by Tony | Mar 14, 2014 | 30's, By the Numbers, Hall of Fame, NFL History
When I randomly drew #36 as the next number in our By the Numbers series to write about, I thought it would be a great number to debate, especially given the Hall of Fame candidacy of Jerome Bettis, whom many (including yours truly) feel will likely get the nod next year. But in starting the research, a few things surprised me:
- Somehow, we’ve never actually done a post questioning whether or not Bettis is actually worthy of the Hall of Fame. Assume that will be rectified soon, because even though I have him picked to get voted in, I’m not sure he would get my vote.
- There are shockingly few big name #36’s in NFL history. Or really any sport, actually–in Best by Number (the book that inspired this series), Meadowlark Lemon is given the nod as best #36 across all sports–a guy who played in games that weren’t even real. Basketball & hockey are pretty much not mentioned (at least names I recognize). And baseball? Let’s just say when Jerry Koosman makes the top six, you’re not exactly talking about a storied number.
So who was the Best #36 in NFL history? Hit the jump to find out…
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by Tony | Mar 2, 2014 | 50's, By the Numbers, Hall of Fame, NFL History
Part four in our likely several year long series of the best players in NFL history by Numbers. So far, we’ve hit three:
#25 – Fred Biletnikhoff
#80 – Jerry Rice
#81 – “Night Train” Lane (with TO a close second, and Calvin Johnson closing quickly)
The next number up is #53–linebackers and linemen (primarily centers).
Harry Carson – New York Giants – The Hall of Fame linebacker played from 1976 to 1988, made 9 Pro Bowls, and helped the Giants win Super Bowl XXI. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2006.
Len Ford – Los Angeles Dons, Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers – The Hall of Fame defensive end wore #53 for his first two years in Cleveland, before switching to #80. I’ve not found a record of what he wore in Los Angeles with the Dons of the AAFC.
Mike Webster – Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs – The Hall of Fame center wore #53 in his final two seasons, playing in Kansas City, where he originally signed on as the offensive line coach. He will make the list for #52 for sure.
Alex Wojciechowicz – Detroit Lions, Philadelphia Eagles – According to ProFootballReference.com, Hall of Famer Wojciechowicz wore #53 in at least his final season with the Eagles, although I found no pictures of him in it.
Mick Tingelhoff – Minnesota Vikings – One of the most frequently mentioned potential senior candidates for the Hall of Fame, Tingelhoff wore #53 for all 17 of his seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, including his five All-Pro and six Pro Bowl seasons.
Randy Gradishar – Denver Broncos- The Broncos linebacker started as #52, but switched to #53 in 1976 after his first of seven Pro Bowls. Combined with his two All-Pro seasons, he is bound to start coming up in senior candidacy conversations for the Hall of Fame sooner or later.
Bill Romanowski – San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, Oakland Raiders – Say what you want about the character of Romanowski, he wore #53 for 16 seasons and four teams, and made a couple Pro Bowls along the way.
No current players are real close at cracking this list–NaVorro Bowman is probably the best, with Maurkice Pouncey up there with him from the offensive line side. Super Bowl XLVIII MVP Malcolm Smith also wears it.
So, what say you–who is the best #53? Let us know who got your vote in the comments…and let us know if you think we missed someone.
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by Tony | Feb 1, 2014 | Hall of Fame
Courtesy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame
The 2014 Pro Football Hall of Fame Class consists of:
LB Derrick Brooks, WR Andre Reed, CB Aeneas Williams, T Walter Jones, and DE Michael Strahan, along with senior candidates Claude Humphrey and Ray Guy, the first punter to be elected.
Brooks and Jones were first ballot elections to the Hall of Fame, while Humphrey was a two-time senior candidate, after being a finalist three times. Guy was a first year senior candidate.
Reed’s induction got him in before Marvin Harrison and a collection of wide receivers whose eligibility will be coming soon. Their stats now outpace Reed, though the Bills wideout put up what were great numbers in his day.
Jones’ selection put him in over Kansas City guard Will Shields, among the most decorated offensive linemen of his time.
With NFL Network passing on a Hall of Fame announcement segment this year in favor of more overhyping pregame of the Super Bowl, rumors started swirling around 5 p.m. central time about who was going to make the final class. Comments started coming in on various Hall of Fame posts on this site at about the same time.
The final five to be cut were Charles Haley, Jerome Bettis, Kevin Greene, Marvin Harrison, Will Shields. Unscientifically, reaction on Twitter seems to be that Haley was the biggest snub, followed by Bettis.
For what it’s worth, Andy predicted four of the five modern-era candidates to make the Hall, missing only on Walter Jones. He predicted Shields would get the call. Tony got three. He also picked Shields over Jones and also picked Tony Dungy instead of Aeneas Williams.
What are your thoughts on the class of 2014? And, though I think this was a pretty strong class, there always is someone who got a raw deal. Vote here on who you think received the biggest snub from the HOF voters.
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by Tony | Dec 29, 2013 | 2013 season, NFL Gambling
Tony had been in quite a tailspin since learning that he had miscalculated the bet results through the season’s first 12 weeks, but he got a much needed boost in week 16. He hit just two of his four bets, but one was a $1,000 hit on the Giants’ +370 moneyline win over Detroit. It didn’t bring him back to even for the season but it got that mark within reach.
Andy on the other hand suffered a number of hard luck losses. His own $500 moneyline bet missed by a point, when Dallas scored a last minute comeback against Washington. His $1,250 bet on the Denver/Houston moneyline also missed by a single point. So instead of a nice, tidy, solid profit for the week, he sunk further into the gambling abyss.
Here’s where we stand heading into the final week of the regular season. When this thing ends, we’ll have to start studying up for next year, when we have to do better than what we’ve done this ridiculously bad gambling season.
| |
Week 16 |
Season |
Week +/- |
Bankroll |
Season +/- |
| Tony |
2-2 |
27-37 |
+$3,638 |
$9,186 |
– $814 |
| Andy |
1-3 |
24-37-3 |
– $1,900 |
$5,223 |
– $4,777 |
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by Tony | Dec 21, 2013 | 2013 season, NFL Gambling
Two weeks left—last week saw Andy make a small impact at getting back to positivity with a 2-2 week, while my tailspin to the gutter continued. At this point, the only thing I can say positive about my year at the fake sportsbook is that I’ve gotten game right than Andy—and with the way things have been going, even that might not be the case after this week…
| |
Week 15 |
Season |
Week +/- |
Bankroll |
Season +/- |
| Tony |
1-3 |
25-35 |
– $1,824 |
$5,548 |
– $4,452 |
| Andy |
2-2 |
23-34-3 |
+ $290 |
$7,123 |
– $2,877 |
Without any further adieu, here are this week’s bets:
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When I randomly drew #36 as the next number in our By the Numbers series to write about, I thought it would be a great number to debate, especially given the Hall of Fame candidacy of Jerome Bettis, whom many (including yours truly) feel will likely get the nod next year. But in starting the research, a few things surprised me:
Robert we’ll miss you but I do have a point though maybe I’ll take a hiatus from posting here for…
Andy Can we please move on its getting old and stale because you wont stop on this topic im done…
I feel bad for all the voters who were removed
If only if Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft had been elected then these changes wouldn’t have happened
The Pro Football Hall of Fame will never be the same after these changes