Sports Then and Now

It might have been better if Richard Sherman had let his play on the field do all his talking.

Much was made on social media of the unsportsmanlike display of Seattle Seahawks defensive back Richard Sherman after he made a game-saving play in the final seconds of the NFC Championship Game between Seattle and the San Francisco 49ers.

While there is no question that Sherman’s gestures and trash talking at the end of the game were certainly un-called for and slightly diminish the greatness of his play, they are in no way original.

In fact, loud-mouthed defensive backs playing in the Super Bowl dates back to the very first NFL-AFL Championship Game when Kansas City Chiefs defensive back Fred “the Hammer” Williamson garnered headlines for his boasts about how he would handle the receivers for the NFL Champion Green Bay Packers.

“Two hammers to (Boyd) Dowler, one to (Carroll) Dale should be enough,” Williamson claimed.

Interestingly, Williamson and Sherman actually have more in common than just their bravado.

Both players attended schools known more for their academics than their football, Williamson at Northwestern and Sherman at Stanford.

They also were both lightly regarded coming into the NFL.

Williamson was an undrafted free agent and originally signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers. After spending one season in Pittsburgh, Williamson developed into an All-AFL defensive back during four seasons with the Oakland Raiders. He then moved to Kansas City where he ultimately played three seasons. Read the rest of this entry →

Bart Starr

The January Sports Then and Now Vintage Athlete of the Month was the MVP of the first two Super Bowls and is the only quarterback to lead his team to five NFL Championships.

After quarterbacking the Alabama Crimson Tide to an 0-10 record in 1955 and then being drafted in the 17th round of the 1956 NFL Draft, few would have predicted that Bart Starr would become known as one of the greatest winners in NFL history. Read the rest of this entry →

It was thumbs up for Peyton Manning and the Broncos after winning the AFC Championship over the New England Patriots.

Just two years removed from surgery that resulted in him missing an entire season and being released by the team he led to a pair of Super Bowl appearances, Peyton Manning is back in the Super Bowl after leading the Denver Broncos to a 26-16 AFC Championship Game victory over the New England Patriots.

When he leads the Broncos into Super Bowl XLVIII, Manning will not only be looking for his second Super Bowl ring, but he will be looking to be the first quarterback to start and win Super Bowls with two different franchises.

Previously, Craig Morton and Kurt Warner led two different franchises to the Super Bowl, but neither could hoist the Lombardi Trophy with both franchises.

Morton was the starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl V and the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII, but his squad lost both games.

Like Manning, Warner was 1-1 in Super Bowl appearances with his first team. He led the St. Louis Rams to victory over the Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXXIV and then an upset loss to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI. It took seven years, but Warner was able to get back to the Super Bowl with the Arizona Cardinals as they lost Super Bowl XLIII to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While Warner will likely one day be a Hall of Famer and Morton was a solid NFL quarterback for nearly two decades, neither of them is in the same league as Manning.

Many already consider Manning to be among the greatest quarterbacks of all-time and if he is able to become the 12th starting quarterback to win two Super Bowls it will put an exclamation point on his legacy. Read the rest of this entry →