
overtime, rules for time outs is the same as in a regular game,
including the last two minutes of the second and third quarters.
1958
The 1958 NFL season was the 39th regular season of the National Football League.
January 29
- The idea of the bonus
pick, which began in 1947, ran full
cycle and was abandoned after the 1958 draft.
By that time, each team
in the league had been awarded the first overall pick in the annual
draft, and teams resumed picking in reverse order of league standing.
The last selection
was quarterback King Hill of Rice by the Chicago Cardinals.
Halas reinstated himself
again as coach of the Chicago Bears.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
Jim Brown of the Cleveland Browns gained an NFL-record 1,527 yards rushing. In a divisional playoff game, the Giants held Brown to eight yards and defeated Cleveland 10-0.
Lamar Hunt (son and heir of Texas oilman H. L. Hunt) attempted to bring an NFL franchise to his hometown of Dallas but was rejected by the league.
1958
PLAYOFFS
Home team in capitals
Eastern Conference Playoff Game
N.Y. GIANTS 10, Cleveland 0
First Overtime NFL Championship
December 28
- The Baltimore Colts, coached by Weeb Ewbank,
defeated the New York Giants 23-17 in the first sudden-death
overtime in an NFL Championship Game,
winning the colts first NFL title.
The game ended when Colts
fullback Alan Ameche scored on a one-yard touchdown run after 8:15 of overtime.
The game would be known
to American football fans as
"The
Greatest Game Ever Played".
Many football fans
regard the 1958 NFL Championship Game as the first overtime game in
NFL history. Indeed it was the first playoff
overtime game, but it was not the first-ever overtime game.
That
occurred three years earlier on August 28, 1955 in a pre-season game
between the Los Angeles Rams and the New York Giants.
1959
The 1959 NFL season was the 40th regular season of the National Football League.
January 28
- Vince Lombardi was named head coach of the Green Bay Packers.
First Blimp
CBS director Frank Chirkinian convinces the president of CBS Sports to pay $3,000 to put a camera in a blimp hovering over the Orange Bowl college game in Miami. Blimps and football games have gone together like mustard on hot dogs ever since.
Tim Mara, the co-founder of the New York Giants, died, February 17.
A second attempt to
bring an NFL franchise to his hometown of Dallas was also
unsuccessful. Lamar Hunt (son and heir of Texas oilman H. L. Hunt)
was advised by league officials to contact the owners of the Chicago
Cardinals, who offered to sell Hunt a 20 percent stake in the team.
Hunt rejected the
offer, and it was then that he began to envision not just a new team
in the NFL, but an entirely new league that was to drastically change
the face of pro football forever.
Lamar Hunt, who founded
the American Football League with six original cities - Dallas, New
York, Houston, Denver, Los Angeles and Minneapolis (Oakland
replaced Minneapolis).
October 28
- Ralph C. Wilson was awarded an AFL francise
November 16
- Boston was granted an AFL francise
Lamar Hunt was the
cornerstone, the integrity of the league. Without him, there would
have been no AFL.
Hunt announced his
intentions to form a second pro football league.
The first meeting was
held in Chicago, August 14,
and consisted of Hunt representing Dallas; Bob Howsam, Denver; K.S. (Bud)
Adams, Houston; Barron Hilton, Los Angeles; Max Winter and Bill
Boyer, Minneapolis; and Harry Wismer, New York City. They made plans
to begin play in 1960.
The new league was
named the American Football League, August
22.
Hunt named his team the
Dallas Texans (now Kansas City
Chiefs ) and
hired Hank Stram, an assistant coach at the University of Miami,
Florida, as his head coach.
Located in his
hometown, Lamar Hunt would face direct competition from
the NFL's newest
expansion team, the Dallas Cowboys.
August 3
- Franchise Owner-President K. S. "Bud" Adams Jr. ,
announces Houston's entry into the American Football League.
Adams hires Lou Rymkus
to coach his team in Houston known as the Oilers later to be known
as today's Tennessee Titans.
Adams names the team
Oilers -
"for
sentimental and social reasons, in that it is the largest part of the
economy and workforce in Texas, as many cities were found on oil."
August 14,
Bob Howsam, a successful minor league baseball owner who built Bears
Stadium in the 1940s, was awarded an AFL charter franchise to be
named The Denver Broncos.
Severely limited
financially, Howsam clothed his first team in used uniforms from the
defunct Copper Bowl in Tucson, Ariz. Making the uniforms particularly
joke-worthy were the vertically-striped socks that completed the
Broncos' dress.
Two years later,
when Jack Faulkner took over as head coach and general manager, the
socks were destroyed in a public burning ceremony.
Also on August
14, Barron Hilton, a 32-year-old
hotel executive, was awarded an AFL charter franchise for Los Angeles.
Barron Hilton agreed
after his general manager, Frank Ready picked the Chargers name when
he purchased an AFL franchise for Los Angeles.
"I liked it
because they were yelling 'charge' and sounding the bugle at Dodgers
Stadium and at USC games."
(now San Diego Chargers)
October 28, The Buffalo Bills began their pro football life as the seventh team to be admitted to the new American Football League. The franchise was awarded to Ralph C. Wilson.
August 14 -
Charter franchise granted to New York and Harry Wismer in November
to be known as The New York Titans.
(now New York Jets )
VERIFY DATES
Receiver Don Maynard, a future Hall of Famer, was the 1st player to sign with the New York Titans.
November 16
- Professional football arrived in New England when a group of local
businessmen, led by former public relations executive William
H.Sullivan, Jr. was awarded the eighth and final franchise in the new
American Football League to be called The Boston Patriots.
(Now The New England Patriots)
November 22
- The first AFL draft, lasting 33 rounds, was held
November 30
- Joe Foss was named AFL Commissioner, .
December 2 - An additional draft of 20 rounds was held by the AFL
The AFL is formally organized with the charter members:
EASTERN DIVISION
Boston Patriots
Buffalo Bills
Houston Oilers
(to be
known as today's Tennessee Titans)
New York Titans
WESTERN DIVISION
Dallas Texans
Denver Broncos
Los Angeles Chargers
In November,
Minneapolis owner Max Winter announced his intent to leave the AFL in
order to accept a franchise offer from the NFL.
January 27th (1960),
The Minneapolis franchise formally withdrew from the AFL and was
replaced on January 30 (1960)
by one in Oakland, California, owned by a group of local investors
headed by Chet Soda.
October 11
- tragedy
struck as NFL Commissioner Bert Bell died of a heart attack suffered
at Franklin Field, Philadelphia, during the last two minutes of a
game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
League Treasurer
Austin Gunsel was named interim commissioner for the rest of the season.
NFL treasurer Austin
Gunsel served as president in the office of commissioner following
the death of Bell (Oct. 11, 1959) until the election of Rozelle (Jan.
26, 1960).
December 27
- The season ended when the Baltimore Colts
defeated the New York Giants for the second year in a row, 31-16 in
the 1959 NFL Championship Game
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland .
1960
The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League.
January 26
- Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL Commissioner as a
compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Rozelle moved the
league offices to New York City.
The American
Football League (AFL) is established
The American
Football League, or AFL,
was a professional
league of American football which operated from 1960 to 1969.
There were three
earlier, unrelated, and unsuccessful football leagues with the name
of "American Football League",
On August
14, 1959, Seeing that a profit could
be made from professional football, at the call of Dallas businessman
Lamar Hunt, a new professional football league to be called the
American Football League (AFL) was organized to begin play as a rival
to the NFL. Hunt was elected AFL president January
26.
The whole idea
seemed so far-fetched, even after AFL teams started playing, that the
team owners became known as the "Foolish Club."
Almost every element that makes pro football the world's most popular sport that it is today can be traced to the American Football League and the huge changes its presence eventually brought to the sport.
AFL Charter memberships included
Boston Patriots |
|
Buffalo Bills |
|
Houston Oilers |
|
New York Titans |
|
Dallas Texans |
|
Denver Broncos |
|
Los Angeles Chargers |
|
Kansas City Chiefs |
|
*Oakland Raiders
*Minneapolis
*January 27th, The Minneapolis franchise formally withdrew from the AFL and was replaced on January 30 by one in Oakland, California, owned by a group of local investors headed by Chet Soda.
The American Football League was formally organized on August 14, 1959. However, the Oakland Raiders did not become the eighth member of the new league until January 1960, when they were selected as a replacement for the Minneapolis franchise, which defected to the NFL.
The Oakland Raiders signed Tom Flores as starting quarterback. Flores became the first Hispanic quarterback in professional football.
January 1 - The Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) signed No. 1 draft pick Billy Cannon of Louisianna State
January 28 - Minneapolis was given an NFL franchise for Minnesota which is later named the Minnesota Vikings and begins play in the Western Conference in 1961
The two leagues fought bitterly for players, media attention, and profits. Standouts in the new league such as Jack Kemp, Lance Alworth, and Joe Namath helped the AFL establish itself on par with the NFL.
The NFL and AFL
battled each other throughout much of the 1960's. Helping to fuel the
war was stiff competition to sign key players from the college draft.
Starting in 1960, the NFL
held a secret early draft to beat the AFL in signing players. Secrecy
served as the norm throughout the first half of the decade,
highlighted by the common practice of kidnapping
prospects. Often times, teams would
hold players in hotels until they were drafted, thereby increasing
the chance that their league would sign them.
June 9 - The AFL signed a five-year television contract with ABC
The AFL began
regular-season play on Friday, September
9
(a night game)
The Denver Broncos defeated the Boston Patriots 13-10 before 21,597 at Boston in the first AFL regular-season game, September 9.
The Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) became the first-ever league champions, defeating the Chargers 24-16 in the AFL Championship Game on January 1
Attendance for the 1960
season was respectable for a new league, but
not nearly that of the NFL. Whereas
the more popular NFL teams in 1960 regularly saw attendance figures
of 50,000+, AFL attendance generally
hovered between 10-20,000.
With the low attendance
came financial losses. The Raiders, for instance, lost $500,000 in
their first year. In an early sign of stability, however, the AFL did
not lose any teams after its first year of operation.
However, all was not
peace and tranquility in The New Afl and Dallas.
January 28 -
The rival National Football League had placed a team, the Dallas
Cowboys, to compete with the Texans.
The fans were torn
between two camps-
the Texans and the Cowboys.
Meanwhile, the NFL franchise expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys to begin play in the Eastern Conference.
March 13th
- Chicago Cardinals became St Louis Cardinals
The NFL owners voted to
allow the transfer of the Chicago Cardinals. The Cardinals relocated
from Chicago, Illinois to Saint Louis, Missouri, becoming the St.
Louis "football" Cardinals to distinguish itself from the
major league baseball team of the same name.
The (NFL) Baltimore Colts organized the first professional cheerleading squad in history. Up until then, high school squads were used on the sidelines to promote spirit.
Later on in the 1960's, The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders created a pure pom-pom "Broadway-style" dance entertainment for the crowds.
The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Green Bay Packers 17-13 in the 1960 NFL Championship Game, December 26 at Franklin Field , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Nevertheless, the game signaled the rise of the Green Bay franchise under head coach Vince Lombardi. An intimidating and motivating individual, Lombardi led Green Bay to the NFL title the following year and added two more NFL championships in 1962 and 1965.
Hall of Fame halfback Paul Hornung scored an incredible 176 points during the 1960 National Football League Season. Although the mark has been challenged a few times in the past decade, it still holds up today. Making the amount of points even more impressive is that he achieved the total during a 12-game schedule.
In all these years, when I look back on the record, he commented, the one thing Im always proud of is that my record was in 12 games and it hasnt been broken even in the 16-game season.
Johnny Unitas compiled a
string of 47 straight games in which he threw at least one touchdown
pass which is referred to as pro football's "unbreakable" record.
December 11 - Unitas
failed to throw a touchdown pass in a 10-3 loss at Los Angeles,
snapping his NFL record streak of 47 consecutive games with a scoring toss.
49ers head coach Red
Hickey introduced the shotgun formation on November
27, 1960 in a game against the
Baltimore Colts. Hickey knew the Colts had a terrific pass rush, so
in preparing for the game he had his quarterbacks practice taking
snaps seven yards deep rather than from under center. This, he
reasoned, would not only give his quarterbacks more time to spot
receivers, but also cause the Colts to rethink their defensive
alignment. He was right on both accounts.
The result was a stunning
30-22 upset of the heavily-favored Colts
Major rule changes
January 28
- The AFL adopted the two-point option on points after touchdown.
February 9
- A no-tampering verbal pact, relative to players' contracts, was
agreed to between the NFL and AFL
1961
The 1961 NFL season was the 42th regular season of the National Football League.
NFL regular season became 14 games
Canton, Ohio, where the
league that became the NFL was formed in 1920, was chosen as the site
of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, April 27.
Dick McCann, a former
Redskins executive, was named executive director.
The league expanded to 14 teams with the addition of the Minnesota Vikings, after the team's owners declined to be charter members of the new American Football League.
January 14, End Willard Dewveall of the Chicago Bears played out his option and joined the Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans), thus becoming the first NFL player to defect to the AFL.
The AFL approves expansion into Atlanta for 1961
The AFL approves expansion into Chicago for 1961
Ed McGah, Wayne Valley, and Robert Osborne bought out their partners in the ownership of the Raiders, January 17.
February 10
- Los Angeles Chargers became San Diego Chargers
The Los Angeles
Chargers move to San Diego.
Even though they won
the AFL Western division championship in 1960, the Los Angeles
Chargers received meager fan support so Hilton, buoyed by the
encouragement of San Diego sports editor Jack Murphy, moved his team
120 miles south to San Diego in 1961. Historic Balboa Stadium was
expanded to 34,000 capacity to accommodate the Chargers. In San
Diego, the Chargers, spurred by coach Sid Gillman, developed into one
of the true glamour teams of any decade. Gillman's first teams were
high-scoring, crowd-pleasing juggernauts that won divisional
championships five of the AFL's first six years and the AFL title
with a 51-10 win over Boston in 1963.
March 22
- Dave R. Jones sold the Cleveland Browns to a group headed by Arthur
B. Modell for a record sum of $4 million dollars.
Coach Paul Brown
received a new 8 year contract
April 5 - NBC was awarded a two-year contract for radio and television rights to the NFL Championship Game for $615,000 annually, $300,000 of which was to go directly into the NFL Player Benefit Plan,
May 26 - The Howsam brothers sold the Broncos to a group headed by Calvin Kunz and Gerry Phipps,
September 30 - A bill legalizing single-network television contracts by professional sports leagues was introduced in Congress by Representative Emanuel Celler. It passed the House and Senate and was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy
November 19 - Cleveland running back Jim Brown rushes for an NFL record 242 yards and four touchdowns as the Browns beat the Philadelphia Eagles 45-24.
Minneapolis began play in the NFL, where it took the name Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings' lack of success ever since is referred to as "the curse of the AFL".
While some teams (such as the Oilers) found instant success in the AFL, others were not as fortunate. The Oakland Raiders and New York Titans struggled on and off the field during their first few seasons in the league. Oakland's eight-man ownership group was reduced to just three in 1961, after heavy financial losses their first season. Attendance for home games was poor, partly due to the fact that the team was playing in the San Francisco Bay Area, which already had an established NFL team (the San Francisco 49ers). The product on the field was also to blame. After winning six games their debut season, the Raiders won just three times combined in the 1962 and 1963 seasons.
With the Tennessee Titans off to a 1-3-1 start, Wally Lemm replaced Coach Lou Rymkus, who had led the team to the AFL title a year earlier.
December 20 - The webmaster of this site was born
Detroit Lions defeated the
Cleveland Browns17-16 in the first Playoff
Bowl, or Bert Bell Benefit Bowl, between second-place teams in each
conference in Miami, January 7.
The season ended when the
Green Bay Packers won their first NFL championship since 1944,
defeating the New York Giants 37-0 in the
1961 NFL Championship Game at
City Stadium, Green Bay, Wisconsin, December
31
January 1
- The Houston Oilers (to
be known as today's Tennessee Titans)
defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 24-16 before 32,183 fans
in the first
AFL Championship Game.
Billy Cannon is named
the game's Most Valuable Player.
1962
The 1962 NFL season was the 43rd regular season of the National Football League.
January 10.-
Before the season, The NFL entered into a single-network agreement
with CBS for telecasting all regular-season games for $4.65 million annually
May 21 - Judge Roszel Thompson of the U.S. District Court in Baltimore ruled against the AFL in its antitrust suit against the NFL. The AFL had charged the NFL with monopoly and conspiracy in areas of expansion, television, and player signings. The case lasted two and a half years, the trial two months.
May 24 - McGah and Valley acquired controlling interest in the Oakland Raiders.
October 28 - New York Giants quarterback Y.A. Tittle completes 27 of 39 passes for 505 yards and a record-tying seven touchdown passes in the New York Giants' 49-34 victory over Washington Redskins at Yankee Stadium.
The New York Titans (later
be known as New York Jets)
fared a little better on the field but had their own financial
troubles. Attendance was so low for home games that fans were moved
to seats closer to the field to give the illusion of a fuller stadium
on television. Things got so bad that owner Harry Wisner was unable
to meet his payroll, and on November 8,
1962 the AFL took over operations of the team.
November 8 -The AFL assumed financial responsibility for the New York Titans.
After winning 4 AAFC titles, The Browns quickly won 3 in the NFL. All 7 of the titles came with Paul Brown running the organization. The legendary coach was pushed out after the 1962 season when he and new owner Art Modell clashed over control issues.
The Buffalo Bills had
their first winning sesaon,
fininshing 7-6-1.
Ernie
Davis became the first African-American selected first overall in an
NFL draft.
The Washington
Redskins drafted Davis in 1962 and traded his rights to the Cleveland Browns.
Tragically, Davis died of
leukemia before ever getting to showcase his talents in the NFL.
With Commissioner Rozelle as referee, Daniel F. Reeves regained the ownership of the Rams, outbidding his partners in sealed-envelope bidding for the team, November 27.
The Dallas Texans
defeated the Houston Oilers (to
be known as today's Tennessee Titans)
20-17 for the 1962 AFL championship
at Houston after 17 minutes, 54 seconds of overtime on a 25-yard
field goal by Tommy Brooker, December 23.
The game lasted a
record 77 minutes, 54 seconds.
January 7 - The Western Division defeats the Eastern Division 47-27 in the first AFL All-Star Game played before 20,973 in San Diego.
Judge Edward Weinfeld of the U.S. District Court in New York City upheld the legality of the NFL's television blackout within a 75-mile radius of home games and denied an injunction that would have forced the championship game between the Giants and the Packers to be televised in the New York City area, December 28.
The season ended when the Green Bay Packers defeated the New York Giants 16-7 in the 1962 NFL Championship Game at Yankee Stadium, New York City, December 30
Major rule changes
Both leagues prohibited
grabbing any player's facemask.
1963
The 1963 NFL season was the 44th regular season of the National Football League.
NFL Properties, Inc., was founded to serve as the licensing arm of the NFL.
On April
17, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle
indefinitely suspended Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung
and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras for gambling on their
own teams, as well as other NFL games. In addition, five other
Detroit players were fined $2000 each for placing bets on one game in
which they did not participate in.
The Detroit Lions
Football Company was also fined $2,000 on each of two counts for
failure to report information promptly and for lack of sideline supervision.
Paul Brown, head coach of the Cleveland Browns since their inception, was fired with 6 years remaining in his contract and replaced by Blanton Collier.
Al Davis became Head
Coah for the Oakland Raiders replacing Red Conkright. Davis was
awarded AFL Coach of The Year.
Al Davis has since
become The Raiders owner
To become inducted into The Hall of Fame in 1992
Don Shula replaced Weeb Ewbank as head coach of the Baltimore Colts.
Dallas Texans became
Kansas City Chiefs
The Dallas Texans
became the second AFL team to relocate. Lamar Hunt felt that despite
winning the league championship in 1962, the Texans could not succeed
financially in the same market as the NFL
Dallas Cowboys. After meetings with
Atlanta and Miami, Hunt decided on Kansas City as the new home for
his team. On May 22
Hunt announced the move, and the team was christened the Kansas City
Chiefs on May 26.
March
28 - New
York Titans became New York Jets
In spite of it all, the
New York Titans had reasonable success on the field but they were a
box office disaster.
A five-man syndicate
headed by David (Sonny)
Werblin, purchased the bankrupt franchise for $1,000,000.
The team's name was
changed to the New York Jets April
15 and hired Weeb Ewbank as head coach.
The Jets moved from the
antiquated Polo Grounds to newly-constructed Shea Stadium, where the
Jets set an AFL attendance mark of 45,665 in the season opener
against the Denver Broncos.
May 11 - The AFL allowed the Jets and Raiders to select players from other franchises in hopes of giving the league more competitive balance.
May 23 - NBC was awarded exclusive network broadcasting rights for the 1963 AFL Championship Game for $926,000.
September 7
- The Pro Football Hall of Fame was dedicated at Canton, Ohio
The 19,000-square-foot,
two-building Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio is officially opened.
The Hall's charter class
of 17 enshrinees are inducted:
Sammy Baugh |
Don Hutson |
The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed the lower court's finding for the NFL in the $10-million suit brought by the AFL, ending three and a half years of litigation, November 21.
On November 24th, just two days after the assassination of President Kennedy, the NFL played its normal schedule of games, to much criticism.
December 28
The Boston Patriots
defeated Buffalo Bills 26-8 in the first divisional playoff game in
AFL history,
Jim Brown of Cleveland rushed for an NFL single-season record 1,863 yards.
Instant Replay
For the first time, CBS uses instant replay to let fans review the action during the December. 7 telecast of an Army-Navy game.
NFL Championship Game
The season ended when the Chicago Bears defeated the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game.
December 29 - Chicago 14, New York 10 at Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois
December 29
- The Bears defeated the Giants 14-10 in the NFL Championship Game, a
record sixth and last title for Halas in his thirty-sixth season as
the Bears' coach.
1964
The 1964 NFL season was the 45th regular season of the National Football League.
Before the season started, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle reinstated Green Bay Packers running back Paul Hornung and Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras March 16, who had been suspended for the 1963 season due to gambling.
Instant replay on CBS becomes a standard for NFL broadcasts.
January 10 - William Clay Ford, the Detroit Lions' president since 1961, purchased the team.
With Dallas Cowboys Head coach original 5 year contract about to expire, coach Tom Landry was given a 10 year contract despite failing to post a winning record.
January 21 - A group representing the late James P. Clark sold the Eagles to a group headed by Jerry Wolman
January 23 - Carroll Rosenbloom, the majority owner of the Colts since 1953, acquired complete ownership of the team
On January 29 the AFL league signed a lucrative five-year, $36 million television contract with NBC, to start in the 1965 season. This gave the league money it desperately needed to compete with the NFL for talent.
March 5 - Commissioner Rozelle negotiated an agreement on behalf of the NFL clubs to purchase Ed Sabol's Blair Motion Pictures, which was renamed NFL Films
April 17 - CBS submitted the winning bid of $14.1 million per year for the NFL regular-season television rights for 1964 and 1965, January 24. CBS acquired the rights to the championship games for 1964 and 1965 for $1.8 million per game.
October 25 - (Minnesota Vikings vs. San Francisco 49ers) Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall picks up a fumble but accidentally runs 66 yards the wrong way, scoring a safety for the 49ers before he realizes his mistake. Fortunately for Marshall, the Vikings prevailed, 27-22.
November 15 - Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson fumbles a record seven times against The San Diego Chargers.
Pete Gogolak of Cornell signed a contract with the Buffalo Bills, becoming the first soccer-style kicker in pro football.
The New York Jets used their first draft pick to select Ohio State running back Matt Snell.
December 26 - Buffalo Bills defeated The San Diego Chargers, 20-7 in the AFL Championship Game, giving the Bills their first title.
The NFL season ended when
The Cleveland Browns won the Eastern Conference title game 52-20 over
the New York Giants
and
defeated the Baltimore
Colts 27-0 in the NFL Championship Game, December 27 at Cleveland
Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
1965
The 1965 NFL season was the 46th regular season of the National Football League.
According to a Harris survey, sports fans chose professional football (41 percent) as their favorite sport, overtaking baseball (38 percent) for the first time.
January 22 - New York Giants quartrback Y.A. Tittle announced his retirement.
February 15 - The NFL teams pledged not to sign college seniors until completion of all their games, including bowl games, and empowered the Commissioner to discipline the clubs up to as much as the loss of an entire draft list for a violation of the pledge
For years groups had no
success trying to lure an existing franchise to the large, untapped
southeastern market.
Finally on
June 30
- Atlanta was awarded an NFL franchise named The Atlanta Falcons to
begin play in the Eastern Conference in 1966 with Insurance Executive
Rankin Smith, Sr. as owner.
Smith paid $8.5 million
to join the league.
The Falcons first coach
was Norb Hecker, who had served on Vince Lombardi's staff with The
Greenbay Packers.
The AFL expanded to nine teams August 16 when Minneapolis attorney Joseph Robbie and television star Danny Thomas were awarded a franchise on August 16 for a fee of $7.5 million. Their team, named the Dolphins by contest, starts play in the AFL's East division in 1966. Joseph Joe Robbie was an American lawyer and entrepreneur - Danny Thomas was an American nightclub comedian and television and film actor of Lebanese Maronite descent.
Former Cleveland Browns Coach Paul Brown began exploring the possibillity of a second pro football francise in Ohio, after Brown helped found The Cleveland Browns, only to be pushed out of the francise he'd pretty much created.
September 19 - Field Judge Burl Toler became the first black (African-American) official in NFL history,
September 26 - Baltimore Colts running back Lenny Moore failed to score a touchdown vs. The Green Bay Packers, ending his record streak of 18 straight games with a touchdown.
November 21 - An overflow crowd of 76,251 jams the Cotton Bowl, giving Dallas its first home sellout. The Browns beat the Cowboys 24-17.
December 26 - In the AFL Championship Game, the Bills again defeated the Chargers, 23-0, .
December 29 - CBS acquired the rights to the NFL regular-season games in 1966 and 1967, with an option for 1968, for $18.8 million per year.
Because the Green Bay Packers and Baltimore Colts ended up tied in the Western Conference standings after the regular season ended, a conference playoff game was held in Green Bay. Although a single championship game between conference winners was the current format for the league.
The 1965 Playoff Bowl
(a consolation game between the second place
team from each conference)
took place on January
9, 1966.
The Colts
defeated
the Dallas Cowboys,
35-3.
In the 1965 Western Conference playoff
game,
neither Bart Starr nor Johnny Unitas
(nor the Colt's reserve Gary Cuozzo) played
in the game.
Green Bay defeated
Baltimore 13-10 in sudden-death overtime when Chandler kicked a
25-yard field goal for the Packers after 13 minutes, 39 seconds of
overtime, December 26, 1965 at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
The Packers went on to
defeat the Cleveland Browns 23-12 in the 1965 NFL Championship Game
at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin January
2, 1966.
reckoned as part of the 1965 NFL season
The last before the
Super Bowl era.
Major rule changes
February 19
A sixth official, the Line Judge, is added to the officiating crew. This change is sometimes referred to as the "Fran Tarkenton Rule" after the Minnesota Vikings quarterback, who developed the nickname scrambler as he ran around the backfield to avoid being sacked by the opposition. With the Line Judge stationed on the line of scrimmage opposite the Head Linesman, it made it easier for the officials to judge whether or not Tarkenton or any mobile quarterback crossed over the line before throwing the ball.
April 5.
The color of the officials' penalty flags was changed from white to bright gold.
Meanwhile, the NFL's war
with the rival AFL began to increase as the two leagues competed for
the top players coming out of college.
Prior to the season, both
the NFL's Chicago Bears and the AFL's Kansas City Chiefs selected
running back Gale Sayers in their respective league drafts. Sayers
eventually decided to sign with the NFL's Bears in a victory for the
established league.
A similar situation
occurred when the St. Louis Cardinals (NFL)
and New York Jets (AFL) both drafted University of Alabama
quarterback Joe Namath. But this time the AFL emerged the victor. On January
2, Namath signed a $427,000 contract
with the Jets.
It was the highest
amount of money ever paid to a collegiate football player. The
signing was important not just for the Jets (one of the worst
teams in the league)
but for the AFL as well.
This small victory for
the AFL would lead to an even bigger one several years later when "Broadway"
Joe took the Jets to victory in Super
Bowl III.
This war between the AFL and the NFL would escalate until just before the 1966 season, when they would agree to merge and create a new AFL-NFL World Championship Game between the winners of the two leagues.
1966
The 1966 NFL season was the 47th regular season of the National Football League.
First year of Super Bowl (actually played in January 1967)
The league expanded to 15 teams with the addition of the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins. This was the last season that the NFL had just two divisions, and that the conference champions went directly to the NFL Championship Game without playing in playoff games.
November 1
- (which happens to be All Saints Day)
New Orleans was awarded an NFL franchise, to be later named the
New Orleans Saints and to begin play in the Eastern Conference in 1967.
John Mecom, Jr., of
Houston was designated majority stockholder and president of the
franchise, December 15.
The sports world was
rocked when Hall of Fame fullback Jim Brown announced his retirement.
Jim Brown, arguably the
greatest runner in league history, shocked the sports world when he
announced his retirement from pro football. The Hall of Fame fullback
declared his intentions during a brief and hurriedly arranged press
conference while on location for the filming of the movie, The Dirty
Dozen, in which he starred.
It was the right
time to retire, he commented the following day as he
addressed the media. You should get out on top.
Indeed, Brown was on top
of the football world. His combination of speed and sheer power made
him one of the most feared players of his era.
The St. Louis Cardinals moved into newly constructed Busch Memorial Stadium.
February 1 - Buddy Young became the first black (African-American) to work in the league office when Commissioner Rozelle named him director of player relations.
February 14. - The rights to the 1966 and 1967 NFL Championship Games were sold to CBS for $2 million per game
Cincinnati leaders approved construction of a new multi-purpose stadium to open in 1970
August 25 -Barron Hilton sold the Chargers to a group headed by Eugene Klein and Sam Schulman,
September 18 - Baltimore Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas throws four touchdown passes to surpass Y.A. Tittle as the NFL's career leader with 212. He finished his career with 290 touchdown passes.
October 30 - Baltimore Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas throws for 252 yards to pass Y.A. Tittle (28,339 yards) as the NFL's all-time passing yards leader. Unitas finished his career with 40,239 yards passing.
In the Miami Dolphins
first ever played game, Joe Auer returned the opening kickoff 95
yards for a touchdown.
November 27
- The Washington Redskins beat the New York Giants 72-41
in the highest-scoring game in league history. The Redskins' also
establish a new record for points by one team in a regular season game.
1966 saw the rivalry
between the AFL
and NFL
reach an all-time peak.
On April
7 Joe Foss, the only commissioner
the AFL had ever known, resigned.
Al Davis, the
head coach and general manager of the Raiders, was named to replace
him, April 8.
Al Davis had been
instrumental in turning around the fortunes of the franchise. No
longer content with trying to outbid the NFL for talent, the AFL
under Davis actively started to recruit players already on NFL
squads. NFL players such as Mike Ditka, Roman Gabriel and John Brodie
were offered and/or signed to lucrative AFL contracts.
The same month Davis
was named commissioner,
(AFL) Kansas City
Chiefs owner, Lamar Hunt
and
(NFL) Dallas Cowboys
owner Tex Schramm
held a series of secret
meetings in Dallas to discuss their concerns over rapidly increasing
player salaries, as well as the practice of player poaching. Hunt and
Schramm completed the basic groundwork for a merger by the end of May.
On June
8, 1966 the merger was officially
announced by Rozelle.
The NFL and AFL
effectively merge
with plans to go to a 2
conference 4 division setup in 1970 or after.
Thus, the AFL became the first to successfully challenge the NFL in that league's history.
Some AFL fans had
wanted the AFL and the NFL to set up a joint organizational structure
like Major League Baseball where one entity operates two different
sports leagues.
Instead, the AFL gave
up its name and logo to join the older league, though the AFC logo
used up to today was inspired by the old AFL logo.
The NFL went on to adopt
many of the innovative elements
introduced by the AFL,
including names on
player jerseys, official scoreboard clocks and gate and revenue sharing.
The AFL's challenge to
the NFL also laid the groundwork for the Super Bowl, which has become
the standard for championship contests.
The AFL-NFL merger agreement
Under the agreement
The two leagues would combine to form an expanded league with 24 teams, which would be increased to 26 teams by 1969, and to 28 teams by 1970 or soon thereafter.
All existing teams would be retained, and none of them would be moved outside of their metropolitan areas.
While maintaining separate schedules through 1969, the leagues agreed to play an annual AFL-NFL World Championship Game beginning in January, 1967.
The two leagues would officially merge in 1970 to form one league with two conferences.
To hold a combined draft, also beginning in 1967.
The draft became the battleground for a war
between the National Football League and American Football League.
The rival leagues held separate drafts through 1966 before holding
joint drafts from 1967-1969. |
Preseason games would be held between teams of each league starting in 1967.
Official regular-season play would start in 1970 when the two leagues would officially merge to form one league with two conferences.
NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle would remain as commissioner of the merged league.
The AFL also agreed to
pay indemnities of $18 million to the NFL over 20 years.
In protest, Davis
resigned as AFL commissioner on July 25
rather than remain until the completion of the merger.
October 21 - Congress approved the AFL-NFL merger, passing legislation exempting the agreement itself from antitrust action
The NFL was realigned for the 1967-69 seasons into the Capitol and Century Divisions in the Eastern Conference and the Central and Coastal Divisions in the Western Conference, December 2. New Orleans and the New York Giants agreed to switch divisions in 1968 and return to the 1967 alignment in 1969.
Atlanta is moved to the Western Conference. For the 1967 season,
The AFL-NFL war reached its peak, as the leagues spent a combined $7 million to sign their 1966 draft choices. The NFL signed 75 percent of its 232 draftees, the AFL 46 percent of its 181. Of the 111 common draft choices, 79 signed with the NFL, 28 with the AFL, and 4 went unsigned.
This was seventh season
for the Dallas Cowboys and their first winning record since entering
the league in 1960. They were champions of the NFL's Eastern
Conference with a 10-3-1 record.
The Packers won the
Western Conference with a 12-2 record, their eighth consecutive
winning season under head coach Vince Lombardi.
SUPER BOWL I
Green Bay (NFL) 35, Kansas City (AFL) 10
The first ever AFL-NFL World Championship Game in professional American football, later to be known as Super Bowl I, was played on January 15, 1967 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California.
The National Football League (NFL) champion Green Bay Packers scored 3 second-half touchdowns en route to a 3510 win over the American Football League (AFL) champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr earned the very first Super Bowl MVP in NFL history by throwing 16 of 23 for 250 yards and two touchdowns, with 1 interception.
The first Super Bowl
witnessed the first dual-network, color-coverage simulcast of a
sports event in history, and attracted the largest viewership to ever
see a sporting event up to that time. The Nielsen rating indicated
that 73 million fans watched all or part of the game on one of the
two networks, CBS or NBC.
Currently, there is no known complete videotape of either the CBS or
the NBC telecast of the game, as both networks eventually taped over
their copies. Television and sports archivists remain on the lookout. Due to NBC not being back in time from a halftime commercial break for the start of the second half, the first kickoff was stopped by the game's officials and was kicked again once NBC was back on the air.
The Green Bay Packers were each paid a
salary of $15,000 as the winning team. Since officials from the NFL and AFL wore different uniform designs, a "neutral" uniform was designed for this game. These uniforms had the familiar black and white stripes, but the sleeves were all black with the official's uniform number. This design was also worn in the next three Super Bowls, but was discontinued after the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger (and thus before Super Bowl V) when the AFL officials became part of the NFL's officiating staff |
The 1966 National
Football League Championship Game determined the NFL's champion,
which would meet the AFL's champion
in Super Bowl I, then formally referred to as simply the first AFL-NFL
World Championship Game.
The NFL Championship Game
was held at the Cowboys' home stadium, the Cotton Bowl in Dallas,
even though the Green Bay Packers had a superior regular season record.
Prior to the 1975 season, playoff sites were
determined on a rotational basis, rather than regular season records.
The 1966 National
Football League Championship Game was played on January
1, 1967,
the second consecutive
year that the NFL season ended in January, rather than December.
January 1
- Green Bay earned the right to represent the NFL in the first
AFL-NFL World Championship Game by defeating Dallas 34-27.
The same day, Kansas
City defeated Buffalo 31-7 to represent the AFL.
The NFL Green Bay Packers
then went on to beat the American
Football League's Kansas City Chiefs 35-10
at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
in the first annual
AFL-NFL World
Championship Game -
later to be known as
Super Bowl I
Although the official title of the game was the AFL-NFL World Championship Game, media at the time almost always used the then-unofficial name "Super Bowl."
Super Bowl I was the only Super Bowl in history that was not a sellout in terms of attendance. Because of this, the game was blacked out in the Los Angeles area. Days before the game, local newspapers printed editorials about what they viewed as an exorbitant $12 price for tickets, and wrote stories about how to pirate the signal from TV stations outside the Los Angeles area.
The entertainment of Super Bowl I pales in comparison to the performances featured in the Super Bowls of today. Instead of famous singers and musicians, the marching bands of University of Arizona and University of Michigan both performed the national anthem and during halftime.
Due to NBC not being back in time from a halftime commercial break for the start of the second half, the first kickoff was stopped by the game's officials and was kicked again once NBC was back on the air.
Currently, there is no
known complete videotape of either the CBS or the NBC telecast of the
game, as both networks eventually taped over their copies. Television
and sports archivists remain on the lookout.
(At least one small
sample of the telecast survives, recording Max McGee's opening touchdown.)
The Green Bay Packers were each paid a salary of $15,000 as the winning team. The Chiefs were paid $7,500 each
December 13 - The rights to the Super Bowl for four years were sold to CBS and NBC for $9.5 million,
Major rule changes
May 16 -
goal posts were standardized in the NFL. They were to be between 3 to
4 inches in diameter, painted bright yellow, with two non-curved
supports offset from the goal line, and uprights 20 feet above the crossbar.
This new goal post
rule is often referred to as the "Don Chandler Rule", the
kicker for the Green Bay Packers. Although widely denied, the height
increase of the uprights was in reaction to the previous season's
Western Conference playoff game in Green Bay. Chandler kicked a high
27-yard field goal, near the upright, that tied the game with under
two minutes remaining. The game went to the fourteenth minute of
overtime when Chandler hit a 25-yard field goal (uncontroversial)
that finally defeated the Baltimore Colts.
In 1967, the new
"slingshot" goal post would be made standard, with one
curved support from the ground. In 1974, the goal posts would be
returned to the end line, and the uprights would be extended to 30
feet above the crossbar.
1967
The 1967 NFL season was the 48th regular season of the National Football League.
New Orleans Saints began play
NFL split into two
conferences and four divisions
The league expanded to 16
teams with the addition of the New Orleans Saints. The league's teams
were realigned into four divisions: the Capitol and Century Divisions
in the Eastern Conference, and the Central and Coastal Divisions in
the Western Conference.
The conferences will be set up as follows:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Houston Oilers
(to be
known as today's Tennessee Titans)
New York Jets
Miami Dolphins
Buffalo Bills
Boston Patriots
NFL
CAPITOL DIVISION
Dallas Cowboys
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Redskins
CENTURY DIVISION
Cleveland Browns
New York Giants
Pittsburgh Steelers
St. Louis Cardinals
WESTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Oakland Raiders
Kansas City Chiefs
San Diego Chargers
Denver Broncos
CENTRAL DIVISION
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Minnesota Vikings
COSTAL DIVISION
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Colts
Los Angeles Rams
San Francisco 49ers
New York will move to the
Capitol Division for 1968, then back to the Century Division for
1969. Likewise, New Orleans will move to the Century Division for
1968, then back to the Capitol Division for 1969.
March 14 - The First combined AFL-NFL draft,
Part of the merger
agreement that saw the NFL and AFL become one league was that the two
leagues would hold a joint draft beginning in 1967.
The first pick overall
was awarded to the expansion New Orleans Saints. The Saints traded
the pick to the Baltimore Colts in return for QB Gary Cuozzo, OL
Butch Allison, and a 17th-round pick in that years draft.
The Colts promptly tapped
Michigan State defensive tackle Charles Bubba Smith
as the number one pick overall.
May 24 - The
AFL awarded a franchise to begin play in 1968 to Cincinnati becoming
the second AFL expansion franchise. A group with Paul Brown as part
owner, general manager, and head coach, was awarded The Cincinnati
Bengals franchise.
The Bengals were the
tenth and final team to begin play as an AFL franchise. In a clear
indication of the success of the AFL, Paul Brown paid $10,000,000 for
the Bengals franchise-four hundred times more than the original AFL
franchise value of $25,000 only eight years earlier.
May 28 - Arthur B. Modell, the president of the Cleveland Browns, was elected president of the NFL
August 5
- An AFL team defeated an NFL team for the first time, when The
Denver Broncos beat Detroit Lions
13-7 in a preseason game.
Also on this day,
Defensive back Emlen Tunnell of the New York Giants became the first
black (African-American)
player to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
December 24
- New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath passes for 343 yards in a
42-32 win at San Diego to become the first player to throw for 4,000
yards in a season (4,007).
The Jets finished 8-5-1
for their first winning season.
The Miami Dolphins made Purdue quarterback Bob Griese their 1st round draft choice.
Oakland Raiders traded starting quarterback Tom Flores to the Buffalo Bills.
The Baltimore Colts had tied for the NFL's best record at 11-1-2, but were excluded from the four team playoff after losing the divisional tiebreaker to the L.A. Rams. The other three division winners had only nine victories.
Norm Van Brocklin
resigned as Minnesota Vikings coach and was replaced by Bud Grant (coach
of the CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers).
Former NFL quarterback
Jim Finks became General Manager.
Los Angeles won the Coastal Division based on better point differential in head-to-head games (net 24 points) vs. Baltimore
Head Coach George Halas
of The Chicago Bears retired after 40 years with 324 victories.
Although George S. Halas
"officially" retired from the Bears after the 1967 football
season, he was far from done. He kept an office at Bears
headquarters, and took back over presidency of the team following his
son Mugs' untimely death in 1979.
Major rule changes
February 22
The "slingshot" goalpost, with one curved support from the ground and offset behind the crossbar, was made standard in the NFL. This replaced the previous year's offset goalpost, which had two non-curved supports from the ground. Before the introduction of the offset goalpost, the supports were directly on the goal line.
A six-foot-wide border around the field was also made standard in the league. Its outer edge designates the closest that non-players can be to the field, and thus enables the game officials to have a running lane to work in.
December 31 - The Oakland Raiders appeared in the playoffs for the first time, beating the Houston Oilers 40-7 for the AFL Championship.
1967
PLAYOFFS
The NFL playoffs following the 1967 NFL season determined who would represent the league in Super Bowl II.
This was the first season that the NFL used a four-team playoff tournament. The four division winners advanced to the postseason.
Although the Baltimore Colts (11-1-2) had tied for the best record in the league, they lost the new division tie-breaker to the Los Angeles Rams and were excluded from the playoffs.
Home field in the playoffs was still determined by a yearly rotation. Seeding the playoff teams by regular season records did not occur until the 1975 season. This is why the Rams (11-1-2) played a road game against the Packers (9-4-1).
Conference championships
Eastern Conference
Dallas Cowboys 52,
Cleveland Browns 14
December 24, 1967 at
Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Western Conference
Green Bay Packers 28, Los
Angeles Rams 7
December 23, 1967 at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
The NFL season concluded
on December 31, when the Green Bay Packers defeated the Dallas
Cowboys 21-17 in the 1967 NFL Championship Game
(in a game that would
be known as the Ice
Bowl).
Green Bay Packers 21,
Dallas Cowboys 17
December 31, 1967 at
Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin
1967 - 1968
Super Bowl II
Green Bay (NFL) 33,
Oakland (AFL) 14
January 14, 1968
at the Orange Bowl in
Miami, Florida.
Ending the 1967 NFL Season
The second AFL-NFL World Championship Game.
Aided by kicker Don
Chandler's 4 field goals and defensive back Herb Adderly's 60-yard
interception return for a touchdown,
the National Football
League (NFL) champion
Green Bay Packers
defeated
the American Football
League (AFL) champion
Oakland Raiders,
3314.
January 28 - This concluded Vince Lombardi's final game as the Packers' head coach, however remained as general managerThe game had the first $3-million gate in pro football history.
Green Bay quarterback Bart Starr was named the Super Bowl MVP for the second time for his 13 of 24 passing for 202 yards and one touchdown.
The game was broadcast in the United States by CBS with Ray Scott handling the play-by-play duties and color commentators Jack Kemp and Pat Summerall in the broadcast booth. It was the first time a Super Bowl has been televised live on only one network, which has been the case for all following Super Bowl games. While the Orange Bowl was sold out for the game, unconditional blackout rules in both leagues prevented the live telecast from being shown in the Miami area.
The Grambling State University Band performed both the national anthem and during the halftime show.
Although the contest was
officially known as the AFL-NFL World Championship, its unofficial
name - the Super Bowl - was used in the media, the fans and the
players, and the name stuck.
One theory for how the
high flying name came about is that at an owner's meeting centered on
what to call the game, one of the moguls had a "super ball"
in his pocket that he had taken away from his youngster earlier in
the day. The owner was not too taken with the long and ordinary
sounding suggestions for what would become professional football's
ultimate game.
Squeezing the ball, he
suggested the name Super Bowl. His suggestion was not greeted with
much enthusiasm by the assembled group. Nevertheless, he mentioned
the name to a reporter who loved it and, as they say, the rest is history.
From the start there were
special features to the Super Bowl including its designation with a
Roman numeral rather than by a year.
A move on the part of NFL
Commissioner Pete Rozelle to give the contest a sense of class.
1968
The 1968 NFL season was the 49th regular season of the National Football League.
Cincinnati Bengals began play
As per the agreement made during the 1967 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants switched divisions; the Saints joined the Century Division while the Giants became part of the Capitol Division.
The conferences will be set up as follows:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Houston Oilers
(to be
known as today's Tennessee Titans)
New York Jets
Miami Dolphins
Buffalo Bills
Boston Patriots
NFL
CAPITOL DIVISION
Dallas Cowboys
Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Redskins
New York Giants
CENTURY DIVISION
Cleveland Browns
Pittsburgh Steelers
St. Louis Cardinals
New Orleans Saints
WESTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Oakland Raiders
Kansas City Chiefs
San Diego Chargers
Denver Broncos
Cincinnati Bengals
CENTRAL DIVISION
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Minnesota Vikings
COSTAL DIVISION
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Colts
Los Angeles Rams
San Francisco 49ers
The wishbone formation was developed by Offensive Coordinator Emory Bellard and Head Coach Darrell Royal at the University of Texas in 1968. Coach Royal was always a fan of the option offense, and in looking at the personnel on the team, Coach Bellard saw three great running backs. After experimenting with family members over the summer, Coach Bellard came up with the formation.
Coach Bellard demonstrated the formation to Darrell Royal, who quickly embraced the idea. It proved to be a wise choice: Texas tied its first game running the new offense, lost the second, and then won the next thirty straight games, leading to two National Championships using the formation. Ironically, the longest running wishbone offense was run not by Texas but by their great rival, the University of Oklahoma, who ran variations of the wishbone into the mid 1990s.
It was given the name wishbone by the Houston Chronicle sportswriter Mickey Herskowitz.
Werblin sold his shares
in the Jets to his partners Don Lillis, Leon Hess, Townsend Martin,
and Phil Iselin, May 21.
Lillis assumed the
presidency of the club, but then died July 23.
Iselin was appointed
president, August 6.
May
27 - Gearge Halas retired for the fourth and last time as head coach
of the Chicago Bears with 324 career victories.
George Halas coached the Bears at four
different times
(1920-1929 - 1933-1942 -
1946-1955 - 1958-1967)
The Houston Oilers (to
be known as today's Tennessee Titans)
left Rice Stadium for the Astrodome and became the first NFL team to
play its home games indoors in a domed stadium and on artificial turf.
Fullback Larry Csonka of Syracuse was the Miami Dolphins' first round draft choice.
September 6 - The Cincinnati Bengals lost 29-13 to the San Diago Chargers in The Bengals franchise first game
September 15
- The Cincinnati Bengals got its first win, defeating Denver Broncos 24-10
The same day,
Baltimore Colts defeated
Cleveland Browns 34-0
in the NFL
Championship Game,
only to be upset by
the American Football
League's (AFL)
New York Jets
in Super Bowl III.
November 17 - The movie Heidi became a footnote in sports history when NBC didn't show the last 1:05 of the Jets-Raiders game, in order to permit the children's special to begin on time.
With its nationally-televised game running late, NBC begins to show the movie Heidi just moments after the Jets' Jim Turner kicked what appears to be the game-winning field goal with 1:05 remaining. While millions of irate fans, missing the finale, jammed NBC's phone lines, the Raiders scored 2 touchdowns in eight seconds during the final minute to win 43-32. Resulting from the backlash, networks establish the policy of broadcasting sporting events to its conclusion.
December 29 - Ewbank became the first coach to win titles in both the NFL and AFL when his Jets defeated the Raiders 27-23 for the AFL championship.
The 1968 NFL playoffs following the 1968 NFL season determined who would represent the league in Super Bowl III.
Eastern Conference
Cleveland Browns 31,
Dallas Cowboys 20
December 21,
1968 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
Western Conference
Baltimore Colts 24,
Minnesota Vikings 14
December 22,
1968 at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
NFL Championship Game
Baltimore Colts 34,
Cleveland Browns 0
December 29,
1968 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
Super Bowl III
N.Y. Jets (AFL) 16, Baltimore
(NFL) 7
January 12, 1969
at the Orange Bowl in
Miami, Florida
following the 1968
regular season
The first AFL team
to win the Super Bowl
The Raiders are the only original AFL team to win a Super Bowl since Kansas City won Super Bowl IV. They also are the only AFC team to win a Super Bowl since the Steelers won Super Bowl XIV and they are the only team, NFL or AFL, to play in the Super Bowl in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
Super Bowl III was the
third AFL-NFL Championship Game in professional American football,
but the first to officially bear the name "Super Bowl."
(The two previous AFL-NFL Championship Games
would retroactively be called "Super Bowls" as well.)
Three days before the game, Joe Namath appeared at the Miami Touchdown Club and boldly predicted to the audience, "The Jets will win on Sunday. I guarantee it." Interestingly enough, Namath later claimed he only made his famous "guarantee" in response to a rowdy Colts fan at the club, who boasted the Colts would easily defeat the Jets. Namath said he never intended to make such a public prediction, and never would have done so if he had not been confronted by the fan. |
Jets quarterback Joe
Namath, who completed 17 out of 28 passes for 206 yards yet, not one
touchdown pass, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player.
Namath is the only
Super Bowl MVP quarterback to not throw a touchdown in his MVP performance.
This game is regarded as one of the biggest upsets in American sports history. The National Football League champion Colts were heavily favored (in some books, by over 20 points) to defeat the American Football League champion Jets. Although the upstart AFL had successfully forced the long-established NFL into a merger agreement three years earlier, the AFL was not generally respected as having the same calibre of talent as the NFL. Plus, the AFL representatives were heavily defeated in the first two Super Bowls.
While no doubt shocked by
the result, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle nonetheless saw the Jets'
victory as a watershed moment that would give a legitimacy to the merger.
That feeling was reinforced one year later in
Super Bowl IV, when the AFL champion
Kansas City Chiefs defeated the NFL champion Minnesota Vikings, 23-7
in the last championship game to be played between the two leagues.
For the first time, famous celebrities appeared for the Super Bowl ceremonies. Entertainer Bob Hope led a pregame ceremony honoring the astronauts of Project Apollo and the recently completed Apollo 8 mission, the first manned flight around the Moon.
Singer Anita Bryant later sang the national anthem, while the Florida A&M University band performed during the "America Thanks" halftime show
This game was the only time a Super Bowl was played at the same site as the previous year's Super Bowl. Super Bowl II was also played at the Orange Bowl.
This game is thought to be the earliest surviving Super Bowl game preserved on videotape in its entirety.
New York Jets running back Matt Snell recorded 121 rushing yards while Baltimore Colts running back Tom Matte ran for 116.
1969
January 11 - The AFL established a playoff format for the 1969 season, with the winner in one division playing the runner-up in the other.
January 12
- An AFL team won the Super Bowl for the first time, as the Jets
defeated the Colts 16-7 at Miami, in Super Bowl III. The title
Super Bowl was recognized by the NFL for the first time.
Which all fell in place
as the 1968 season
The 1969 NFL season was
the 50th regular season of the National Football League, and the last
one before the AFL-NFL Merger. To honor the NFL's 50th season, a
special anniversary logo was designed and each player by each of the
16 teams wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season.
As per the agreement made during the 1967 realignment, the New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants switched divisions again, returning back to the 1967 alignment.
The conferences will be set up as follows:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Houston Oilers
(to be
known as today's Tennessee Titans)
New York Jets
Miami Dolphins
Buffalo Bills
Boston Patriots
NFL
CAPITOL DIVISION
Dallas Cowboys
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Redskins
CENTURY DIVISION
Cleveland Browns
New York Giants
Pittsburgh Steelers
St. Louis Cardinals
WESTERN CONFERENCE
AFL
Oakland Raiders
Kansas City Chiefs
San Diego Chargers
Denver Broncos
CENTRAL DIVISION
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Minnesota Vikings
COSTAL DIVISION
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Colts
Los Angeles Rams
San Francisco 49ers
Vince Lombardi became part owner, executive vice-president, and head coach of the Washington Redskins, February 7.
May 1 - Wolman sold the Eagles to Leonard Tose
Baltimore, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh
agreed to join the AFL teams to form the 13-team American Football Conference
of the NFL in 1970, May 17.
The NFL also agreed on a
playoff format that would include one "wild-card" team per
conference-the second-place team with the best record.
Monday Night Football was signed for 1970. ABC acquired the rights to televise 13 NFL regular-season Monday night games in 1970, 1971, and 1972.
August 9 - George Preston Marshall, president emeritus of the Redskins, died at 72
Don Perkins became the last of the original Dallas Cowboys to retire.
December 14
- San Diego Chargers wide receiver Lance Alworth sets a professional
record with a pass reception in his 96th straight game.
Sid Gillman was forced
to resign as coach due to health issues.
Buffalo Bills made
running back O.J. Simpson of USC the first player chosen in the draft.
After serving primarily
as a backup, Tom Flores was released by the Bills and signed with the
Kansas City Chiefs during the 1969 season.
January 27 - Chuck Noll, an assistant to Don Shula in Baltimore, was hired as Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach.
Don Shula left The Baltimore Colts to become head coach of The Miami Dolphins.
John Madden became Head
Coach for The Oakland Raiders, replacing John Rauch.
The NFL playoffs
following the 1969 NFL season determined who would represent the
league in Super Bowl IV.
This was the last NFL
playoff tournament before the AFL-NFL Merger.
1969
Conference playoff games
Eastern Conference
Cleveland Browns 38,
Dallas Cowboys 14
December 28,
1969 at Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Western Conference
Minnesota Vikings 23, Los
Angeles Rams 20
December 27,
1969 at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
NFL Championship Game
Minnesota Vikings 27,
Cleveland Browns 7
January 4,
1970 at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
Kansas City (AFL) 23,
Minnesota (NFL) 7
January 11, 1970
at Tulane Stadium in New
Orleans, Louisiana
following the 1969
regular season
Super Bowl IV was the
fourth AFL-NFL
Championship Game in professional American football,
and the second one (after
Super Bowl III) to officially bear the name "Super Bowl".
This was the final AFL-NFL
Championship Game before the National Football League (NFL) and the
American Football League (AFL) merged into
one combined league after the season.
Even though the Vikings were 13-point favorites coming into the game, the victory by the AFL evened the Super Bowl series with the NFL at two games apiece.
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Jan Stenerud made a Super Bowl record 48-yard field goal
Kansas City quarterback Len Dawson was named the Super Bowl MVP, the fourth consecutive quarterback MVP, for completing 12 of 17 passes for 122 yards and one touchdown.
The crowd of 80,562 was a Super Bowl record for attendance.
Super Bowl IV was broadcast in the United States by CBS with play-by-play announcer Jack Buck and color commentators Frank Gifford and Pat Summerall. While the game was sold out at Tulane Stadium, unconditional blackout rules in both leagues prohibited the live telecast from being shown in the New Orleans area.
Trumpeters Al Hirt and Doc Severinsen "faced off" during the pregame show in a "Battle of the Horns". Hirt later performed the national anthem, while actress and singer Carol Channing was featured during the halftime show that paid tribute to Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
The last contest in AFL
history was the AFL All-Star Game on January 17, 1970 (1969 Season).
The Western All-Stars,
led by Chargers quarterback John Hadl, defeated the Eastern
All-Stars, 26-3.
The Chiefs' Hank Stram became the first professional football coach to wear a microphone for NFL Films during the game.
The Chiefs were the last team to ever be awarded the World Championship Game Trophy, as later that fall the trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy due to Lombardi's death.
This was the first Super
Bowl played without the standard week off after the conference
championship games (league championship games at the time). Strangely
enough, the AFL had a week off between its divisional playoffs (the
NFL played its conference championship games during
the AFL's off-week) and league championship game. The AFL started
its 1969 season a week earlier than the NFL,
and thus had an extra week to deal with during the post-season.
This would be the last
Super Bowl played without the week off until Super Bowl XVII.
1970
Kansas City defeated Minnesota 23-7 in Super Bowl IV at New Orleans, January 11.
The last contest in AFL
history was the AFL All-Star Game on January 17, 1970
See
Above
The 1970 NFL season was the 51st regular season of the National Football League, and the first one after the AFL-NFL Merger.
Almost every element that makes pro football the world's most popular sport that it is today can be traced to the American Football League and the huge changes its presence eventually bought to the sport. By the time the fierce AFL-NFL war of the 1960s was over, the expanded National Football League of the 1970s stretched from coast-to-coast and from border to border. Fans poured into NFL stadiums in record numbers. Rapidly increasing television coverage introduced pro football to hundreds of millions of new fans on every continent.
The Super Bowl was
destined to become the most watched sports spectacle in the history
of the world. Of all the leagues that have attempted to challenge the dominance of the National Football League, the AFL was the only one to have all its teams integrated into the fabric of the NFL. This was in sharp contrast to such entities as the All-America Football Conference, baseball's Federal League, the American Basketball Association and the World Hockey Association, all of which either folded, or only had a handful of teams join the respective post-merger entities. |
The merger forced a
realignment between the combined league's clubs. Because there were
16 NFL teams and 10 AFL teams,
three teams needed to transfer to balance the two new conferences at
13 teams each. The Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and the
Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to join the
other AFL teams to form the American Football Conference (AFC).
The remaining NFL teams formed the National Football Conference (NFC).
The conferences were
divided into three divisions: East, Central, and West. The two
Eastern divisions had five teams; the other four divisions had four
teams each.
The AFL becomes the AFC
with the Steelers,
Browns and Colts
moving there from the NFL.
The rest of the NFL
becomes the NFC.
The 26-team league began to use an eight-team playoff format, four from each conference, that included the three division winners and a wild card team, the second-place team with the best record.
The NFL is now aligned as follows (modern format):
AMERICAN CONFERENCE EAST DIVISION
Baltimore Colts CENTRAL DIVISION
Cincinnati Bengals WEST DIVISION
Denver Broncos |
NATIONAL CONFERENCE EAST DIVISION
Dallas Cowboys CENTRAL DIVISION
Chicago Bears WEST DIVISION
Atlanta Falcons
|
September 21
- The first regular season Monday Night Football game was aired on ABC.
The Cleveland Browns
defeated the New York Jets 31-21 as 85,703 fans pack Cleveland's
Municipal Stadium.
With the debut of Monday
Night Football, the NFL becomes the first professional sports league
in the United States to have a regular series of nationally televised
games in prime time.
Four-year television contracts, under which CBS would televise all NFC games and NBC all AFC games (except Monday night games) and the two would divide televising the Super Bowl and AFC-NFC Pro Bowl games, were announced, January 26.
The Chicago Bears's first home game of the season against the Philadelphia Eagles was played at Northwestern University's Dyche Stadium as part of an experiment. Before the season, the league demanded that the Bears find a new home field because the seating capacity of their then-current home, Wrigley Field, was less than 50,000. Ultimately, a deal to make Dyche Stadium as the Bears' new home fell through and the team moved to Soldier Field in 1971.
Art Modell resigned as president of the NFL, March 12. Milt Woodard resigned as president of the AFL, March 13. Lamar Hunt was elected president of the AFC and George Halas was elected president of the NFC, March 19.
The Players Negotiating Committee and the NFL Players Association announced a four-year agreement guaranteeing approximately $4,535,000 annually to player pension and insurance benefits, August 3. The owners also agreed to contribute $250,000 annually to improve or implement items such as disability payments, widows' benefits, maternity benefits, and dental benefits. The agreement also provided for increased preseason game and per diem payments, averaging approximately $2.6 million annually.
The Pittsburgh Steelers
moved into Three Rivers Stadium.
The Pittsburgh Steelers
won a coin flip with The Chicago Bears
and the right to choose quarterback Terry Bradshaw with the first
overall pick in the draft.
The Cincinnati Bengals
moved to Riverfront Stadium
and
posted their first
winning season (8-6)
Under new coach Don Shula, The Miami Dolphins finished 10-4 for their first winning season.
Kansas City Chiefs, Tom Flores retires as a player after the 1970 season. He was one of only twenty players who were with the AFL for its entire ten-year existence. He is the fifth-leading passer, all-time, in the AFL.
September 3 -
The sports world grieves the death of Vince Lombardi who died of
cancer at age 57. Lombardi led the Green Bay Packers to an 89-29-4
record and the first two Super Bowl crowns in nine years. He was
inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
November 8
- The odds seemed stacked against New Orleans Saints placekicker Tom
Dempsey as he lined up for a field-goal attempt. But poor odds were
nothing new to Dempsey, an NFL player despite the fact he was born
with only half a foot and had to wear a special shoe approved by the
league. Trailing 17-16 to the Detroit Lions with two seconds left,
the Saints sent in their field-goal unit and Dempsey booted the ball.
It sailed high and straight
63 yards through the goalposts.
Setting a new NFL record.
Previously held
by Detroits Glenn Presnell in Oct. 7 1934 who kicked a 54-yard field goal
The record stood for 19 years UNTIL September
27 1953 by Baltimore's Bert Rechichar who boots a record
56-yard field goal against Chicago.
Major rule changes
March 18
The NFL rules become the standardized rules for the merged league, including the rule that a point after touchdown is worth one point, (that is, no two-point conversion). The AFL had the two-point conversion, which would not be adopted to the NFL until 1994.
The official game clock is the stadium's scoreboard clock.
Rules are added to place last names on the back of players' jerseys. The AFL had names on jerseys, the pre-merger NFL teams did not.
The NFL playoffs following the 1970 NFL season led up to Super Bowl V.
This was the first playoff tournament after the AFL-NFL Merger. An eight-team playoff tournament was designed, with four clubs from each conference qualifying. Along with the three division winners in each conference, one wild card team, the second place team with the best record from each conference, was added to the tournament. The first round was named the Divisional Playoffs, while the Conference Championship games were moved to the second playoff round and the Super Bowl became the league's championship game.
However, the home teams in the playoffs were still decided based on a yearly divisional rotation, excluding the wild card teams who would always play on the road. Also, a rule was made that two teams from the same division could not meet in the Divisional Playoffs.
The Cincinnati Bengals qualified for the playoffs for the first time.
1970
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Divisional playoffs:
December 26, 1970
Baltimore Colts
17, Cincinnati Bengals 0
at Memorial Stadium,
Baltimore, Maryland
December 27, 1970
Oakland Raiders 21,
Miami Dolphins 14
at Oakland Coliseum,
Oakland, California
AFC Championship:
January 3, 1971
Baltimore Colts 27,
Oakland Raiders 17
at Memorial Stadium,
Baltimore, Maryland
NFC
Divisional playoffs:
December 26, 1970
Dallas Cowboys 5,
Detroit Lions 0
at Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
December 27, 1970
San Francisco 49ers
17, Minnesota Vikings 14
at Metropolitan Stadium,
Bloomington, Minnesota
NFC Championship:
January 3, 1971
Dallas Cowboys 17, San
Francisco 49ers 10
at Kezar Stadium, San Francisco
Super Bowl V
Baltimore (AFC) 16,
Dallas (NFC) 13
January 17, 1971
at the Orange Bowl in
Miami, Florida
following the 1970
regular season
Super Bowl V was the 5th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
The game is sometimes
called the "Blooper Bowl" or the "Turnover Bowl"
because it was filled with poor play, turnovers and officiating
miscues. Overall, the two teams committed a Super Bowl record 11
combined turnovers in the game.
The game was finally
settled with 5 seconds left when Colts rookie kicker Jim O'Brien
kicked a 32-yard field goal. In order to win the game, Baltimore had
to overcome a 136 deficit at the half, losing their starting
quarterback in the second quarter, and their 7 lost turnovers to
Dallas' 4
It is also the
only Super Bowl in which the Most Valuable Player Award was given to
a member of the losing team: Cowboys
Linebacker Chuck Howley, who caught 2 interceptions and recovered a fumble.
Super Bowl V was also the first Super Bowl played on an artificial turf surface, namely "Poly Turf".
The game was broadcast in the United States by NBC with play-by-play announcer Curt Gowdy and color commentator Kyle Rote. Although the Orange Bowl was sold out for the event, unconditional blackout rules in the NFL prohibited the live telecast from being shown in the Miami area.
The bands from Southern University and Northeast Missouri College performed before the game, while Trumpeter Tommy Loy played the national anthem. The Florida A&M Band was featured during the halftime show.
Because this was the first Super Bowl after the AFL-NFL Merger, Super Bowl V was the first one to have the NFL logo painted at the 50-yard line. This practice would continue until Super Bowl XXX, except for Super Bowl XXIX when the NFL 75th Anniversary logo was painted at midfield instead.
The Baltimore Colts were the first team to receive the newly named Vince Lombardi Trophy (formerly the World Championship Game Trophy) due to Vince Lombardi's death the previous year.
The Colts were the first AFC franchise to win the Super Bowl since the AFL-NFL merger was established earlier in the season.
Super Bowl V was also the first Super Bowl played on an artificial turf surface, namely "Poly Turf".
January 24
- The NFC defeated the AFC
27-6 in the first AFC-NFC
Pro Bowl at Los Angeles.
1971
The Baltimore Colts defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 on Jim O'Brien's 32-yard field goal with five seconds to go in Super Bowl V at Miami, January 17. 971 - ending the 1970 season.
The NFC defeated the AFC 27-6 in the first AFC-NFC Pro Bowl at Los Angeles, January 24. 971 - ending the 1970 season.
The 1971 NFL season was the 52nd regular season of the National Football League.
Before
the season, the Boston Patriots changed their name to New England
Patriots after they moved to their new home field, Schaefer Stadium
in Foxborough, Massachusetts, March 25.
Their new stadium was
dedicated in a 20-14 preseason victory over the Giants.
The Philadelphia Eagles left Franklin Field and played their games at the new Veterans Stadium.
The San Francisco 49ers left Kezar Stadium and moved their games to Candlestick Park.
April 15 - Daniel F. Reeves, the president and general manager of the Rams, died at 58.
October 24 - The Dallas Cowboys moved from the Cotton Bowl into their new home, Texas Stadium.
Former Minnesota Vikings Coach Norm Van Brocklin led the Atlanta Falcons to it's first winng season (7-6-1)
The New Orleans Saints chose Mississippi quarterback Archie Manning in the 1st round of the draft.
New York Giants quarterback Fran Tarkenton requested a trade after a 4-10 season and was dealt back to the Minnesota Vikings.
December 19
- Houston Oilers (to
be known as today's Tennessee Titans)
safety Ken Houston returns two interceptions for touchdowns in the
Oilers' 49-33 victory over the San Diego Chargers to set the NFL
career record with nine touchdowns on interception returns.
Ken Houston also sets
the single-season record with four interception return touchdowns.
December 25 - Miami wins the longest game in NFL history (82:40) as Garo Yepremian kicks a 37-yard field goal to defeat Kansas City 27-24 in double-overtime.
1971
Divisional playoffs
December 25, 1971
AFC:
Miami Dolphins 27,
Kansas City Chiefs 24 (2OT)
at Municipal Stadium,
Kansas City, Missouri
Miami defeated Kansas
City 27-24 in sudden-death overtime in an AFC Divisional Playoff
Game, December 25. Garo Yepremian kicked a 37-yard field goal for the
Dolphins after 22 minutes, 40 seconds of overtime, as the game lasted
82 minutes, 40 seconds overall, making it the longest game in history.
NFC:
Dallas Cowboys 20,
Minnesota Vikings 12
at Metropolitan Stadium,
Bloomington, Minnesota
December 26, 1971
AFC:
Baltimore Colts 20,
Cleveland Browns 3
at Cleveland Stadium,
Cleveland, Ohio
NFC:
San Francisco 49ers 24,
Washington Redskins 20
at Candlestick Park, San Francisco
Conference Championships
January 2, 1972
AFC:
Miami Dolphins 21,
Baltimore Colts 0
at Miami Orange Bowl,
Miami, Florida
NFC:
Dallas Cowboys 14, San
Francisco 49ers 3
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Super Bowl VI
Dallas (NFC) 24,
Miami (AFC) 3
January 16, 1972
at Tulane Stadium in New
Orleans, Louisiana
following the 1971
regular season
Super Bowl VI was the 6th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Roger Staubach, who completed 12 out of 19 passes for 119 yards, threw 2 touchdown passes, and rushed 5 times for 18 yards, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player.
The game was broadcast in the United States by CBS with play-by-play announcer Ray Scott and color commentator Pat Summerall. Although Tulane Stadium was sold out for the game, unconditional blackout rules in the NFL prohibited the live telecast from being shown in the New Orleans area.
The Kilgore College Rangerettes drill team performed during the pregame festivities. Later, the United States Air Force Academy Chorale sang the national anthem.
The halftime show was a "Salute to Louis Armstrong" featuring jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, actress and singer Carol Channing, trumpeter Al Hirt and the U.S. Marine Corps Drill Team.
Mike Clark's 9-yard field goal is the shortest field goal in Super Bowl history. At the time, the goal posts were on goal lines instead of at the back of the end zones. Thus, this record will stand indefinitely until the league decides to move the goal posts back to the goal lines.
The temperature at kickoff was 39 °F, the lowest recorded temperature for a Super Bowl game to date.
Staubach became the first Heisman Trophy winner to be named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player.
Dallas running back Duane Thomas became the first player to score touchdowns in back-to-back Super Bowls. Thomas had a receiving touchdown a year earlier in Super Bowl V.
Staubach's 119 passing yards is the lowest total for a quarterback who was named the game's MVP.
Staubach became the first quaterback of a winning team in the Super Bowl to play the entire game. Bart Starr was relieved by Zeke Bratkowski in the first two Super Bowls when the Packers had the game safely in hand; Joe Namath was relieved briefly by Babe Parilli in Super Bowl III; Len Dawson gave way to Mike Livingston late in Super Bowl IV when the Chiefs had clinched the game; Earl Morrall came in for an injured Johnny Unitas late in the first half of Super Bowl V and led the Baltimore Colts to a come-from-behind victory over the Cowboys.
Despite being the second Super Bowl after the AFL-NFL merger, Super Bowl VI was the first one to have the NFL logo painted at the 50-yard line. The NFL would do this for all but one Super Bowl after this until Super Bowl XXXI.
This was the last Super Bowl to be blacked out in the host city. The next year, the NFL allowed Super Bowl VII to be televised live in the host city (Los Angeles) when all tickets were sold. In 1973, the NFL changed its blackout policy to allow games to be broadcast in the home team's market if sold out 72 hours in advance.
1972
Dallas defeated Miami 24-3 in Super Bowl VI at New
Orleans, January 16, 1972 - ending the 1971 season
See above
The 1972 NFL season was the 53rd regular season of the National Football League.
July 13 - Robert Irsay purchased the Los Angeles Rams and transferred ownership of the club to Carroll Rosen-bloom in exchange for the Baltimore Colts.
September 2 - William V. Bidwill purchased the stock of his brother Charles (Stormy) Bidwill to become the sole owner of the St. Louis Cardinals.
The National District Attorneys Association endorsed the position of professional leagues in opposing proposed legalization of gambling on professional team sports, September 28.
A year after the Cowboys
moved into Texas Stadium, then General Manager Tex Schramm, one of
the greatest innovators in NFL history, decided that the reigning
world champions (Super
Bowl VI)
needed to add something that would distinguish them even further from
the rest of the league. He thought that professional models who were
taught to dance would add a spark to the Texas Stadium sidelines.
However, this idea
fizzled as the models did not possess the athleticism necessary for
difficult dance routines in the Texas heat.
Undaunted, Schramm hired
famous choreographer Texie Waterman to help select a group of
beautiful young women with dancing skills and physical stamina.
Thus, the Dallas Cowboys
Cheerleaders were born.
September 24 - New York Jets quarterback, Joe Namath passed for 496 yards and 6 touchdowns in a 44-34 victory over Baltimore Colts.
December 23
- Franco Harris's "Immaculate Reception" gave the
Steelers their first postseason win ever, 13-7 over the Raiders.
When Oakland's Ken Stabler snakes down the sideline with 73 seconds
left to give the Raiders a 7-6 lead, it almost looks as if the
Pittsburgh Steelers need a miracle to pull out the AFC semifinal
playoff game. As Tatum clobbered Fuqua, the ball bounced back about seven yards for an apparent incompletion. But big running back Franco Harris had drifted out of the backfield and nonchalantly moved downfield. As the ball deflected, he raced forward and rescued it just before it hit the ground and, never breaking stride, races 42 yards into the end zone with five seconds left to provide the Steelers with a 13-7 miracle victory. Tatum argues that he didn't touch the ball, that the ball bounced off Fuqua and that the play is illegal. (At the time the rule is that no two receivers can touch the ball consecutively on the same play.) Raiders coach John Madden, though, indicates that from his view the ball had touched Tatum. The critical question was: Whom did the ball bounce off? If it bounced off Fuqua, and then Harris was the next to touch the ball, the reception was illegal under the rules of the time, which did not allow two offensive players to touch a pass in succession; the Raiders would gain possession and a sure win. If the ball bounced off Tatum, or if it bounced off Fuqua and then Tatum, the reception was legal, as a defensive player was the last to touch the ball. The game officials did not immediately make any signal, and there was no instant replay rule at the time. Referee Fred Swearingen telephoned the NFL's supervisor of officials, Art McNally, who was sitting in the press box, after which he signaled a touchdown. Fans immediately rushed the field, and it took fifteen minutes to clear them so the point-after, or conversion, could be kicked to give the Steelers what turned out to be their final margin, 13-7.
And just what did really occurr at Three Rivers Stadium?
To this day, the effusive Fuqua, now a product manager for the
Detroit News, says that he knows what "really" happened on
the amazing play. The play will forever be known as "The Immaculate Reception." |
Ties became part of
won-loss-tie percentage (half-win, half-loss)
The league decided to
change the formula of computing the winning percentage of each team
in the standings: Tie games, previously not counted, were made equal
to a half-game won and a half-game loss.
Major rule changes
|
Tie games, previously not
counted in the standings, were made equal to a half-game won and a
half-game lost, May 24.
1972
Divisional playoffs
December 23, 1972
AFC: Pittsburgh
Steelers 13, Oakland Raiders 7
at Three Rivers
Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
See Immaculate Reception
NFC: Dallas Cowboys 30,
San Francisco 49ers 28
at Candlestick Park, San Francisco
December 24, 1972
Miami Dolphins first
appearance in the Super Bowl
AFC: Miami Dolphins 20,
Cleveland Browns 14
at Miami Orange Bowl,
Miami, Florida
Jim Kiick's 8-yard rushing touchdown in the
fourth quarter kept the Dolphins' hopes alive for undefeated season.
NFC: Washington Redskins
16, Green Bay Packers 3
at RFK Stadium,
Washington, D.C.
Conference Championships
December 31, 1972
AFC: Miami Dolphins 21,
Pittsburgh Steelers 17
at Three Rivers
Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Dolphins continued their unbeaten streak by
scoring two touchdowns in the second half.
NFC: Washington Redskins
26, Dallas Cowboys 3
at RFK Stadium,
Washington, D.C.
Super Bowl VII
Miami Dolphins(AFC) 14, Washington
Redskins (NFC) 7,
at Los Angeles Memorial
Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
following the 1972
regular season
The 1972 Undefeated Miami Dolphins
The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins are noted as completing the first ever undefeated regular season and postseason record in NFL history when they beat the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII.
The Official NFL website (found at http://www.nfl.com/) claims The 1972 Miami Dolphins are the ONLY undefeated team in NFL history. Yet in their chronicles they claim the NFL was established in 1920, then why do they fail to mention any of the following teams going undefeated?
1920 Akron
is the only undefeated team in the Association. |
During this era, only 14
games were played in a season, making the Miami Dolphins undefeated
record as |
Super Bowl VII was the
seventh Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL). The game was played on January 14, 1973 at the Los
Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California following the
1972 regular season. The American
Football Conference (AFC) champion
Miami Dolphins
defeated
the
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Washington Redskins,
147,
and became the
first (and only) team in the NFL to complete a perfect, undefeated season.
The score indicates a much closer game than it actually was as the Dolphins' "No-Name Defense" dominated the game, only allowing Washington to cross midfield only twice. But Super Bowl VII is most memorable for the final two minutes of the game: Miami's quest for a perfect season almost came to a sudden halt after Redskins cornerback Mike Bass picked up Dolphins kicker Garo Yepremian's fumble and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown.
Miami Dolphins Safety Jake Scott, who made 2 interceptions, including one in the end zone during the 4th quarter, and another return for 55 yards, was named Most Valuable Player. He became the second defensive player in Super Bowl history (after Linebacker Chuck Howley in Super Bowl V) to earn a Super Bowl MVP.
The game was broadcast
in the United States by NBC with play-by-play announcer Curt Gowdy
and color commentator Al DeRogatis. While the Coliseum was sold out
for the game, unconditional blackout rules in the NFL prohibited the
live telecast from being shown in the Los Angeles area.
The NBC telecast was
viewed by approximately 75 million people.
The pregame show was a tribute to Apollo 17, the sixth and last mission to date to land on the Moon and the final one of Project Apollo. The show featured the crew of Apollo 17 and the University of Michigan Band.
Later, singer Andy Williams accompanied by the Little Angels of Chicago's Angels Church from Chicago performed the national anthem.
The halftime show, featuring Woody Herman and the University of Michigan Band, was titled "Happiness Is".
Super
Bowl VII was the last Super Bowl to be played at the Los Angeles
Memorial Coliseum
and
was the last Super Bowl
to be blacked out in the city where the game was played.
1973
(AFC) Miami Dolphins defeated (NFC)
Washington Redskins 14-7 in Super Bowl
VII at Los Angeles, completing a 17-0 season, the first
perfect-record regular-season and postseason mark in NFL history,
January 14, 1973 ending the 1972 Sason.
see above
The AFC defeated the NFC 33-28 in the Pro Bowl in Dallas, the first time since 1942 that the game was played outside Los Angeles, January 21, 1973 ending the 1972 Sason.
The 1973 NFL season was the 54th regular season of the National Football League.
NFL Charities, a nonprofit organization, was created to derive an income from monies generated from NFL Properties' licensing of NFL trademarks and team names, June 26. NFL Charities was set up to support education and charitable activities and to supply economic support to persons formerly associated with professional football who were no longer able to support themselves.
Congress adopted experimental legislation (for three years) requiring any NFL game that had been declared a sellout 72 hours prior to kickoff to be made available for local televising, September 14. The legislation provided for an annual review to be made by the Federal Communications Commission.
September 16
- Buffalo Bills O.J. Simpson rushes for a then NFL record 250 yards
in Buffalo's 31-13 victory at New England.
The Buffalo Bills moved their home games from War Memorial Stadium to Rich Stadium in nearby Orchard Park.
September 23
- The Giants tied the Eagles 23-23 in the final game in Yankee Stadium.
The Giants played the
rest of their home games at the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut.
September 30 - San Diego Charger's quarterback Johnny Unitas becomes the first player to top 40,000 yards passing when he connects with Mike Garrett on a 30-yard completion against Cincinnati.
October 21
- Los Angeles Rams defensive end Fred Dryer becomes the first player
to record two safeties in one game in the Rams' 24-7 victory over the
Green Bay Packers.
December 16
- Buffalo's O.J. Simpson runs for 200 yards against the New York Jets.
O.J. Simpson became the
first player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season, gaining 2,003.
The Denver Broncos had their first winning season posting a 7-5-2 record in the team's 14 year history.
The New England Patriots had 3 first round draft selections and chose offensive lineman John Hannah, running back Sam Cunningham and receiver Darryl Stingley.
A rival league, the
World Football League, was formed and was reported in operation,
October 2. It had plans to start play in 1974.
Major rule changes
(players who played in the 1972 NFL season are grandfathered in):
|
1973
Divisional playoffs
December 22, 1973
AFC: Oakland Raiders
33, Pittsburgh Steelers 14
at Oakland Coliseum,
Oakland, California
NFC: Minnesota Vikings
27, Washington Redskins 20
at Metropolitan Stadium,
Bloomington, Minnesota
December 23, 1973
AFC: Miami Dolphins 34,
Cincinnati Bengals 16
at Miami Orange Bowl,
Miami, Florida
NFC: Dallas Cowboys 27,
Los Angeles Rams 16
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Conference Championships
December 30, 1973
AFC: Miami Dolphins 27,
Oakland Raiders 10
at Miami Orange Bowl,
Miami, Florida
NFC: Minnesota Vikings
27, Dallas Cowboys 10
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
(AFC) Miami Dolphins
24, (NFL) Minnesota Vikings 7
January 13, 1974
at Rice Stadium in
Houston, Texas.
following the 1973
regular season
Super Bowl VIII was the eighth Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 13, 1974 at Rice Stadium in Houston, Texas following the 1973 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Miami Dolphins
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Minnesota Vikings,
247
. Aided by 24
unanswered points during the first three quarters of the game, the
Dolphins won their second consecutive Super Bowl, and became the
first team to appear in three consecutive ones.
Miami Dolphins Running Back Larry Csonka, who ran for a Super Bowl record 145 yards and 2 touchdowns, was named the game's Most Valuable Player. He became the first running back to earn Super Bowl MVP honors.
The game was broadcast
in the United States by CBS with play-by-play announcer Ray Scott and
color commentators Pat Summerall and Bart Starr. Due to a change in
the NFL's home blackout policy, the sold-out contest was the first
Super Bowl permitted to be televised live in the host city (in
this case, Houston) along with the
rest of the country.
The CBS telecast was
viewed by approximately 75 million people.
The University of Texas at Austin Band performed during the pregame festivities. Later, country music singer Charley Pride sang the national anthem.
The halftime show also featured the University of Texas Band in a tribute to American music titled "A Musical America".
This was the first time in Super Bowl history that the game site was a true neutral field. All of the previous Super Bowls were held at a home field of an existing NFL team. The Houston Oilers did in fact play at Rice Stadium from 1965 to 1967, but moved to the Houston Astrodome in 1968.
The Dolphins became the first team to take the game's opening kickoff and march down the field for a touchdown.
Miami's 7 pass attempts
were the fewest ever thrown by a team in the Super Bowl
1974
Miami defeated Minnesota 24-7 in Super Bowl
VIII at Houston, the second consecutive Super Bowl championship for
the Dolphins, January 13.
See Super
Bowl VIII above
The 1974 NFL season was the 55th regular season of the National Football League.
February 27 - Rozelle was given a 10-year contract effective January 1, 1973,.
April 24 - Tampa Bay was awarded the NFL's 27th franchise to begin operation in 1976, with the provision that Tampa Stadium be expanded to 72,000 seats.
Sweeping rules changes were adopted to add action and tempo to games: one sudden-death overtime period was added for preseason and regular-season games; the goal posts were moved from the goal line to the end lines; kickoffs were moved from the 40- to the 35-yard line; after missed field goals from beyond the 20, the ball was to be returned to the line of scrimmage; restrictions were placed on members of the punting team to open up return possibilities; roll-blocking and cutting of wide receivers was eliminated; the extent of downfield contact a defender could have with an eligible receiver was restricted; the penalties for offensive holding, illegal use of the hands, and tripping were reduced from 15 to 10 yards; wide receivers blocking back toward the ball within three yards of the line of scrimmage were prevented from blocking below the waist, April 25.
March 31 - The Toronto Northmen of the WFL signed Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, and Paul Warfield of Miami.
September 30 - San Diego Chargers quarterback Johnny Unitas becomes the first player to top 40,000 yards passing when he connects with Mike Garrett on a 30-yard completion against Cincinnati.
December 5 - Seattle was awarded an NFL franchise to begin play in 1976, June 4. Lloyd W. Nordstrom, president of the Seattle Seahawks, and Hugh Culverhouse, president of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, signed franchise agreements,.
December 5 - The Birmingham Americans defeated the Florida Blazers 22-21 in the WFL World Bowl, winning the league championship.
Tampa Bay is awarded a franchise by the NFL and begins play in 1976 in the AFC West and switch to the NFC Central in 1977
Seattle is awarded a franchise by the NFL and begins play in 1976 in the NFC West and switch to the AFC West in 1977
The Pittsburgh Steelers
had one of the greatest drafts in NFL history, selecting 4 future
Hall of Famers in the first 5 rounds:
Lynn Swann - Reciever |
Major rule changes
The following changes were adopted to add tempo and action to the game
|
1974
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Divisional playoffs:
OAKLAND 28, Miami 26; PITTSBURGH 32, Buffalo 14
The Sea of Hands
(December 21, 1974)
With 24 seconds left in the game, The Raiders' Clarence Davis somehow caught the winning touchdown pass among "the sea of hands" of three Dolphins defenders. This game eliminated Miami from the playoffs after they had made it to the Super Bowl in each of the last 3 seasons.[
AFC Championship: Pittsburgh 24, OAKLAND 13
NFC
Divisional playoffs: MINNESOTA 30, St. Louis 14; LOS ANGELES 19, Washington 10
Super Bowl IX
Pittsburgh (AFC) 16, Minnesota (NFC) 6, at Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, Louisiana January 12, 1975
The NBC telecast was
viewed by approximately 78 million people.
Super Bowl IX was the ninth Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 12, 1975 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana following the 1974 regular season.
The American
Football Conference (AFC) champion
Pittsburgh Steelers
defeated
the
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Minnesota Vikings,
166.
This game matched two of
the NFL's best defenses -- Pittsburgh's
Steel Curtain against
the
Purple People Eaters of Minnesota --
and two legendary quarterbacks: Terry Bradshaw
and Fran Tarkenton, respectively.
However, the Steelers dominated the game, recording the first safety in Super Bowl history, and limiting the Vikings to Super Bowl lows of 9 first downs, 119 yards of total offense, and 17 rushing yards. The Steelers also tied Super Bowl records for the least rushing first downs allowed (2) and the least passing first downs allowed (5). Tarkenton was held to only 11 out of 26 completions for 102 passing yards, no touchdown passes, and tied a Super Bowl record with 3 interceptions. Furthermore, Pittsburgh became the second Super Bowl team after the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XII to hold their opponents' offense scoreless; Minnesota's only score came on a blocked punt, and they did not even score on the extra point attempt. The Steelers accomplished all of this with 2 backups: linebackers Ed Bradley and Loren Toews replaced injured starters Andy Russell and Jack Lambert for most of the second half.
Meanwhile, Pittsburgh had 333 yards of total offense. Steelers running back Franco Harris, who ran for a Super Bowl record 158 yards and a touchdown, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player.
Pittsburgh defeated
Minnesota 16-6 in Super Bowl IX at New Orleans,
The game was played on
January 12, 1975 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana
following the 1974 regular season
see above
. The league made two significant changes to
increase the appeal of the game:
1. The surviving clubs with the best regular season records were made the home teams for each playoff round. Previously, game sites rotated by division. 2. The league pioneered the use of equipping American football referees with wireless microphones to announce penalties and clarify complex and/or unusual rulings to both fans and the media. |
The Detroit Lions moved
from Tiger Stadium to the new Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan.
The New York Giants
played their home games in Shea Stadium.
The Saints moved into the
Louisiana Superdome - New Orleans Saints move indoors to their new
Superdome after 8 years in Tulane Stadium.
The World Football League folded, October 22.
University of Southern California coach John McKay signed a 5 year contract to coach The Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
January 25 - O.A. "Bum" Phillips was hired as Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) Head Coach
November 23 - Minnesota Vikings quarterback Fran Tarkenton becomes the NFL's all-time completions leader when he completes his 2,840th pass in the Vikings' 28-13 victory over San Diego Chargers.
December 20 - Buffalo' Bills O.J. Simpson scores a touchdown (vs. Minnesota) in his 14th straight game. The streak started against the New York Jets on Sept. 21.
Major rule changes
|
1975
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Divisional playoffs: PITTSBURGH 28, Baltimore 10; OAKLAND 31, Cincinnati 28
AFC Championship: PITTSBURGH 16, Oakland 10
NFC
Divisional playoffs:
LOS ANGELES 35, St. Louis 23;
Dallas 17,
MINNESOTA 14
The
Hail Mary
(December 28, 1975)
The first Hail Mary was when Dallas
Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach threw it to wide receiver Drew
Pearson against the Minnesota Vikings.
With 24 seconds left in the game, Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, nicknamed "Captain Comeback", threw a desperate 50-yard winning touchdown pass to "Mr. Clutch" Drew Pearson to defeat the Minnesota Vikings. Until this time, a last-second desperation pass had been called several names, most notably the Alley-Oop.
NFC Championship: Dallas 37, LOS ANGELES 7
The season ended with Super Bowl X when the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Dallas Cowboys on January 18, 1976 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida.
.Pittsburgh (AFC) 21, Dallas (NFC) 17
Super Bowl X was the tenth Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 18, 1976 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, following the 1975 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Pittsburgh Steelers
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys,
2117.
This game featured a contrast of styles between the Steelers and the Cowboys, which were, at the time, the two most popular teams in the league.
Pittsburgh safety Glen Edwards halted a late Dallas rally with an end zone interception as time expired. Steelers receiver Lynn Swann, who caught 4 passes for a Super Bowl record 161 yards, including a 64-yard go-ahead touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player. Swann was the first wide receiver ever to win the Super Bowl MVP award.
The Steelers did not commit a single penalty in the game, while the Cowboys committed only 2 penalties for 20 yards.
This was the
first Super Bowl since Super Bowl III in which a quarterback threw
for more than 200 yards, a feat that both Bradshaw and Staubach surpassed
(only Super
Bowl's II and I had accomplished that).
Scenes for the 1977 suspense film Black Sunday were filmed during the game.
This was the last game played on AstroTurf at the Orange Bowl. The artificial surface was installed in 1970, but after this game, the turf was ripped up and grass was replanted for the 1976 season.
As legend has it, it was during Super Bowl X
when the camera drifted to the sidelines and paused on a lovely young
woman clad in white and blue stars. With a smile and a wink, she
caused an entire nation to fall in love with this unique troupe who
represented the feminine side of American football.
The requests for appearances started pouring
in to the suprise of the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.
We are referring to The Dallas Cowboy
Cheerleaders - the start of the Cheerleaders and their dance and sex
appeal on the sidelines!
The 1976 NFL season was the 57th regular season of the National Football League.
January 18 - The
Pittsburgh Steelers win their second Super Bowl in a row in Super
Bowl X as they defeat the Cowboys
21-17 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, following the 1975
regular season.
The Pittsburgh Steelers
joined Green Bay Packers and
Miami Dolphins as the only teams to win two Super Bowls; the
Dallas Cowboys became the first wild-card team to play in the Super Bowl.
The CBS telecast was viewed by an estimated
80 million people, the largest television audience in history.
The league expanded to 28 teams with the addition of the Seattle Seahawks and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. For this season only, the Seahawks played in the NFC West while the Buccaneers played in the AFC West.
College coaching legend Lou Holtz coached the New York Jets but resigned after 13 games and a 3-10 record
Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost all 14 games in their inaugural season.
January 20 - Lloyd Nordstrom, the president of the Seattle Seahawks, died at 66..His brother Elmer succeeded him as majority representative of the team.
The owners awarded Super Bowl XII, to be played on January 15, 1978, to New Orleans.
NFL stadiums install giant instant replay
screens. Fans at games can watch a TV-like replay of the action that
just occurred on the field. By the early 1990s, state-of-the-art
Jumbotron color video screens replace the older black-and-white
replay screens.
They also adopted the use of two 30-second
clocks for all games, visible to both players and fans to note the
official time between the ready-for-play signal and snap of the ball,
March 16.
April 8-9 - A veteran player allocation was held to stock the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers franchises with 39 players each, March 30-31. In the college draft, Seattle and Tampa Bay each received eight extra choices.
The New York Giants moved into new Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
The Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the College All-Stars in a storm-shortened Chicago College All-Star Game, the last of the series, July 23. St. Louis defeated San Diego 20-10 in a preseason game before 38,000 in Korakuen Stadium, Tokyo, in the first NFL game outside of North America, August 16.
November 25 - Buffalo Bills running back O.J. Simpson rushes for an NFL record 273 yards at Detroit. Despite his efforts, the Bills fall to the Lions 27-14
1976
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Divisional playoffs: OAKLAND 24, New England 21; Pittsburgh 40, BALTIMORE 14
AFC Championship: OAKLAND 24, Pittsburgh 7
NFC
Divisional playoffs: MINNESOTA 35, Washington 20; Los Angeles 14, DALLAS 12
NFC Championship: MINNESOTA 24, Los Angeles 13
Super Bowl XI was the 11th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 9, 1977 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following the 1976 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Oakland Raiders
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Minnesota Vikings,
3214.
Oakland gained a Super
Bowl record 429 yards, including a Super Bowl record 288 yards in the
first half, en route to winning their first Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Even though he did not score a touchdown, Raiders wide receiver Fred Biletnikoff, who had 4 catches for 79 yards, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player.
January 9 is the earliest in the calendar year that a Super Bowl has ever taken place.
This was the first game played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum previously played host to two previous Super Bowls (Super Bowl I and Super Bowl VII).
This is the last Super Bowl game played outdoors to end before dusk.
For the fourth time in as many Super Bowls, the Vikings failed to score in the first half.
Major rule changes
|
The coin toss has been a part of professional football since its start in 1892. While the procedure has been relatively unchanged over the years, the following is a history of change made to the pre-game procedure.
Previously: Coin toss was moved to thirty minutes before the start of the game.
Change: Coin toss was changed from 30 minutes to three minutes before kickoff.
The 1977 NFL season was the 58th regular season of the National Football League.
January 9 - The
Oakland Raiders defeat the Minnesota Vikings
32-14 for their first NFL championship.
The game is played before a record
Super Bowl crowd plus 81 million television viewers, the largest
audience ever to watch a sporting event.
The victory was the fifth consecutive for the AFC in the Super Bowl.
February 25 - The NFL Players Association and the NFL Management Council ratified a collective bargaining agreement extending until 1982, covering five football seasons while continuing the pension plan-including years 1974, 1975, and 1976-with contributions totaling more than $55 million. The total cost of the agreement was estimated at $107 million. The agreement called for a college draft at least through 1986; contained a no-strike, no-suit clause; established a 43-man active player limit; reduced pension vesting to four years; provided for increases in minimum salaries and preseason and postseason pay; improved insurance, medical, and dental benefits; modified previous practices in player movement and control; and reaffirmed the NFL Commissioner's disciplinary authority. Additionally, the agreement called for the NFL member clubs to make payments totaling $16 million the next 10 years to settle various legal disputes.
March 28 - The San Francisco 49ers were sold to Edward J. DeBartolo, Jr.
AMERICAN CONFERENCE EAST DIVISION
Baltimore Colts CENTRAL DIVISION
Cincinnati Bengals WEST DIVISION
Denver Broncos |
NATIONAL CONFERENCE EAST DIVISION
Dallas Cowboys CENTRAL DIVISION
Chicago Bears WEST DIVISION
Atlanta Falcons
|
The annual draft was reduced from 17 rounds to 12 rounds.
A 16-game regular season, 4-game preseason was adopted to begin in 1978, March 29. A second wild-card team was adopted for the playoffs beginning in 1978, with the wild-card teams to play each other and the winners advancing to a round of eight postseason series.
March 31 - The Seahawks were permanently aligned in the AFC Western Division and the Buccaneers in the NFC Central Division.
The owners awarded Super Bowl XIII, to be played on January 21, 1979, to Miami, to be played in the Orange Bowl; Super Bowl XIV, to be played January 20, 1980, was awarded to Pasadena, to be played in the Rose Bowl, June 14.
Rozelle negotiated contracts with the three television networks to televise all NFL regular-season and postseason games, plus selected preseason games, for four years beginning with the 1978 season. ABC was awarded yearly rights to 16 Monday night games, four prime-time games, the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl, and the Hall of Fame games. CBS received the rights to all NFC regular-season and postseason games (except those in the ABC package) and to Super Bowls XIV and XVI. NBC received the rights to all AFC regular-season and postseason games (except those in the ABC package) and to Super Bowls XIII and XV. Industry sources considered it the largest single television package ever negotiated, October 12.
November 20 -
Chicago Bear's Walter Payton set a single-game rushing record with
275 yards (40 carries) against Minnesota.
Denver Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 34-21 in the franchise's first playoff game
Major rule changes Rules changes were adopted to open up the passing game and to cut down on injuries.
A 16-game regular season, 4-game preseason was adopted to begin in 1978. A second wild-card team was adopted for the playoffs beginning in 1978, with the wild-card teams to play each other and the winners advancing to a round of eight postseason series. |
1977
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Divisional playoffs:
DENVER 34, Pittsburgh 21; Oakland 37, BALTIMORE 31 (OT)
Ghost to the Post
(December 24)
Raiders tight end Dave
Casper, nicknamed "The Ghost" by his teammates, caught a
42-yard reception (on a pass route headed towards the goal posts) to
set up the Raiders' tying field goal near the end of regulation. Then
Casper caught a 10-yard touchdown pass with 43 seconds into the
second overtime period to win the game.
AFC Championship: DENVER 20, Oakland 17
NFC
Divisional playoffs: DALLAS 37, Chicago 7; Minnesota 14, LOS ANGELES 7
NFC Championship: DALLAS 23, Minnesota 6
Dallas (NFC) 27, Denver (AFC) 10
This was The Denver Broncos first Super Bowl appearance
Dallas's victory was the first for the NFC in six years
Super Bowl XII was the
12th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL). The game was played on January 15, 1978 at the
Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana, the first Super Bowl
played inside a domed stadium, following the 1977 regular season.
The CBS telecast was
viewed by more than 102 million people, meaning the game was watched
by more viewers than any other show of any kind in the history of television.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys
defeated
the
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos,
2710.
The Cowboys defensive
team dominated most of the game, forcing 8 turnovers and allowing
only 8 pass completions by
the Broncos for just 61 passing yards.
For the first time, two
players won Super Bowl MVP honors:
defensive tackle Randy White and
defensive end Harvey Martin.
This was also the first
time that a defensive lineman was named as the Super Bowl MVP.
The Cowboys joined Minnesota as the only teams to appear in four Super Bowls.
Tony Dorsett of The Dallasd Cowboys became the first football player in history to win an NCAA National Championship one year (with the University of Pittsburgh Panthers) and a Super Bowl the next.
Robert Newhouse of The Dallasd Cowboys became the first running back in Super Bowl history to complete a touchdown pass.
Referee Jim Tunney became the first (and to date, only) official to work consecutive Super Bowls. Tunney was also the referee for Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XI.
The Dallas Cowboys was the only NFC team to win the Super Bowl in the 1970's.
This was the first Super Bowl between two teams who had met in regular season play.
Dallas defeated Denver
27-10 in Super Bowl XII, held indoors for the first time, at the
Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, January 15. The CBS telecast was
viewed by more than 102 million people, meaning the game was watched
by more viewers than any other show of any kind in the history of television.
Dallas's
victory was the first for the NFC in six years.
See
above
The 1978 NFL season was the 59th regular season of the National Football League.
Regular season became 16 games and Second
wild-card team in each conference added to playoffs
To increase revenue, the league expanded the
regular season from a 14-game schedule to 16. Furthermore, the
playoff format was expanded from 8 teams to 10 teams by adding
another wild card from each conference. The wild card teams would
play each other with the winner advancing to the playoff round of
eight teams.
Bolstered by the expansion of the regular-season schedule from 14 to 16 weeks, NFL paid attendance exceeded 12 million (12,771,800) for the first time. The per-game average of 57,017 was the third-highest in league history and the most since 1973.
August 5 - The NFL played for the first time in Mexico City, with the New Orleans Saints defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 14-7 in a preseason game.
Head Coach John Madden of The Oakland Raiders retires with a 112-39-7 record over 10 seasons and was replaced by Tom Flores, a former Raiders Quarterback.
Weeb Ewbank became the first person associated with the New York Jets to be voted into the Hall of Fame.
Major rule changes
A study on the use of instant replay as an officiating aid was made during seven nationally televised preseason games. |
1978
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff: Houston 17, MIAMI 9
Divisional playoffs: Houston 31, NEW ENGLAND 14; PITTSBURGH 33, Denver 10
AFC Championship: PITTSBURGH 34, Houston 5
NFC
Wild-Card playoff: ATLANTA 14, Philadelphia 13
Divisional playoffs: DALLAS 27, Atlanta 20; LOS ANGELES 34, Minnesota 10
NFC Championship: Dallas 28, LOS ANGELES 0
Pittsburgh (AFC) 35, Dallas (NFC) 31
Super Bowl XIII was the 13th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 21, 1979 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida following the 1978 regular season.
The NBC telecast was viewed in 35,090,000 homes, by an estimated 96.6 million fans.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Pittsburgh Steelers
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys,
3531.
It was the first ever Super Bowl rematch. The
Steelers previously beat the Cowboys
in Super Bowl X, 2117.
The Steelers become the
first team to win three Super Bowls.
Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw was named Super Bowl MVP. Bradshaw, who completing 17 out of 30 passes, broke Super Bowl records for the most passing yards in a game (318) and the most touchdown passes in a game (4). Also, his 75-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter tied Johnny Unitas in Super Bowl V for the longest in a Super Bowl.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys could not overcome turnovers, drops, and a controversial penalty during the second half.
Pregame Hype
Much of the pregame hype surrounded Super Bowl XIII centered around Cowboys linebacker Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson. Henderson caused quite a stir before the NFC Championship Game by claiming that the Rams had "No Class" and the Cowboys would shut them out. His prediction turned out to be very accurate; the Cowboys did shut them out, aided by Henderson's 68-yard interception return for a touchdown.
In the days leading up the Super Bowl, Henderson began talking about the Steelers in the same manner. He predicted another shutout and then made unfriendly comments about several Pittsburgh players. He put down the talent of Grossman and the intelligence of Bradshaw, proclaiming "Bradshaw couldn't spell 'cat' if you spotted him the 'c' and the 'a'". But the Steelers refused to get into a war of words with Henderson. Greene responded by saying the Steelers didn't need to say they were the best, they would just go out on the field and "get the job done".
Dallas Cowboys became the first Super Bowl designated "home team" to wear its white jerseys.
* The Cowboys were the first defending champion
to lose in the Super Bowl. They were also the first to lose two Super
Bowls to the same team
(they lost 21-17 to
the Steelers in Super
Bowl X).
Terry Bradshaw became the first player since the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger to win both the Super Bowl MVP and the AP Most Valuable Player Award during the same season.
By throwing for a Super Bowl record of 318 yards, Terry Bradshaw not only broke Bart Starr's record of 250 yards in Super Bowl I, but also became the first quarterback in a Super Bowl to pass for over 300.
Bradshaw was also the first quarterback to throw for three or more touchdowns in a Super Bowl, breaking the record of 2 by several players.
1979
The 1979 NFL season was the 60th regular season of the National Football League
The owners awarded three future Super Bowl sites: Super Bowl XV to the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, to be played on January 25, 1981; Super Bowl XVI to the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan, to be played on January 24, 1982; and Super Bowl XVII to Pasadena's Rose Bowl, to be played on January 30, 1983, March 13.
Tom Flores became the Oakland Raiders' head coach in 1979, following John Madden's retirement. Under Flores, the Raiders won Super Bowl XV and Super Bowl XVIII
April 2 - Carroll Rosenbloom, the president of the Rams, drowned at 72. His widow, Georgia, assumed control of the club.
October 25 - San Diego quarterback Dan Fouts throws for 303 yards at Oakland, setting an NFL record by topping 300 yards for the fourth straight game.
September 10 - Oakland Raiders vs. San Diego Chargers
The Holy Roller game, or the Immaculate Deception for Chargers fans The Raiders were trailing the Chargers with 10 seconds remaining. Quarterback Ken Stabler fumbled the ball and running back Pete Banaszak swatted it into the end zone where tight end Dave Casper fell on it for a touchdown. After this play, it was made illegal to move the ball forward by deliberately swatting or kicking it after a fumble; and in the final two minutes of each half, plus on fourth down at any time in the game, a forward fumble recovered by any member of the offensive team other than the fumbler is spotted at the point of the fumble, not the point of the recovery.
November 19 - Philadelphia Eagles vs. New York Giants The Miracle at the Meadowlands, or The Fumble for Giants fans
Leading 17-12 with 31 seconds left in the game (and the Eagles having no timeouts left), Giants quarterback Joe Pisarcik tried to hand off to running back Larry Csonka instead of simply kneeling with the ball to run out the clock. The exchange was fumbled and the Eagles' Herman Edwards picked up the loose ball and ran it in for the game-winning touchdown. The Eagles won 19-17 and the next day Giants' offensive coordinator Bob Gibson was fired, with head coach John McVay losing his job at the conclusion of the season.
December 29 - Houston Texans safety Vernon Perry sets an NFL playoff record with four interceptions in the Oilers' 17-14 victory over San Diego.
Major rule changes For several decades, every NFL official wore white hats. In 1979, NFL referees started to wear black hats, while every other NFL official continued to wear white - apparently a cost-cutting move. (Finally in 1988, the NFL copied what high-school and college football had been doing for years: The referee puts on a white hat and the other officials put on a black hat.) NFL rules changes emphasized additional player safety.
|
1979
PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff: HOUSTON 13, Denver 7
Divisional playoffs: Houston 17, SAN DIEGO 14; PITTSBURGH 34, Miami 14
AFC Championship: PITTSBURGH 27, Houston 13
NFC
Wild-Card playoff: PHILADELPHIA 27, Chicago 17
Divisional playoffs: TAMPA BAY 24, Philadelphia 17; Los Angeles 21, DALLAS 19
NFC Championship: Los Angeles 9, TAMPA BAY 0
Pittsburgh Steelers(AFC) 31, Los Angeles Rams(NFC) 19
Super Bowl XIV was the 14th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 20, 1980 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following the 1979 regular season.
Aided by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Los Angeles Rams, 3119, to win their fourth Super Bowl in team history.
Despite throwing three interceptions, Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw was named the game's MVP by completing 14 of 21 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns. Bradshaw became the second person to win two Super Bowl MVP awards and the second to win them back-to-back (both after Bart Starr in Super Bowls I and II).
The Steelers fans were known this year for the "Terrible Towel" fad, in which most fans would bring towels colored yellow and black (the team's colors) to all Steelers games (since 1975) and wave them around madly in a circle above their heads as a show of support. Many Terrible Towels were in evidence at the Rose Bowl during this Super Bowl.
The Super Bowl was
attended by a record 103,985 spectators. This mark has currently not
ever been broken yet, and most likely never will. The last time that
the Rose Bowl held an NFL game was Super Bowl XXVII, and will never
host a Super Bowl again as long as the league maintains its current
policy that only a home stadium of an NFL team may host the
championship game. And so far, no NFL stadium currently comes close
to a capacity 100,000 people.
The famous Coke commercial where Mean Joe Greene gives a kid his game jersey aired during CBS' telecast of the game. However, it is technically not viewed as a Super Bowl ad since it actually debuted on October 1, 1979, not during the day of the game |
|
Ending The 1979 Season Pittsburgh defeated the Los Angeles Rams 31-19 in Super Bowl XIV at Pasadena to become the first team to win four Super Bowls, January 20. The game was viewed in a record 35,330,000 homes. The AFC-NFC Pro Bowl, won 37-27 by the NFC, was played before 48,060 fans at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. It was the first time in the 30-year history of the Pro Bowl that the game was played in a non-NFL city. |
The 1980 NFL season was the 61st regular season of the National Football League.
The San Francisco 49ers were the dominant team of the 1980s, as quarterback Joe Montana keyed the team to four Super Bowl victories (1982, 1985, 1989, 1990). Montana, who benefited from good blocking protection, read defenses well and could pass while scrambling away from tacklers. His favorite receiver was Jerry Rice, who eventually became the NFL career leader in career touchdowns. Other powerful teams during the 1980s included the Chicago Bears, the Washington Redskins, and the Raiders
After the league declined to approve the proposed move by the Raiders from Oakland, California to Los Angeles, the team along with the Los Angeles Coliseum sued the NFL for violating antitrust laws. A verdict in the trial would not be decided until before the 1982 NFL season.
The Los Angeles Rams moved their home games to Anaheim Stadium in nearby Orange County, California.
NFL regular-season attendance of nearly 13.4 million set a record for the third year in a row. The average paid attendance for the 224-game 1980 regular season was 59,787, the highest in the league's 61-year history. NFL games in 1980 were played before 92.4 percent of total stadium capacity.
Television ratings in 1980 were the second-best in NFL history, trailing only the combined ratings of the 1976 season. All three networks posted gains, and NBC's 15.0 rating was its best ever. CBS and ABC had their best ratings since 1977, with 15.3 and 20.8 ratings, respectively. CBS Radio reported a record audience of 7 million for Monday night and special games.
CBS, with a record bid of $12 million, won the national radio rights to 26 NFL regular-season games, including Monday Night Football, and all 10 postseason games for the 1980-83 seasons.
October 26 -- Baltimore quarterback Bert Jones is sacked a record 12 times in a 17-10 loss to St. Louis. Houston quarterback Warren Moon would equal the mark on Sept. 29, 1985 at Dallas.
December 7 - The San Francisco 49ers erase a 35-7 halftime deficit to record the biggest comeback in NFL history, beating the New Orleans Saints 38-35 in overtime on Ray Wersching's 36-yard field goal.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach McKay signed a 5 year extension with a provision that he would become team president after its expiration.
Center Jim Otto became the first Oakland Raiders player to be elected to the Hall of Fame
Major rule changes
At the NFL annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, a 45-second clock was also approved to replace the 30-second clock. For a normal sequence of plays, the interval between plays was changed to 45 seconds from the time the ball is signaled dead until it is snapped on the succeeding play. |
1980 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff: OAKLAND 27, Houston 7
Divisional playoffs: SAN DIEGO 20, Buffalo 14; Oakland 14, CLEVELAND 12
AFC Championship: Oakland 34, SAN DIEGO 27
NFC
Wild-Card playoff: DALLAS 34, Los Angeles 13
Divisional playoffs: PHILADELPHIA 31, Minnesota 16; Dallas 30, ATLANTA 27
NFC Championship: PHILADELPHIA 20, Dallas 7
Oakland Raiders (AFC) 27, Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) 10, at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Super Bowl XV was the 15th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 25, 1981 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana following the 1980 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Oakland Raiders
defeated
the
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Philadelphia Eagles,
2710,
to become to first wild
card playoff team to win a Super Bowl. The Raiders jumped to a
140 lead in the first quarter, which
the Eagles never recovered from.
Oakland quarterback Jim Plunkett was named the Super Bowl MVP, completing 13 of 21 passes for 261 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for 9 yards.
Philadelphia became the first team in Super Bowl history to open the game with a two tight end formation (John Spagnola and Keith Krepfle).
This game marked the first Super Bowl where both teams used the 3-4 defensive formation as their base defense. The Raiders were the first team to use the 3-4 in the Super Bowl in Super Bowl XI against the Minnesota Vikings, although the Miami Dolphins used a version of the 3-4 ("53 defense") in Super Bowl VI, Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl VIII.
Oakland
became only the second wild card team to make it to the Super Bowl
and the first to come away victorious
(The Kansas City
Chiefs, the Super Bowl IV champions, are often thought of as a
"wild-card team," but they were not; during the season
before the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger, the the second-place finishers in
both divisions of the American Football League qualified for the playoffs).
Jim Plunkett would be the second Heisman Trophy winner to be named Super Bowl MVP after Roger Staubach in Super Bowl VI.
Oakland Raider's, Cliff Branch's two touchdown catches tied a Super Bowl record. Only Max McGee who played for the Green Bay Packers and John Stallworth of the Pittsburgh Steelers caught two touchdowns prior to this.
Gene Upshaw of The Oakland Raiders became the first player to play in three Super Bowls with the same team in three different decades. He also played in Super Bowls II (1967) and XI (1976).
Oakland defeated Philadelphia 27-10 in Super Bowl XV at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, to become the first wild-card team to win a Super Bowl, January 25. |
The 1981 NFL season was the 62nd regular season of the National Football League.
February 26 - Edgar F. Kaiser, Jr., purchased the Denver Broncos from Gerald and Allan Phipps
The Cincinnati Bengal's unveiled new uniforms with tiger stripes on the helmets and pants
March 20 - The Owners adopted a disaster plan for re-stocking a team should the club be involved in a fatal accident.
The NFL awarded Super Bowl XVIII to Tampa, to be played in Tampa Stadium on January 22, 1984, June 3.
A CBS-New York Times poll showed that 48 percent of sports fans preferred football to 31 percent for baseball.
The NFL teams hosted 167 representatives from 44 predominantly black (African-American) colleges during training camps for a total of 289 days. The program was adopted for renewal during each training camp period.
NFL regular-season attendance-13.6 million for an average of 60,745-set a record for the fourth year in a row. It also was the first time the per-game average exceeded 60,000. NFL games in 1981 were played before 93.8 percent of total stadium capacity.
ABC and CBS set all-time rating highs. ABC finished with a 21.7 rating and CBS with a 17.5 rating. NBC was down slightly to 13.9.
October 2 - Bob
Shaw established an NFL record with five touchdown catches as the
Chicago Cardinals defeated the
Baltimore Colts 55-13.
The record was tied in
1981 by San Diego Chargers Kellen Winslow
and again in 1990 by San
Francisco 49ers, Jerry Rice.
November 22 - San Diego tight end Kellen Winslow ties an NFL record with five touchdown catches in the Chargers' 55-21 victory over Oakland.
North Carolina linebacker Lawrence Taylor was chosen on the New York Giants 1st round of the draft.
Major rule changes
|
1981 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff: Buffalo 31, N.Y. JETS 27
Divisional playoffs: San Diego 41, MIAMI 38 (OT); CINCINNATI 28, Buffalo 21
AFC Championship: CINCINNATI 27, San Diego 7
NFC
Wild-Card playoff: N.Y. Giants 27, PHILADELPHIA 21
Divisional playoffs: DALLAS 38, Tampa Bay 0; SAN FRANCISCO 38, N.Y. Giants 24
NFC Championship: SAN FRANCISCO 28, Dallas 27
San Francisco 49ers (NFC) 26,
Cincinnati Bengals (AFC) 21,
at Silverdome,
Pontiac, Michigan
Super Bowl XVI was the 16th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 24, 1982 at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit) following the 1981 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
San Francisco 49ers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Cincinnati Bengals,
2621.
Although the Bengals
gained 356 yards of total offense to the
49ers' 275, San
Francisco jumped to a 20-0 lead by halftime and forced 5 turnovers.
This marked the first
time in Super Bowl history that the team that compiled the most yards lost.
49ers quarterback Joe Montana was named the Super Bowl MVP, completing 14 of 22 passes for 157 yards and one touchdown, while also rushing for 18 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
The game was one of the most watched broadcasts in American television history, with more than 85 million viewers. The final national Nielsen rating was a 49.1, a Super Bowl record.
In addition to his Super Bowl record 11 receptions, Cincinnati Bengal's Dan Ross' 104 receiving yards and his 2 touchdown receptions were the most ever by a tight end in a Super Bowl.
Cincinnati head coach Forrest Gregg became the first person to play in a Super Bowl and then be a head coach in a Super Bowl. Gregg played in Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II as a member of the Green Bay Packers.
This is the only Super Bowl to have a turnover on the opening kickoff.
This is the only Super Bowl to have ever been played at the Pontiac Silverdome. This was also only the second of 16 Super Bowls to not take place in one of the three so-called "Big Super Bowl Cities". Fourteen of the previous 16 Super Bowls took place in either Miami, Florida, New Orleans, Louisiana or in the Greater Los Angeles Area.
This was the first Super Bowl to be broadcast by the tandem of Pat Summerall and John Madden.
This was the first Super Bowl to feature two brand new participants since Super Bowl III.
Ray Wersching's 4 field goals tied a Super Bowl record set by Green Bay Packers kicker Don Chandler in Super Bowl II.
January 2 (Ending 1981 Season) - San Diego beats Miami 41-38 in overtime in the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history. . The temperature was 85°F (29.4°C) at the Miami Orange Bowl, but it did not stop either team's offense. This game set playoff records for the most points scored in a playoff game (79), the most total yards by both teams (1,036), and most passing yards by both teams (809). By the end of the first quarter the Chargers stormed to a 24-0 lead, but the Dolphins cut their deficit to 24-17 by halftime and took a 38-31 lead on the first play of the fourth quarter. Regulation ended with a 38-38 tie. In overtime, Rolf Benirschke ends the game with a 29-yard field goal. San Diego beat Miami, 41-38. January 24 (Ending 1981 Season) - One week after their victory over the Dolphins in "The Epic in Miami" in Florida's scorching heat, the Chargers travelled to Cincinnati to face the Bengals in the coldest game in NFL history based on the wind chill. The air temperature was -9 degrees Fahrenheit (-23 °C), but wind chill was -59 °F (-51 °C). In an attempt to intimidate the Chargers, several Bengals players went without long sleeved uniforms. Cincinnati won the game 27-7 and advanced to their first Super Bowl in franchise history. San Francisco beats Cincinnati 26-21 in Super Bowl XVI. Ray Wersching kicks a Super Bowl record-tying four field goals as the 49ers win their first NFL championship. January 10 (Ending 1981 Season) Dallas Cowboys vs. San Francisco 49ers, NFC Championship Game With 58 seconds left and the 49ers down by 6, Joe Montana threw a very high pass into the endzone. Dwight Clark leapt and completed a fingertip catch for a touchdown. The 49ers won 28-27 and made it to the Super Bowl. December 12 (Ending 1981 Season) "Snowplow Game." , Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots) After a snowstorm held both teams scoreless, Patriots head coach Ron Meyer ordered the area where the ball was to be spotted for a field goal attempt cleared by a snow plow. Mark Henderson, a convict on work release, cleared the path for John Smith's attempt. It won the game for the Patriots, 3-0, and the practice of using snow plows during games was later banned |
The 1982 NFL season was the 63rd regular season of the National Football League.
The NFL officially recognized quarterback sacks as a statistic.
The NFL signed a five-year contract with the three television networks (ABC, CBS, and NBC) to televise all NFL regular-season and postseason games starting with the 1982 season.
The owners awarded the 1983, 1984, and 1985 AFC-NFC Pro Bowls to Honolulu's Aloha Stadium.
Oakland Raiders
became Los Angeles Raiders
Before the season, a
verdict was handed down against the league in the trial brought by
the Los Angeles Coliseum and the Oakland Raiders. The jury ruled that
the NFL violated antitrust laws when it declined to approve the
proposed move by the Raiders from Oakland, California to Los Angeles.
Thus, the league was forced to let the team play in the second
largest city in the United States.
The verdict cleared the
way for the Raiders to move to Los Angeles, where they defeated
Green Bay Packers
24-3 in their first preseason game, August 29.
Strike cancelled
seven weeks of games and created extra playoff week
The league faced another
problem when a 57-day long players' strike reduced the 1982 season
from a 16-game schedule to 9. Because of the shortened season, the
NFL adopted a special 16-team playoff tournament. Division standings
were ignored. Eight teams from each conference were seeded 1-8 based
on their regular season records.
September 20 (at midnight on Monday) - The strike was called by the NFLPA, following the Green Bay at New York Giants game. Play resumed November 21-22 following ratification of the Collective Bargaining Agreement by NFL owners, November 17 in New York.
Under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which was to run through the 1986 season, the NFL draft was extended through 1992 and the veteran free-agent system was left basically unchanged. A minimum salary schedule for years of experience was established; training camp and postseason pay were increased; players' medical, insurance, and retirement benefits were increased; and a severance-pay system was introduced to aid in career transition, a first in professional sports.
Despite the players' strike, the average paid attendance in 1982 was 58,472, the fifth-highest in league history.
The owners awarded the sites of two Super Bowls, December 14: Super Bowl XIX, to be played on January 20, 1985, to Stanford University Stadium in Stanford, California, with San Francisco as host team; and Super Bowl XX, to be played on January 26, 1986, to the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
The Minnesota Vikings played it's first season indoors at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome.
January 10 -
The (AFC)
Cincinnati Bengals defeat The (NFC)
San Diego Chargers 27-7
in the coldest game in NFL history.
The temperature at
kickoff of the AFC Championship Game is -9, with a wind-chill factor
of -59.
December 5 - The Cowboys beat Washington 24-10 at RFK Stadium for the club's - and Tom Landry's - 200th regular-season victory.
December 12 - New England defeats Miami 3-0 in the infamous "Snowplow Game." In a "Snow Bowl" game when neither offense could even stand up straight, much less score, a convict snowplow man comes out and clears the field on the Sullivan Stadium turf, (Foxboro, Mass) for John Smith's 33-yard game-winning field-goal late in the game.
Cable sports network ESPN signs a deal to televise games for the fledgling United States Football League. After the USFL folds, ESPN works out an agreement with the NFL to begin broadcasts of Sunday night, regular-season games in 1987. For the first time, football fans at home will have to pay to see an NFL game.
Major rule changes
|
1982 PLAYOFFS
AFC
First round playoffs
MIAMI 28, New England 13
L.A. RAIDERS 27, Cleveland 10
N.Y. Jets 44, CINCINNATI 17
San Diego 31, PITTSBURGH 28
Second round playoffs:
N.Y. Jets 17, L.A. RAIDERS 14; MIAMI 34, San Diego 13
AFC Championship:
MIAMI 14, N.Y. Jets 0
NFC
First round playoffs
WASHINGTON 31, Detroit 7
GREEN BAY 41, St. Louis 16
MINNESOTA 30, Atlanta 24
DALLAS 30, Tampa Bay 17
Second round playoffs:
WASHINGTON 21, Minnesota 7; DALLAS 37, Green Bay 26
NFC Championship:
WASHINGTON 31, Dallas 17
Washington Redskins (NFC) 27,
Miami Dolphins (AFC) 17,
at Rose Bowl,
Pasadena, California
Super Bowl XVII was the 17th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 30, 1983 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following the 1982 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Washington Redskins
defeated
the
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
Miami Dolphins,
2717,
as the Redskins scored 17
unanswered points in the second half.
Washington fullback John Riggins was named Super Bowl MVP. He finished the game with 2 Super Bowl records: the most rushing yards in a Super Bowl game (166), and the most rushing attempts (38). His performance was also his fourth 100 yard rushing game in a row in a postseason game, a postseason record. Riggins also recorded a reception for 15 yards.
This game came at the end of a season that was significantly shortened by a players' strike.
This was the second rematch in Super Bowl history, as the two teams met in Super Bowl VII. That game was also played in the Los Angeles area, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
This was the first Super Bowl ever to have 3 consecutive drives end with interceptions.
This game marked the fourth time in a Super Bowl that a team came back after being both behind at halftime and at the end of the 3rd quarter.
January 30 - Washington beats Miami 27-17 in Super Bowl XVII. Fullback John Riggins
The 1983 NFL season was the 64th regular season of the National Football League
The NFL again fended off competition from a rival league as the United States Football League attempted to tap into the talent pool in the mid-1980s. Perhaps the highlight of the decade, draft wise, came in 1983 when a group of college quarterbacks dominated the first round of that year's draft.
Six quarterbacks taken in the first round highlighted the 1983 NFL Draft. The group became known as the "Class of 1983" and the passers combined to dominate the NFL's offensive attack for more than a decade following their selection in the draft.
The famed "Class of
1983" consisted of six quarterbacks taken in the first round.
1. John Elway, Colts |
Other notables taken that same year include Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson (#2) by the Los Angeles Rams and two players who are still active in the NFL: Houston Oiler's Bruce Matthews (#9) and Washington Redskin's Darrell Green (#28).
The Patriots passed on Dan Marino in the 1st round of the draft and instead chose quarterback Tony Eason.
University of Pittsburgh quarterback Dan Marino was chosen in the 1st round of the draft by The Miami Dolphins.
Minnesota Vikings head coach, Bud Grant retires after 17 seasons
September 11 - Pittsburgh Steeler's running back Franco Harris becomes the third player to rush for 11,000 yards. Harris finished his career with 12,120 rushing yards.
October 17 - Green Bay Packers beats Washington Redskins 48-47 in the highest scoring game in Monday night football history. The Packers and Redskins combine for over 1,000 yards of total offense
October 31 - George Halas, the owner of the Bears and the last surviving member of the NFL's second organizational meeting, died at 88.
November 20 - Washington Redskin's John Riggins sets an NFL record by rushing for a touchdown in his 12th straight game. The score is his record-tying 19th rushing touchdown of the year. The streak ended at 13 consecutive games while Riggins went on to establish an NFL record with 24 touchdowns for the year
Major rule changes
|
1983 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card
playoff: SEATTLE 31, Denver 7
Divisional
playoffs: Seattle 27, MIAMI 20; L.A.
RAIDERS 38, Pittsburgh 10
AFC Championship:
L.A. RAIDERS 30, Seattle 14
NFC
Wild-Card
playoff: L.A. Rams 24, DALLAS 17
Divisional
playoffs: SAN FRANCISCO 24, Detroit 23;
WASHINGTON
51, L.A. Rams 7
NFC Championship:
WASHINGTON 24, San Francisco 21
L.A.
Raiders (AFC) 38, Washington
Redskins (NFC) 9,
at
Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Super Bowl XVIII was the 18th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 22, 1984 at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Florida following the 1983 regular season.
The
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
Raiders,
who
were playing out of Los Angeles at that time,
defeated
the
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Washington
Redskins,
389.
The
Raiders' 38 points and their 29 point margin of victory were both
Super Bowl records.
The fact that the Redskins had come into the game as the heavily-favored team but left with such a humiliating defeat led Super Bowl XVIII to be known as "Black Sunday," in reference to the Raiders' team colors.
Raiders'
running back Marcus Allen was the Super Bowl MVP, carrying the ball
20 times, for a then-record total of 191 yards and two touchdowns,
including a spectacular 74-yard run in the third quarter. His 74 yard
run was also a record, and his 9.6 yards per carry average was the
second highest in Super Bowl history. He also caught 2 passes for 18
yards, giving him 209 total yards from the line of scrimmage in the game.
The Los
Angeles Raiders became the first team to score an offensive,
defensive and special teams touchdown in the same Super Bowl.
Apple's famous "1984" television commercial, introducing the Apple Macintosh computer and directed by Ridley Scott, ran during a timeout in the third quarter. The advertisement changed how the Super Bowl would be used as a media platform after that.
Marcus Allen of the Los Angeles Raiders became just the third Heisman Trophy winner to be named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player.
Washington Redskin's John Riggins became the second player to run for touchdowns in back-to-back Super Bowls. He had one in Super Bowl XVII en route to winning that game's Super Bowl MVP.
Cliff Branch of the Los Angeles Raiders became just the 4th player to catch a touchdown in two different Super Bowls.
This game would mark the last time that an AFC team would win a Super Bowl until the Denver Broncos defeated the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII 14 seasons later.
Voice-over work for the highlight package to Super Bowl XVIII was John Facenda's final project for NFL Films. Facenda died a little more than eight months after the game.
The Los Angeles Raiders were the only AFC team to win the Superbowl in the 1980's.
The Los Angeles Raiders defeated Washington 38-9 in Super Bowl XVIII at Tampa Stadium, January 22. The game achieved a 46.4 rating and 71.0 share.
The 1984 NFL season was the 65th regular season of the National Football League.
March 20 - An 11-man group headed by H.R. (Bum) Bright purchased the Dallas Cowboys from Clint Murchison, Jr. Club president Tex Schramm was designated as managing general partner.
March 21 - Patrick Bowlen purchased a majority interest in the Denver Broncos from Edgar Kaiser, Jr.
March 28 - The Baltimore Colts relocated to Indianapolis, Indiana. Their new home became the Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana. See Colts History
The owners awarded two Super Bowl sites at their May 23-25 meetings: Super Bowl XXI, to be played on January 25, 1987, to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena; and Super Bowl XXII, to be played on January 31, 1988, to San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.
The New York Jets moved their home games to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
August 28 - Alex G. Spanos purchased a majority interest in the San Diego Chargers from Eugene V. Klein.
December 2 - Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) defeated Pittsburgh 23-20 to mark the one-hundredth overtime game in regular-season play since overtime was adopted in 1974.
Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) running back Earl Campbell was traded to New Orleans Saints for the 1st round draft choice and quarterback Warren Moon was signed as a free agent.
On the
field, many all-time records were set:
According to a CBS Sports/New York Times survey, 53 percent of the nation's sports fans said they most enjoyed watching football, compared to 18 percent for baseball, December 2-4.
NFL paid attendance exceeded 13 million for the fifth consecutive complete regular season when 13,398,112, an average of 59,813, attended games. The figure was the second-highest in league history. Teams averaged 42.4 points per game, the second-highest total since the 1970 merger.
November 4 - Seattle sets an NFL record by returning four interceptions for touchdowns in a 45-0 victory over Kansas City. Dave Brown scores twice while Kenny Easley and Keith Simpson also return interceptions for touchdowns. All of the scores are longer than 50 yards.
Satellite television opens access to football games anywhere, anytime. Private homes equipped with satellite dishes can view games all over the United States, at any time of day or night. Within a few years, satellite access has the sports-bar business booming.
Major rule changes
|
1984 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card
playoff: SEATTLE 13, L.A. Raiders 7
Divisional
playoffs: MIAMI 31, Seattle 10;
Pittsburgh 24, DENVER 17
AFC
Championship: MIAMI 45, Pittsburgh 28
NFC
Wild-Card
playoff: N.Y. Giants 16, L.A. RAMS 13
Divisional
playoffs: SAN FRANCISCO 21, N.Y.
Giants 10;
Chicago
23, WASHINGTON 19
NFC
Championship: SAN FRANCISCO 23, Chicago 0
The season ended with Super Bowl XIX when the (NFC) San Francisco 49ers defeated the (AFC) Miami Dolphins 38 - 16 at Stanford Stadium, Stanford, California
Super Bowl XIX was the 19th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 20, 1985 at Stanford Stadium, on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, following the 1984 regular season.
The
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
San
Francisco 49ers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Miami Dolphins,
3816.
Much
hyped as the battle between two great quarterbacks, Miami's
Dan Marino and San
Francisco's Joe Montana, the
49ers would end up taking the game in dominating fashion.
It would be Marino's only trip to the Super Bowl during his career.
Montana, who was named the Super Bowl MVP, completed 24 of 35 passes for a Super Bowl record 331 yards and three touchdowns. He also had 5 rushes for 59 yards and 1 rushing touchdown. His 59 rushing yards were the most rushing yards ever gained by a quarterback in the Super Bowl.
This Super Bowl was unique in that it fell on the same day that Ronald Reagan was inaugurated for a second term as President of the United States. Because January 20 fell on a Sunday, Reagan was sworn in privately and the public ceremony took place the following day.
It was the most watched game in history with an estimated 115.9 million viewers. This game also was the first time television commercials ran for a million dollars a minute.
|
Milestones
The following players set all-time records during the season:
Most
Yards Passing, season
Dan Marino, Miami (5,084) |
The 1985 NFL season was the 66th regular season of the National Football League
January 4 - The Cowboys play their record 36th postseason game, but Eric Dickerson steals the show, rushing for a playoff-record 248 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Los Angeles Rams to a 20-0 victory over Dallas.
January
20 - The San
Francisco 49er's defeated the
Miami Dolphins 38-16
in Super Bowl XIX at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California.
The game
was viewed on television by more people than any other live event in history.
President
Ronald Reagan, who took his second oath of office before tossing the
coin for the game, was one of 115,936,000 viewers. The game drew a
46.4 rating and a 63.0 share. In addition, 6 million people watched
the Super Bowl in the United Kingdom and a similar number in Italy.
Super Bowl XIX had a direct economic impact of $113.5 million on the
San Francisco Bay area.
NBC Radio and the NFL entered into a two-year agreement granting NBC the radio rights to a 37-game package in each of the 1985-86 seasons, March 6. The package included 27 regular-season games and 10 postseason games.
The owners awarded two Super Bowl sites at their annual meeting, March 10-15: Super Bowl XXIII, to be played on January 22, 1989, to the proposed Dolphins Stadium in Miami; and Super Bowl XXIV, to be played on January 28, 1990, to the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
A Louis Harris poll in December revealed that pro football remained the sport most followed by Americans. Fifty-nine percent of those surveyed followed pro football, compared with 54 percent who followed baseball.
The NFL showed a ratings increase on all three networks for the season, gaining 4 percent on NBC, 10 on CBS, and 16 on ABC.
Bud Grant returns for the Minnesota Vikings 1985 season to replace Les Steckel. He then retired again after a 7-9 season and was replaced by longtime assistant Jerry Burns.
The league-wide conversion to videotape from movie film for coaching study was approved.
April 29 - Norman Braman, in partnership with Edward Leibowitz, bought the Philadelphia Eagles from Leonard Tose.
April 30 - Bruce Smith, a Virginia Tech defensive lineman selected by Buffalo, was the first player chosen in the fiftieth NFL draft.
May 23 - The NFL owners adopted a resolution calling for a series of overseas preseason games, beginning in 1986, with one game to be played in England/Europe and/or one game in Japan each year. The game would be a fifth preseason game for the clubs involved and all arrangements and selection of the clubs would be under the control of the Commissioner.
June 3 - A group headed by Tom Benson, Jr., was approved to purchase the New Orleans Saints from John W. Mecom, Jr.
October 13 - Tony Dorsett becomes the sixth player in NFL history to rush for 10,000 yards as the Cowboys defeat Pittsburgh 27-13 win at Texas Stadium.
October 15 - Commissioner Rozelle was authorized to extend the commitment to Honolulu's Aloha Stadium for the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl for 1988, 1989, and 1990.
October 26 - Baltimore quarterback Bert Jones is sacked a record 12 times in a 17-10 loss to St. Louis. Houston quarterback Warren Moon would equal the mark on Sept. 29, 1985 at Dallas.
November 10 - San Diego running back Lionel James gains 345 all-purpose yards, the second highest total in NFL history as the Chargers defeat the Los Angeles Raiders 40-34 in overtime. James scores the winning touchdown on a 17-yard run.
Major rule changes
|
1985 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card
playoff: New England 26, N.Y. JETS 14
Divisional
playoffs: MIAMI 24, Cleveland 21;
New England 27, L.A. RAIDERS 20
AFC Championship:
New England 31, MIAMI 14
NFC
Wild-Card
playoff: N.Y. GIANTS 17, San Francisco 3
Divisional
playoffs: L.A. RAMS 20, Dallas 0;
CHICAGO 21, N.Y. Giants 0
NFC Championship:
CHICAGO 24, L.A. Rams 0
The season
ended with Super Bowl XX when the (NFC)
Chicago Bears defeated the
(AFC) New
England Patriots 46
- 10 at Louisiana Superdome,
New Orleans, Louisiana
Super Bowl XX was the 20th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 26, 1986 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana following the 1985 regular season.
The New England Patriots reached the Super Bowl for the first time
The
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Chicago Bears
defeated
the
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
New
England Patriots,
4610.
The Bears
set Super Bowl records for sacks (7) and rushing yards allowed (7).
Chicago's 46 points were the most ever scored by a team in the Super
Bowl, and their 36-point margin of victory was also a Super Bowl record.
The
Patriots were held to negative yardage (-19) throughout the entire
first half, and just 123 total yards in the entire game, the second
lowest total in Super Bowl history.
Bears defensive end Richard Dent, who had 1.5 quarterback sacks, forced 2 fumbles, and blocked a pass, was named the game's Most Valuable Player.
NFL owners awarded Super Bowl XXIV to New Orleans, Louisiana on December 14, 1982. This would be the sixth time that New Orleans hosted the Super Bowl. Tulane Stadium was the site of Super Bowls IV, VI, and IX; while the Louisiana Superdome previously hosted XII and XV.
The 1985 Chicago Bears became national stars. Under head coach Mike Ditka, who won the 1985 NFL Coach of the Year Award, they went 15-1 in the regular season, becoming the second NFL team ever to win 15 regular season games (after the 1984 San Francisco 49ers). Their only loss was in a Monday night game against the Miami Dolphins.
The Bears' then-revolutionary, strong defense, "46 Zone", enabled them to lead the league during the regular season in fewest points allowed (198), interceptions (34), fewest total yards allowed (4,135), and fewest rushing yards allowed (1,319). And under a strong running game, Chicago led the NFL in rushing yards (2,761) and rushing touchdowns (27), and finished second in the league in scoring (456 points).
A major reason why the 46 defense was so effective in 1985 was that almost all of their opponents were unprepared for its then-unusual primary tactic: blitz five to eight players on each play. But in less than two years, offensive coaches discovered how to exploit the 46 defense by using quick, timed passes from formations that used multiple receivers.
This was the first Super Bowl to feature brand new participants since Super Bowl XVI.
The Bears' 21 points in the third quarter is still a record for the most points scored in that period.
Richard Dent became just the second defensive end to be named Super Bowl MVP. The first being Harvey Martin, as he shared to MVP with fellow D-Lineman Randy White for Super Bowl XII.
Jim McMahon became the 6th player to rush for two touchdowns in a Super Bowl and he is still the only quarterback to rush for more than one touchdown in a Super Bowl.
This was the first Super Bowl where the winning coach did not receive the traditional call from the President of the United States. Winning teams are now rewarded a trip to the White House to be congratulated by the President personally.
The NBC telecast replaced the final episode of M*A*S*H as the most-viewed television program in history, with an audience of 127 million viewers, according to A.C. Nielsen figures. In addition to drawing a 48.3 rating and a 70 percent share in the United States, Super Bowl XX was televised to 59 foreign countries and beamed via satellite to the QE II. An estimated 300 million Chinese viewed a tape delay of the game in March. NBC Radio figures indicated an audience of 10 million for the game.
Super Bowl XX injected more than $100 million into the New Orleans-area economy, and fans spent $250 per day and a record $17.69 per person on game day.
The 1986 NFL season was the 67th regular season of the National Football League
January 26 - Chicago defeated New England 46-10 in Super Bowl XX at the Louisiana Superdome to end the 1985 season. The Patriots had earned the right to play the Bears by becoming the first wild-card team to win three consecutive games on the road.
Thus began a full 13 years of stadium talk in Chicago. Chicago business organizations proposed building a new Bears stadium south of Soldier Field, and in late 1989, Chicago heard its first utterance of the word "McDome."
March 11 - The owners adopted limited use of instant replay as an officiating aid, prohibited players from wearing or otherwise displaying equipment, apparel, or other items that carry commercial names, names of organizations, or personal messages of any type.
July 29 - After an 11-week trial, a jury in U.S. District Court in New York awarded the United States Football League one dollar in its $1.7 billion antitrust suit against the NFL. The jury rejected all of the USFL's television-related claims, which were the self-proclaimed heart of the USFL's case.
August 3 - Chicago defeated Dallas 17-6 at Wembley Stadium in London in the first American Bowl. The game drew a sellout crowd of 82,699 and the NBC national telecast in this country produced a 12.4 rating and 36 percent share, making it the second-highest-rated daytime preseason game and highest daytime preseason television audience ever with 10.65-million viewers.
October 5 - Eric Dickerson runs for an overtime-record 42-yard touchdown as the Rams defeat the Buccaneers 26-20.
October 6 - Seattle wide receiver Steve Largent catches a pass in his 128th straight game, breaking the NFL record for most consecutive games with a reception.
Monday Night Football became the longest-running prime-time series in the history of the ABC network.
Marv Levy took over as Buffalo Bills head coach, replacing Hank Bullough.
1986 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff: N.Y. JETS 35, Kansas City 15
Divisional playoffs:
CLEVELAND 23, N.Y. Jets 20 (OT); DENVER 22, New England 17
Denver quarterback John
Elway engineers "The
Drive." Trailing Cleveland 20-13
with 5:32 remaining in the AFC championship game, Elway marches the
Broncos 98 yards on 15 plays to force overtime, then moves Denver 60
yards on nine plays on their first possession of overtime to set up
Rich Karlis' game-winning 33-yard field goal in the Broncos' 23-20 victory.
AFC Championship: Denver 23, CLEVELAND 20 (OT)
NFC
Wild-Card playoff: WASHINGTON 19, L.A. Rams 7
Divisional playoffs: Washington 27, CHICAGO 13; N.Y. GIANTS 49, San Francisco 3
NFC Championship: N.Y. GIANTS 17, Washington 0
N.Y. Giants (NFC) 39, Denver (AFC) 20, at Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
Super Bowl XXI was the
21st Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 25, 1987 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following
the 1986 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
New York Giants
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos,
3920.
The Giants scored 26
unanswered points during the second, third, and fourth quarters.
The Giants scored
the most points in a 2nd half in Super Bowl history with their 30 points.
New York quarterback Phil Simms was named the Super Bowl MVP. He finished the game completing 22 of 25 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns. Simms also had 25 rushing yards on 3 carries. His 22 out of 25 (88%) completion percentage not only set a Super Bowl record, but also an NFL postseason record.
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXI to Pasadena, California during their May 23-25, 1984 meetings. This was the fourth time that Pasadena hosted the game, and the sixth time it was held in the Greater Los Angeles Area.
The 17 total points scored in the 1st quarter tied a Super Bowl record, set by San Francisco and Miami two years earlier in Super Bowl XIX.
Rich Karlis' 48-yard field goal tied the record for the longest field goal in Super Bowl history. Kansas City Chiefs kicker Jan Stenerud also made a 48-yard field goal in Super Bowl IV
The 1987 NFL season was the 68th regular season of the National Football League
January 11 - Denver quarterback John Elway engineers "The Drive." See above
January 25 - Following the 1986 season - The New York Giants defeated Denver 39-20 in Super Bowl XXI and captured their first NFL title since 1956. The game, played in Pasadena's Rose Bowl, drew a sellout crowd of 101,063. According to A.C. Nielsen figures, the CBS broadcast of the game was viewed in the U.S. on television by 122.64-million people, making the telecast the second most-watched television show of all-time behind Super Bowl XX. The game was watched live or on tape in 55 foreign countries and NBC Radio's broadcast of the game was heard by a record 10.1 million people.
Former NFL receiver Jerry Richardson began meetings with business leaders in hopes of landing an expansion franchise in Carolina.
The NFL set an all-time paid attendance mark of 17,304,463 for all games, including preseason, regular-season, and postseason. Average regular-season game attendance (60,663) exceeded the 60,000 figure for only the second time in league history.
New three-year TV contracts with ABC, CBS, and NBC were announced for 1987-89 at the NFL annual meeting in Maui, Hawaii, March 15. Commissioner Rozelle and Broadcast Committee Chairman Art Modell also announced a three-year contract with ESPN to televise 13 prime-time games each season. The ESPN contract was the first with a cable network. However, NFL games on ESPN also were scheduled for regular television in the city of the visiting team and in the home city if the game was sold out 72 hours in advance.
Owners also voted to continue in effect for one year the instant replay system used during the 1986 season.
Strike cancelled one
week and created three weeks of replacement games
The Instant replay was
used to reverse eight plays in 52 preseason games. During the
strike-shortened 210-game regular season, 490 plays were closely
reviewed by replay officials, leading to 57 reversals. Eighteen plays
were closely reviewed by instant replay in 10 postseason games, with
three reversals.
July 1 - Over 400 former NFL players from the pre-1959 era received first payments from NFL owners
A special payment program was adopted to benefit nearly 1,000 former NFL players who participated in the League before the current Bert Bell NFL Pension Plan was created and made retroactive to the 1959 season. Players covered by the new program spent at least five years in the League and played all or part of their career prior to 1959. Each vested player would receive $60 per month for each year of service in the League for life.
Possible sites for Super Bowl XXV were reduced to five locations by the NFL Super Bowl XXV Site Selection Committee: Anaheim Stadium, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Joe Robbie Stadium, San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, and Tampa Stadium.
NFL owners awarded Super Bowl XXV, to be played on January 27, 1991, to Tampa Stadium, May 20.
NFL and CBS Radio jointly announced agreement granting CBS the radio rights to a 40-game package in each of the next three NFL seasons, 1987-89, April 7.
The NFL's debut on ESPN produced the two highest-rated and most-watched sports programs in basic cable history. The Chicago at Miami game on August 16 drew an 8.9 rating in 3.81 million homes.
Those records fell two weeks later when the Los Angeles Raiders at Dallas game achieved a 10.2 cable rating in 4.36 million homes.
The 1987 season was reduced from a 16-game season to 15 as the result of a 24-day players' strike. The strike was called by the NFLPA on Tuesday, September 22, following the New England at New York Jets game. Games scheduled for the third weekend were canceled but the games of weeks four, five, and six were played with replacement teams. Striking players returned for the seventh week of the season, October 25.
Due to Game 7 of the 1987 World Series, the Denver Broncos - Minnesota Vikings game at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome was moved back one day to Monday, October 26.
October 31 - In a three-team "Deal of the Decade" involving 10 players and/or draft choices, the Los Angeles Rams traded running back Eric Dickerson to the Indianapolis Colts for six draft choices and two players. Buffalo obtained the rights to linebacker Cornelius Bennett from Indianapolis, sending Greg Bell and three draft choices to the Rams. The Colts added Owen Gill and three draft choices of their own to complete the deal with the Rams
The Chicago at Minnesota game became the highest-rated and most-watched sports program in basic cable history when it drew a 14.4 cable rating in 6.5 million homes, December 6.
After a 5-10 finish to the 1987 season, Tom Flores moved to the Raiders' front office, but left after just one year to become the president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks.
The Miami Dolphins moved from the Orange Bowl to Jo Robbie Stadium, which was later named Pro Player Stadium.
September 13 - Quarterback Steve DeBerg establishes a franchise record with five touchdown passes and the Buccaneers set marks for most points (48) and the largest margin of victory (38) in a 48-10 win over the Falcons.
September 20 - Chicago running back Walter Payton scored his NFL record 107th rushing touchdown in the Bears' 20-3 victory over Tampa Bay, while in Cincinnati, San Francisco wide receiver Dwight Clark's record streak of 105 consecutive games with a reception came to an end when he was held without a catch in San Francisco's 27-26 victory over the Bengals.
November 29
Vencie Glenn returns an interception 103 yards for a touchdown
against Denver.
To be matched
October 4 1992 - Miami's Louis Oliver returns an interception a
record-tying 103 yards for a touchdown against Buffalo, tying the
mark established by Vencie Glenn against Denver on Nov. 29, 1987.
November 30 - Los Angeles Raiders running back Bo Jackson rushes for 221 yards in just his fifth career NFL game as the Raiders beat Seattle 37-14. Jackson scores on runs of 91 and 2 yards, and adds a 14-yard touchdown catch.
December 27 - Seattle wide receiver Steve Largent catches six passes in a 41-20 loss at Kansas City to become the NFL's all-time leading receiver with 751 receptions.
Major rule changes
|
1987 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff:
HOUSTON 23, Seattle 20 (OT)
Divisional playoffs: CLEVELAND
38, Indianapolis 21; DENVER 34, Houston 10
AFC Championship:
DENVER 38, Cleveland 33
NFC
Wild-Card playoff:
Minnesota 44, NEW ORLEANS 10
Divisional playoffs:
Minnesota 36, SAN FRANCISCO 24;
Washington 21, CHICAGO 17
NFC Championship:
WASHINGTON 17, Minnesota 10
Washington (NFC) 42, Denver (AFC) 10, at Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego, California
Super Bowl XXII was the
22nd Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 31, 1988 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego, California
following the 1987 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Washington Redskins
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos,
4210.
The Redskins set the following Super Bowl records en route to the victory:
|
Redskins quarterback Doug Williams was named the Super Bowl MVP, completing 18 of 29 passes for a Super Bowl record 340 yards and four touchdowns, with one interception.
Redskins, rookie unning
back Timmy Smith set a Super Bowl rushing record, gaining 204 yards
and scoring two touchdowns.
Smith returned
to the news in 2005 when he was arrested for allegedly trying to sell
cocaine to an undercover police officer - ironically, in Denver.
Smith pled guilty in March 2006 for conspiring to distribute cocaine,
and was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison in May
This game came at the end of a season that was shortened by a players' strike, but each team only lost one regular season game due to the labor dispute.
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXII to San Diego during their May 23-25, 1984 meetings. This was the first Super Bowl to be played at Jack Murphy Stadium (now currently known as Qualcomm Stadium) in San Diego.
ABC uses a remote-controlled camera on a goal post during its broadcast of Super Bowl XXII, a matchup between the Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos.
The Broncos and Redskins combined for a total of 929 offensive yards, the most ever by both teams in a Super Bowl.
This marked the first Super Bowl in which both starting quarterbacks were former first round draft picks, but were originally drafted by other teams. Doug Williams was taken in the first round by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1978, while John Elway was drafted by the Baltimore Colts in the first round in 1983.
Washington's 35 points and 356 yards in the second period also set the overall NFL postseason records for the most points and offensive yards in a single quarter, respectively.
Doug Williams became the
first player in Super Bowl history to throw 4 touchdowns in a single
quarter, and throw four in a half.
Initially Williams served
as the backup for starting quarterback Jay Schroeder, but after
Schroeder became injured, Williams ended up starting the last games
of the 1987 regular season. When the Skins made the playoffs,
Williams, with his 94.0 passer rating, remained starter. He led the
team to Super Bowl XXII, becoming the first black quarterback to play
in the Super Bowl.
Ricky Sanders became the first player to catch 2 touchdowns in a single quarter.
The Broncos became the first team in Super Bowl history to score a touchdown on their first play from scrimmage.
This would be the first Super Bowl broadcast on ABC to have the broadcast team of Michaels, Gifford and Dierdorf. The trio would man the booth for ABC's Monday Night Football from 1987 to 1997.
The Redskins became the third consecutive team to win the Super Bowl after being shutout in the playoffs by the previous Super Bowl champion. The Chicago Bears won Super Bowl XX a year after losing in the 1984 NFC Championship Game to the San Francisco 49ers, 23-0. The New York Giants would then lose to the Bears, 21-0, in the 1985 Divisional Playoff Round. And the Redskins were eliminated by the Giants, 17-0, in the 1986 NFC Championship Game.
Following the 1987 season
January 17 - Cleveland Browns vs. Denver Broncos, AFC
Championship Game |
The 1988 NFL season was the 69th regular season of the National Football League.
Washington defeated Denver
42-10
in Super Bowl
XXII to earn its second victory
this decade in the NFL Championship Game ending the 1987 season.
The game, played for
the first time in San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium, drew a sellout crowd
of 73,302. According to A.C. Nielsen figures, the ABC broadcast of
the game was viewed in the U.S. on television by 115,000,000 people.
The game was seen live or on tape in 60 foreign countries, including
the People's Republic of China, and CBS's radio broadcast of the game
was heard by 13.7 million people.
St Louis Cardinals
became Phoenix Cardinals
NFL owners approved the
transfer of the St. Louis Cardinals' franchise from St. Louis to Phoenix.
March 10 - In a unanimous 3-0 decision, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York upheld the verdict of the jury that in July, 1986, had awarded the United States Football League one dollar in its $1.7 billion antitrust suit against the NFL. In a 91-page opinion, Judge Ralph K. Winter said the USFL sought through court decree the success it failed to gain among football fans
March 14 thru 18 - NFL owners approved two supplemental drafts each year-one prior to training camp and one prior to the regular season; and voted to initiate an annual series of games in Japan/Asia as early as the 1989 preseason
April 24 and 25 The NFL Annual Selection Meeting returned to a separate two-day format and for the first time originated on a Sunday. ESPN drew a 3.6 rating during their seven-hour coverage of the draft, which was viewed in 1.6 million homes
August 25 - Art Rooney, founder and owner of the Steelers, died at 87.
Commissioner Rozelle announced that two teams would play a preseason game as part of the American Bowl series on August 6, 1989, in the Korakuen Tokyo Dome in Japan, December 16.
September 25 - New York Jets quarterback Ken O'Brien throws his first interception in 211 attempts, the second longest streak in NFL history at that point.
Tom Flores becomes the president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks.
A total of 811 players shared in the postseason pool of $16.9 million, the most ever distributed in a single season.
By a 23-5 margin, owners voted to continue the instant replay system for the third consecutive season with the Instant Replay Official to be assigned to a regular seven-man, on-the-field crew. At the NFL annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, a 45-second clock was also approved to replace the 30-second clock. For a normal sequence of plays, the interval between plays was changed to 45 seconds from the time the ball is signaled dead until it is snapped on the succeeding play.
NFL regular-season paid attendance of 13,535,335 and the average of 60,427 was the third highest all-time. Buffalo set an NFL team single-season, in-house attendance mark of 622,793.
December 31 - Philadelphia Eagles vs. Chicago Bears, NFC Divisional Playoff Game
A heavy, dense fog rolled over the stadium (Soldier Field) during the second quarter, cutting visibility to about 15-20 yards for the rest of the game. The fog was so thick that TV and radio announcers had trouble seeing what was happening on the field. The Bears ended up winning 20-12.
Major rule changes A standard system of two time intervals between plays are established (and would be timed using the Play Clock): For normal plays, the offensive team has 45 seconds to snap the ball after the previous play is signaled dead. After time outs and other administrative stoppages, the time limit is 30 seconds beginning after the Referee signals that the ball is ready to resume play. If a fumble occurs during an extra point attempt, only the fumbling player can recover and/or advance the ball. This change closes a loophole in the "Stabler Fumble Rule" that was enacted during the 1979 NFL season in reaction to the Holy Roller Game. The penalty for "Running into the kicker" is changed from five yards and a first down to just 5 yards. September 4 - Johnny Grier became the first African-American referee in NFL history.
Finally in 1988, the NFL
copied what high-school and college football had been doing for
years: The referee puts on a white hat and the other officials put on
a black hat. |
1988 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff:
Houston 24, CLEVELAND 23
Divisional playoffs:
CINCINNATI 21, Seattle 13; BUFFALO 17, Houston 10
AFC Championship:
CINCINNATI 21, Buffalo 10
NFC
Wild-Card playoff:
MINNESOTA 28, L.A. Rams 17
Divisional playoffs:
CHICAGO 20, Philadelphia 12;
SAN FRANCISCO 34,
Minnesota 9
NFC Championship:
San Francisco 28, CHICAGO 3
San Francisco (NFC) 20, Cincinnati (AFC) 16, at Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami, Florida
Super Bowl XXIII was the
23rd Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 22, 1989 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida (now part
of the suburb of Miami Gardens) following the 1988 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
San Francisco 49ers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Cincinnati Bengals,
2016.
This was the
second meeting between the two teams in the Super Bowl; they first
met seven years earlier in Super Bowl XVI.
The game is remembered for the 49ers' comeback from a 16-13 deficit. San Francisco got the ball on their own eight yard line with 3:10 on the clock, and marched 92 yards down the field in under three minutes. They then scored the winning touchdown on a Joe Montana pass to John Taylor with just 34 seconds left in the game.
49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice was named the Super Bowl MVP. He caught 11 passes for a Super Bowl record 215 yards and one touchdown, while also rushing once for 5 yards.
This was also the final NFL game coached by the 49ers' Bill Walsh.
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXIII to Miami, Florida during their March 10-15, 1985 meetings. This was the sixth time that Miami hosted the game, and the first at Joe Robbie Stadium; the 5 previous Super Bowls in the area were played at Miami Orange Bowl.
This would be a rematch of Super Bowl XVI, with the 49ers also winning that game, by a 26-21 score.
The rematch was the third time in Super Bowl history two teams were meeting for a second time. Miami and Washington met in Super Bowls VII and XVII, with the teams splitting the games. Dallas and Pittsburgh met in Super Bowls X and XIII, with Pittsburgh winning both of those games. Both Dallas-Pittsburgh matchups were in Miami at the Orange Bowl. Pittsburgh and Dallas would later meet in Super Bowl XXX (which the Cowboys won by 10) to become the first two teams to ever meet three times in the Super Bowl.
Stanford Jennings would be the second player to return a kickoff for a touchdown in Super Bowl history. In three games played at Joe Robbie Stadium, each game had a kickoff return for a score.
This was the last Super Bowl to have played on the second to last Sunday in January. Ever since, the game has been played on the last Sunday of January and now the first Sunday in February.
The 49ers became the 6th team to win the Super Bowl over a team with a better regular season record going into the game (12-6 for the 49ers to 14-4 for the Bengals).
The 49ers became the first team, since the NFL went to a 16-game schedule in 1978, to win the Super Bowl after winning only 10 games during the regular season.
In order to calm his teammates in the huddle just before the final game-winning drive, Montana pointed into the stadium crowd and said "Hey, isn't that John Candy?" The moment worked, and the 49ers were able to drive down the field for the win. It became the defining moment of Montana's "Joe Cool" reputation.
This was the final Super Bowl that Pete Rozelle presided over as NFL Commissioner.
On January 26, 2006, NFL.com ranked this game number 1 on its list of the top 10 Super Bowls of all-time
Bengal's, Boomer Esiason was so depressed from his team's narrow loss that he decided not to play in the Pro Bowl a week later
The 1989 NFL season was the 70th regular season of the National Football League.
San Francisco defeated Cincinnati 20-16
in Super Bowl XXIII
following the 1988 season.
The game, played for the
first time at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, was attended by a sellout
crowd of 75,129.
NBC's telecast of the
game was watched by an estimated 110,780,000 viewers, according to
A.C. Nielsen, making it the sixth most-watched program in television
history. The game was seen live or on tape in 60 foreign countries,
including an estimated 300 million in China. The CBS Radio broadcast
of the game was heard by 11.2 million people.
March 19 thru 23 - A strengthened policy regarding anabolic steroids and masking agents was announced by Commissioner Rozelle. NFL clubs called for strong disciplinary measures in cases of feigned injuries and adopted a joint proposal by the Long-Range Planning and Finance committees regarding player personnel rules
March 22 -
Commissioner Rozelle announced his retirement, pending the naming of
a successor at the NFL annual meeting in Palm Desert, California.
see Successor
dated October 26
Following the announcement, AFC president Lamar Hunt and NFC president Wellington Mara announced the formation of a six-man search committee composed of Art Modell, Robert Parins, Dan Rooney, and Ralph Wilson. Hunt and Mara served as co-chairmen.
April 1 - Two hundred twenty-nine unconditional free agents signed with new teams under management's Plan B system.
April 18 - Tex Schramm was named president of the new World League of American Football to work with a six-man committee of Dan Rooney, chairman; Norman Braman, Lamar Hunt, Victor Kiam, Mike Lynn, and Bill Walsh
By a 24-4 margin, owners voted to continue the instant replay system for the fourth straight season.
April 18 - Jerry
Jones purchased a majority interest in the Dallas Cowboys from H.R. (Bum) Bright.
Jones fired head coach
Tom Landry and hired University of Miami coach Jimmy Johnson to
replace him.
April 18 - NFL and CBS Radio jointly announced agreement extending CBS's radio rights to an annual 40-game package through the 1994 season.
May 24 - NFL owners awarded Super Bowl XXVI, to be played on January 26, 1992, to Minneapolis.
September 10 - Indianapolis
running back Eric Dickerson rushes for 106 yards against San
Francisco to
become the fastest player to top the 10,000-yard plateau, doing it in
his 91st career game.
Cleveland's Jim Brown
hit 10,000 yards in his 98th game.
As of opening day, September 10, of the 229 Plan B free agents, 111 were active and 23 others were on teams' reserve lists. Ninety-two others were waived and three retired.
October 3 - Art Shell became Oakland Raiders head coach, becoming the first black (African-American) to hold that position since Fritz Pollard coached the Akron Pros in 1921
October 9 - Art Shell, the first black (African-American) head coach in the modern era, leads the Oakland Raiders to a 14-7 victory over the New York Jets in his first game at the helm.
October 19 - The site of the New England Patriots at San Francisco 49ers game scheduled for Candlestick Park on October 22 was switched to Stanford Stadium in the aftermath of the Bay Area Earthquake of October 17 due to damage caused by the Loma Prieta earthquake to Candlestick Park. The change was announced on October 19.
The transfer from Commissioner Rozelle to Commissioner Tagliabue took place at 12:01 A.M. on Sunday, November 5.
November 6 - NFL Charities donated $1 million through United Way to benefit Bay Area earthquake victims.
November 23,- Philadelphia Eagles vs. Dallas Cowboys In the Cowboys' annual Thanksgiving game, the Eagles won 27-0, in the only Thanksgiving shutout Dallas has suffered to date. The game was ill-tempered, with several scuffles between opposing players, and Cowboys (and former Eagles) kicker Luis Zendejas was knocked out of the game with a concussion thanks to a hard hit during a kickoff. After the game, Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson accused Eagles coach Buddy Ryan of placing bounties on Zendejas and Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman.
November 26 - Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Willie "Flipper" Anderson makes 15 catches for an NFL record 336 yards and a touchdown as the Rams rally for a 20-17 overtime victory over The New Orleans Saints
December 10 - Seattle wide receiver Steve Largent makes his NFL record 100th touchdown catch in the Seahawks' 24-17 win at Cincinnati.
December 10 - Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles Rematch - The equally ill-tempered rematch, won 20-10 by the Eagles, was played in a Veterans Stadium that was not cleaned of snow that had fallen for several days in Philadelphia. The notoriously rowdy Eagles crowd, lubricated by considerable amounts of beer, threw snowballs, iceballs, batteries, and other objects at anyone in sight. One game official was knocked to the ground by a barrage of snowballs, Johnson had to be escorted from the field by Philadelphia police through a hail of debris, and CBS broadcasters Verne Lundquist and Terry Bradshaw had to dodge snowballs aimed at the broadcast booth. Even Eagles star Jerome Brown became a target when he stood on the players' bench pleading with fans to stop throwing debris on the field. Future Governor of Pennsylvania Ed Rendell, an avowed Eagles fanatic, later admitted to having participated in the bedlam.
Paul Tagliabue
became the seventh chief executive of the NFL on October 26
when he was chosen to succeed Commissioner Pete Rozelle on the sixth
ballot of a three-day meeting in Cleveland, Ohio.
In all, 12 ballots were required to select Tagliabue. Two were conducted at a meeting in Chicago on July 6, and four at a meeting in Dallas on October 10-11. On the twelfth ballot, with Seattle absent, Tagliabue received more than the 19 affirmative votes required for election from among the 27 clubs present.
NFL paid attendance of 17,399,538 was the highest total in league history. This included a total of 13,625,662 for an average of 60,829-both NFL records-for the 224-game regular season.
Touchdown Jacksonville! Was formed to lead an effort tp land an NFL franchise for the city.
McDome was a proposal for a new domed Bears stadium, similar in style to those built in Indianapolis, Minnesota and Detroit. (One of these stadiums is now vacant, the other two have very unhappy tenants and visitors). The dome was proposed to the Illinois Legislature as a part of the McCormick Place expansion plan. Bears President Michael McCaskey aligned with Governor Jim Edgar on the proposal, but the plan was rejected by the Illinois Legislature in late 1990. Although it's safe to say the vast majority of Bears fans were relieved to learn the team would not be playing indoors, McCaskey was disappointed, and for the first time indicated that the organization would consider all alternatives, including relocation, to acquire a new stadium.
Major rule changes
The NFL revised its playoff format to include two additional wild-card teams (one per conference). |
1989 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoff:
Pittsburgh 26, HOUSTON 23 (OT)
Divisional playoffs:
CLEVELAND 34, Buffalo 30; DENVER 24, Pittsburgh 23
AFC Championship:
DENVER 37, Cleveland 21
NFC
Wild-Card playoff:
L.A. Rams 21, PHILADELPHIA 7
Divisional playoffs: L.A.
Rams 19, N.Y. GIANTS 13 (OT);
SAN FRANCISCO 41,
Minnesota 13
NFC Championship:
SAN FRANCISCO 30, L.A. Rams 3
San Francisco (NFC) 55, Denver (AFC) 10, at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
Super Bowl XXIV
was the 24th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National
Football League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 28, 1990 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana
following the 1989 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
San Francisco 49ers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos,
5510.
It remains the
most lopsided game in Super Bowl history to date. The
49ers' 55 points were the most ever scored by one team, and their
45-point margin of victory was the largest ever.
Joe Montana was named the Super Bowl MVP, his third award in his fourth Super Bowl victory. He completed 22 of 29 passes for a total of 297 yards and a Super Bowl record 5 touchdowns, while also rushing for 15 yards. Montana's 75.9 completion percentage was the second highest in Super Bowl history, and he also set a record by completing 13 consecutive passes during the game. Head coach George Seifert was the second rookie head coach to win a Super Bowl.
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXIV to New Orleans, Louisiana during their March 10-15, 1985 meetings. This would be a record 7th time that New Orleans hosted the Super Bowl. Tulane Stadium was the site of Super Bowls IV, VI, and IX; while the Louisiana Superdome previously hosted XII, XV, and XX.
The
Broncos became the second team to lose three Super Bowls in four
years after losing Super Bowls XXI and XXII, both by considerable
margins as well.
The Vikings also lost
three Super Bowls in four years (VIII, IX and XI).
The Buffalo Bills have
also joined this group since.
The 49ers are the only team in a Super Bowl to score at least two touchdowns in each quarter. Their 2nd of 8 touchdowns ended with a missed extra point however. They are also the only team to score 8 touchdowns in a Super Bowl.
Rice joined teammate Roger Craig as the only players to score three touchdowns in a Super Bowl. Craig did it in Super Bowl XIX (2 receiving and 1 rushing).
With this game, the first four Super Bowls played at the Superdome ended with the losing team scoring 10 points. Denver in Super Bowl XII by a 27-10 score, Philadelphia in Super Bowl XV by a 27-10 score and New England in Super Bowl XX by a 46-10 score.
Montana became the third player in league history to win both the Super Bowl MVP and the AP Most Valuable Player Award during the same season. Bart Starr and Terry Bradshaw also won both after the 1966 and 1978 seasons, respectively.
San Francisco defeated Denver 55-10 in Super Bowl XXIV at the Louisiana Superdome, January 28. San Francisco joined Pittsburgh as the NFL's only teams to win four Super Bowls.
Third wild-card team in
each conference added to playoffs
The 1990 NFL season was
the 71st regular season of the National Football League. To increase
revenue, the league changed the regular season so that all NFL teams
would play their 16-game schedule over a 17-week period. Furthermore,
the playoff format was expanded from 10 teams to 12 teams by adding
another wild card from each conference.
The NFL revised its playoff format to include two additional wild-card teams (one per conference).
The NFL announced plans to expand its American Bowl series of preseason games. In addition to games in London and Tokyo, American Bowl games were scheduled for Berlin, Germany, and Montreal, Canada, in 1990.
February 16 - The NFL announced revisions in its 1990 draft eligibility rules. College juniors became eligible but must renounce their collegiate football eligibility before applying for the NFL Draft
February 27 - Commissioner Tagliabue announced NFL teams will play their 16-game schedule over 17 weeks in 1990 and 1991 and 16 games over 18 weeks in 1992 and 1993
March 12 - For the fifth straight year, NFL owners voted to continue a limited system of Instant Replay. Beginning in 1990, the replay official will have a two-minute time limit to make a decision. The vote was 21-7
March 14 - Commissioner Tagliabue announced the formation of a Committee on Expansion and Realignment, March 13. He also named a Player Advisory Council, comprised of 12 former NFL players
April 2 - One-hundred eighty-four Plan B unconditional free agents signed with new teams
May 17 - Commissioner Tagliabue appointed Dr. John Lombardo as the League's Drug Advisor for Anabolic Steroids, April 25 and named Dr. Lawrence Brown as the League's Advisor for Drugs of Abuse
May 23 - NFL owners awarded Super Bowl XXVIII, to be played in 1994, to the proposed Georgia Dome
July 12 - Commissioner Tagliabue named NFL referee Jerry Seeman as NFL Director of Officiating, replacing Art McNally, who announced his retirement after 31 years on the field and at the league office
August 4 thru 11 - NFL International Week was celebrated with four preseason games in seven days in Tokyo, London, Berlin, and Montreal. More than 200,000 fans on three continents attended the four games
September 20 - Commissioner Tagliabue announced the NFL Teacher of the Month program in which the League furnishes grants and scholarships in recognition of teachers who provided a positive influence upon NFL players in elementary and secondary schools
October 1 - For the first time since 1957, every NFL club won at least one of its first four games
October 2 - Bob
Shaw established an NFL record with five touchdown catches as the
Chicago Cardinals defeated the
Baltimore Colts 55-13.
The record was tied in
1981 by San Diego Chargers Kellen Winslow
and again in 1990 by San
Francisco 49ers, Jerry Rice.
October 14 - Houston quarterback Warren Moon passes for 369 yards and five touchdowns as the Oilers beat Cincinnati 48-17, becoming the first person to throw for over 20,000 yards in two different leagues
November 11 - Kansas City linebacker Derrick Thomas sets an NFL record with seven sacks, but Seattle quarterback Dave Krieg somehow slips free of Thomas to throw a 25-yard game-winning touchdown pass in the closing seconds as the Seahawks beat the Chiefs 17-16.
November 18 -
Art Monk becomes only the third player in NFL history to amass 700
career receptions when he makes four catches against the Saints.
Marvin Harrison for the
Indianapolis colts passes that record in 2006 when he had seven
catches for 127 yards and passed Art Monk for
fifth on the career receptions list. Harrison has 943 career receptions.
Commissioner Tagliabue and Broadcast Committee Chairman Art Modell announced a four-year contract with Turner Broadcasting to televise nine Sunday-night games.
New four-year TV agreements were ratified for 1990-93 for ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, and TNT at the NFL annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, March 12. The contracts totaled $3.6 billion, the largest in TV history.
Major rule changes
|
1990 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
MIAMI 17, Kansas City 16; CINCINNATI 41, Houston 14
Divisional
playoffs:
BUFFALO 44, Miami 34; L.A. RAIDERS 20, Cincinnati 10
AFC Championship:
BUFFALO 51, L.A. Raiders 3
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs: Washington
20, PHILADELPHIA 6; CHICAGO 16, New Orleans 6
Divisional playoffs:
SAN FRANCISCO 28, Washington 10; N.Y. GIANTS 31, Chicago 3
NFC Championship:
N.Y. Giants 15, SAN FRANCISCO 13
Super Bowl XXV was the 25th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 27, 1991 before a sellout crowd of 73,813, at Tampa Stadium in Tampa, Florida following the 1990 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
New York Giants
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Buffalo Bills,
2019.
The Giants won their
second Super Bowl, while the Bills would
begin a dubious streak of four straight Super Bowl losses.
Super Bowl XXV was played under much
patriotic fervor, due to the Gulf
War. The proceedings included a
rousing rendition of the Star Spangled Banner by Whitney
Houston, which was later released as a single, where it reached
number twenty on the Billboard Music Charts, making her the only
artist to turn the national anthem into a hit single.
Due to threats of terrorism associated with
the Gulf War, extra security measures were put in place at Tampa
Stadium, including the positioning of FBI sharpshooters at the upper
levels of the stadium.
Giants running back Ottis Anderson, who carried the ball 21 times for 102 yards and one touchdown, was named Super Bowl MVP. Thomas also recorded one reception for seven yards
However, the game is best remembered for Bills placekicker Scott Norwood's 47-yard missed field goal attempt in the waning seconds of the game which went wide right, losing the game for the Bills, and angering fans.
Some fans and sports writers, have argued that Thomas had the best performance of the game, so therefore he should have won the MVP award even though his team lost. He had far more yards and catches then New York Giants running back Ottis Anderson, who won the MVP, finishing the game with 102 rushing yards, 1 reception for 7 yards, and a touchdown. Also a player winning the Super Bowl MVP award on a losing team is not unprecedented; Chuck Howley accomplished this feat in Super Bowl V.
The Giants set a Super Bowl record for time of possession with 40 minutes, 33 seconds, including 22 minutes in the second half.
This is the first Super Bowl involving two teams representing the same state (though the New York Giants play in East Rutherford, New Jersey).
Don Smith's 1-yard touchdown run was his only carry of the game and the last carry of his career.
Andre Reed's 5 first quarter receptions were a Super Bowl record.
Buffalo became the first team to record a safety in a Super Bowl and lose the game.
This was only the second Super Bowl to have
two 100-yard rushers (Thurman Thomas and
Ottis Anderson).
In Super Bowl III, New
York Jets running back Matt Snell recorded 121 rushing yards
while Baltimore Colts running back Tom Matte ran
for 116.
Thomas' 135 yards are the most yards rushing for a member of a losing team.
This Super Bowl started a trend of beginning the game shortly after 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (6:18 p.m.). Subsequent Super Bowls never have started earlier.
Giants head coach Bill Parcells retired shortly after winning his second Super Bowl with the Giants. However, he has coached three other teams since then: the New England Patriots (whom he helped bring to Super Bowl XXXI) from 1993-1997, the New York Jets from 1997-1999, and the Dallas Cowboys since 2003.
This was the first Super Bowl to have zero turnovers.
For the first time, each player wore a Super Bowl logo patch on their jerseys. But this would not become a regular practice in Super Bowls until Super Bowl XXXII.
The Super Bowl XXV logo was painted at midfield and the NFL logo was placed at each of the two 35-yard lines. For the past Super Bowl games since Super Bowl VI, the NFL logo was painted on the 50-yard line.
The win by the Giants gave the NFC a 3-0 record in Super Bowls broadcasted on ABC (after the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XIX and the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XXII).
This is currently the only Super Bowl that has ended with a one-point margin of victory.
The Defensive game plan for the Giants (written by defensive coordinator Bill Belichick) has been included in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Giants' triumph helped Belichick and wide receivers coach Tom Coughlin make their names and eventually land head-coaching jobs with the Cleveland Browns and Boston College, respectively. Currently, Belichick is head coach of the New England Patriots, while Coughlin is the head coach of the Giants.
This was the last Super Bowl to feature both kickers having one bar facemasks on their helmets
This Super Bowl was the inspiration for the Ray Finkle character in the 1994 movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and provided a critical plot point for the 1998 Vincent Gallo film Buffalo '66.
This was the final game for referee Jerry Seeman who would retire to become the league's Senior Director of Officiating, a position he held until 2001.
The 1991 NFL season was the 72nd regular season of the National Football League.
February 2 - New York businessman Robert Tisch purchased a 50 percent interest in the New York Giants from Mrs. Helen Mara Nugent and her children, Tim Mara and Maura Mara Concannon
February 27 - Commissioner Tagliabue named Neil Austrian to the newly created position of President of the NFL to be chief operating officer for League-wide business and financial operations
March 19 - NFL clubs voted to continue a limited system of Instant Replay for the sixth consecutive year. The vote was 21-7
March 23 - The NFL launched the World League of American Football, the first sports league to operate on a weekly basis on two separate continents
April 8 - Commissioner Tagliabue named Harold Henderson as Executive Vice President for Labor Relations and Chairman of the NFL Management Council Executive Committee
May 22 - NFL clubs approved a recommendation by the Expansion and Realignment Committee to add two teams for the 1994 season, resulting in six divisions of five teams each
May 23 - NFL clubs awarded Super Bowl XXIX, to be played on January 29, 1995, to Miami
July 17 - The NFL announced that it would accept applications for expansion teams. Jacksonville submitted its proposal on October 17
"NFL International Week" featured six 1990 playoff teams playing nationally televised games in London, Berlin, and Tokyo on July 28 and August 3-4. The games drew more than 150,000 fans.
August 5 - Paul Brown, founder of the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals, died at age 82
September 22 - Don Shula records his 300th career victory with Miami's 16-13 win over Green Bay.
October 23 - NFL clubs approved a resolution establishing an international division, reporting to the President of the NFL. A three-year financial plan for the World League was approved by NFL clubs at a meeting in Dallas
December 1 - Miami quarterback Dan Marino sets an NFL record when he goes over 3,000 yards passing for the eighth time in his career in Miami's 33-14 win over Tampa Bay.
December 26 - Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach, Chuck Noll retired after compiling a 209-156-1 record in 23 seasons Noll was replaced by Bill Cowher.
The World League of
American Football (WLAF) was founded in 1990 with support from
the NFL to play semi-professional American Football in North America,
Europe and later possibly Asia. This came after the NFL had played
popular American Bowls in London's Wembley Stadium and elsewhere
since 1986.
The WLAF played two seasons with 10 teams in the spring of 1991 and 1992, with the World Bowl as championship games. Rules unique to WLAF included assigning increasing point value to field goals based on distance, and a requirement that at least one player of non-US American nationality participate in at least every other series of downs.
The World League of American Football, allowed small TV cameras in the helmets of quarterbacks. A fisheye lens on a camera the size of a lipstick tube gives fans a greater sense of the speed, confusion and heavy hitting in a game. The camera is powered by a two-pound battery pack molded into the quarterback's shoulder pads.
The league also experiments with open microphones on coaches. But the idea backfires when viewers get a heavier dose of profanity than insightful gridiron strategy. The World League also revives coach-to-quarterback wireless communications.
Major rule changes
|
1991 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs: KANSAS
CITY 10, L.A. Raiders 6; HOUSTON 17, N.Y. Jets 10
Divisional playoffs: DENVER
26, Houston 24; BUFFALO 37, Kansas City 14
AFC Championship:
BUFFALO 10, Denver 7
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Atlanta 27, NEW ORLEANS 20; Dallas 17, CHICAGO 13
Divisional playoffs:
WASHINGTON 24, Atlanta 7; DETROIT 38, Dallas 6
NFC Championship:
WASHINGTON 41, Detroit 10
The season ended with Super Bowl XXVI when the Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills.
Super Bowl XXVI was the 26th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 26, 1992 before a sellout crowd of 63,130 at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota following the 1991 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Washington Redskins
defeated
the
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
Buffalo Bills,
3724.
Washington became the fourth team to win three Super Bowls, joining the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Oakland Raiders, and the San Francisco 49ers.
Washington quarterback Mark Rypien, who completed 18 of 33 passes for 292 yards and two touchdowns, with 1 interception, was named Super Bowl MVP. Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs became only the third head coach to win three Super Bowls.
The game was broadcast in the United States by CBS and featured the broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Pat Summerall and color commentator John Madden. Greg Gumbel hosted all the events with help from his fellow cast member from The NFL Today Terry Bradshaw. Also, history was made when CBS' Lesley Visser became the first female sportscaster to preside over the postgame Vince Lombardi Trophy presentation.
Redskins
linebacker Matt Millen was bidding to become the first player to
play in a Super Bowl victory for three different franchises
(Millen
played in Super Bowl XV and Super
Bowl XVIII with the Raiders,
and Super Bowl XXIV
with the 49ers).
However, Millen was
deactivated for the game and watched from the Redskins sideline.
The 1989 television contract (which was in effect) gave CBS Super Bowl XXVI instead of Super Bowl XXXVII, which was in their rotation. The NFL swapped the CBS and NBC years in an effort to give CBS enough lead-in programming for the upcoming 1992 Winter Olympics two weeks later.
This was only the fourth scoreless 1st quarter in Super Bowl history, after Super Bowl III, Super Bowl IX, Super Bowl XI.
The Bills became the 8th team to go scoreless in the 1st half, after the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III; the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowls IV, VIII, IX, and XI; the Redskins in Super Bowl VII; and the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII.
The Bills also became the third team to lose back-to-back Super Bowls, joining Minnesota (Super Bowls VIII and IX) and Denver (Super Bowls XXI and XXII).
Gary Clark became just the 6th player to catch a touchdown in two different Super Bowls.
Gerald Riggs' became the 8th player to score two rushing touchdowns in a Super Bowl.
This game marks the first time a touchdown was overruled by instant replay in a Super Bowl.
The attendance mark of 63,130 was second lowest only to the first Super Bowl's attendance of 61,946, and the Metrodome was the smallest stadium to ever host the Super Bowl.
This would be the last Super Bowl that CBS would televise for nine years.
STS-42, a space shuttle mission, was in orbit during the game. A live downlink between the Metrodome and Discovery happened during the pregame show. Three of the mission's seven crew members demonstrated a 'human coin toss' in space.
The 1992 NFL season was the 73rd regular season of the National Football League
January 25 - The NFL agreed to provide a minimum of $2.5 million in financial support to the NFL Alumni Association and assistance to NFL Alumni-related programs. The agreement included contributions from NFL Charities to the Pre-59ers and Dire Need Programs for former players
Bobby Ross, formerly of Georgia Tech, was hired as San Diego Chargers head coach.
Mike Holmgren became head coach of The Green Bay Packers
Tom Flores returned to coaching as the Seahawks head coach in 1992, but returned to the front office following three disappointing seasons.
Former NFL receiver Jerry Richardson hopes of landing an expansion franchise in Carolina survived as the NFL began to pare the list of expansion candidates.
May 11 - St. Louis businessman James Orthwein purchased controlling interest in the New England Patriots from Victor Kiam
March 18 - The use in officiating of a limited system of Instant Replay for a seventh consecutive year was not approved. The vote was 17-11 in favor of approval (21 votes were required)
Long game delays caused by referees using instant replay to review calls forces NFL owners to drop the referee tool.
May 19 - NFL clubs accepted the report of the Expansion Committee at a league meeting in Pasadena. The report names five cities as finalists for the two expansion teams-Baltimore, Charlotte, Jacksonville, Memphis, and St. Louis
Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Andrew, the New England Patriots - Miami Dolphins game, that was scheduled for September 6 at Joe Robbie Stadium, was rescheduled to October 18. Both teams originally had that weekend off.
September 17 - At a league meeting in Dallas, NFL clubs approved a proposal by the World League Board of Directors to restructure the World League and place future emphasis on its international success
October 4 - Miami's Louis Oliver returns an interception a record-tying 103 yards for a touchdown against Buffalo, tying the mark established by Vencie Glenn against Denver on Nov. 29, 1987.
October 12 - Washington wide receiver Art Monk becomes the NFL's all-time leading receiver when he makes his 820th career reception in a 34-3 victory over the Broncos.
October 18 - Miami quarterback Dan Marino throws four touchdown passes in the Dolphins' 38-17 win over New England, tying Johnny Unitas's record of 17 games with four-or-more touchdown passes.
Former Head Coach for
the Oakland Raiders, Al Davis was inducted into The Hall of Fame.
Al Davis is the only
person to have served pro football in such varied capacities as
(1) a player
personnel assistant |
Major rule changes
|
1992 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
SAN DIEGO 17, Kansas City 0;
BUFFALO 41,
Houston 38 (OT)
January 3 - Buffalo
rallies from a 32-point third-quarter deficit to beat Houston 41-38
in overtime in an AFC Wild Card Playoff, the greatest comeback in NFL
history. Bills quarterback Frank Reich throws four touchdown passes
and kicker Steve Christie boots the game-winning 32-yard field goal.
Divisional playoffs:
Buffalo 24, PITTSBURGH 3; MIAMI 31, San Diego 0
AFC Championship:
Buffalo 29, MIAMI 10
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Washington 24, MINNESOTA 7; Philadelphia 36, NEW ORLEANS 20
Divisional playoffs:
SAN FRANCISCO 20, Washington 13; DALLAS 34, Philadelphia 10
NFC Championship:
Dallas 30, SAN FRANCISCO 20
Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was the 27th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 31, 1993 before a crowd of 98,374 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California following the 1992 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Buffalo Bills,
5217.
The Cowboys won their
third Super Bowl in team history, and their first one since Super
Bowl XII on January 15, 1978. The
Bills became the first team to lose three consecutive Super Bowls,
and only the second ever to go to three in a row.
The Bills' Super Bowl record 9 turnovers - 4 interceptions and 5 lost fumbles - led to their third consecutive Super Bowl loss. The Cowboys lost 2 fumbles themselves, tying the Super Bowl record for the most turnovers by both teams in a game (the Cowboys and the Baltimore Colts also committed a combined 11 turnovers in Super Bowl V).
Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman was named Super Bowl MVP, completing 22 of 30 passes for 273 yards and 4 touchdowns, while also rushing for 28 yards.
Super Bowl XXVII was originally scheduled to be played at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona, the home of the Phoenix Cardinals.[1] Immediately after the Cardinals relocated from St. Louis, Missouri to the Phoenix, Arizona area in 1988, the NFL was eager to hold a Super Bowl in that state.
Meanwhile, Martin Luther King Day, the United States federal holiday honoring civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr., was observed for the first time in 1986. However, the holiday was only celebrated in 27 states and the District of Columbia during that first year. Opponents across the nation tried to stop the holiday from being recognized in their own local areas.
By 1991, every state had adopted Martin Luther King Day (though New Hampshire called it Civil Rights Day) except for Arizona.
The NFL, which had an increasing percentage of African American players, and urged by the NFL Players' Association, voted to yank Super Bowl XXVII from Arizona, and awarded it instead to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
Faced with the boycott, Arizona voters finally approved the holiday by ballot in 1992, and on March 23, 1993, the NFL awarded Super Bowl XXX (to be played January 1996) to Tempe.
Country music singer Garth Brooks sang the national anthem. He was accompanied by actress Marlee Matlin who signed the anthem for the hearing impaired.
Michael Jackson performed during the halftime show. Unlike in many previous years, he was the only performer in the entire halftime show. Jackson's set included his hits "Billie Jean" and "Black or White". The finale featured an audience card stunt and a choir of 3,500 local Los Angeles area children joining Jackson as he sang his single "Heal The World".
The Bills became just the second team to reach three straight Super Bowls with this appearance. The Dolphins also did so, reaching Super Bowls VI through VIII (winning VII and VIII).
The two teams combined for the most first quarter points in Super Bowl history with their 21.
The 21 points by the Cowboys is the most ever for a team in the 4th quarter.
The Cowboys also became just the second team to score two non-offensive touchdowns in a game. The Raiders also did so in Super Bowl XVIII with a block punt return and interception return.
The two teams combined for a then Super Bowl record 69 total points.
Michael Irvin's two touchdown receptions made him the 7th player to do so in a Super Bowl. Irvin also became the second player, after Washington Redskins wide receiver Ricky Sanders in Super Bowl XXII, to catch two touchdowns in a single quarter. Furthermore, Irvin's two catches occurred in a span of 18 seconds, the fastest pair of touchdowns ever scored by a single player in Super Bowl history.
With his touchdown catch, Don Beebe became the 5th player with a touchdown catch in back-to-back Super Bowls.
This was the last of five Super Bowls at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Two other Super Bowls were played nearby at the Los Angeles Coliseum. This would be the 7th Super Bowl in the Los Angeles area, tying New Orleans at the time for the city to host the most Super Bowls.
This marked first time since the AFL-NFL merger that the two Super Bowl teams each won their conference championship game on the road. Dallas winning in San Francisco and Buffalo in Miami.
Baseball's, San Diego Padres relief pitcher Trevor Hoffman proposed to his wife (a Bills cheerleader) during this game.
The 1993 NFL season was the 74th regular season of the National Football League.
For the only time during the league's history, all NFL teams played their 16-game schedule over a span of 18 weeks. After the success of expanding the regular season to a period of 17 weeks in 1990, the league hoped this new schedule would generate even more revenue. However, teams felt that having two weeks off during the regular season was too disruptive for their weekly routines, and thus it was reverted back to 17 weeks immediately after the season ended.
Following the 1992
season, the Cicago Bears fired Head Coach, Mike Ditka.
Daley proposed further
renovations, including installation of a jumbo video scoreboard, in
1992. In exchange, the team would need to sign a lease extension. The
proposed renovations were pulled off the table by Daley after the
firing of Mike Ditka on January 5,
January 6 - The NFL and lawyers for the players announced a settlement of various lawsuits and an agreement on the terms of a seven-year deal that included a new player system to be in place through the 1999 season
January 14 - Commissioner Tagliabue announced the establishment of the "NFL World Partnership Program" to develop amateur football internationally through a series of clinics conducted by former NFL players and coaches
January 25 - As part of Super Bowl XXVII, the NFL announced the creation of the first NFL Youth Education Town, a facility located in south central Los Angeles for inner city youth
March 23 - NFL clubs awarded Super Bowl XXX to the city of Phoenix, to be played on January 28, 1996, at Sun Devil Stadium
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXVIII to Atlanta, Georgia, during their May 23, 1990, meeting.
June 29 - The NFL and the NFL Players Association officially signed a 7-year Collective Bargaining Agreement in Washington, D.C., which guarantees more than $1 billion in pension, health, and post-career benefits for current and retired players-the most extensive benefits plan in pro sports. It was the NFL's first CBA since the 1982 agreement expired in 1987
September 19 - San Diego's John Carney boots six field goals in an 18-17 win over Houston -- the second time he accomplished the feat in three weeks -- and sets a new NFL record with 29 consecutive field goals made.
October 12 - NFL announced plans to allow fans, for the first time ever, to join players and coaches in selecting the annual AFC and NFC Pro Bowl teams
October 26 - The
Carolina Panthers are awarded the 29th NFL franchise to begin play
in 1995.
The first coach was Dom
Capers, who had been the defensive
coordinator for Pittsburgh Steelers.
The number of rounds in the draft was
reduced to eight rounds in 1993 and then the current seven rounds one
year later.
NFL clubs also awarded Super Bowl XXXI
to New Orleans and Super Bowl XXXII to San Diego, October 26.
After a two-year hiatus, former
New York Giant's Bill Parcells returned
to the NFL and was hired as New England
Patriots head coach.
The team lost 10 of its first 11 games that season
November 14 - when the Dolphins defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 19-14, Shula won his 325th career game, moving him one victory past the immortal George Halas (324-151-31) and setting an NFL record for most career victories, a mark once thought to be unreachable.
November 30 - NFL clubs awarded the league's thirtieth franchise to the Jacksonville Jaguars at a meeting in Chicago
December 20 -
TheNFL announced new 4-year television agreements with ABC, ESPN,
TNT, and NFL newcomer FOX, which took over the NFC package from CBS, December
18.
The NFL completed its
new TV agreements by announcing that NBC would retain the rights to
the AFC package
Quarterback Joe Montana signed with the Kansas City Chiefs after winning 3 Super Bowl awards with the San Francisco 49ers
Major rule changes
|
1993 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
KANSAS CITY 27, Pittsburgh 24 (OT); L.A. RAIDERS 42, Denver 24
Divisional playoffs:
BUFFALO 29, L.A. Raiders 23; Kansas City 28, HOUSTON 20
AFC Championship:
BUFFALO 30, Kansas City 13
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Green Bay 28, DETROIT 24; N.Y. GIANTS 17, Minnesota 10
Divisional playoffs:
SAN FRANCISCO 44, N.Y. Giants 3; DALLAS 27, Green Bay 17
NFC Championship:
DALLAS 38, San Francisco 21
Super Bowl XXVIII
Super Bowl XXVIII was the 28th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 30, 1994, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, following the 1993 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Buffalo Bills,
3013.
This was the first time
in Super Bowl history that the same two teams met in two consecutive
years. The Cowboys won their fourth Super
Bowl in team history, tying
the Pittsburgh Steelers and the
San Francisco 49ers. The
Bills became the first team to both appear in and lose 4 consecutive
Super Bowls.
Singer Natalie Cole, accompanied by the Atlanta University Center Chorus, sang the national anthem.
Ironically, two weeks before the game was aired, NBC had shown a Peanuts special, You're In the Super Bowl, Charlie Brown in which the character Melody-Melody wins the Punt, Pass & Kick contest wearing a Dallas Cowboys uniform.
This was the fourth rematch in Super Bowl history. The Dolphins and Redskins met twice (VII and XVII), the Steelers and Cowboys (X and XIII) and 49ers and Bengals (XVI and XXIII). The Steelers and the Cowboys would also meet again, in Super Bowl XXX.
Kelly became the only player ever to throw 50 passes in 2 Super Bowls. In addition to his 50 passes in this game, he threw a Super Bowl record 58 passes in Super Bowl XXVI.
The Bills joined Minnesota and Denver as the only teams to lose 4 Super Bowls.
Buffalo Bills, Thurman Thomas became the first player in Super Bowl history to score touchdowns in four Super Bowls. He scored one in each of the Bills appearances, Super Bowls XXV through XXVIII.
This was the first Super Bowl ever to feature 2 punts that were downed on the opponent's 1-yard line at the end of 2 consecutive drives.
Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt
Smith became just the second player in Super Bowl history to run for
100 yards in back-to-back Super Bowls.
The other being Dolphins,
Larry Czonka who did it in Super
Bowls VII and VIII.
He became the fourth player to rush for touchdowns in back-to-back
Super Bowls, joining Hall of Famer, best
known for his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Franco Harris,
Redskins, John Riggins
and Thomas.
Smith
also became the first player to lead the league in rushing yards,
win NFL Most Valuable Player Award, and win Super Bowl MVP all in the
same season. He was also the fourth player,
after Green Bay Packers Bart Starr (1966), Pittsburgh
Steelers, Terry Bradshaw (1978), and
49ers, Joe Montana (1989), to win both
the NFL MVP and Super Bowl MVP during the same season.
Cowboys running back
Emmitt Smith was named the Super Bowl MVP, with 30 carries for 132
yards and 2 touchdowns, while also catching 4 passes for 26 yards.
January 30, 1994
The Dallas Cowboys
defeated the Buffalo Bills 30-13 in Super Bowl XXVIII
to become the fifth team to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles ending
the 1993 season
The 1994 NFL season was
the 75th regular season of the National Football League.
To honor the NFL's 75th
season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore
a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season.
Phoenix Cardinals became
Arizona Cardinals
The Phoenix Cardinals
changed their name to Arizona Cardinals in an attempt to widen their
appeal to the entire state of Arizona instead of just the Phoenix area.
The Seattle Seahawks played their first three regular season home games at Husky Stadium because the Kingdome, the Seahawks' regular home field, was undergoing repairs for damaged tiles on its roof.
February 21 - former head coach for the New York Giants, Tom Coughlin was hired as head coach for Jacksonville Jaguars
March 22 - In an effort to increase offensive production, NFL clubs at the league's annual meeting in Orlando adopted a package of changes, including modifications in line play, chucking rules, and the roughing-the-passer rule, plus the adoption of the two-point conversion and moving the spot of the kickoff back to the 30-yard line
The NFL adapted the two-point conversion following touchdowns. Before teams could only go for the point after touchdown, worth one point.
June 1 - The NFL launched "NFL Sunday Ticket," a new season subscription service for satellite television dish owners
September 5 - San Francisco wide receiver Jerry Rice catches two touchdown passes and runs for another score in a 44-14 victory over the Raiders to surpass Jim Brown as the NFL's career touchdowns leader with 127.
October 23 - Mel Gray passes Ron Smith to become the all-time NFL leader in kickoff return yards. Gray finishes his career with 10,250 yards.
November 2 - At an NFL meeting in Chicago, Commissioner Tagliabue slotted the two new expansion teams into the AFC Central (Jacksonville Jaguars) and NFC West (Carolina Panthers) for the 1995 season only. He also appointed a special committee on realignment to make recommendations on the 1996 season and beyond
November 13 - New England quarterback Drew Bledsoe completes an NFL record 45 passes in a 26-20 overtime victory over Minnesota.
November 14 - Jeff Fisher was named Houston Oilers (to be known as today's Tennessee Titans) Head Coach, replacing Jack Pardee
Tom Flores resigned from the Seahawks in 1994 following Paul Allen's purchase of the Seahawks.
Barry Switzer replaced Dallas Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson, who left after clashing with new owner Jerry Jones.
Former Minnesota Vikings coach Bud Grant was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame
O.J., Simpson, "The Juice", although considered to be one of the greatest running backs of all time, is now best known for being charged with the murder of his wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994. He was acquitted in criminal court in 1995 after a lengthy, highly publicized and controversial trial, but was found liable and responsible for their deaths in civil court in 1997.
October 23 -
On October 29 1950, Detroit Lion's
Wally Trippett established an NFL record with 294 kickoff return
yards against Los Angeles.
The record has since been
broken by Tyrone Hughes but Trippett's average of 73.5 yards per
return still stands.
304 yards by Tyrone
Hughes, New Orleans vs. L.A. Rams
Major rule changes
A package of changes were adopted to increase offensive production and scoring: (officials are to immediately blow their whistles whenever a defender enters the neutral zone causing the offensive player(s) directly opposite to move, this is considered a penalty on the defense. If there is no immediate reactional movement by the offensive player(s), there is no foul. (The neutral zone is defined as the space the length of the ball between the offense and defense line of scrimmage).
The 11 players on the receiving team are prohibited from blocking below the waist during a play in which there is a kickoff, safety kick, punt, field goal attempt or extra point kick with one exception, immediately at the snap on these plays those defenders on the line of scrimmage lined up on or inside the normal tight end position can block low. |
1994 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card
playoffs: MIAMI 27, Kansas City 17; CLEVELAND 20, New England 13
Divisional
playoffs: PITTSBURGH 29, Cleveland 9; SAN DIEGO 22, Miami 21
AFC Championship:
San Diego 17, PITTSBURGH 13
NFC
Wild-Card
playoffs: GREEN BAY 16, Detroit 12; Chicago 35, MINNESOTA 18
Divisional
playoffs: SAN FRANCISCO 44, Chicago 15; DALLAS 35, Green Bay 9
NFC Championship:
SAN FRANCISCO 38, Dallas 28
Super Bowl XXIX was the 29th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on January 29, 1995 at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida (now part of the suburb of Miami Gardens) following the 1994 regular season
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
San Francisco 49ers
defeated
the American
Football Conference (AFC) champion
San Diego Chargers,
4926.
The combined aggregate
score of 75 remains a Super Bowl record. The
49ers became the first team to win five Super Bowls while
the Chargers were making their first Super Bowl appearance.
The pregame show held
before the game featured country music singer Hank Williams, Jr., who
performed his theme song for Monday Night Football, which was based
on his single
"All My
Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight".
Actress and singer Kathie Lee Gifford (Frank Gifford's wife) later sang the national anthem. She was accompanied by then-Miss America Heather Whitestone who signed the anthem for the hearing impaired.
Steve
Young of The San Francisco 49ers became the first player to
finish a Super Bowl as the game's leader in both passing and rushing yards.
Young threw a record 6
touchdown passes en route to the Super Bowl MVP award. He also
completed 24 out of 36 passes for 325 yards, and was the top rusher
of the game with 49 rushing yards. This game is regarded as Young's
final leap out of the shadow of his predecessor, Joe Montana, who had
won four Super Bowls with the 49ers, two with Young as the backup quarterback.
The 49er's spectacular performance led to their offensive coordinator, Mike Shanahan, and defensive coordinator, Ray Rhodes, gaining head coaching jobs the very next season for the Denver Broncos and the Philadelphia Eagles, respectively.
The 18½ point spread was the largest Super Bowl line (as of 2006), exceeding the 18 point spread in which the Baltimore Colts were favored over the New York Jets in Super Bowl III.
* This was the first Super Bowl to have two players each score three touchdowns. Rice matched his Super Bowl XXIV performance with his 3 touchdown catches. Watters also had three touchdowns, matching Roger Craig's 3 touchdowns, 2 receiving and 1 rushing, that Craig accomplished in Super Bowl XIX. Watters also became the 2nd running back to catch 2 touchdown passes in a game, matching Craig.
The 49ers became the second team to take the opening kickoff and score a touchdown on that first drive. The first being the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VIII.
Rice became the first player to catch at least two touchdowns in two different Super Bowls.
This was the 49ers third Super Bowl in which they scored four touchdowns in the first half. They had halftime scores of 28-16 against the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl XIX and 27-3 on the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV.
Along with his record six touchdown passes for a game, Steve Young matched Washington Redskins quarterback Doug Williams as the only players to throw four in a half. Williams did so in the first half of Super Bowl XXII.
The 49ers' 304 yards of offense in the first half was the second most in Super Bowl history after Washington's 419 in Super Bowl XXII.
Andre Coleman matched Fulton Walker's 98-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. In the second Super Bowl played at Joe Robbie Stadium, it was the second to have a kickoff returned for a touchdown. The other was Stanford Jennings for the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII.
Ken Norton, Jr. became the first player in to win three straight Super Bowls. Norton was a member of the Cowboys teams who won Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII.
Steve Young became the 5th player to win both the NFL Most Valuable Player Award and Super Bowl MVP during the same season. He follows Bart Starr in 1966, Terry Bradshaw in 1978, Joe Montana in 1989, and Emmitt Smith in 1993.
This is the first Super Bowl to have two successful two-point conversions.
This is the second (and most recent) Super Bowl to feature two teams from the same state.
This marked the first Super Bowl since Super Bowl XIV where both teams used the 4-3 as their base defensive formation. The 3-4 was the base formation for most NFL teams throughout the 1980s and the Buffalo Bills during their streak of four consecutive Super Bowls in the early 1990s.
This was the 7th Super Bowl to be played in Miami, at the time tying both New Orleans, Louisiana and the Greater Los Angeles area for hosting the Super Bowl the most times.
Jerry Markbreit would become the first referee to officiate in four Super Bowls.
The 1995 NFL season was the 76th regular season of the National Football League.
Carolina Panthers
and Jacksonville Jaguars
began play
The
league expanded to 30 teams with the addition of the Carolina
Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars. The two expansion teams were
slotted into the two remaining divisions that had only four teams
(while the other four had five teams): the
AFC Central (Jaguars)
and the NFC West (Panthers).
January 29 - San Francisco defeats San Diego 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX to end the 1994 season.
January 31 - Mike Shanahan took over as Denver Broncos Head Coach
Miami Dolphins Head Coach, Don Shula, retired after 26 seasons and was replaced by Jimmy Johnson, former coach of The University of Miami and the Dallas Cowboys
February 16 - The 2 new expansion teams, Carolina and Jacksonville stocked their expansion rosters with a total of 66 players from other NFL teams in a veteran player allocation draft in New York.
April 10 - The NFL became the first major sports league to establish a site on the Internet system of on-line computer communication.
April 12 -.Los
Angeles Rams became St Louis Rams
The Los
Angeles Rams moved to St. Louis bringing NFL football back to
St. Louis after eight- year absence (Prior
Team - St Louis Cardinals)
April 21
- The Jacksonville Jaguars made their first trade acquiring
quarterback Mark Brunell from the Green Bay Packers for 2 draft picks.
Offensive
tackle Tony Boselli of Southern California was the Jaguars first
draft pick.
March 14 - A series of safety-related rules changes were adopted at a league meeting in Phoenix, primarily related to the use of the helmet against defenseless players.
July 22 -
The Los Angeles Raiders move back to Oakland
as The Los
Angeles Raiders became Oakland Raiders
In
1982, Davis moved the team from Oakland to Los Angeles, California
and the club became known as the Los Angeles Raiders, but they moved
back to Oakland in 1995 being the only sports franchise to move and
then come back without making an expansion team.
September 15 - NFL Charities and 50 NFL players donated $1 million to the United Negro College Fund in honor of the fiftieth anniversary of the UNCF and the integration of the modern NFL
October 1 - The Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Houston Oilers 17-16 for the franchise's first victory
November 5 - The Carolina Panthers win an expansion record fourth game in a row, defeating the San Francisco 49ers 13-7 at 3Com Park. It is the first time in league history that an expansion team defeats the defending world champion.
November 6 - Art Modell announces that he is moving the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore for the 1996 season.
November 12 - The Trans World Dome opened in St. Louis before a sold-out crowd of 65,598 as the Rams the Carolina Panthers 28-17, .
November 12 - Miami quarterback Dan Marino passes Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton (47,003 yards) in four major passing categories-attempts, completions, yards, and touchdowns to become the NFL's all-time passing yards leader on a 9-yard toss to Irving Fryar in the Dolphins' 34-17 loss to New England. Marino finishes his career with 61,361 yards passing.
November 30 - The Jacksonville Jaguars are awarded an NFL franchise in 1993 to begin play in 1995
The Bears
organization, led by McCaskey announced that the team planned on
beginning the 2000 season in a new stadium at any cost. "If time
slips away on this, we'll have to consider other alternatives,"
McCaskey said as he imposed a deadline at the end of 1995 to come to
resolution on the issue. The team president didn't wait long to make
his first announcement. Early that year, the Bears purchased options
on land in suburban Hoffman Estates and Aurora, and proposed that a
$285 million open-air stadium be constructed. That figure would
require $185 million in public funds; the issue would never be
brought to the legislature for a vote.
In a more striking development, McCaskey announced in September of that year that he and a group of Northwest Indiana developers had come to an agreement to build an entertainment complex called "Planet Park," which would include a new Bears stadium, in Gary, IN. A month later, Daley responded to the Bears with an offer to spend $156 million to completely renovate Soldier Field. The construction would be completed during the offseason in 1998, would drop the field 18 feet and create an upper deck, add skyboxes, a scoreboard and an exclusive restaurant. While McCaskey called the proposal a "more thorough plan than we expected," he also stated that he "didn't think renovating Soldier Field will be the answer."
On the field, many significant records and milestones were achieved:
San Francisco's Jerry Rice became the all-time reception and receiving-yardage leader with career totals of 942 catches and 15,123 yards.
Dallas' Emmitt Smith scored 25 touchdowns, breaking the season record of 24 set by Washington's John Riggins in 1983.
Major rule changes
|
1995 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card
playoffs: BUFFALO 37, Miami 22; Indianapolis 35, SAN DIEGO 20
Divisional
playoffs: PITTSBURGH 40, Buffalo 21; Indianapolis 10, KANSAS
CITY 7
AFC Championship:
PITTSBURGH 20, Indianapolis 16
NFC
Wild-Card
playoffs: PHILADELPHIA 58, Detroit 37; GREEN BAY 37, Atlanta 20
Divisional
playoffs: Green Bay 27, SAN FRANCISCO 17; DALLAS 30,
Philadelphia 11
NFC
Championship: DALLAS 38, Green Bay 27
Super Bowl XXX was the 30th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
The game
was played on January 28, 1996 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona
following the 1995 regular season.
The
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Dallas Cowboys
defeated
the
American Football Conference (AFC) champion
.Pittsburgh
Steelers,
2717
NFL owners voted to award Super Bowl XXX to Tempe, Arizona during their March 23, 1993 meeting. Super Bowl XXVII was originally chosen to be held in Tempe. But the NFL yanked the game away from Arizona after the league joined a massive, nationwide tourist boycott by various groups to protest the state's refusal to recognize Martin Luther King Day. After Arizona finally adopted the federal holiday in 1992, the NFL started to consider Tempe again.
Actress and singer Vanessa Williams later sang the national anthem.
Diana Ross performed during the halftime show, titled "Take Me Higher: A Celebration of 30 years of the Super Bowl". The show featured a number of her songs along with pyrotechnics, special effects and stadium card stunts. The show ended with Ross singing "Take Me Higher" from her 1995 album of the same name, and then she was taken from the field in a helicopter.
Some weeks before Super Bowl XXX, it was found that some proxy servers were blocking the web site for the event. The reason: The game's Roman numeral (XXX) is usually associated with pornography.
This was the first time two teams have met three times in a Super Bowl. The Cowboys and Steelers previously met for Super Bowls X and XIII with Pittsburgh winning both of them.
This was the Cowboys 8th appearance in the Super Bowl, the most of any franchise.
Dallas Cowboys, Charles Haley became the first player to win 5 Super Bowls after winning two with San Francisco (XXIII and XXIV) and two previously with Dallas (XXVII and XXVIII).
Dallas Cowboys, Troy Aikman became just the third quarterback to win three Super Bowls. Pittsburgh Steelers, Terry Bradshaw and San Francisco 49ers, Joe Montana each won four Super Bowls.
Dallas
Cowboys, Emmitt Smith became just the fifth player to score a
touchdown in three different Super Bowls.
He joined
Pittsburgh
Steelers, Lynn Swann and Franco Harris,
Buffalo
Bills, Thurman Thomas
and Jerry Rice.
Emmitt also
became the first player to rush for two touchdowns in two different
Super Bowls. He also scored two in Super Bowl XXVIII.
Dallas Cowboys, Larry Brown became the first cornerback to be named Super Bowl MVP, and the second defensive back after Miami Dolphins, Jake Scott in Super Bowl VII to win the award.
This was the first Super Bowl in which the Vince Lombardi Trophy was given to the owner of the winning team in an on-field ceremony after the game, a practice which has been followed ever since.
The 1996 NFL season was the 77th regular season of the National Football League
January 6 - Don Shula steps down as head coach of the Miami Dolphins after his team losses to Buffalo in the playoffs. The most winning coach in NFL history resigns with 347 wins.
January
22 - Former Minnesota Vikings
defensive coordinator Tony
Dungy was hired as head coach
for The Tampa Bay Buccaneers replacing Sam Wyche.
The
Buccaneers had a run of success With Tony Dungy as head coach. Dungy
put together an exceptionally
tough defense (Tampa 2) but
he and his staff could never match that success on offense.
January 28 - Dallas becomes the first team in NFL history to win three Super Bowls in a four year period by defeating Pittsburgh 27-17 in Super Bowl XXX ending the 1995 season.
Jim
Mora (the elder) resigned
from the Saints midway through the 1996 season (8
games into the season) after
10 1/2 years as by far the most successful coach in the team's
38-season history.
Mora resigned after
a profanity-laced post-game interview where the Saints were beaten
19-7 @ Carolina Panthers. Mora was replaced by Rick Venturi.
Mora's post-game press conference "The second half, we just got our ass totally kicked! We couldnt do diddley poo offensively! We couldnt make a first down. We couldnt run the ball. We didnt try to run the ball! We couldnt complete a pass. We sucked! The second half, we sucked! We couldn't stop the run. Everytime they got the ball, they went down, and got points! We got our ass totally kicked in the second half. That's what it boiled down to. It was a horseshit performance in the second half! Horseshit! Im totally embarrassed. Im totally ashamed. Coaching did a horrible job! The players did a horrible job! We got our ass kicked in that second half! It sucked. It stunk." |
The Bears',
McCaskey, missed his self-imposed deadline at the end of 1995 for
having a new stadium plan in place for Chicago. In December he
dismissed Daley's stadium proposal, asked Edgar to reconsider the
McDome plan, and kept the Gary site as his trump card. Speaking of
the Gary plan, the developers had asked the team to sign a letter of
intent on the deal by mid-February 1996 prior to them placing a Lake
County, IN tax increase on that year's ballot.
February 2
- the Lake County Council rejected the plan, and "Planet
Park" was dead.
February 9 -
Cleveland Browns disbanded (temporarily)
and
Baltimore Ravens began play
Cleveland Browns owner
Art Modell, frustrated by his inability to get a new stadium in
Cleveland, began shopping The Browns. Modell closed a deal to move
them to Baltimore as the Baltimore Ravens
(however, the city of Cleveland retains the rights to the Browns
name, logo, team colors and memorabilia rights while the Ravens
would start from scratch)
The NFL returns
to Baltimore after a 12 year absence that was created when owner
Robert Irsay loaded The Baltimore Colts up in Mayflower Moving Trucks
and moved them to Indianapolis, Indiana in 1984.
See Indianapolis
Colts History
The NFL agreed to assign Cleveland an expansion franchise in 1999 that would inherit the history of The Browns
April 30 - The
transfer of the Oilers from Houston to Nashville for the 1998 season
was approved by a vote of the NFL clubs at a meeting in Atlanta,
The Houston Oilers, an
original member of the American Football League, packed up and headed
for Nashville after the 1996 season. That left Houston without a pro
team the first time since 1959.
October 20 - Jacksonville wide receiver Keenan McCardell catches 16 passes, tied for the third highest total in NFL history, in the Jaguars' 17-14 loss at St. Louis.
December 6 - Former NFLCommissioner Pete Rozelle died at his home in Rancho Santa Fe, California. Rozelle, regarded as the premiere commissioner in sports history, led the NFL for 29 years, from 1960-1989
The NFL adopts wireless communication that lets coaches talk at their quarterbacks. Transmission gets cut off 15 seconds before a play begins. Only quarterbacks can wear helmets equipped with an electronic receiver.
Major rule changes The five-yard contact rule will be enforced more stringently. In order to reduce injuries, hits with the helmet or to the head by the defender will be flagged as personal fouls and subject to fines. This is being done to protect the offense, particularly the quarterback. |
1996 PLAYOFFS
One of the most memorable aspects of the 1996 season was that the Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars, each in only its second year of existence, both advanced to their respective conference championship games.
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Jacksonville 30, BUFFALO 27;
PITTSBURGH 42,
Indianapolis 14
Divisional playoffs:
Jacksonville 30, DENVER 27; NEW ENGLAND 28, Pittsburgh 3
AFC Championship:
NEW ENGLAND 20, Jacksonville 6
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
DALLAS 40, Minnesota 15; SAN FRANCISCO 14, Philadelphia 0
Divisional playoffs: GREEN
BAY 35, San Francisco 14; CAROLINA 26, Dallas 17
NFC Championship: GREEN
BAY 30, Carolina 13
Super Bowl XXXI was the 31st Super Bowl, the
championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
The game was played on January 26,
1997 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana following
the 1996 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Green Bay Packers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
New England Patriots,
3521.
This was the
Packers third overall Super Bowl victory, and their first one since
Super Bowl II. The Packers also extended the league record for the
most overall NFL championships to 12.
To honor the recent death of former NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle, who died on December 6, 1996, each player wore a special helmet decal with Rozelle's signature, "Pete," printed across the NFL logo. Tributes to Rozelle were also published in the game program.
The game was the first Super Bowl to be televised in the United States by the FOX network. Play-by-play announcer Pat Summerall and color commentator John Madden, both previously of CBS, called the game. James Brown hosted all the events with help from his fellow FOX NFL Sunday cast members Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Ronnie Lott.
R&B singer Luther Vandross sang the national anthem.
The halftime show was titled "Blues Brothers Bash" and featured actors Dan Aykroyd, John Goodman, and James Belushi as the Blues Brothers. The show highlighted blues music and also had performances by the rock band ZZ Top and singer James Brown, nicknamed "The Godfather of Soul".
While practicing for the show, Laura Patterson, one of a 16-member professional bungee jumping team, died of massive cranial trauma when she jumped from the top level of the Superdome with improperly handled bungee cords and smashed head-first into the concrete-based playing field. The bungee jumping portion of the show was removed from the program and a commemoration of Patterson was added.
In terms of sports betting, this was the first push in Super Bowl history. The Packers were favored by 14 and won the game by 14.
The 24 combined 1st quarter points were the most in Super Bowl history. The previous best was 21 in Super Bowls XXVII and XXIX.
Desmond Howard of The
Green Bay Packers would become the 4th Heisman Trophy winner to be
named Super Bowl MVP. He is also the only special teams player to win
the award.
He ran for 154 kickoff
return yards, and scored the game-clinching touchdown on a Super Bowl
record 99-yard kickoff return, the first such touchdown accomplished
by a Super Bowl winning team. The previous three such touchdowns had
all been accomplished by the losing team.
. Howard also recorded a
Super Bowl record 90 punt return yards, thus tying the Super Bowl
records of total return yards (244) and combined net yards gained (244).
Starting with this game,
through Super Bowl XXXVII, the Super Bowl logo was painted at the
50-yard line, and the teams helmets were placed on the 30-yard lines.
During the past Super Bowl games since the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger (Super
Bowl VI), the NFL logo was painted on the 50-yard line, except
for Super Bowls XXV and XXIX.
The Super Bowl XXV logo was painted at
midfield, and the NFL 75th Anniversary logo was painted at midfield
in Super Bowl XXIX.
The league started to
put the NFL logo at midfield again for Super Bowl XXXVIII.
The 1997 NFL season was the 78th regular season of the National Football League.
January 14 -
Indianapolis Colts owner Robert Irsay died from complications related
to a stroke he suffered in 1995. Irsay acquired the club in 1972 when
he traded his Los Angeles Rams to Carrol Rosenbloom for the Colts. He
later moved the Colts from Baltimore to Indianapolis in 1984, .
See Indianapolis
Colts History
April 6 - Washington Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke died at his home in Washington, D.C. Cooke became majority owner in 1974 and the Redskins won three Super Bowls under his leadership,
October 26 - Atlanta Falcons owner Rankin Smith died of heart failure three days prior to his seventy-third birthday. Smith was the founder of the Falcons and was instrumental in bringing Super Bowls XXVIII and XXXIV to Atlanta
Due to Game 7 of the 1997 World Series, the Chicago Bears - Miami Dolphins game at Pro Player Stadium was moved back one day to Monday, October 27.
November 9 - Denver cornerback Darrien Gordon ties an NFL record by returning two punts for touchdowns in the same quarter, a feat previously accomplished just twice in NFL history. His scoring returns of 82 and 75 yards in the first quarter gave Denver a 14-0 lead en route to a 34-0 defeat of Carolina.
Houston Oilers
became Tennessee Oilers
The Houston Oilers move
to Memphis and become the Tennessee Oilers
(later to be
known as Tennessee Titans)
The Oilers relocated
from Houston, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee and become the Tennessee Oilers
(later
to be known as Tennessee Titans) .
But the newly-renamed
Tennessee Oilers played their home games during this season at the
Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee while a new stadium in Nashville
began construction.
After being fired following the 1992 season by The Bears, Mike Ditka returned to The NFL to coach the New Orleans Saints, which he refers to as the "three worst years" of his life.
December 4 - Cincinnati
running back Corey Dillon rushes for a rookie record 246 yards in a
41-14 victory over Tennessee.
December 21 - Detroit Lions, Barry Sanders becomes only the third player in league history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a season. He rushes for 184 yards in the final game of the regular season to push his 1997 total to 2,053 yards, the second highest seasonal tally in NFL history.
Major rule changes
Exceptions are during timeouts and between quarters. (The NFL has done this in an effort to "reduce taunting and overexuberant celebrations" and also "in the name of safety.") |
1997 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
DENVER 42, Jacksonville 17; NEW ENGLAND 17, Miami 3
Divisional playoffs: PITTSBURGH
7, New England 6; Denver 14, KANSAS CITY 10
AFC Championship:
Denver 24, PITTSBURGH 21
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Minnesota 23, N.Y. GIANTS 22; TAMPA BAY 20, Detroit 10
Divisional playoffs: SAN
FRANCISCO 38, Minnesota 22; GREEN BAY 21, Tampa Bay 7
NFC Championship:
Green Bay 23, SAN FRANCISCO 10
Super Bowl XXXII was the
32nd Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 25, 1998 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California
following the 1997 regular season.
This was the second time
San Diego hosted the game; the city previously hosted Super
Bowl XXII ten years earlier on January 31, 1988.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos
defeated
the
heavily favored National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Green Bay Packers,
3124.
The Broncos' win was
their first league championship after suffering four previous Super
Bowl losses, and snapped a 13-game losing streak for AFC teams in the
Super Bowl.
The broadcast drew some 90 million viewers, making it the most-watched Super Bowl game to date. This was the last NFL game that NBC covered before the AFC package moved to CBS in the fall of 1998. The network would not broadcast another NFL game until it started televising Sunday Night Football in 2006; NBC will air Super Bowl XLIII in February 2009.
The halftime show was titled "A Tribute to Motown's 40th Anniversary" and featured Boyz II Men, Smokey Robinson, Queen Latifah, Martha Reeves and The Temptations.
Each player wore a Super Bowl logo patch on their jerseys. This would become a regular practice in each Super Bowl since.
Denver became the first team to score on four one-yard touchdown runs in a Super Bowl.
This was
the first Super Bowl in which both teams scored on their opening drives
(both scored touchdowns).
The Packers were the third team to take the opening kickoff down the field and score a touchdown on that drive. The other two being Miami in Super Bowl VIII and San Francisco in Super Bowl XXIX.
It would also be the first time in 13 Super Bowls that the AFC team had more takeaways than the NFC team. In the 13-game winning streak for the NFC, the NFC team either led or was even in turnover margin in every game.
Despite suffering a
migraine headache that caused him to miss most of the second quarter,
Denver running back Terrell Davis (a San Diego native) was named
Super Bowl MVP. He ran for 157 yards, caught 2 passes for 8 yards,
and scored a Super Bowl record three rushing touchdowns.
Denver Broncos,
Terrell Davis is the only player to rush for three touchdowns in a
Super Bowl, and the only non-49er to score three touchdowns in a
Super Bowl.
San
Francisco 49ers, Roger Craig, Jerry
Rice and Ricky Watters are the only other
players to do so. Rice had 3 touchdown catches in two different Super Bowls.
Terrell Davis became
the first player to win the Super Bowl MVP award in his hometown.
By catching a touchdown pass, Green Bay Packers, Antonio Freeman became just the 5th player to catch a touchdown in back-to-back Super Bowls. He also became just the 11th player to score a touchdown in back-to-back games. Freeman also became the 9th player with two touchdown catches in a game.
Don Beebe became the first player to be a member of six Super Bowl teams. Beebe was with Buffalo for their Super Bowls XXV through XXVIII and with the Packers the year before. Beebe didn't play in either Super Bowl XXV and Super Bowl XXXII.
The Broncos became the 7th team to win the Super Bowl over a team with a better record going into the game (15-4 for the Broncos to 15-3 for the Packers).
The 1998 NFL season was the 79th regular season of the National Football League
January 13 - The NFL reached agreement on record eight-year television contracts with four networks. ABC (Monday Night Football) and FOX (NFC) retained their previous rights, CBS took over the AFC package from NBC, and ESPN won the right to broadcast the entire Sunday night cable package
January 22 - The World League was renamed the NFL Europe League
January 25 -
Ending The 1997 Season, Denver beats Green
Bay 31-24 in
Super Bowl XXXII at San Diego behind
Terrell Davis' 157 yards rushing and a Super Bowl-record three
touchdowns. A record worldwide audience of 800 million in 147
countries, views the game on television.
This was Denver's first
Super Bowl win
February 2 - Walter Payton disclosed that he had a liver disease that would eventually take his life
February 10 - Chicago Bears'. Virginia McCaskey announced that she was replacing her son Michael as CEO with team VP Ted Phillips.
April 18 - Peyton
Manning, a quarterback from Tennessee, was selected by the
Indianapolis Colts as the first overall selection in the draft,
Peyton's father Archie,
also a quarterback, was selected second overall in 1971 by the New
Orleans Saints.
March 23 - The NFL clubs unanimously approved an expansion team for Cleveland to fulfill the commitment to return the Browns to the field in 1999,.
The New
England Patriots announce their intention to move to Hartford
After getting no
support from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to build a new
stadium, Kraft made a deal to move the team to Hartford, Connecticut.
However, environmental cleanup problems with the Hartford site,
combined with Massachusetts' eventual willingness to loan $57,000,000
in infrastructure costs around Foxboro to be repaid through parking
revenue led to a reversal of the Hartford deal. As a result of
threats of lawsuits by Connecticut Governor John Rowland, Kraft paid
$2.4M to Connecticut to avoid any future litigation. The
state-of-the-art stadium is widely considered to be one of the
premier stadiums in NFL Football
November 14 - Tennessee Oilers owner Bud Adams announced the team will change its name to the Tennessee Titans following the 1998 season. The NFL announced that the name Oilers will be retired-a first in league history,
December 13 - Baltimore and Minnesota combine to set an NFL record with three kickoff return touchdowns in the same game, all in the first quarter of the Vikings' 38-28 victory. Corey Harris and Patrick Johnson score for the Ravens while David Palmer turns the trick for Minnesota. Vikings kicker Gary Anderson sets an NFL record when he converts his 34th consecutive field goal.
December 28 -
Chicago Bears, Head Coach Dave Wannstedt was dismissed.
On the 22nd, McCaskey
called a news conference to announce former Bear LB coach Dave
McGinnis had accepted the Bears' head coaching position before he
offered the job to him.
Cable sports channel
ESPN superimposes a yellow line on the field to show TV viewers where
the first-down line is. CBS picks up on the idea and begins using a
similar orange line in its game broadcasts. ABC announces that Monday
Night Football will adopt the "painted" first-down line for
the 1999 season.
Major rule changes
History of the Coin Toss The coin toss has been a part of professional football since its start in 1892. While the procedure has been relatively unchanged over the years, the following is a history of change made to the pre-game procedure. Previously: Coin toss was changed from 30 minutes to three minutes before kickoff.
Change: While the wording in the rulebook
remained the same, the procedure was modified to have the visiting
captain call the toss before the referee tosses the coin instead of
when the coin is in the air. Also, the back judge and field
judge will stand by the captains throughout the coin toss ceremony to
make sure there is no confusion over the call. |
1998 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
MIAMI 24, Buffalo 17; JACKSONVILLE 25, New England 10
Divisional playoffs: DENVER
38, Miami 3; N.Y. JETS 34, Jacksonville 24
AFC Championship: DENVER
23, N.Y. Jets 10
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Arizona 20, DALLAS 7; SAN FRANCISCO 30, Green Bay 27
Divisional playoffs:
ATLANTA 20, San Francisco 18; MINNESOTA 41, Arizona 21
NFC Championship:
Atlanta 30, MINNESOTA 27 (OT)
Super Bowl XXXIII was
the 33rd Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on
January 31, 1999 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Florida (now part of
the suburb of Miami Gardens) following the 1998 regular season.
The American
Football Conference (AFC) champion
Denver Broncos
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Atlanta Falcons,
3419.
Denver was the last NFL team to repeat as Super Bowl champions until the New England Patriots in 2005's Super Bowl XXXIX.
On the night before the Super Bowl, Falcons safety Eugene Robinson was arrested for the solicitation of prostitution. While driving alone in a rented car along a downtown Miami street, he approached a female undercover police officer posing as a prostitute and offered $40 for oral sex. Although he was released from jail and allowed to play the game, he was widely denounced by the press and fans for the incident. Robinson's arrest was especially ironic because on the very morning of the day it happened, he had received the Bart Starr Award for his "high moral character".
Cher sang the national anthem.
The halftime show was titled "A Celebration of Soul, Salsa and Swing" and featured Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Stevie Wonder, and Gloria Estefan. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy performed their song "Go Daddy-O". Wonder sang "Sir Duke", "You Are the Sunshine of My Life", and "I Wish". And Miami-native Estefan performed "Oye" and "Turn the Beat Around". Tap dancer Savion Glover appeared during Wonder's performance of "I Wish".
At 38 years old, Denver quarterback John Elway became the oldest player ever to be named Super Bowl MVP. He completed 18 of 29 passes for 336 yards and one touchdown, and also scored a 3-yard rushing touchdown. Elway retired before the following season.
Denver Bronco's,
Terrell Davis' 102 rushing yards in the Super Bowl gave him over 100
rushing yards for the 7th consecutive postseason game.
Davis became the second
player to be on a Super Bowl winning team after being named the NFL
Most Valuable Player and leading the league in rushing. Dallas
Cowboys, Emmitt Smith was the first
one, but also was named Super Bowl MVP for Super
Bowl XXVIII during that year.
Kansas City Chiefs, Marcus Allen is the only other player to win all
three of these things during his career. Allen won the 1985 NFL MVP
Award and rushing title while being named Super
Bowl XXVIII MVP at the conclusion of
the 1983 season.
Denver Bronco's, John
Elway would become the first quarterback to start five Super Bowls.
He previously started XXI, XXII,
XXIV and XXXII.
Elway's 80-yard
touchdown to Rod Smith was the fourth 80+ yard touchdown pass play in
Super Bowl history.
Elway became the second
player in Super Bowl history to score a touchdown in four different
Super Bowls. He ran for scores before in Super Bowls XXI,
XXIV and XXXII.
He joined Buffalo Bills',
Thurman Thomas on this list.
Broncos defensive lineman Mike Lodish was making his record 6th appearance in a Super Bowl. He played with The Buffalo Bills in all four of their Super Bowls XXV through XXVIII and with Denver the year before.
It was the second time in Super Bowl history that both teams scored on their initial possession of the game. The first being Super Bowl XXXII when both Green Bay and Denver scored touchdowns on their first possession.
Atlanta Falcons, Tim Dwight's kickoff return for a score was the fifth kickoff return for a score in Super Bowl history. It marked the third time in three Super Bowls played at Miami's Pro Player Stadium that a kickoff was returned for a touchdown, each of which was accomplished by the losing team.
This was the second Super Bowl in history that featured two teams with two losses or fewer. Both teams came into the game with 16-2 records after the playoffs. The only Super Bowl featuring a better matchup record wise was Super Bowl XIX when the San Francisco 49ers had a 17-1 record and the Miami Dolphins had a 16-2 record.
The Denver Broncos were the only AFC team to win the Super Bowl in the 1990's.
The match was featured in The Simpsons in the episode Sunday, Cruddy Sunday
The 1999 NFL season was the 80th regular season of the National Football League.
January 19 - Cleveland
Browns began play (again)
Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator
Brian Billick was named Baltimore Ravens Head Coach.
Both the Ravens and
Cleveland Browns interviewed Billick for their head coaching
position, as the Ravens selected him in 1999 as the second head coach
in their brief history, replacing Ted Marchibroda.
January 31 -
The Denver Broncos won their second consecutive Super Bowl title by defeating the
NFC champion Atlanta Falcons 34-19
in Super Bowl XXXIII at Pro Player
Stadium in Miami to end the 1998 season. The game was viewed by 127.5
million viewers, the sixth most-watched program in U.S. television history
Denver's second
consecutive Super Bowl victory
The NFL agreed to assign Cleveland an expansion franchise that would inherit the history of the Browns
Tennessee Oilers
became Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Oilers
changed its name to Tennessee Titans, and the league retired the name "Oilers"
- a first in league history.
Former San Francisco 49ers head coach George Siefert took over The Carolina Panthers, replacing Dom Capers.
May 9 - New York Jets owner Leon Hess died from complications of a blood disease. Hess had been involved in the ownership of the Jets since 1963 and was sole owner of the club since 1984.
Only time will tell if the '99 draft will be remembered in the same light as the '83 draft. Five quarterbacks were taken in the first round including the first three picks. Those first round QBs were Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb, Akili Smith, Daunte Culpepper, and Cade McNown.
The NFL approved Houston for an expansion franchise after efforts by Los Angeles to land the 32nd team fell short.
Major rule changes Clipping is now illegal around the line of scrimmage just as it is on the rest of the field. March 17 - By a vote of 28-3, the owners adopted an instant replay system (different from the one used from 1986 to 1991) as an officiating aid for the 1999 season Replay Rules
The league also added the following then-minor rule change that became significant in the playoffs a few years later: When a Team A player is holding the ball to pass it forward, any intentional forward movement of his hand starts a forward pass, even if the player loses possession of the ball as he is attempting to tuck it back toward his body. Also, if the player has tucked the ball into his body and then loses possession, it is a fumble. This new interpretation of a forward pass would later be commonly known as the "Tuck Rule". |
1999 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
TENNESSEE 22, Buffalo 16; Miami 20, SEATTLE 17
Divisional playoffs:
JACKSONVILLE 62, Miami 7;
Tennessee 19,
INDIANAPOLIS 16
AFC Championship:
Tennessee 33, JACKSONVILLE 14
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
WASHINGTON 27, Detroit 13; MINNESOTA 27, Dallas 10
Divisional playoffs:
TAMPA BAY 14, Washington 13; ST. LOUIS 49, Minnesota 37
NFC Championship:
ST. LOUIS 11, Tampa Bay 6
Super Bowl XXXIV was the 34th Super Bowl,
the championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
The game was played on January 30, 2000,
at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, following the 1999 regular season.
The National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
St. Louis Rams
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Tennessee Titans,
2316.
This was the Rams' first
Super Bowl win and their first NFL championship since 1951.
On the final play of the
game, St. Louis linebacker Mike Jones tackled Tennessee
wide receiver Kevin Dyson one-yard short
of the goal line to prevent a game-tying touchdown. This play later
became known as simply "The Tackle."
Rams quarterback, Kurt Warner, who completed 24 out of 45 passes for 414 yards and 2 touchdowns, was named the Super Bowl MVP. His 414 passing yards and 45 pass attempts without an interception were both Super Bowl records.
Country singer Faith Hill sang the national anthem.
The halftime show was produced by Disney and titled "Tapestry of Nations". The show, narrated by actor Edward James Olmos, was inspired by Walt Disney World's millennium celebration. It featured a full symphony orchestra; a multi-generational, 80-person choir; and singers Phil Collins, Christina Aguilera, Enrique Iglesias, and Toni Braxton.
This game is often referred to as the "dot-com" Super Bowl since it was held during the height of the dot-com bubble, and several internet companies purchased television commercials. Pets.com famously paid millions for an advert featuring a sock puppet.
The 19 years between St. Louis Rams, Dick Vermeil's Super Bowl head coaching appearances is the longest time span between Super Bowl head coaching appearances. Vermeil coached the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XV.
In sports betting, this game was the second push in Super Bowl history, after Super Bowl XXXI. The Rams were favored by 7 and won the game by 7.
This was the 4th Super Bowl to be held a week after the conference championship games. The previous Super Bowl (XXVIII) also had only one week between games, and like this game, was also played on January 30 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.
The Titans' 16-point deficit was the largest deficit to be erased in a Super Bowl and the first greater than 10 points, but they only tied the game and never gained the lead.
The Titans were the first team since the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI to go scoreless in the 1st half, and the 10th time overall that a team had done so. No team has won the game after going scoreless in the first half.
The Rams became the first team in Super Bowl history to take 5 straight possessions into the red zone but come away with zero touchdowns. They finally scored their first red zone touchdown on their first possession of the second half with Holt's 9-yard reception.
Warner's 73-yard game-winning touchdown pass to Bruce broke a 16-16 tie in the fourth quarter and gave the Rams a seven-point victory to win the NFL title. Likewise, in the 1951 NFL Championship Game, quarterback Norm Van Brocklin's 73-yard game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Tom Fears broke a 17-17 tie in the fourth quarter and gave the Rams a seven-point victory to win the NFL title.
With the victory, the Rams had one NFL Championship while playing in each of the three cities that they've called home. The Cleveland Rams won in 1945, the Los Angeles Rams in 1951, and the St. Louis Rams in 1999.
Warner became the 6th player to win both the NFL Most Valuable Player Award and the Super Bowl MVP award during the same season. He follows Green Bay Packers Bart Starr, Pittsburgh Steelers, Terry Bradshaw, 49ers, Joe Montana, Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt Smith and Steve Young of The San Francisco 49ers.
This was the second Super Bowl, after Super Bowl XXV, in which neither team committed a turnover.
The 2000 NFL season was the 81st regular season of the National Football League
January 8 - Trailing 16-15 with 16 seconds remaining, the Tennessee Titans stun the Buffalo Bills with a lateral pass on a kickoff return that turns into a 75-yard Kevin Dyson touchdown and a 22-16 Wild-Card victory that is called "The Music City Miracle."
Bill Belichick became Head Coach for New England Patriots, replacing Bill Parcell
February 3 - Jim Haslett became the New Orleans Saints' 13th head coach
September 6 - Houston's
new football team officially became the Texans
The other finalists
were Apollos and Stallions.
October 22 - Corey
Dillon rushes for 278 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries in
Cincinnati's 31-21 victory over Denver to break Walter
Payton's single-game rushing record.
Dillon
established the NFL rookie record with a 246-yard outburst against
Tennessee on Dec. 4, 1997.
November 22 - the City of Chicago and the Chicago Bears formally unveiled their plan for the new stadium at Soldier Field. The $587 million plan would build the new 61,500 seat stadium within the shell of the old venue, preserving the historic colonnades and exterior walls. Included in the plan were the creation of parkland surrounding the stadium, a new parking garage to the north, and numerous modern amenities within. More importantly for the team, the new facility would generate much more income, with the organization finally getting the majority of revenue from advertising, parking, concessions, and luxury box leases. The proposal quickly gained legislative approval in December 2000, and despite numerous lawsuits, construction began immediately following the team's playoff loss in January 2002.
December 17 - San Francisco wide receiver Terrell Owens sets a new NFL single-game receiving record with 20 catches in the 49ers' 17-0 win over Chicago. Owens totalled 283 yards and a touchdown while topping Tom Fears' mark of 18 receptions which had stood since 1950.
The Cincinnati Bengals move into Paul Brown Stadium
Edgerrin James set a Franchise record for The Indianapolis Colts with 1,709 rushing yards.
Baltimore Ravens' defense set a 16 game record for fewest points allowed in a season (165).
January 19 - Charley Casserly, former General Manager of the Washington Redskins, was hired to head the Texans' football operations
Major rule changes
|
2000 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
MIAMI 23, Indianapolis 17 (OT); BALTIMORE 21, Denver 3
Divisional playoffs:
OAKLAND 27, Miami 0; Baltimore 24, TENNESSEE 10
AFC Championship:
Baltimore 16, OAKLAND 3
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
NEW ORLEANS 31, St. Louis 28;
PHILADELPHIA 21, Tampa
Bay 3
Divisional playoffs:
MINNESOTA 34, New Orleans 16;
N.Y. GIANTS 20,
Philadelphia 10
NFC Championship:
N.Y. GIANTS 41, Minnesota 0
Super Bowl XXXV
Super Bowl XXXV was the
35th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on January
28, 2001 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida following
the 2000 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Baltimore Ravens
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
New York Giants,
347.
The Ravens joined the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VII and the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl IX as the only teams in Super Bowl history to shut out the opposing offense. All three teams gave up their only touchdowns on special teams plays. Furthermore, Baltimore allowed only 152 yards of offense by the Giants (the third lowest total ever in a Super Bowl), recorded 4 sacks, and forced 5 turnovers. All 16 of the Giants possesions ended with punts or interceptions, with the exception of the last one which ended when time expired in the game.
In a major turnaround for one player, Ravens, linebacker Ray Lewis, who was charged with murder a year earlier, was named Super Bowl MVP. He made 3 tackles, 2 assists, and blocked 4 passes.
Despite his accomplishments on the field, Ravens, linebacker Ray Lewis' public image was tarnished following a Super Bowl party on 31 January 2000, when he was arrested (along with his friends Reginald Oakley and Joseph Sweeting) for the murders of Jacinth Baker and Richard Lollar. Baker and Lollar were stabbed and killed outside a nightclub during a fight in the Buckhead district of Atlanta. To have murder charges dismissed, Lewis pled guilty in a bargain to a misdemeanor charge of obstruction of justice [1], and agreed to testify against Oakley and Sweeting, who were each charged with murder. Oakley and Sweeting went on to hire the very high priced legal representation of noted Atlanta criminal defense attorneys, L. David Wolfe, Bruce Harvey, and Steve Sadow. Though all were acquitted in June 2000, the Atlanta Police Department and District Attorney's office believe Lewis' associaties to be guilty. No other suspects have ever been arrested for the crime. On 29 April 2004, Lewis reached a settlement with four-year-old India Lollar, who was born shortly after the death of her father Richard. The settlement (reported by The Baltimore Sun to be at least US$1 million) pre-empted the civil trial scheduled for 14 June from going forth. The suit filed by the Baker family was also settled. The terms were undisclosed. |
The game was broadcast in the United States by CBS. Play-by-play announcer Greg Gumbel became the first African-American announcer to call a major sports championship. He was joined in the broadcast booth with color commentator Phil Simms. Jim Nantz hosted all the events with help from his then-fellow cast members from The NFL Today: Mike Ditka, Craig James, Randy Cross, and Jerry Glanville. The broadcast also featured an array of cameras (dubbed "EyeVision" by CBS) set up throughout the stadium that allowed for bullet time effects, similar to the effect used in the movie The Matrix. This system proved more than just a gimmick when it helped to uphold a replay challenge on a Jamal Lewis fourth quarter touchdown.
The Backstreet Boys sang the national anthem
The halftime show was produced by MTV and featured Aerosmith, 'N Sync, Britney Spears, Nelly, and Mary J. Blige. The show ended with all of the performers singing Aerosmith's "Walk This Way".
Ravens,
linebacker Ray Lewis became the first linebacker to win the Super
Bowl MVP award on a winning team. Cowboys
Linebacker, Chuck Howley
won the Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl V but is the only one to win it
as a member of the losing team.
Lewis became the first
defensive player to win Super Bowl MVP honors without recording an
interception, sack, forced fumble, or fumble recovery.
Although not the Ravens main running back, Priest Holmes actually started in the backfield for Baltimore.
The Ravens' Jamal Lewis became the second rookie to rush for 100 yards in a Super Bowl, joining Timmy Smith (Super Bowl XXII).
The Ravens became the 3rd team in Super Bowl history to score two non-offensive touchdowns in a Super Bowl with their interception return and kickoff return. The previous teams to do it were the Raiders in Super Bowl XVIII (also played in Tampa) and Dallas in Super Bowl XXVII.
The Ravens became the second team in Super Bowl history to score an offensive, defensive and special teams touchdown in the same Super Bowl. Only the Los Angeles Raiders (in Super Bowl XVIII) also have accomplished this feat.
This was the first Super Bowl
to be aired on CBS in nine years. Following the 1993 season, FOX
bought the rights to air the NFC package leaving CBS without the NFL
until 1998 when they began broadcasting the AFC package instead of NBC.
Along with being the first African-American
to be the play-by-play announcer for a Super Bowl, Greg Gumbel also
became the first person to both host the Super Bowl pre-game show and
call the game. Gumbel was the host during his first stint with CBS
for Super Bowl XXVI and he was the pre-game host for Super Bowls XXX
and XXXII when he was with NBC.
First time in history two kickoffs were returned for touchdowns in the same Super Bowl game, not to mention on back-to-back kickoffs.
The
Giants became just the 11th team to go scoreless in the 1st half of a
Super Bowl.
They also
would become the fifth team to not score an offensive touchdown
because their only touchdown was on Dixon's kickoff return.
Miami would not score a touchdown in Super Bowl VI, Washington
would score their only touchdown on a fumble return against Miami in
Super Bowl VII, Minnesota scored on a
recovered blocked punt in the end zone in Super
Bowl IX, and Cincinnati scored their
only touchdown on a kickoff return in Super
Bowl XXIII.
New York Giants quarterback, Kerry Collins' 4 interceptions tied a then Super Bowl record. The record had since been broken by the Oakland Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon in Super Bowl XXXVII.
Baltimore's, Brandon Stokley's first quarter touchdown is the
last touchdown to be scored in the quarter as of Super Bowl XL.
Although a holding
penalty on the return moved the ball back to the 41-yard line,
Baltimore took only 2 plays to score on quarterback Trent Dilfer's 38-yard
touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon Stokley.
The 2001 NFL season was the 82nd regular season of the National Football League.
In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks,
the games for September 16 - September 17
were postponed and re-scheduled to the weekend of January 6- January
7. In order to retain the full playoff format, all playoff games were
re-scheduled too.
Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants 34-7 in the Super Bowl ending the 2000 season
January 12 - Dick Vermiel came out of retirement and became the ninth head coach in Kansas City Chiefs Franchise history
January 21 - Dom
Capers was hired as the Houston Texans' first coach. Capers had also
served as the first coach of The Carolina Panthers when they entered
the NFL in 1995
Capers hired former
Cleveland Browns head coach Chris Palmer as his offensive coordinator.
February 28 - The Sports Business Daily named NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue the 2000 Sports Industrialist of the Year
May 21 - A jury ruled for the NFL in a lawsuit brought against the league by the Oakland Raiders. The state court jury in Los Angeles rejected the Raiders' claims that the NFL destroyed their 1995 Hollywood Park stadium deal and that they own the Los Angeles market
May 22 - NFL owners unanimously approved a realignment plan for the league starting in 2002. With the addition of the Houston Texans, the league's 32 teams will be divided into eight four-team divisions. Seven clubs change divisions, and the Seattle Seahawks change conferences, moving from the AFC to the NFC. A new scheduling format ensures that every team meets every other team in the league at least once every four years
August 25 - Denver Broncos open the new INVESCO Field at Mile High with a preseason game against New Orleans Saints that drew a crowd of 74,063
September 25
- The Texans unveiled their uniforms
on
December 29 -
The team signed its first 10 players on
Matt Millen took over as Detroit Lions president and CEO.
The Buccaneers ownership
took a big risk and fired Tony Dungy as head coach after the 2001
season even though the Buccaneers went to the playoffs three times
and won its division in 1999, Dungy was fired by the team due
to the club's repeated losses in the playoffs.
A deal to sign Parcells
fell through and The Buccaneers wound up sending cash and a bundle of
draft picks to Oakland Raiders to acquire
Jon Gruden
December 8 - George Young, the NFLs senior vice president of football operations and former general manager of the New York Giants, died at the age of 71. During Youngs 19-year tenure with the Giants, the team earned eight playoff berths and won Super Bowl XXI and XXV. Young was named NFL Executive of the Year an unprecedented five times
Major rule changes
|
2001 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
OAKLAND 38, N.Y. Jets 24; Baltimore 20, MIAMI 3
Divisional playoffs:
NEW ENGLAND 16, Oakland 13 (OT);
PITTSBURGH 27,
Baltimore 10
AFC Championship:
New England 24, PITTSBURGH 17
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
PHILADELPHIA 31, Tampa Bay 9;
GREEN BAY 25, San
Francisco 15
Divisional playoffs:
Philladelphia 33, CHICAGO 19; ST. LOUIS 45, Green Bay 17
NFC Championship:
ST. LOUIS 29, Philadelphia 24
Super Bowl XXXVI
Super Bowl XXXVI was the 36th Super Bowl,
the championship game of the National Football League (NFL).
The game was played on February 3, 2002
at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana following the
2001 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
New England Patriots
defeated
the National
Football Conference (NFC) champion
St. Louis Rams,
2017,
as kicker Adam
Vinatieri made a game-winning 48-yard field goal as time expired.
The Rams had been 14-point favorites to win the game, making
the Patriots' victory one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history.
Patriots Quarterback Tom Brady, who completed 16 of 27 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown, was named Super Bowl MVP.
Due to the September 11, 2001 attacks and
the NFL schedule being moved one week back, Super Bowl XXXVI was thus
rescheduled from the original date of January 27 to February 3 in
order to retain the full playoff format for the 2002 season.
It will be the first Super Bowl played in February
Because of the attacks, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has designated each subsequent Super Bowl a National Special Security Event (NSSE). By 2003, the league had restored the traditional pre-Super Bowl bye week that had been abolished prior to the 2001 NFL season, to reduce the possibility of the Super Bowl being unexpectedly delayed again.
|
Preparations for Super Bowl XXXVI in New
Orleans were planned ever since the city was awarded the game during
the NFL's October 1998 meetings. However, the September 11, 2001
attacks led the league to move both the playoffs and the Super Bowl
one week back. Rescheduling the game from January 27 to February 3
was a difficult task. Not only would the game itself have to be
moved, but all related events and activities had to be accommodated.
It was normal for there to be an open weekend between the Conference
Championship games and the Super Bowl. However, in this particular
season, there was not one. Beginning in the 2001 season, the league
moved the opening week of games to the weekend after Labor Day The NFL and New Orleans officials worked diligently to put together a deal to reschedule the game. At first, the league considered shortening the regular season, shortening the playoffs, or even moving the game to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. To further complicate the situation, the National Automobile Dealers Association Convention was scheduled to occupy the Superdome on February 3. On October 3, 2001, the NFL announced their intentions to hold the game on February 3, and by late fall, the three parties came to a final settlement, where the NADA would move their convention's date to the original Super Bowl week, allowing the NFL to move the game up seven days.
Following Super Bowl tradition, the original
logo for Super Bowl XXXVI was to have a flavor that represented the
host city. A logo was designed and distributed on a very small amount
of memorabilia items in early 2001. |
Pregame ceremonies included a video segment, past and present NFL players read excerpts from the Declaration of Independence. Former U.S. presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton appeared in another videotaped segment and recited some of the speeches by Abraham Lincoln. Because Ronald Reagan was suffering from Alzheimer's disease, his wife Nancy appeared on the segment instead.
Singer Mariah Carey, accompanied by the Boston Pops Orchestra, performed the national anthem.
George H. W. Bush became the first president, past or present, to participate in a Super Bowl coin toss in person (Ronald Reagan participated in the Super Bowl XIX coin toss via satellite from the White House in 1985). Bush was joined by hall of fame and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, who played at the United States Naval Academy.
The halftime show featured a three-song set from Irish rockers U2, fresh off their successful Elevation Tour. After renditions of "Beautiful Day" and "MLK", the band launched into "Where the Streets Have No Name," featuring two backdrops with the names of victims of the 9/11 attacks floating into the sky behind the band and Bono opening his jacket to reveal an American flag printed into the lining
Rams quarterback, Kurt Warner's 365 passing yards were the second highest total in Super Bowl history behind his own record of 414 yards set in Super Bowl XXXIV
The game marked the 11th time that the Super Bowl participants had met during the regular season.
This Super Bowl was the first since Super Bowl XXX to not have a rookie score in the game. Patriots Kicker, Adam Vinatieri (Super Bowl XXXI), kicker for the Minnesota Vikings, Ryan Longwell (Super Bowl XXXII), Atlanta Falcons' wide receiver,Tim Dwight (Super Bowl XXXIII), St. Louis Rams' wide receiver, Torry Holt (Super Bowl XXXIV) and running back for the Baltimore Ravens', Jamal Lewis (Super Bowl XXXV) had scored in the previous five Super Bowls.
This was the first Super Bowl to be played in February, due to the September 11th attacks.
This game was the last Super Bowl played on antiquated AstroTurf. About a year before the game was held, stadium officials considered bringing in natural grass for the game. The system would use large trays of grass grown and cultivated outdoors, and brought inside to be placed on the field of play. Cost concerns, and the fact that it had never been done before, prompted stadium and league officials to abandon the project. During the 2003 season, the Superdome replaced its AstroTurf surface with AstroPlay, a surface that more closely simulates natural grass. The last two teams to play their home games on AstroTurf, the Rams and the Indianapolis Colts, switched to FieldTurf in 2005.
This game is currently the only Super Bowl to be won on the final play of the game, the only other Super Bowl decided on the last play of the game was Super Bowl XXV, which was lost on the last play of the game.
Although the Rams led the league during the regular season in red zone possessions, they did not enter the red zone until early in the fourth quarter, in a drive that ended with Warner's 2-yard touchdown run. This ended up being the only time in the game that the Rams entered the redzone.
The Patriots became the 8th team to win the Super Bowl over a team with a better record going into the game (13-5 for the Patriots to 16-2 for the Rams).
Tom Brady threw for the third lowest passing yards total for a Super Bowl MVP quarterback with his 145. Roger Staubach has the lowest total with 119 yards in the Cowboys Super Bowl VI win.
The confetti was red, white, and blue. That color scheme would go on to be used for every Super Bowl (except XXXVII) from that point on.
Following the 2001 season January 19, 2002, Oakland Raiders vs. New England Patriots, AFC Divisional Playoff Game This is also known as Snowjob for Raiders fans, and as the Snow Bowl for Patriots fans. With less than two minutes to play in regulation, the Patriots trailed the Raiders, 13-10, in a game played mostly under a driving snowstorm. Oakland defensive back Charles Woodson blitzed Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and sacked him, causing what appeared to be a fumble. The ball was recovered by the Raiders' Greg Biekert at the Oakland 42-yard-line. When referee Walt Coleman reviewed the play, however, he ruled that Brady lost the ball while attempting a pass (rather than using a tuck maneuver to abort the pass), making it an incomplete pass rather than a fumble. The Patriots retained possession, and later tied the game on a difficult, 45 yard Adam Vinatieri field goal with 27 seconds left in regulation regarded as one of the best kicks of all time, given the conditions. They won the game in overtime on a 23-yard field goal. An obscure but still rarely used rule states: "If a Quarterback is attempting to pass he must have the ball tucked completely back into his body before it can be a fumble." Because Brady did not appear to the referee to bring the ball back completely into his body it was not considered a fumble. February 3, 2002, St. Louis Rams vs. New England Patriots, Super Bowl XXXVI With the game tied at 17-17 and only 1:30 left in the fourth quarter, the Patriots took possession at their own 16-yard line with no timeouts. Color commentator John Madden declared that if he were Bill Belichick, he would have quarterback Tom Brady take a knee, thereby running out the clock and pushing the game into overtime. New England elected to go for the win instead and drove the ball to the Rams 30 yard line. This set up Adam Vinatieri's 48-yard field goal attempt. The game-winning kick sailed through the uprights as time expired, marking the first time in Super Bowl history that a game had been won by a score on the final play. |
The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.
The league expanded to 32 teams with the addition of the Houston Texans.
Jon Gruden became the 7th head coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers franchise history after his rights were secured from Oakland.
Baltimore Ravens' head
coach Brian Billick tied Tom Flores record for most
consecutive playoff wins at the start of a career (5)
Tom Flores and Mike Ditka are the only
persons to have won a Super Bowl as a player, assistant coach, and
head coach.
January 22 - Tony Dungy was hired as head coach for The Indianapolis Colts after six years as Tampa Bay's head coach.
January 29 - Marty Schottenheimer was hired as San Diego's' 13th head coach
February 6 - Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher was named co-chairman of the NFL Competition Committee
September 5 - For the first time, the NFL season kicked off on a Thursday night in prime time as the San Francisco 49ers defeated the New York Giants 16-13 at Giants Stadium. The game was preceded by "NFL Kickoff Live From Times Square," presented by New York City and the NFL, a football and music festival honoring the resilient spirit of New York and America,
September 8 - Rookie quarterback David Carr throws a pair of touchdown passes as the Houston Texans defeat the Dallas Cowboys 19-10 to become only the second expansion team (1961 Minnesota Vikings) to win their inaugural game.
September 11 - Johnny Unitas, the legendary quarterback for the Baltimore Colts and a Pro Football Hall of Fame member, died of a heart attack at the age of 69
September 15 - Oakland
Raiders' quarterback, Rich Gannon begins his record-tying
(Rams
quarterback, Kurt Warner' and San
Francisco 49ers, Steve Young) streak of
six consecutive 300-yard passing games, throwing for 403 yards in the
Raiders' 30-17 victory at Pittsburgh. Gannon finishes the year with a
record 10 300-yard games.
September 29 - Oakland Raiders wide receiver, Jerry Rice has 151 yards from scrimmage, bringing his total to 21,281 to pass running back for the Chicago Bears, Walter Payton as the all-time leader. Rice finishes the 2002 season with 22,242 yards from scrimmage.
September 30 - Baltimore Ravens cornerback Chris McAlister set an NFL record for the longest scoring play with a 107-yard touchdown return of an errant 57-yard field goal attempt by Denver Broncos kicker Jason Elam, .
October 23 - Cleveland Browns owner Al Lerner, the NFL Finance Committee Chairman and Chairman and CEO of MBNA Corporation, died at the age of 69
October 27 - Dallas
Cowboys running back, Emmitt Smith rushes for 109 yards to
surpass Chicago Bears' running back. Walter Payton
as the NFL's all-tme rushing leader.
Smith finishes the 2002
season with 17,162 rushing yards.
Walter Payton's record
was 16,726.
The Detroit Lions moved back into the Detroit city limits. They spent 37 years at Tiger Stadium before moving into a domed stadium in suburban Pontiac, Michigan in 1975. The Lions now play at Ford Field in downtown Detroit.
December 5 - The NFL and NFLPA announced the creation of USA Football, the first national advocacy organization representing all levels of amateur football
December 15 -
Indianapolis Colts' wide receiver, Marvin
Harrison catches nine passes for 172 yards and two TDs to
break Detroit Lions, Herman
Moore's single-season reception record (123).
Moore broke the NFL
record for catches in a season with 123, with 1686 yards in 1995
On December 29
Harrison finishes the year with 143 catches.
December 30 - The
2002 season concluded with 25 overtime games, the most in NFL history,
New York Giants defensive coordinator John Fox was hired as The Carolina Panthers head coach.
Vic Fangio was hired as
Houston Texans first defensive coordinator.
The Texans became the
first expansion team in 41 years to win its first game, beating the
Dallas Cowboys 19-10
on September 8.
Realigned into eight divisions with 4
teams each
With the Texans joining
the NFL, the league's teams were realigned into eight
divisions, four in each conference. In creating the new divisions,
the league tried to maintain the historical rivalries from the old
alignment, while at the same time attempting to organize the teams
geographically. The significant changes were:
|
The playoff format was also modified: four division winners and two wild cards from each conference now advance to the playoffs.
Major rule changes
|
2002 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
N.Y. JETS 41, Indianapolis 0; PITTSBURGH 36, Cleveland 33
Divisional playoffs:
TENNESSEE 34, Pittsburgh 31 (OT);
OAKLAND 30, N.Y.
Jets 10
AFC Championship:
OAKLAND 41, Tennessee 24
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Atlanta 27, GREEN BAY 7;
SAN FRANCISCO 39, N.Y.
Giants 38
Divisional playoffs: PHILADELPHIA
20, Atlanta 6; TAMPA BAY 31, San Francisco 6
NFC Championship:
Tampa Bay 27, PHILADELPHIA 10
Super Bowl XXXVII
Super Bowl XXXVII was
the 37th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on January
26, 2003 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California following
the 2002 regular season.
The
National Football Conference (NFC) champion
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
defeated
the American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
Oakland Raiders,
4821.
Super Bowl XXXVII is sometimes referred to as the "Gruden Bowl" because the primary storyline surrounding the game centered around Jon Gruden. Gruden was the Raiders head coach from 1998 to 2001 and then became the Buccaneers coach in 2002. Thus, it was "Gruden's old team" versus "Gruden's new team."
Some also jokingly
referred to the game as "The Pirate Bowl",
given the pirate-themed names of both teams
(the Buccaneers and
Raiders, who both also feature pirate symbols on their helmets)
Celine Dion sang
"God Bless America"
and later
the Dixie Chicks sang
the national anthem.
Shania Twain, No Doubt, and Sting were featured during the halftime show, which was sponsored by AT&T Wireless. Twain was dressed in what many people viewed as a dominatrix-looking outfit and performed her hits "Man! I Feel like a Woman!" and "Up!". No Doubt then sang their hit "Just A Girl" with lead singer Gwen Stefani ad-libbing lines like "I'm just a girl at the Super Bowl!" The show concluding with Sting performing "Message in a Bottle", in which Stefani joined in midway through.
Oakland Raiders', Jerry Rice became the first player ever to catch a touchdown pass in 4 different Super Bowls.
Jerry
Rice and Bill Romanowski joined Gene Upshaw as the only players to
appear in Super Bowls in three different decades.
Rice played in Super
Bowls XXIII, XXIV, and XXIX. Romanowski played in Super Bowls XXIII,
XXIV, XXXII, and XXXIII.
Jerry Rice's touchdown
catch gave him a touchdown in four different Super Bowls, joining Buffalo
Bills, Thurman Thomas and Denver
quarterback John Elway as the only players to do so.
The Raiders became the first team to appear in Super Bowls under four different head coaches. John Rauch coached them in Super Bowl II, John Madden coached them in Super Bowl XI and Tom Flores coached them in Super Bowl XV and XVIII.
The attendance of 67,603 was the third-smallest for a Super Bowl game, trailing only Super Bowl I (61,946) and Super Bowl XXVI (63,130).
This will likely be the last Super Bowl to be played in January as subsequent Super Bowls are now scheduled for the first Sunday in February. This is also the last Super Bowl to have been scheduled without a bye week after the conference championship games.
San Diego became the fifth region to host the game at least three times.
New Orleans has hosted it nine times,
Miami eight times,
and
Tampa three times.
The Buccaneers became the first team in Super Bowl history to score
three defensive touchdowns.
The Cowboys (XXVII) were
the only previous team to score multiple defensive touchdowns.
The Buccaneers became the second (Baltimore Ravens, Super Bowl XXXV) post-merger expansion team to appear in a Super Bowl and win the league championship.
Buccaneers,
Dexter
Jackson became only the second safety and third defensive back to
ever be named Super Bowl MVP.
Jackson was the Super
Bowl MVP of Super Bowl XXXVII, recording two interceptions which
turned the momentum of the game in favor of the Buccaneers.
His margin of victory
for the award was the "fan vote" in which he gained four
votes based on internet polling.
Were it not for the fan
votes, teammate Simeon Rice would have won the award.
Tampa
Bay Buccaneers wide receiver, Keenan McCardell's two touchdowns
marked the tenth time a player has caught multiple touchdowns in a
single Super Bowl.
Jerry Rice caught three
touchdowns in a Super Bowl on two occasions with the 49ers.
This
was the final Super Bowl for Jerry Rice, and the only one he lost.
This was also the only
Super Bowl Tim Brown ever played in.
The 2003 NFL season was the 84th regular season of the National Football League. 32 teams each played 16 games.
January Marvin
Lewis was hired as Head Coach for Cincinnati Bengals
With the top pick in
the draft, The Bengals selected quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner
Carson Palmer of South California.
January 16 - The NFL announced the appointment of Steve Bornstein as executive vice president-media and president and chief executive officer of the NFL Network, to be launched in 2003. The NFL Network will be the first television programming service fully dedicated to the NFL and the sport of football
April 8 - Chicago Bears chairman emeritus Edward W. McCaskey died at the age of 83
July 15 - Tex Schramm, the legendary team president and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, died at the age of 83
September 14 -
The Baltimore Ravens running back, Jamal Lewis set an NFL record by
rushing for 295 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries in a 33-13
victory over Cleveland Browns. Lewis would have easily eclipsed 300
yards if not for a penalty that nullified a 60-yard TD run.
He established a new
single game rushing record. He nearly became the first ever NFL
runner to reach the 300-yard plateau.
His record day came
just three seasons after Corey Dillon of the Cincinnati Bengals
established the new record. Chicago Bear's Walter Payton had
held the record for 23 seasons before his mark was eclipsed by Dillon.
September 29 - Soldier Field (II) will open as the Bears host the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football.
Due to damage caused by the Cedar Fire, Qualcomm Stadium was used as an emergency shelter, and thus the Miami Dolphins - San Diego Chargers match on October 27 was instead played at Sun Devil Stadium, the home field of the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cedar Fire was the second largest wildfire in the history of the U.S. state of California (after the Great Fire of 1889) and one of 15 fires that started in late October 2003 and were fanned by Santa Ana Winds in Southern California burning a total of 721,791 acres (2,921 km²) and 3,640 homes, and killing 14 Americans and 1 migrant worker who was found early December on the side of the I-15. |
Reeves' tenure as Atlanta Falcons coach ended with 3 games left in the 2003 season. He was replaced by Jim Mora, Jr., who had been the San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator.
November 4 - NFL Network, the first 24- hour, year-round television channel dedicated to the NFL and the sport of football, launched on DirecTV
December 17 - Otto Graham, the legendary quarterback of the Cleveland Browns and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, died at the age of 82
San Diego Chargers running back, LaDainian Tomlinson became the first player in NFL history to catch at least 100 passes and run for 1,000 yards. He had 100 receptions and 1,645 rushing yards.
An Oakland Raiders season of 4-12 combined with player mutiny cost Bill Calahan his job as head coach and was replaced by former Washington Redskins coach Norv Turner.
The following players set all-time NFL records during the season:
Most touchdowns by Kansas City's Priest Holmes(27)
Most Consecutive Field Goals by Indianapolis Colts', Mike Vanderjagt, broken December 28, at Houston (41)
Major rule changes If an onside kick inside the final five minutes of the game does not go 10 yards, goes out of bounds, or is touched illegally, the receiving team will have the option of accepting the penalty and getting the ball immediately. Previously, the kicking team was penalized, but had another chance to kick again from five yards back. Officials will be kept together as a single crew during the playoffs. This is a change from past seasons when "all-star" officiating crews worked the post season. |
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Tennessee 20, BALTIMORE 17; INDIANAPOLIS 41, Denver 10
Divisional playoffs:
NEW ENGLAND 17, Tennessee 14;
Indianapolis 38, KANSAS
CITY 31
AFC Championship:
NEW ENGLAND 24, Indianapolis 14
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
CAROLINA 29, Dallas 10; GREEN BAY 33, Seattle 27 (OT)
Divisional playoffs:
Carolina 29, ST. LOUIS 23 (2OT);
PHILADELPHIA 20, Green
Bay 17 (OT)
NFC Championship:
Carolina 14, PHILADELPHIA 3
Super Bowl XXXVIII
Super Bowl XXXVIII was the 38th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League (NFL). The game was played on February 1, 2004 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas following the 2003 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion
New England Patriots
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Carolina Panthers,
3229,
as Adam Vinatieri kicked
a 41-yard field goal with four seconds left.
New England quarterback
Tom Brady was named Most Valuable Player for the second time in three
years. He set a Super Bowl record for the most pass completions (32).
Brady also recorded a 66.7 completion percentage (48 pass attempts),
354 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, 1 interception, and 12 rushing yards.
Tom Brady's 32
completions were the most in Super Bowl history. His 48 attempts were
the most for a winning quarterback. His 354 yards passing is now the
fifth best total in Super Bowl history.
Although not part of the
game itself, one of the most widely discussed moments came during
halftime. The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy generated
intense media coverage and led to the popularity of the euphemism
"wardrobe malfunction".
Super Bowl XXXVIII was
noted for a controversial halftime show in which Janet Jackson and
Justin Timberlake were performing a medley/duet of their songs
"Rhythm Nation"/"Rock Your Body", which featured
many suggestive dance moves by both Timberlake and Jackson. As the
song reached the final line, "I'm gonna have you naked by the
end of this song", Timberlake pulled off a part of Jackson's
costume, revealing her right breast (adorned with a large, sun-shaped
nipple shield, a piece of jewelry worn to accentuate the appearance
of a nipple piercing).
CBS immediately cut to
an aerial view of the stadium, but it had already been broadcast.
Many people considered this indecent exposure and a record-breaking
two hundred thousand Americans contacted the network to complain,
saying it was inappropriate in the context of a football game. The
scandal has also been referred to as Nipplegate. The halftime show
was produced by MTV and aired on the CBS television network. At the
time, both MTV and CBS were owned by the media group Viacom, but as
of January 2006 had been split into separate entities, with CBS as a
self-owned company, and MTV as part of the Viacom group. It is said
that one of the causes of the split was this controversy, especially
after CBS renewed its National Football League television contract.
The controversy also prompted tighter control of live television
broadcasts in the United States.
Janet Jackson wasn't the
only person who showed some skin at February's Super Bowl XXXVIII.
Unlike Jackson, however,
self-proclaimed British streaker extraordinaire Mark Roberts, who
took the field wearing only a thong-like plastic American football,
could face jail time for his revealing performance.
Dressed in a referee
uniform, Roberts, 39, climbed a 7-foot barricade and jumped onto the
field of Houston's Reliant Stadium moments before the first kick-off
of the second half.
He proceeded to undress
and perform his own version of the half time show, with moves
mimicking those of River Dance and Michael Jackson's moonwalk.
His fun ended when New
England linebacker Matt Chatham flattened him to the turf with an elbow.
This was the second
Super Bowl ever in which both starting quarterbacks from each team
threw for over 300 yards. The first was Super
Bowl XIX.
The Panthers became the
first #3 seed, since the league expanded to a 12-team playoff format
in 1990, to advance to the Super Bowl. In doing so, they were also
the first division winner to advance to the league championship after
playing three playoff games.
All other instances
where teams advanced to the Super Bowl after playing all three rounds
of the playoffs were wild card teams in Super Bowls XV, XX, XXVII,
XXXII, XXXIV, XXXV, and XL.
The NFL logo was painted at midfield for the first time since Super Bowl XXX, and the Super Bowl XXXVIII logo was placed on the 25-yard lines. From Super Bowls XXXI through XXXVII, the Super Bowl logo was painted at midfield, and the helmets of the teams painted at the 30-yard lines. From Super Bowl VI through Super Bowl XXX, the NFL logo was painted on the 50-yard line, except for Super Bowls XXV and XXIX. The Super Bowl XXV logo was painted at midfield, and the NFL 75th Anniversary logo was painted at midfield in Super Bowl XXIX; in both cases, the NFL logo was painted at each 30 yard line.
This was the fourth Super Bowl to be decided on a field goal in the final seconds:
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Carolina Panthers Quarterback, Jake Delhomme's 85-yard touchdown pass to Muhsin Muhammad set a record for the longest play from scrimmage in Super Bowl history.
The 2004 NFL season was the 85th regular season of the National Football League. 32 teams each played 16 games.
Due to hurricanes, two
of the Miami Dolphins' home games were rescheduled. The game against
the Tennessee Titans was moved up one day to Saturday, September 11
to avoid oncoming Hurricane Ivan.
And the game versus the
Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, September 26 was moved back 7
1/2 hours to miss the eye of Hurricane Jeanne.
April 8 - Steve Bisciotti took over as the controlling owner of the Baltimore Ravens, succeeding Art Modell, who operated the franchise for 43 years
April 22 - Former Arizona Cardinals safety Pat Tillman was killed in a firefight while on combat patrol with the U.S. Army Rangers in Afghanistan
May 24 - A federal appeals court formally ruled in favor of the NFLs draft eligibility rule in Maurice Claretts lawsuit, citing federal labor policy in permitting the NFL and the Players Association to set rules for when players can enter the league
December 26 -
Peyton Manning throws two touchdown passes to give him an NFL
single-season record 49 TD passes as the Indianapolis Colts beat the
San Diego Chargers 34-31. Manning finishes the year with 49
touchdowns breaking Miami
Dolphins'
Dan Marino's 20-year-old record
Peyton also sets the
single-season highest quarterback passer rating record (121.1).
However, NFL.COM (The
Official NFL Reporting Network) claims "Indianapolis Colts
quarterback Peyton Manning set the NFL single-season record with 49
touchdown passes, January 2."
See it in storyline and photos here at Colts Influence
Wide receivers Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Brandon Stokley each recorded over 1,000 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns during the 2004 season - both NFL firsts
Major rule changes
March 30 - By a vote of 29-3, NFL owners extended the instant replay system for another five seasons through 2008,
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2004 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
N.Y. Jets 20, SAN DIEGO 17 (OT);
INDIANAPOLIS 49, Denver 24
Divisional playoffs:
PITTSBURGH 20, N.Y. Jets 17 (OT);
NEW ENGLAND 20,
Indianapolis 3
AFC Championship: New
England 41, PITTSBURGH 27
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
St. Louis 27, SEATTLE 20; Minnesota 31, GREEN BAY 17
Divisional playoffs:
ATLANTA 47, St. Louis 17; PHILADELPHIA 27, Minnesota 14
NFC Championship:
PHILADELPHIA 27, Atlanta 10
Super Bowl XXXIX
Super Bowl XXXIX was the
39th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on February
6, 2005, at ALLTEL Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, following
the 2004 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion New England Patriots
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion
Philadelphia Eagles,
2421
and became the first
team since the 199798 Denver Broncos to win consecutive Super
Bowls. New England also became the second team after
the Dallas Cowboys to win three Super Bowls in four years and
tied the record with the Oakland Raiders.
The Patriots forced four turnovers, while New England wide receiver Deion Branch, who recorded 133 receiving yards and tied the Super Bowl record with 11 catches, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player. Because he recorded 10 catches during the previous year's Super Bowl, he also set the record for the most combined receptions in 2 consecutive Super Bowls (21).
The combined choirs of
the U.S. Military Academy, the U.S. Naval Academy, the U.S. Air Force
Academy, and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy sang the national anthem
accompanied by the U.S. Army Herald Trumpets. It had been more than
30 years since all four service academies sang together.
The last time was at the
second inauguration of President Richard Nixon in 1973.
In a move which proved
somewhat controversial after the broadcast, the traditional military
missing man formation flyby was this year performed by a pair of
F/A-18 Super Hornets from VFA-106 at NAS Oceana and a pair of the Air
Force's newest fighters, the F-22 Raptor, flying from Tyndall AFB,
the training base for the Raptor. The aircraft is the subject of many
attacks for its great expense.
The earlier military
flyby during the veterans' salute was conducted by 2 T-6 Texan
trainers and a B-25 Bomber.
Paul McCartney performed during the halftime show; his selection by the NFL, the show's producers, Don Mischer Productions, and the show's sponsor, Ameriquest Mortgage, was considered to be a "safe" choice, as it avoided the possibility for an incident similar to that which sparked the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy the previous year. Unlike in many previous years, he was the only performer in the entire halftime show. McCartney's set consisted of the Beatles songs "Drive My Car", "Get Back", and "Hey Jude", as well as "Live and Let Die" from his career with Wings.
Former Presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton appeared in support of their bipartisan effort to raise money for relief of the December 26, 2004, tsunami in southeast Asia through the USA Freedom Corps, an action which former President Bush described as "transcending politics."
With
this appearance the Patriots became the 8th team to make it to the
Super Bowl for the 5th time.
They joined the Dallas
Cowboys, Denver
Broncos,
Pittsburgh Steelers,
San
Francisco 49ers,
Miami Dolphins,
Washington Redskins,
and
Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders.
New
England's wide receiver, Deion Branch was named the Most
Valuable Player
of Super Bowl XXXIX on February 6, 2005, after tying former
San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice in
Super Bowl XXIII,
and former Cincinnati
Bengals tight end Dan Ross
in Super Bowl XVI
for the Super Bowl
reception record with 11 catches for 133 yards. He was the first
receiver to win the award since 1989.
Ironically all 3
would eventually be traded to the Seattle Seahawks
Branch was the third
offensive player ever to win Super Bowl MVP honors without scoring a
touchdown or throwing a touchdown pass.
The other 2 players were Jets'
Quarterback, Joe Namath in Super Bowl III and
Oakland
Raiders' wide receiver,
Fred Biletnikoff
in Super Bowl XI.
With the New Englands'
victory, Tom Brady became just the fourth quarterback to win at least
three Super Bowls.
He joined Steelers'
Terry Bradshaw,
49ers' Joe Montana
and Dallas
Cowboys' Troy Aikman on
this exclusive list.
The Patriots' receivers mocked The Eagles' wide recievr, Terrell Owens's signature "flapping" touchdown move at several points in the game after scoring touchdowns. Many sports shows, such as Pardon the Interruption, criticized this as undignified, and noted that this egoism and petty behavior showed that the team's mentality was drastically different from their Super Bowl XXXVI appearance, when their humility was exhibited in their unprecedented "team introduction".
This was the Patriots'
third straight Super Bowl victory in which they won by a margin of
three points.
They defeated the St.
Louis Rams
in Super Bowl XXXVI, 2017,
and the Carolina
Panthers in
Super Bowl XXXVIII, 3229.
Each
of these margins was because of an Adam Vinatieri field goal which
happened in the final seconds of the game.
The 77 halftime score was the second Super Bowl to be tied at halftime. The first being Super Bowl XXIII, when the 49ers and Bengals were tied at 3. This would also be the first Super Bowl to be tied after the end of third quarter, with the 1414 score.
By
catching touchdowns, Patriots' linebacker, Mike Vrabel and wide
receiver David Givens became just the 14th and 15th players to score
a touchdown in consecutive Super Bowls. Vrabel is the most surprising
person on this list because he is a linebacker and he scored his on offense.
They also became
just the 7th and 8th players to catch a touchdown in back-to-back
Super Bowls.
This was the first Super Bowl that the Patriots played in an outdoor stadium. In their other Super Bowl appearances, they played in a domed stadium (Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans), or one with a retractible roof (Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas {Reliant Stadium is the first stadium in the NFL to have a retractable roof}).
The 2005 NFL season was the 86th regular season of the National Football League.
The 2005 National
Football League regular season began on Thursday, September 8, 2005
and ended on Sunday, January 1, 2006, New Year's Day.
Each team played 16
games over a span of 17 weeks.
The 2005 season also
featured the first ever regular season game played outside the United
States when a San
Francisco 49ers
- Arizona
Cardinals game was played at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on October
2 (the Cardinals won 31-14).
The game drew an NFL
regular season record of 103,467 paid fans. It was a home game for
the Cardinals, mostly due to the fact that the team rarely sold out
their home field, Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. This season
was the last year that the Cardinals played at Sun Devil Stadium.
Next season, the team will move to their new Cardinals Stadium in
nearby Glendale, which will host Super Bowl XLII in 2008.
This
marked the final season that ABC held the rights to televise Monday
Night Football after thirty-six years of airing the series.
It also marked the final
season of regular season television contracts with FOX, CBS, ESPN,
and most notably ABC. After thirty-six years of airing Monday Night
Football, the series will move to their Disney-owned corporate
sibling ESPN in 2006. NBC will take over the Sunday Night Football
package in 2006, renaming the series Football Night in America,
marking the first time the former broadcast NFL games since Super
Bowl XXXII in 1998.
However, CBS and FOX
renewed their television contracts for 2006.
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The Louisiana Superdome did not host the New Orleans Saints during the 2005 season, due in part to damages seen here.
See also: Havoc created from Hurricane Katrina
Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina to the Louisiana Superdome and the greater New Orleans area, the entire New Orleans Saints' 2005 home schedule were played at different venues while the Saints set up temporary operations in San Antonio, Texas. The Saints' first home game on September 18 against the New York Giants was moved to Giants Stadium on September 19 (In which the N.Y. Giants won 27-10). As a result, the NFL designated its second weekend, September 18 and 19, as "Hurricane Relief Weekend", with fund raising collections at all of the league's games. The Saints' remaining home games were split between the Alamodome in San Antonio and Louisiana State University's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Being forced to travel to 13 of their 16 games (only 3 of their games were actually played in the same city where they practiced) and practice in substandard facilities and conditions in San Antonio, the Saints finished 3-13, their worst season since 1999.
The last time an NFL franchise had to play at an alternate site because its own home field was deemed unplayable was in 2002, when the Chicago Bears played that season in Champaign, Illinois, 120 miles (200 km) away, due to the reconstruction of Soldier Field.
April 18 - The NFL reached long-term agreements for its Sunday and Monday primetime TV packages. NBC returned to the NFL by acquiring the Sunday night package for six years (2006-2011). ESPN agreed on an eight-year deal to televise Monday Night Football from 2006-2013
September 19 - The NFL designated September 18-19 as "Hurricane Relief Weekend," which concluded with a telethon in conjunction with a Monday Night Football doubleheader on ABC and ESPN. The New York Giants-New Orleans Saints game, originally scheduled for the Louisiana Superdome, was moved to Giants Stadium following Hurricane Katrina. In total, the NFL, its owners, teams, players, and fans contributed $21 million to aid the Hurricane Katrina rebuilding effort
November 13 - Chicago Bears cornerback Nathan Vasher set an NFL record for the longest scoring play with a 108-yard touchdown return of an errant field goal by San Francisco kicker Joe Nedney in Chicago
Major rule changes
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2005 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
NEW ENGLAND 28, Jacksonville 3; Pittsburgh 31, CINCINNATI 17
Divisional playoffs:
DENVER 27, New England 13; Pittsburgh 21, INDIANAPOLIS 18
AFC Championship:
Pittsburgh 34, DENVER 17 at INVESCO Field, Denver, Colorado, January
22, 2006
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Washington 17, TAMPA BAY 10; Carolina 23, N.Y. GIANTS 0
Divisional playoffs:
SEATTLE 20, Washington 10; Carolina 29, CHICAGO 21
NFC Championship:
SEATTLE 34, Carolina 14 at Qwest Field, Seattle, Washington January
22, 2006
Super Bowl XL was the
40th Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football
League (NFL).
The game was played on February
5, 2006 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, following the 2005
regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers
defeated
the National Football
Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks,
2110.
Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward, who had five receptions for 123 yards and one touchdown and rushed for 18 yards, was named the Super Bowl's Most Valuable Player. Running back Jerome Bettis, playing in his hometown of Detroit, announced his retirement after the game, saying "I think the Bus' last stop is here in Detroit."
A moment of silence was observed in memory of the two civil rights activists who had died during the months prior to the game: Coretta Scott King and Rosa Parks, the latter a long-time Detroit resident.
Singers Aretha Franklin and Aaron Neville, along with pianist Dr. John and a 150-member choir, performed the national anthem as part of a pre-game tribute to New Orleans, a nine-time Super Bowl host city then in the midst of efforts to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The national anthem was performed in American Sign Language by Angela LaGuardia, a teacher at Michigan School for the Deaf.
The Rolling Stones performed during the halftime show, which was sponsored by the American telecommunications company Sprint. The group performed three songs: "Start Me Up", "Rough Justice", and "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction". In the wake of the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy with Janet Jackson, ABC and the NFL imposed a five-second delay and censored lyrics considered too sexually explicit in the first two songs by briefly turning off Mick Jagger's microphone, to which censoring the group had previously agreed.
The post-game presentation saw Bart Starr, the MVP of Super Bowls I and II, take the Vince Lombardi Trophy to the podium, whence it was presented to Steelers owner Dan Rooney.
Some calls made during
Super Bowl XL were met with criticism from both fans and members of
the media, as many suggested that referee Bill Leavy's crew had
wrongly nullified some key plays made by the Seattle offense. Jason
Whitlock, writing for the Kansas City Star, encapsulated many views
when he wrote the day after the game, "Leavy and his crew ruined
Super Bowl XL. Am I the only one who would like to hear them defend
their incompetence?
In response to the
criticisms leveled at the officials, the NFL, just two days after the
game, released a statement defending the officials' performance.
"The game was properly officiated, including, as in most NFL
games, some tight plays that produced disagreement about the calls
made by the officials," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in a statement.
he game ended a playoffs
season that was plagued by complaints about officiating, most notably
during the divisional playoff games between the Steelers and Colts,
the Broncos and Patriots, and the Bears and Panthers.
This marked the eighth time in the ten Super Bowls when the team which won the coin toss lost the game and also the fourth time in five when the team scoring first lost the game.
The Steelers became
just the third team to win the Super Bowl despite not playing a
single home game in the playoffs.
The Green Bay Packers,
who won Super Bowl I, and the Kansas City
Chiefs, who won Super Bowl IV,
also accomplished the feat. The Steelers, however, had to win four
games to accomplish the feat, while the Chiefs
and Packers
each won two games.
Roethlisberger became the second youngest quarterback to start in a Super Bowl, behind only Dan Marino, who led the Dolphins to Super Bowl XIX at age 23. He also became the youngest quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl (23 years, 11 months).
Wide receiver for the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers', Hines Ward, became only the second game MVP to have been born outside of the United States. Born in South Korea, he joins Canadian born Redskins' Quarterback, Mark Rypien, MVP of Super Bowl XXVI.
Seattle
Seahawks', Mike Holmgren became the fifth coach to have taken two
different teams to the Super Bowl,
joining Don Shula,
Bill Parcells, Dan Reeves, and Dick Vermeil; none won the Super Bowl
with each team.
The Steelers joined the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos as the only franchises to have qualified for six Super Bowls; the Broncos also have six appearances, while the Cowboys have eight.
The Steelers became
only the third franchise to wear white jerseys despite being the
"home" team; the Cowboys (Super
Bowls XIII and XXVII) and the Redskins (Super Bowl XVII), both of
whom traditionally wear white at home, are the other two.
There have been several
reasons stated as to why Pittsburgh decided to wear white, ranging
from superstition (the Steelers had worn their white uniforms in each
of their playoff wins since they were on the road in all three games)
to an assertion attibuted to Cowher that the Steelers were playing in
Detroit, not Pittsburgh, and therefore were not a "home" team.
After having held
constant at $600 for three years, the face value of the costliest
Super Bowl ticket rose to $700 for the game. On eBay, the least-desirable
seats
those behind each end
zone in the upper level fetched more than $2000 each,
while top seats around
the 50-yard line sold for more than $6000.
Seattle's Joe Jurevicius became the sixth player to play in a Super Bowl with three different teams, joining Preston Pearson (Baltimore - Super Bowl V, Pittsburgh - Super Bowl IX, Dallas - Super Bowls X, XII and XIII), Rod Woodson (Pittsburgh - Super Bowl XXX, Baltimore -Super Bowl XXXV, Oakland - Super Bowl XXXVII), Harry Swayne (San Diego - Super Bowl XXIX, Denver - Super Bowl XXXIII, Baltimore - Super Bowl XXXV, Bill Romanowski (San Francisco - Super Bowls XXIII and XXIV, Denver - Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII, Oakland - Super Bowl XXXVII) and Darrien Gordon (San Diego - Super Bowl XXIX, Denver - Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII, Oakland - Super Bowl XXXVII). Jurevicius played in Super Bowl XXXV with the Giants and XXXVII with the Bucs.
Steelers' Antwaan
Randle El became the first wide receiver to throw a Super Bowl
touchdown pass.
A game-clinching
43-yard fake reverse touchdown pass to Hines Ward.
He was the third
non-quarterback and the first receiver to throw a touchdown pass in
the Super Bowl.
This was the last NFL game aired on ABC.
The 2006 NFL season is
the 87th season of the National Football League, the major
professional American football league in the United States.
Regular season play was
held from September 7 to December 31, 2006.
The playoffs begin on January
6, 2007 and ends with Super Bowl XLI, the Super Bowl
championship game, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on February
4.
The season will conclude
with the Pro Bowl in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 10.
January 1 - Seattle Seahawks running back Shaun Alexander set the NFL single-season record for touchdowns with 28
March 20 - Commissioner Tagliabue announced his decision to retire by the end of July. The NFL enjoyed an era of unrivaled prosperity in the Tagliabue Era, including labor peace throughout his 17-year tenure
Tagliabue became NFL Commisioner on October 26, 1989. During his tenure, the league has added four new teams; saw four franchises move (including two franchises - the Rams and Raiders - from Los Angeles, the second-largest television market in the USA); the construction of seventeen new stadiums; began its own in-house television specialty cable network, the NFL Network; has greatly increased television rights fees with its broadcasters, including the addition of the Fox network; and has maintained labor peace with the players' union. |
NFL Commissioners
1920 Jim Thorpe* * NFL President Note: NFL treasurer Austin Gunsel served as president in the office of commissioner following the death of Bell (Oct. 11, 1959) until the election of Rozelle (Jan. 26, 1960). |
Jim Thorpe of the Bulldogs was named the APFA's first president, solely because he was the most famous name in the game.
March 27 - NFL clubs unanimously decided to return the name of the official game ball to "The Duke" in honor of the late New York Giants owner Wellington Mara, one of the most influential and respected figures in professional sports history, died last October
For the first time since Super Bowl IV at the conclusion of the 1969 season, the official NFL game ball is known as "The Duke" in honor of the late Wellington Mara, whose family owns the New York Giants. Son John is the current CEO of the team. The NFL first used "The Duke" ball in honor of Mara in 1941 after then-Chicago Bears owner George Halas and then-Giants owner Tim Mara (Wellington's father) made a deal with Wilson Sporting Goods to become the league's official supplier of game balls, a relationship that continues into its' sixty-fifth year in 2006
"The Duke" ball was discontinued after the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger, and the merged league began using a different standardized ball made by Wilson. The only other time that "The Duke" ball name was used was during the two Thanksgiving Classic games in 2004.
NFL referees will
sport new uniforms this season
Gone are the traditional
vertical black-and-white stripes that have been a staple of the
league seemingly since its inception and which live on in Foot Locker
stores and DJ booths around the country.
In their place is a
flashier look that features wide white stripes and thin black stripes
that flare around the shoulders and upper arms.
The 2006 season marks the debut of new officiating uniforms which are supposed to be more comfortable for officials to wear in extreme weather over the old polyester uniforms. On the shirt, the position and number are removed from the front pocket and the lettering and numbers on the back side are black-on-white and are smaller print. Officials will also wear full-length black pants during the winter months to stay warm. This was the first major design overhaul since 1979, when the position name was added to the shirt.
August 8 - During
an NFL meeting in Northbrook, Illinois, league team owners selected
Roger Goodell, the NFL's then-current Chief Operating Officer, as the
new commissioner. Tagliabue continued to serve as NFL Commissioner
until Goodell officially replaced him on Friday September 1.
September 10
- The
Indianapolis Colts
at the New
York Giants
in what was the first NFL game with two brothers starting at quarterback:
Peyton Manning of
the Colts
and his brother Eli
manning of the Giants.
Indianapolis Colts defeated the
New York Giants, 26-21,
in an
NFL Week 1 contest at Giants Stadium.
2006 will be the first year that the NFL will use a "flexible-scheduling" system for the last seven weeks of the regular season. The system is designed so that the league has the flexibility in selecting games to air on Sunday night that will feature the current hottest, streaking teams. The system's primary purpose is to prevent games featuring losing teams from airing during primetime late in the season, while at the same time allowing surprise, playoff-potential teams a chance to play at night.
Through week 11 of the season, all NFL games had been sold out, and for the 24th time, all blackout restrictions had been lifted
September 18 - fans have been able to download highlights of their teams' games through Apple Computer's iTunes Store online service. Each video costs US$1.99 each but fans have the chance of buying a "Follow Your Team season ticket" which brings every game of that team to the fan for $24.99
September 25 - The New Orleans Saints returned to their home at the Louisiana Superdome in Week Three. The Saints played home games during the 2005 NFL Season in San Antonio, TX, Baton Rouge, LA, and East Rutherford, NJ, due to the damage to the Superdome caused by Hurricane Katrina.
November 12
- Devin Hester of the Chicago Bears tied
teammate Nathan Vasher's record for the longest play in NFL history,
by returning a missed Jay Feely field goal 108 yards for a touchdown
in the first prime-time NFL "Flex Game" against the New
York Giants.
Hester
also ran for his fifth and sixth return touchdown setting an NFL
record (which included three punt returns for scores), and in the
process, tied the NFL single game record for most kickoff returns for
a touchdown with two against the St. Louis Rams on December
11.
San Diego Chargers'
running back, LaDainian Tomlinson set a number of single season NFL
records to include:
December 10 -
Tomlinson broke the all-time NFL record for most rushing touchdowns
in a season when he scored his 29th touchdown against the Denver
Broncos in just thirteen games.
The previous record
belonged to Shaun Alexander, who scored 28 touchdowns for the Seattle
Seahawks in 2005
In all, Tomlinson
totalled 31 (rushing/receiving) touchdowns, and scored 186 points
- both NFL records.
On January 4th, 2007,
he was named the MVP of the 2006 NFL season.
The next day, he
was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year.
Tomlinson then broke
the record for most touchdowns in a season the following week, when
he ran for two scores against Kansas City, breaking the mark shared
by Seattle Seahawks' Shaun Alexander (which
he tied one season earlier) and
Kansas City Chiefs' Priest Holmes (originally set in 2003). The
first touchdown that night broke Green Bay Packers' Paul Hornung's
record for most points scored in a season set in a 12-game schedule
in 1960.
He also won The
Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player award. He received 44 out
of 50 possible votes.
December 13 - Lamar Hunt, the man who would challenge the NFL with the formation of the American Football League, leading to a bidding war from 1960 to 1965 and the subsequent merger of the two leagues, and the owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, died in Dallas, Texas from complications from prostate cancer at the age of 74. The AFL's innovations (player names on the back of the jerseys, the two-point conversion that was adopted in 1994, the scoreboard clock as the official timer, a centered national TV contract, revenue sharing and the naming of the league's championship game as the "Super Bowl") are now standard through the NFL thanks to Hunt's fearless foresight. Thanks to him and fellow Texan Tex Schramm, who was president and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys at that time, the date of June 8, 1966 will forever be remembered as the day professional football changed.
Brett Favre set the career mark for most pass completions during the December 17 game against the Detroit Lions as the Green Bay Packers quarterback broke Miami Dolphins' Dan Marino's record when Carlyle Holiday caught a 21-yard pass just prior to halftime. Favre has 4,974 completions, breaking Marino's high water mark of 4,967. Favre also became the second quarterback to have thrown for 400 touchdowns in a career, with number 400 coming against the Lions on September 24 when he passed five yards to Greg Jennings, and the result was a 75-yard touchdown, and is currently seven passes for touchdowns away from tying Marino's career record of 420 as of December 17.
December 16 -
Placekicker with the Atlanta Falcons', Morten Andersen, kicked his
2435th point on a PAT against Dallas thereby setting the record
for most career points.
December 24 -
he kicked his 539th career field goal, passing Gary Anderson for the
career record.
December 21, Favre became the first NFL player to throw 5,000 completions, on his final pass of the night. It came on 3rd-and-17 and moved the Packers into field-goal range. Two plays later, Dave Rayner's field goal provided the winning points in Green Bay's 9-7 victory.
December 24 - Indianapolis Colts' Quarterback, Peyton Manning reached 4,000 yards passing for the seventh time in his career breaking a tie with Dan Marino for the NFL record. Manning reached the mark on an 8-yard pass to his favorite receiver Marvin Harrison in the second quarter.
December 24 - Atlanta Falcons' Michael Vick became the first NFL quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. Vick, who needed only 10 yards to reach the mark, gained 17 on his first carry on the Falcons' opening possession.
Sunday Night Football
NBC's Sunday Night Football will encompass more than four hours of NFL coverage. The agreement continues through the 2011 season and calls for 16 regular-season Sunday night games, each season's "NFL Kickoff" Thursday night primetime game, two postseason wild card games and three preseason games in primetime, in addition to Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 and Super Bowl XLVI in 2012 and Pro Bowls in the same years
The 2006 season marks the first year of the league's new television contracts. CBS and FOX will continue to televise Sunday afternoon games with six-year agreements, as well as their respective conference playoffs
CBS made the biggest pre-game show news of
all during the off-season, as they lured away James Brown from FOX
NFL Sunday to The NFL Today.
Previous host Greg Gumbel was moved to the
#2 team with Dan Dierdorf, and his predecessor, Dick Enberg, was
paired with Randy Cross. The Eye network also announced it would
continue to air only three games per week in high-definition during
the season as well as eliminating sideline reporters as their
previous top two reporters, Bonnie Bernstein (who moved to ESPN) and
Armen Keteyian (who moved to CBS News' 60 Minutes as the likely
replacement for the retired Mike Wallace) both moved on. Those moves
have created some animosity towards CBS, along with accusations of
the network being "cheap," recalling former news anchor
Kathleen Sullivan's on-air remark about the "Cheap Broadcasting System."
ESPN took over Monday Night Football from ABC
Meanwhile, NBC has returned to the NFL for the first time since televising Super Bowl XXXII at the end of the 1997 season, will broadcast Sunday night games. The series has been rebranded as NBC Sunday Night Football and it also telecast the annual Thursday opening "kickoff" game. As the broadcaster of Sunday night games, NBC has become the network that takes full advantage of the flexible-scheduling system. The network will also televise the Christmas Day contest between Philadelphia and Dallas in lieu of a Christmas Eve night game.
Major rule changes
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2006 PLAYOFFS
AFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Indianapolis Colts 23, Kansas City Chiefs 8; New England Patriots
37, New York Jets 16
Divisional playoffs:
IIndianapolis Colts 15, Baltimore Ravens 6; New England Patriots 24,
San Diego Chargers 21
AFC Championship:
IIndianapolis Colts 38, New England Patriots 34
NFC
Wild-Card playoffs:
Seattle Seahawks 21, Dallas Cowboys 20; Philadelphia Eagles 23, New
York Giants 20
Divisional playoffs:
New Orleans Saints 27, Philadelphia Eagles 24; Chicago Bears 27,
Seattle Seahawks 24 (OT)
NFC Championship:Chicago
Bears 39, New Orleans Saints 14
Super Bowl XLI was an American football game played on February 4, 2007 at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, a suburb of Miami, to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion following the 2006 regular season.
The American Football
Conference (AFC) champion Indianapolis Colts (16-4)
defeated
the National
Football Conference (NFC) champion Chicago Bears (15-4), 29-17.
The 2007 season of the National Football
League (NFL) is the 88th season played by the major professional
American football league in the United States. Regular-season play
started with the opening Kickoff game on September 6, 2007 at
the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana, between the New
Orleans Saints and the Super
Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts, which the Colts won by
the score of 41-10,
The Season concluded on Sunday, December 30
of that year
with the New
England Patriots becoming the first team to complete a 16-0
perfect season.*
Why the asterix?
January 1 - Dennis
Green was fired as coach of the Arizona Cardinals after he failed to
turn the downtrodden franchise into a winner in three seasons on the job
Green was dismissed one
day after the Cardinals concluded a 5-11 season with a 27-20 loss at
San Diego. He finished with a 16-32 record at Arizona. The Cardinals
will pay $2.5 million to buy out the final year of his contract.
January 1 - At 3 AM, Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was shot and killed in Denver. Williams died at the age of 24.
January 1 - Atlanta
Falcons fired coach Jim Mora, just two years after he led the
Falcons to the NFC Championship Game.
The decision to dump the
fiery coach followed two straight disappointing seasons. The Falcons
lost six of their final eight games in 2005 to miss the playoffs, and
they finished 7-9 this season by losing seven of the last nine contests.
January 3 - Nick Saban of the Miami Dolphins announced that he would be leaving the team to coach for the Alabama Crimson Tide
January 4 - Art Shell's second stint as coach of the Oakland Raiders will end after only one season, the franchise's worst in more than four decades.
January 5 - Bill Cowher of the Pittsburgh Steelers announced that he would step down as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
February 24 - Broncos running back Damien Nash collapsed and died after a charity basketball game at a high school. Nash died at the age of 24.
The NFLPA, led by their president Gene Upshaw and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell are going to be working with player conduct in the form of suspensions for off the field conduct in light of the more than fifty arrests by local law enforcement since the start of the 2006 season. April 10 - Adam "Pacman" Jones of the Tennessee Titans was suspended for the entire season for his five arrests, the most blatant while in Las Vegas for the NBA All-Star Weekend in February where he caused a riot/shooting in a strip club. That same day, Chris Henry of the Cincinnati Bengals was suspended for the first eight games of the season for his run-ins with the legal system. July 24 - Falcons' quarterback Michael Vick. Vick was charged with dogfighting and animal abuse, and has been suspended indefinitely following a guilty plea in the case, on which he was sentenced to 23 months in prison (retroactive to November) and three years probation on December 10. |
May 27 - Marquise Hill, a defensive end for the New England Patriots and a friend fell off a jet ski in Lake Pontchartrain, north of New Orleans. The two were wearing neither personal flotation nor tracking devices. The friend was rescued and sent to Tulane Medical Center, but Hill did not survive; his body was found the next day. The Patriots are honoring Hill, the first Patriots player to die while still a member of the team, by wearing black circular decals on their helmets with Hill's number, 91.
September 11 - Patriots
violated league rules when they videotaped defensive signals of the
New York Jets
Read
Headline Here
Webmaster's opinion:
The records Patriots
made of going undefeated and passing Peyton Manning's 49 TD passes in
a season
should be void.
THEY GOT THOSE RECORDS
BY CHEATING!!!!!!!
November 26 - Fourth-year player Sean Taylor, a defensive back for the Redskins, was shot in his home near Miami, Florida. Armed with a machete, Taylor confronted robbers who were breaking into his home. Two shots were fired, one missing and the other hitting Taylor's leg. He died from his injuries the next day.. For the remainder of the season, the Redskins honored him with a black patch on their right shoulder of the player uniform jerseys along with a decal with his playing number (21) on the back of their helmets. Taylor's memory was honored in all games during Week 13.
Four men in the robbery were charged with murder and will go on trial after being denied bail.
Rule changes The following rule changes were passed at the league's annual owners meeting in Phoenix, Arizona during the week of March 25-28:
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This will be the final season the classic NFL Shield logo, which has not changed since 1980, will be used. An updated version first seen on August 31 in USA Today will be put into use starting with the 2008 NFL Draft in April. The new logo design features eight stars (one for each division) instead of the current 25 stars, the football now resembles that on the top of the Vince Lombardi Trophy, given to the Super Bowl champion and the lettering and point has been updated and modified to that of the league's current typeface for other logos.
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The 2007 season will be the last in the RCA Dome for the Indianapolis Colts, who moved there from Baltimore in 1984. The franchise will move to the new Lucas Oil Stadium in time for the 2008 season.
The Redskins are celebrating their 75th anniversary season as the franchise was founded in 1932 as the Boston Braves, and wore Vince Lombardi-styled uniforms against the New York Giants on September 23.
The Philadelphia Eagles and their
cross-state rival Pittsburgh Steelers are
also celebrating their 75th anniversaries, having been founded in 1933.
The Eagles wore replicas of their inaugural season
uniforms against the Detroit Lions on September 23,
while the Steelers wore 1960 uniforms against
the Buffalo Bills on September 16
and did so again when the Baltimore Ravens
visited on November 5.
Teams that have permanent captains are allowed
(on a team-by-team basis) to wear a "C" patch (similar to
those in ice hockey) on their right shoulder. The patch is in team
colors with four stars under the "C". A gold star is placed
on a bar below the "C" signaling how many years (with a
maximum of four years) that player has been captain.
Two football leagues are scheduled to begin play.
The All American
Football League, scheduled to begin play in March or April 2008,
will be based in communities with large college football followings
but no NFL team.[86] The United Football League, scheduled to open in
August 2008, will be a fall league in direct competition with the
NFL. Involved in this league are Mark Cuban, media mogul and owner of
the National Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks and William
Hambrecht, a prominent Wall Street investor
January 4 - Dolphins fire Cameron after
1-15 season
Cameron was fired Thursday after winning only one
game in his first year as an NFL head coach. The move means Miami
will have its fifth coach in five seasons.
Rule changes
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