How Much "Flanker" Did Elroy Hirsch Actually Play?

LOOKING BACK
By John Turney

If the accidental "leak" is accurate then Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch made the cut as one of the top 10 Wide Receivers in the history of the game by making the NFL 100 team.

One of the talking points that gets thrown around is that Hirsch "pioneered" or "invented" the flanker position—a wide receiver outside of the tight end, off the line of scrimmage.

Literature of the day reports that Curly Lambeau, in 1936, split Don Hutson wide and flanked Johnny Blood outside the right end, making him a flanker.

Clark Shaughnessy was hired as the Rams' coach in 1948 so the things they did with Hirsch were done the year before.

With the Shaughnessy ( actually 1930 Bears coach Ralph Jones deserves more credit than he gets) T-formation any one of the backs in the "T" could motion to the flank. 

So NFL teams that adopted that formation had that so-called flanker as early as the 1930s. Then, in the 1940s it shows up all over the film not only in the NFL but the AAFC as well—it was common as it became the predominant offensive scheme in football.

Clearly, it makes sense that the formations used by the innovative Shaughnessy would have been used the first year he arrived in Los Angeles.

Here is an example of a flanker the year prior to Hirsch's arrival—

Tom Fears is the flanker here, outside an end that is on the line of scrimmage

However, in 1948, Fears and other ends would usually be outside in what would be called a split end position, outside of a tackle—

Here, in 1948, Rams have a split end and motion the 
left halfback to the right flank

Here, in 1948, is a pro set with both a split end and a flanker—

This one is similar, also from same game—

Jack Banta is flanked left, outside an end that is on the line
making him a flanker

So with Hirsch, it's complicated. 

He was voted the top flanker in NFL history in 1969 as part of the NFL's 50th Anniversary. Often you will find factoids like this "Hirsch was a key part of the Rams' revolutionary "three-end offense"  . . . (and was) the pro game's first true flanker".

When Hirsch passed the Chicago Tribune reported, ". . . Hirsch then moved onto to the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL, where he became the game's first true flanker."

Hirsch began his career as a halfback in the AAFC with the Chicago Rockets. There he suffered a severe head injury and ended up with the Los Angeles Rams, arriving in LA in 1949. Hirsch also played halfback most of the time like he did in Chicago, though he played other spots.

He carried the ball 68 times and caught 22 passes but only on occasion did he motion from halfback to flank and end. PFJ's TJ Troup is familiar with the 1949 season from his extensive film study.

The film shows that Hirsch was the starter in the first half of the 1949 season and then got benched later in the year "because he wasn't running hard between the tackles". The Rams ends that year were Tom Fears (left) and Bob Shaw (right). And when Shaugnessy would motion a halfback it was usually guys like Vitamin Smith or Tommy Kalmanir.

Rams head coach Clark Shaughnessy would (and had done in coaching stops before) sometimes flank a halfback outside the end, creating a flanked halfback, but usually, not always, it was done through motion as we've mentioned. 

So sometimes, yes, the formation did have Hirsch flanked outside with an end tight on his side of the formation but not nearly as often as the halfback motion to the flank concept. 

Here is a still from the 1949 Los Angeles vs Washington game

V.T. Smith motions to the flank from halfback position

Here, Tom Fears (far right) is the flanker with an end tight to the right

Here Bob Shaw is far right, Tank Younger is in slot,
Tom Fears left end and left halfback motions to flanker

This is an example of when Hirsch actually was a flanker
there is a tight end to the right and Hirsch is not in the
backfield he lined off of the ball

Here is another of Hirsch (out of shot) as a flanker

However, there were others, here is Kenny Washington flanked

Kenny Washington is the flanker, Hirsch a running back

This shot is from the 1949 Championship game (in which Hirsch played little).

Back motions to the left of the left end, who is on the line of scrimmage. 

To the far right (not in the shot) is the split right end.

Here are the Eagles, against the Rams in 1949 doing a similar thing. Steve Van Buren motioned from left halfback to the flank the right end (Pete Pihos). But no one calls him a flanker. Van Buren probably did this more than Hirsch did in 1949.

In 1950, Shaughnessy was gone. And the Rams still used the same concepts, but Hirsch was the right end, and the halfbacks would flank out, left or right.

Here, the right halfback motions to the flank.

In 1951 things remained the same. Here Hirsch at his usually right end spot is flanked to the outside by one of the faster backs Vitamin Smith, Tommy Kalmanir, Glen Davis, or speedster end Bob Boyd.

Also 1951, with the same concept only this time it's Tom Fears who is flanked.

Here is the motion concept with Glen Davis motioning to the flanker spot outside Hirsch.

According to Troup, Ram coach Joe Stydahar was cribbing from the early 1940s Bears offenses that often flanked a running back via motion (Joe Stydahar played for the Bears in that era). It was nothing new vis-à-vis Shaughnessy in 1949.

In the early 1940s Ray "Scooter" McLean did the same things the Rams backs did and was very successful, In 1942 McLean ran the ball 26 times for 63 yards, but his role as a motion flanker resulted in 19 catches for 571 yards and a 30.1 yards per catch average and 8 touchdowns.  He put up similar numbers in 1943, 44, and 46.

Washington had Wilbur Moore who Troup considers one of the two or three real pioneers of the flanker spot. Moore played halfback for the Washington (who asked all the backs to motion at times) and in 1943 caught 30 passes for 537 yards for a 17.9 average and seven receiving scores.

Troup remarked, "If you couldn't motion to the flank you didn't play running back for the Redskins in the 1940s".  Note: Clark Shaughnessy was an advisor to Washington from 1944-47.

So, film study shows the Rams motioning a back to a flanker position was not new to the NFL in 1949 and Hirsch was not part of that in any real way. In fact, in 1948, Tom Keane has a big day receiving when he was that motion halfback. So, whatever happened with Hirsch in 1949 already happened in 1948. 

So, back to our timeline.

Here is 1952. Fears was the left end and Hirsch the right and when there was a flanker it was one of the backs who'd motion out. Not any changes we could discern from 1951. We are looking for a better shot but we're confident this was typical. The player who was the "third" end was #89 Bob Carey and he'd play both sides, left or right as a flanker, though was not called that in name.

In 1953 we see this, with both Fears and Hirsch split. But in this case (as it was in 1952) Fears is the flanker and Hirsch the split end. If the end were at right tight end Hirsch would be the flanker and Fears the split end. So, in this case Hirsch did play flanker but was it full-time? No. Was it a pure flanker? Well, yes, to the extent that the tight end was to the right.

But Fears played plenty of tight end, however, with Skeets (or was it Skeet? We've seen both)  Quinlan as a flanker or split end depending on which side of the formation Fears lined up.

Also in 1953, then the Rams spread it out to go "three wide" Hirsch would play the slot with Boyd and Fears on the outside. 

Fears on the left, Hirsch on the right with the Rams in the "T".

With injuries to Fears and with Bob Carey in the military Bob Boyd got his first real playing time setting up his monster 1954 season and a wide, wide end.

In 1954, opening game Hirsch is the left end.  On the outside was one of the smaller, quick running backs—Bob Boyd or sometimes a back like Skeets Quinlan or Vitamin T. Smith. From what we've seen there was less use of a dedicated tight end than in 1952 and 53. 

Also, Hirsch was used in the slot in most other games.    

This is opening day versus the Colts—

Same deal, but the ends on different sides but there is a flanker outside Hirsch.

Here we see Hirsch in the slot with Boyd outside him and Fears at the left end.

Here is a view from an end zone camera. Hirsch is slotted, Boyd between the numbers and the sideline. Now that is a split end. Here, Bob Carey is the tight end. However, this is the only game he played that season so we don't know what would have happened if he'd been healthy. Would he have been a full-time tight end? Perhaps. 

One with Fears left, Hirsch slot and Boyd the right end.

This is 1955 in color. The Rams had a new coach (Sid Gillman) and there were changes, though the concept of a split end, slot end, and flanked end continued.

Here Hirsch is the left split end, Fears in the right slot and Skeets Quinlan is outside the numbers to the right. 

Here Hirsch was out and Ron Waller is filling in for him, in this case, he would have been the flanker.

In 1956 the few games we have Hirsch was the split end moving away from the slot side or tight end of the formation. In one game Fears is in the slot and Leon Clarke is always outside of him. In another game Clarke and Bob Carey split time as the tight end, moving from side to side and Hirsch was always away from him.

This is the Rams at Detroit. Hirsch is always the split end in this game.

Here is a game vs Detroit in Los Angeles, Hirsch is always the split end in this game. Fears is always the slot, a tight end was not used.

Here Hirsch is the split end and Fears is in the slot and
outside him is Leon Clarke

Here Hirsch is split end on the left and the two-receiver side is on the right

Here Miller is the tight end and Hirsch is opposite side, again
making him the split end, not the flanker.

Here Clarke is the tight end and Ron Miller is the flanker
outside of Clarke

In 1957 Hirsch was the left end, and played flanker when the tight end was left. When the tight end was right, he was a split end or tight end himself. So again, he was not a true flanker. He played split, tight, and flanker end positions for the Rams.

So, we think we've illustrated this issue enough for folks to see what the film shows. If you think a "first flanker" or a player who "changed the game" by "pioneering" the flanker position is someone who was a flanker based on whether the strength of the offense was left or right, then yeah, in  1952 and 1956 and 1957 Hirsh was a flanker. In other years he was more of a slot or a right end that was tight.

If you think a "pure flanker" is someone who is always on the two-receiver side, or strong side, then Hirsch was never a flanker. He was more akin to Lynn Swann or Marvin Harrison who were on the right side of the formation and played both split end (X) and flanker (Z).

Other receivers like Henry Ellard and Torry Holt (both Xs) and Isaac Bruce (Z) were the ones who flopped sides to stay on the proper side of the formation to maintain their 'X' or 'Z' spots. 

We've asked TJ Troup, who has seen more film from this era than anyone we know (1949 especially), the basic questions.

Here are those key questions.

Q: True or False—

Clark Shaughnessy innovated the flanker position by playing Elroy Hirsch at the flanker position in 1949, the year Hirsch arrived in Los Angeles?

Troup: False. 

Q:  How would you assess this statement—Elroy Hirsch was the pro game's first true flanker?

Troup: Sometimes he was but he was other things as well. It is just a question of how much he was flanked at the beginning of a play. Was it twice a game? Five times? None? 

Q: What would it take to be the first "true" flanker?

Troup: It would need to be someone playing the position the majority of the time in a given season, not just a few times a game.

We don't post this to take anything away from Hirsch—The man is a Hall-of-Famer. We post this to show that sometimes myths and legends become "facts" and those "facts" can influence how people vote for All-Time teams or how they write about the NFL and NFL players.

The correct information for this kind of thing is usually available and as in all things, people should question official stories—make sure they have their facts in order by checking film or primary sources. 

Sometimes they do and sometimes they do not. 

This is one case where the claims made about Hirsch changing the game or being the first flanker are slightly flawed. We just wish there was more demand for these kinds of claims to be researched and then we could all learn.