Chuck Bednarik died at the age of 89 this past weekend. He was the last of the two way players in the NFL. He was an All-Pro Center and All-Pro Linebacker. It is unfathomable to think of a modern day football player being the best at two different positions simultaneously. These supposedly phenomenal athletes need a rest after every five plays. He played every down of every game and missed only three games in his entire career (two were in his rookie season). He was a real man. He was a real American.
This is one of the most iconic pictures in NFL history. Chuck Bednarik after laying out Frank Gifford with a clean hit in 1960 that put the receiver out of action for the next 18 months. Bednarik was 35 years old, having played for 14 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles. He led them to a championship in his first season in 1949 and again eleven years later in 1960 against Vince Lombardi’s invincible Green Bay Packers.
Here is Bednarik leaving the field with Paul Horning and Jim Taylor after the Eagles’ 17 – 13 victory over Green Bay in the 1960 championship game. With time winding down from the Eagles’ 22, Bart Starr threw a short pass to Jim Taylor, who headed toward the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown. But Bednarik, the oldest player on the field (35), wrestled Taylor to the ground short of the goal line and held him down as the final seconds ticked off the clock. The victory was the last time the Eagles won a title.
This is how real men celebrated championships in 1960.
Continue reading “THE LAST IRON MAN”
