1974

The whole conversation about the NFL--the scope of things that might be talked about, the content of what is actually discussed, the tone in which everything is said--seems to me to be so geared for adults now. Maybe it always was, but I'm not so sure.


That ad's from the inside front cover of the October 1974 Football Digest, which went to press at some point before the NFL regular season actually started on Sept. 15. My daughter and I discovered the issue in a shed we were cleaning out last Saturday--just in time for Week 2 action in 1974, which kicked off that year on Sunday, Sept. 22.


Packers (0-1) at Colts (0-1). Football Digest turns up the local heat on Green Bay coach Dan Devine. This month's "The Game I'll Never Forget ...," first-person feature is by Bart Starr, about the "Ice Bowl." Starr was a Devine assistant coach for the 10-4 Packers of 1972, but he's been working as a CBS analyst since.

Oilers (1-0) at Browns (0-1). Miami's Don Shula, Washington's George Allen, Cincinnati's Paul Brown, Dallas's Tom Landry and Minnesota's Bud Grant are identified as "The NFL's Five Super Coaches." Cleveland's Nick Skorich, Los Angeles's Chuck Knox, Pittsburgh's Chuck Noll and Buffalo's Lou Saban are also named in Editor John Kuenster's report.

Chiefs (1-0) at Raiders (0-1). Bob Billings features a prime individual battle amid this evergreen AFC West war. In "Willie Lanier vs. Marv Hubbard, A Contest of Violence," Billings writes, "This thing about personal confrontations in a team game is often overworked. John United never played 'against' Bart Starr. Both played against the other's defense. The same can be said about many so called 'great confrontations,' but not Hubbard-Lanier. Both represent the heart of their particular teams."

Jets (0-1) at Bears (1-0). One of the books that is heavily promoted in the October Football Digest is Inside the Pressure Cooker, A Season in the Life of the New York Jets by Kay Iselin Gilman. "There has never been a book like this before--and there may never be one again," goes the G.P. Putnam's Sons copy in a full-page ad. "The author is the daughter of the Jets' president and a sports columnist in her own right for the N.Y. Daily News. She not only had complete access to everything that went on behind the scenes, she also knew what to look for. Now she provides the fascinating, sometimes haroowing, details of Weeb Ewbank's final year as a coach. It's all here, from the first day of training camp to the last day of Weeb's coaching career: the rookies, the stars who get cut, the hold-outs, agents and lawyers, the owners, the superstars and the regulars, the players' wives, the groupies, the assistant coaches, trainers, doctors--everybody! You know what goes on not only on the field, but in the locker-room, behind the closed doors of the front office, in motel rooms, the press box, the team bus, even the owner's private jet. And the author doesn't pull any punches. It all hangs out. It happened to the Jets, but it could happen to any team. If you want the real inside on professional football, there are no two ways about it--you've got to read this book." The ad lists the titles of "29 BIG CHAPTERS." The ones that most intrigue me are Chapter 9, "The Number One Rookie--Burgess Owens" (because he and I share a birthday); Chapter 14, "Miami--A Scorching Loss" (yeah!); Chapter 15, "The Flakes--John Riggins, Steve Tannen, Mike Adamle" (Mike Adamle did great work on American Gladiators); Chapter 21, "Religion in Pro Football," and Chapter 22, "Miami at Shea--'Pretty Good Isn't Good Enough'" (yeah!).

Dolphins (0-1) at Bills (1-0). Fleetwood Records of Evanston, Ill., advertises a whole slew of records about sports--Havlicek Stole the Ball--Boston Celtics Ten Championship Seasons, God Bless the Flyers and 100 Years of College Football Highlights--but there's shockingly nothing available on the perfect Dolphins of 1972-73.

Steelers (1-0) at Broncos (0-1). Edwin Pope of The Miami Herald surveys the league's middle linebackers, with plenty of quotes from Earl Morrall and Shula. In "The Meanest Men Are in the Middle," Shula says, "I'm not going to get into anything as silly as rating them. But there are separate general categories." He calls out Atlanta's Tommy Nobis as flag-bearer for the big, strong, fifth-lineman lot. Baltimore's Mike Curtis, Dallas's Lee Roy Jordan, Philadelphia's Bill Bergey and Minnesota's Jeff Siemon are more mobile. Oakland's Dan Conners and San Francisco's Frank "The Fudgehammer" Nunley "are two for savvy," Shula says. "... Henry Davis is a crackerjack for Pittsburgh."

Chargers (0-1) at Bengals (1-0).

Patriots (1-0) at Giants (0-1).

49ers (0-1) at Falcons (0-1).

Vikings (1-0) at Lions (0-1). Just a quarter-page ad for this one ... "FUN! EXCITING! That's 'The Minnesota Vikings, a Pictorial Drama', a rollicking history of the football Vikings, written in a humorous play format. Fast-moving scenes illustrated by superb photographs." No indication of author or publisher for this one--only a note to send $8.95 to Football Digest for the 152-page book.

Cardinals (1-0) at Redskins (1-0).

Saints (0-1) at Rams (1-0).

And from Sept. 23, 1974, ...

Cowboys (1-0) at Eagles (0-1). Another book that gets full-page promotion in the October Football Digest is STAUBACH, First Down, Lifetime To Go. "Staubach has more to say to life than 'hup 1 ... hup 2,' goes the ad copy from Word Books of Plano, Texas. "Now the Cowboys' superstar quarterback gives you an intimate look into his life--it's triumphs and tragedies. From the huddle, from the locker room and from the heat of this great quarterback ... comes a powerful story of living, loving, losing and winning. ... What really happened during Staubach's struggle with Craig Morton for the Cowboys' starting quarterback job? What are his own thoughts about football and the men who play it? What are his secrets for playing and for living? How has his faith and determination helped him to become a winner--on field and off?" In fact, "Roger the Dodger" is on the cover of this issue, which also includes an excerpt from the book. Based on what's included there, I'm pretty sure Staubach is pretty kind to Morton in the pages of First Down, Lifetime To Go. The other big revelation in the excerpt is that Staubach likes Drew Pearson.