RIP - 2018

Players from the 1965-1975 era that passed away in 2018:

Jan 6 edit: Late addition (d. 12/29)

See also: 1960s' baseball players who passed in 2018
 

RIP - Jim Taylor

It has been my custom to wait until year-end to note these, but this one won't wait... 

Jim Taylor, Hall of Fame fullback for the Green Bay Packers from 1958-66 passed away on October 13, 2018 at age 83.

Taylor was Green Bay's 2nd round pick in 1958, and was the starting fullback from 1959-66.

He made 5 straight Pro Bowls (1960-64), led the league in rushing yards in 1962 with 1474 yards, (the only year between 1957 and 1965 that Jim Brown didn't win that title), and led the NFL in rushing TDs in '61 and '62. He was also the MVP in 1962.

His final season with the Packers culminated in a Super Bowl I victory. During that season he had salary scuffles with Vince Lombardi, who spitefully traded him to the expansion Saints in the off-season (much like how Lombardi dismissed all-pro center Jim Ringo to the lowly Eagles 3 years earlier).

Taylor retired after the 1967 season and was inducted in to the Hall of Fame in 1976, the first of 12 Lombardi-era Packers in the Hall.

ESPN obituary

New York Times obituary
. 

Who's the best team in the Super Bowl era?

Tomorrow is the Super Bowl. I'm not making any predictions on who's going to win, because that's already been done in 9.8 million places.

Instead, I am ranking all the teams in terms of success in the Super Bowl era. Below are the 32 teams, generally in order of Super Bowl winning percentage. (I have discounted the winning percentage for those teams making less than 4 appearances, for the same reason that batters who hit 1.000 after going 2 for 2 as a pinch-hitter are not eligible for the batting title.)

Tie-breakers for teams with the same winning percentage are determined by how many league championships they won in the pre-Super Bowl era.

Teams in the first section are ranked strictly by their SB winning percentage.

The second section (less than 4 appearances, but with some wins) is generally by winning percentage, although the 1-for-1 teams were ranked lower because of only making 1 appearance.  I first thought about including the teams with 3 bowls in the first section, but I couldn't rank the Rams and Seahawks (with their 1 win each) ahead of the Ravens.

The 3rd section are the teams with only Super Bowl losses.  I first thought about ranking the 0-for-4 chumps last, but decided instead to give them credit for making the Supe so many times.

The last section are those teams that never made it to a Super Bowl.  Those poor Browns - they won 8 titles in the pre-Super Bowl era, including 5 straight from 1946 to 1950, but this is about Super Bowls, so they are near the bottom of the list.

My next post will be either the 1972 Patriots or the 1968 Eagles, depending on who wins tomorrow. (Hopefully I will post that sometime before Super Bowl LIII.)

RIP - 2017

Players from the 1965-1975 era that passed away in 2017:

Also: Clarence Williams (DE), Len Rohde (T), Y.A. Tittle (QB).

1967 Custom Cards II

A few months ago, I stumbled across a website of the company above that makes (mostly football) Cards That Never Were. It seems that they specialize in Cowboys, Packers, and Bears sets, but there are many more football team sets from the 1950s to 1970s, as well as a few baseball offerings (such as 1970-style Brewers cards that actually say "BREWERS" instead of "PILOTS").

Here is the site's main link.

After much consideration as to whether I should post the cards I purchased (because although I bought them outright, this guy is in business to make these cards, and anyone saving my posted card images from the internet is siphoning off his business), I decided not to post them because of this and this.

I have already purchased:

1967 Cowboys

1971 Cowboys

1967 Packers

1968 Packers

These cards look great, and the backs also match the vintage sets (except for a company advertisement). The only issue I've had so far is that the blue borders on the 1971 set do not match the color of the original set.

Also, they have created a 140-card extension set (the "3rd series") for the 1966 NFL set, which you can either purchase in its entirety, or build your own custom packs (complete with wax-pack wrappers). I have purchased 2 custom packs, 1 of all Eagles, and 1 of all quarterbacks.

Feb 2024 edit: It appears that the 1966 cards are now available per team, not as an entire set. Nor can you "build-a-pack", as in the past.