The Packer Crew at County Stadium – Not Milwaukee’s Best

 by Nick Webster

Researcher Eric Goska has spent decades chronicling the history of the Green Bay Packers using Books, journalists' notes, media guides, film, and, of course, play-by-plays. In all his studies, Goska has been able to use film to fill in gaps in play-by-plays, but to also to make corrections when they are erroneous; and boy are there opportunities for corrections.  

It’s not quite the national debt clock, but the corrections already number in the 100’s – many as far back as the 40s and 50s, but some as recently as the 1980’s.  And these are not just judgment calls, “Hey, I think John Anderson has more to do with taking down the ballcarrier than Mike Douglass”, these are out-and-out errors.  Some errors are a distinction without a difference, e.g., Charles Johnson’s September 9, 1979, sack of Archie Manning should have been credited for three yards rather than two, but some matter.

In his research, Goska has found that an error in the press box, never corrected, allowed Doug Martin to be the lone leader in QB Sacks in 1982. We’ve done a lot of work on sack stats – if you’re here, you probably know that already – and there was historically lots of leeway in how particular teams counted them.  

Finally, in 1982, the NFL decided that individual sacks would be an official stat with consistent rules and accounting. The League actually trailed the CFL, which officially started keeping track in 1981.  But 1982 was an unusual season, marred by a player strike which shortened the season to a mere nine games.  In such a small sample size, single games or outliers can have outsized effects, and this was certainly the case for the sack title. The anointed sack-champ in ’82 was Viking DE Doug Martin, topping the league with just 11.5 sacks in the shortened season. 

Martin was a solid pass rusher and notched a total of 61.5 sacks over his 10-year career, all with the Vikings.  But the third-year player had only notched five and six sacks, respectively, in his Rookie and Sophomore seasons heading into 1982.  But in ’82, with a mere nine games to play, Martin led the NFL with the lowest leading number in history, and more than half of his 11.5 sacks were in just two solid games. Martin notched three sacks twice in a game at Detroit in the Silver Dome, but also in a game at The Packers in Milwaukee County Stadium. The Packers used their same “professional” crew in the County Stadium Box as they did in Lambeau, and the errors travelled with them.  

In the waning moments of the second quarter, Lynn Dickey dropped back and was slammed to the turf by Defensive End Randy Holloway and Doug Martin. His happy compatriot pumps his fist in the air from ~five yards away.  The announcers Frank Gleiber and recently retired Joe Greene call out Holloway, “I mean, no one touched Randy Holloway, number 75.” One last play, a desperate bomb to James Lofton and the half was over.  But the Packer crew didn’t see it that way; from their perch in County Stadium the Packer crew credited Doug Martin with the downing of Dickey.  And by the time the game came to a close, with 2 others to his credit, Martin had a three-sack game.

A little over a month later, the strike-shortened season became the first NFL season to stretch into the following year. On Jan 2, 1983, going into the final weekend of the season, Philadelphia Eagle Dennis Harrison and Doug Martin were tied for the League sack lead with 10.5 each. But at Home against the Giants – with Doug’s brother George on the opposing team – Harrison would get shut out, staying at 10.5. Doug Martin had till the following day with his Vikings hosting the Cowboys on Monday night in a game famous for a different reason.  

A few days earlier, on December 30th, a hole was torn in the roof of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, and only after emergency repairs and re-inflating the massive dome could the Monday night game proceed.  Doug Martin took advantage of the opportunity. In the 3rd quarter, Martin knocked the ball loose from Danny White’s grip, notching an 11.5 sack and claiming the sack title.

But the November 21st phantom sack awarded to Martin over Holloway was never corrected.  Check any source, NFL.com, Pro-Football-Reference, anywhere you look, that was a three-sack game for Martin, Holloway notching none. We were tickled a few years back to see Bubba Baker’s reaction to the recognition of his 23-sack 1978. We wonder what Dennis Harrison might think if he knew he was rightfully the co-owner of the 1982 NFL sack title?  Can we guarantee that every sack in every gamebook from the early years – including the unofficial history pre ’82 – is correct? Of course not.  There will be other errors, some we will find and correct, some we won’t. Of course, a sack or two here and there won’t invalidate the overall dominance of a Deacon Jones, a Reggie White or a Doug Atkins; but leaders matter, and the record should reflect that in 1982 the sack title was co-owned.

In the years that followed the Quarterback sack started to garner more attention.  Credit Mark Gastineau’s antics, Lawrence Taylor’s greatness and the rivalries in the NFC East between Reggie White, Dexter Manley and Taylor.  By 1986, there was a huge rivalry among the NFC East pass rushers. After week 13, Manley led the league with 17.5, Taylor was right on his heels with 16.5 and Reggie was training with just 12.  But over the final three games, Taylor notched four to Manley’s one, taking the league lead and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year as well as the AP Most Valuable Player award, the last defender to do so.  Reggie picked up six sacks in the final three weeks to reach 18, just a half sack behind Manley. 

The race was on, and the numbers counted.  

Beginning in 1987, Elias, official keeper of the League’s numbers, began issuing “corrected” Gamebooks in mid-week. Errors could be corrected – and often were – a meaningful portion of corrections came on sacks, and we’re better now for the scrutiny.  Unfortunately for Dennis Harrison, the change didn’t come around nearly soon enough. 

More Lavonte David Love – and a Comparison

By Nick Webster

Today, Lavonte David, an all-time great Tampa Bay Buccaneer, retired from the NFL rather than move elsewhere, but will he eventually have to suit up with a different look in Canton? Sadly, I think the likelihood is no, as David is one of the most underrated players in a generation. He is harmed by playing in a small market, by playing at a non “premium” position (whatever that is) by playing in an era when Pro Bowl and All-Pro voters get confused about off-ball versus on-ball OLB’s by coming out of the draft in the same season as Luke Kuechly, Bobby Wagner and Demario Davis (man, was the LB position stacked in 2012) and by speaking softly and letting his play do the talking.

The consensus top off-ball LBs of the era are Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner, each were fantastic linebacker, team leader, and star player on Super Bowl-winning teams. David himself has a claim to fame on all these dimensions, though his leadership role on the Buccaneer defense is overshadowed by a guy named Tom Brady. Comparing these great LB’s, David’s numbers stand up well. Look at just how similar David and Wagner’s numbers are – yet Wagner is frequently discussed as “future Hall of Famer” Bobby Wagner. 

The only categories where Wagner has a meaningful lead are on overall tackles (much of which is a vestige of the Seahawks press-box being liberal with assists as Wagner’s ~300 TT lead drops to 22 when you’re counting solo tackles) and QB Hits. David, quite simply, made bigger more impactful plays, more sacks, more forced fumbles and more stuffs (tackling a runner or receiver for a loss).

**You will notice slight differences between the above numbers and those published by John Turney in his salute of David earlier today. Note that two TTs of David’s were made on special teams (these are only on defensive plays) and a couple of plays where play-by-plays were updated on stuffs.

His EPA – Expected Points added – and WPA – Win Probability added – are similar but better. His Defeats, plays for negative yardage or plays resulting in turnovers, including stops short of a first down on third or fourth down, are far higher. David produced.

So, David compares favorably with “future HOFer” Bobby Wagner, but really, Luke Kuechly is the class of the era, right? Kuechley, deservedly, received a nod from the Hall this past year – we cheered it and think he should have been first ballot. But let’s compare just the eight years that Kuechly played to the first eight seasons of David’s career, certainly Luke outplayed him over that period ... think again.

Over their first eight seasons, Luke also led David in TT’s, though in this case, David had MORE Solo Tackles than Kuechly (724 to 690). Kuechly legitimately separated himself in pass D, and this was real, but also a function of the scheme, which more frequently had David covering back in the backfield and Kuechly covering TEs running the seam. Outside of this, David leads in practically every category, even if only slightly.

So, he compares favorably in his era, but where does David fit among the all-time greats?  Well, using play-by-play data, David is the seventh leading tackler of all-time, six tackles behind all-time great Derrick Brooks.  

In stuffs, which we defined earlier, he is literally ranked second all-time behind Junior Seau and ahead of third-ranked Bruce Smith – both first ballot HOFers. Finally, David’s 33 FFs are FAR ahead of any known values of top off-ball LB’s all-time, Dick Butkus - and let’s be clear the record is incomplete – is documented by us (after lots of research) with 27 FF’s, Ray Lewis (well documented) 21, Jack Lambert (quite well documented) 18, Mike Singletary 14, Derrick Brooks 25, etc., etc., etc.

So, should David go from wearing Creamsicle Orange in Tampa to Gold in Canton? It’s our belief that he should. Is he an all-time great, perhaps, but is he a great of his era absolutely? The Hall that has room for Deacon, Gino and Reggie also has room for Claude Humphrey. The Hall that has room for Night Train, Mel Blount and Deion also has room for Lem Barney. And that same Hall that has room for Jack Ham, Derrick Brooks and Bobby Bell also found room for Dave Wilcox – and it needs to find room for Lavonte David too.

Lavonte David Retires: Pro Football Journal’s Tribute to a Tackle Master and One of the Most Underrated Defenders of His Era

 By John Turney 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers legend Lavonte David officially announced his retirement from the NFL on March 24, 2026, after a remarkable 14-year career spent entirely with the franchise that drafted him. At 36 years old, the 12-time team captain and longest-tenured player on the Bucs roster walks away as one of the most consistently productive and versatile linebackers of the modern era. We at Pro Football Journal have long maintained that he has been one of the most criminally underrated defenders of his generation.

David was selected in the second round (58th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft out of Nebraska. He stepped in immediately as the heartbeat of the Buccaneers’ defense, earning PFWA All-Rookie honors and never relinquishing his starting role. Across 215 games and 215 starts, he compiled 1,716 combined tackles, 42.5 sacks, 14 interceptions, 73 passes defensed, 33 forced fumbles, 21 fumble recoveries, and 145 run/pass stuffs. He earned a Super Bowl LV ring in 2020, first-team All-Pro honors in 2013, two second-team All-Pro selections (2016 and 2020), and a Pro Bowl nod in 2015.

Those numbers, impressive as they are, only begin to tell the story. For more than a decade, we have highlighted David’s excellence through film study and advanced metrics that truly reveal his impact.

In our September 2024 piece “What We’re All Missing About Bucs’ Lavonte David,” we pointed out that he has been perpetually overlooked by AP All-Pro voters and Hall of Fame discussions, yet the plays that actually win football games paint a far different picture. 

David has repeatedly led the league—or finished near the top—in run/pass stuffs (tackles for loss or minimal gain at or behind the line of scrimmage), a metric we track closely at Pro Football Journal, thanks to Nick Webster. His ability to diagnose plays instantly, pursue with outstanding speed, and finish in the backfield against both the run and in coverage has been elite for years.

We've written then that “he has been so good for so long but always seems to be overlooked.” That sentiment held true across multiple seasons. In our All-Pro selections, we gave him first-team four times and second-team three times. Additionally, we named him All-NFC ten times (nine of those first team). Only Pro Football Focus picked him about as often for “alls”, choosing him five times for their All-Pro team, but at least they outdistanced AP and PFWA.

When assembling our 2010s All-Decade Team, we selected David as our Will linebacker and called him one of the top three linebackers of the decade. We noted that the Hall of Fame would almost certainly favor traditional middle linebackers, but when judged by actual production, David’s body of work is undeniable.

In pieces on unsung tackle masters, we have ranked him seventh all-time in authentic play-by-play tackles in the post-1999 era and second only to Junior Seau in career stuffs with 145, while tying Seau for the most seasons with double-digit stuffs (eight). “His impact stands out beyond volume,” we have written repeatedly, urging evaluators to focus on the tape and the numbers rather than market size or team wins and losses.

David’s versatility has always set him apart. He could cover like a defensive back, blitz with precise timing, and—most impressively—stuff runs with the instincts of a throwback 1990s great. We have often described him as a modern-day “poor man’s Derrick Brooks.” However, that may be shorting David with that observation. There are some things he did better than the Bucs Hall-of-Fame off-ball linebacker, blitzing for example, but in terms of perceived careers, if you just go by the All-Pros/Pro Bowls, then yeah, David does look poor in comparison, but in our view, not in skill.

Even in his final seasons, he continued to produce efficiently, climbing all-time tackle charts with legitimate, reviewed statistics and defying the effects of age. Off the field, David embodied leadership as a 12-time captain chosen by his teammates. In his emotional retirement press conference, he spoke movingly of his parents’ sacrifices, the joy of fatherhood, and playing the game for the pure love of it. “God is amazing,” he reflected on a journey he never imagined would last 14 years in one place.

As the Buccaneers turn the page without their longtime defensive anchor, our verdict at Pro Football Journal remains unchanged: Lavonte David was an elite, durable, playmaking linebacker whose sustained excellence belongs in the conversation with the very best of his generation. The Hall of Fame may take its time—voters have missed on him before—but the tape, the advanced stats, and the respect of those who study the game most deeply do not lie.

Thank you, Lavonte. Fourteen years of quiet, relentless greatness. One of the true tackle masters of the modern NFL. You will be missed on Sundays, but your legacy at One Buc Place—and on our pages—is secure.

Career stats—

A Texas-Sized Trainwreck: Dual Perspectives on the 1952 Dallas Texans Books

Book Reviews

By Jim Holt 

“Dallas Texans”…The response from the general follower of pro football will be either “don’t you mean the Houston Texans?” or “never heard of them.”

To most fans interested in the history of the game, the response is, “That’s the team that became the Kansas City Chiefs.”

Truly fanatical (like everybody here at PFJ) NFL devotees know the Texans went broke only halfway through their single year … road team … had Art Donovan and Gino Marchetti …upset the Bears in Akron, Ohio, on Thanksgiving for their only win … maybe recall the Steve Sabol feature from the 1980s.

Serendipitously, TWO books on the 1952 Dallas Texans have been recently published!

Take a look:

"Wards of the League: The Untold Story of the First NFL Team in Dallas" - Mike Cobern, 221 p. TCU Press (2024)

Giles Miller was the scion of an apparently wealthy but (as it turned out) decaying Texas textile empire founded by his father.  Raised in an environment of western-style opulance, Miller attended the best schools, had membership in the most prestigious clubs in Dallas, and rubbed shoulders with the movers and shakers of Texas business and politics.  

Author Coburn recounts the journey to the eventual discovery of Miller’s privately rare and unpublished  1972 memoir, “The Dallas Texans Saga: Or At the Time the New York Yanks Became the Baltimore Colts.”  Having never operated any business and lacking experience in management, when Ted Collins abandoned the money pit that was the Yanks and sold the team back to the league, Miller hit on the “it seemed a good idea at the time” of bringing the NFL to football-crazed Texas. Commissioner Bert Bell offered the team for $100,000, and in January 1952 Miller bought the franchise for and to Dalas.. The chronology remains opaque, but at some point, Bell informed the Texans that their obligation included an additional 200 grand that the Yanks still owed to Yankee Stadium for a long-term lease.  

In order to fund the unanticipated new financial burden (and more importantly) to get operating capital (which any business person would have forecast), Miller turned to his well-to-do cronies within the Dallas establishment as potential investors. None took advantage of the “opportunity.”

Miller’s memoir portrays Bell as unsympathetic to his situation and describes multiple conversations where he describes Bell as hectoring and scolding rather than offering support and/or advice.

Coburn does a fine job chronicling the day-to-day development of front office and business activity through the late winter and spring.  The chronic lack of funds and Miller’s inexperience and naivete color virtually every decision. Almost every assumption or financial projection that the Texans and Miller, including Cotton Bowl leasing arrangements and attendance, turned out to be disastrously wrong.  The Texans went broke and turned the franchise back to the league just 46 days (and only 4 home games) into the 1952 season.

Later chapters describe the “football operations” part of the story and bring out in vivid detail many of the personalities that made up the Texans; Coach Jimmy Phelan’s role in working to build a team more or less from the dregs of leftover Yanks is a particular highlight.

Wards of the League does an excellent job in providing week-by-week reporting of games and the between-game events that led to the demise of the franchise. Poignant and hilarious simultaneously are the chapters detailing the odyssey of relocation to Hershey, Pennsylvania and the subsequent legendary Thanksgiving triumph over the Bears in Akron, Ohio.

Mike Coburn has largely filled a heretofore missing gap in pro football history. While there are a few quibbles that the most nitpicky (or maniacal) might pick (note: discrepancies between roster appendix and PFR), this is a sturdy work and quality effort.  

Grade: A-minus overall

"A Big Mess In Texas: The Miraculous, Disastrous 1952 Dallas Texans and the Craziest Untold Story in NFL History"- Dave Fleming 270 p. St. Martin's Press (2025)

Dave Fleming is also the author of "Breaker Boys: the NFLs Greatest Team and the Stolen 1925 Championship" about the Pottsville Maroons, and here independently recounts many of the events described in Wards of the League.

The tone and focus of Mess differ in significant respects.  Importantly and early on, it identifies George Taliaferro and Buddy Young as arguably the two most significant players on the Texans squad.

Of course, Taliaferro and Young were the two African-American members of the team and the former Yanks were going to be playing in a Jim Crow part of the country.

Fleming explores in detail the history of racism in Texas, pointing out in painful reading how Texas was one of the most repressive slave States leading up to the Civil War, and among the most aggressive in the subsequent enforcement of the apartheid policy that ruled in most of the American South well into the 20th century.  He points out both the popularity of the Ku Klux Klan in Texas and the state’s number of and reliance upon lynchings as tools of racial intimidation.

The Cotton Bowl policy of segregated seating (black ticket holders were limited to certain end-zone sections in the 75,000 capacity venue) was a crucial factor in the Texans' inability to generate attendance.  Black fans who otherwise wanted to see Young and Taliferro were repulsed by the two-tiered status conferred upon them and almost universally boycotted the team; most white fans in 1952 no interest in and wanted no part of watching blacks (they would use a different term) play football.

An additional cultural hurdle (in football-crazy Texas) that Miller had not foreseen but Fleming vividly shares is the power of the Bible Belt.  As late as the 1950s, much of Christian conservatism believed (strongly) that sports events on “the Sabbath” were verboten; pro football on a Sunday was taboo (and somehow unseemly compared to the Saturday college version).

A Big Mess highlights the vast cultural gap between what Giles Miller assumed Dallas would support in 1952 and theJim Crow reality that existed at that time. The sea-change in American historical events that occurred in the following decade plus are not touched on in the book, but the 21st-century reader can vicariously experience a world that (in part at least) is “gone with the wind”.

One thing that detracts from the book is that the text is padded (a lot) with anecdotes about players. There are numerous recountings of “war-stories”, pranks, and silliness. This reviewer usually enjoys this kind of material in a football narrative, but in this case, the stories are almost exclusively retreads of tales Art Donovan tells in his memoir, and several of which take place during his and Gino Marchetti’s days in Baltimore. Four(!) full pages of old Hardy Brown stories who NEVER PLAYED for Dallas simply do not belong in a history of the Texans.

Curmudgeonly grumbling aside, Dave Fleming has provided us a truly enlightening spotlight on the history of the Dallas Texans. Moreover, he makes a vivid case for posterity to recognize George Taliferro as a heroic trainblazier and provides a compelling argument that his HoF candidacy should be
re-assessed. Many who read or are involved with PFJ know that Willie Thrower (53 Bears) is the answer to the trivia question “who was the first black NFL quarterback?”  Fleming informs us that Taliferro had thrown 96 passes in the NFL before Thrower took a snap. 

Grade: B overall

A Look Back at History Made in the 2025 Season: Calais Campbell Becomes the Oldest Player Ever to Block a Kick in an NFL Season

 by Nick Webster

Some records seem like they'll stand forever — buried deep in the statistical archaeology of professional football, known only to the obsessive researchers who catalogue the game's forgotten corners. The record for the oldest player to block a kick in an NFL regular season was one of them. For nearly half a century, that distinction belonged to Ron McDole, a Washington defensive end who swatted a Colts field goal attempt on a November afternoon in 1978 at the age of 39 years and 58 days.

Then came Calais Campbell, and December 2025.

In back-to-back weeks spanning December 14 and December 21, 2025, Campbell — back in a Cardinals uniform at the age of 39 — blocked two kicks, including a Zach Gonzalez extra point in the season's final stretch. The December 21st block, recorded at 39 years and 111 days old, cleared McDole's mark by more than 50 days, settling the matter definitively.

It is, according to my historical blocked kick database underlying this research (4,673 blocks deep from 1920 to date, and growing), the oldest age at which any player has blocked a kick in NFL history.

Who Was Ron McDole?

Ron McDole is not a name that registers easily in the modern football conversation, and that's precisely the point. A defensive end drafted in 1961, McDole bounced from the NFL to the AFL early in the turbulent merger era, spending the bulk of his career with the Buffalo Bills and later the Washington Redskins. He was a skilled pass rusher and a nightmare on the punt and kick coverage units — a player with light feet for his size who understood leverage and timing well enough to make blockers look foolish into his late 30s.

His last recorded block came on November 6, 1978, when he got his hand on a Toni Linhart field goal attempt for the Washington franchise. He was 39 years and 58 days old. The record sat untouched across 47 years and thousands of games.

What Makes Campbell's Achievement Extraordinary

Age records in football tend to belong to kickers, punters, and quarterbacks — positions where longevity is built into the job description. A kick blocker at 39 is a different matter entirely. Blocking a kick requires elite timing, first-step explosion, and the ability to win inside against an offensive lineman in a compact space. These are the exact athletic traits that time erodes first in big men.  You’ll find many kick blockers who compile numbers early, then trail off.

Campbell entered the league in 2008 as a second-round pick out of The U. He spent the better part of a decade as a highly complete defensive lineman among the most complete in the game — a 6'8", 300-pound force capable of collapsing a pocket, stopping the run, and disrupting the kicking game with equal authority. He has blocked 11 kicks across his career, according to the detail log, the first coming in his Arizona debut season, the last arriving in the final weeks of the 2025 season.

That the same player who blocked kicks as a 22-year-old first-year starter is still recording them at 39 is not just longevity — it is sustained elite athleticism across an almost incomprehensible time span.

The Two December 2025 Blocks

The first came on December 14 against Houston, when Campbell got his hand on a Ka'imi Fairbairn 52-yard field goal attempt. He was 39 years and 104 days old — breaking McDole’s almost 50-year-old mark.

Seven days later, on December 21, he blocked Gonzalez's extra point attempt for the Cardinals. He was 39 years and 111 days old, extending the mark even further.

Why This Record Matters

Football history is dominated by the countable, the cumulative, and the season total. Records organized around when a thing happened — the oldest, the youngest, the longest gap — occupy a different register. They're harder to discover, harder to verify, and seldom recognized in real time.

McDole's record survived because almost no one knew it existed. Campbell didn't break it by chasing it. He broke it by still being good enough, at 39, to get off the line fast enough, with enough leverage, to alter a kick —twice— in the final month of a professional football season.

Ron McDole held that distinction for 47 years. Calais Campbell earned it through a career that has refused, for nearly two decades, to stop producing.

The Titans Back to Looking Like the Tennessee Oilers

 By John Turney 

Tennessee Titans new uniforms

The Tennessee Titans rolled out their 2026 uniforms on March 12, and right off the bat, it's clear the franchise is leaning hard into its Houston Oilers heritage. The new set brings back that classic "Luv Ya Blue" vibe with a heavy dose of Titans Blue (that familiar Columbia/light blue) as the primary jersey color, red trim popping where it should, and a cleaner, more retro feel overall. The light blue is "Titans blue" not Columbia Blue. A distinction without a difference.

The home look features light blue jerseys that instantly recall the Oilers' powder-blue classics from the Earl Campbell days—simple, bold, and timeless. They've ditched much of the recent Nike-inspired navy-heavy schemes for this brighter palette, a direct nod to the AFL/NFL era in Houston without fully copying the old derrick logo or exact striping (though the shoulder/yoke elements and red accents clearly show the Oilers influence). 

 The jerseys feature a new, "guitar string" inspired stripe pattern on the sleeves, a "TN" monogram on the collar, and three navy blue stars on the uniform. In our view, the stripe is too thin, even though we get Nike's desire to "connect" with local culture in the explanations, the design still has to work. As a design element, to us, it does not work. It will look like a fat light blue stripe. The red stripe will not be noticeable. Oh well.

The white helmet with a white face mask is also a bit of a disappointment. Red would have been much better. Just not a fan of white lids and white makes. Contrast is king, makes uniforms pop.

Pants stay straightforward having the same stripe design as the sleeves on both the light blue and white models. Heck, we're just happy they have stripes. The socks look to be solid, sans any striping. Not our favorite but par for the course these days. 

It's not a straight throwback; it embraces the Oilers DNA while planting the flag firmly in Tennessee. No overdesigned gimmicks, no unnecessary swooshes cluttering things up—just solid, nostalgic football aesthetics.

Pros: The light blue revival looks sharp on the field, captures the retro vide without feeling forced and mostly does not smack too much of Nike. They are the ones who seemed to have wrecked so many uniforms in the decades. Overall,  a big step up from some of the more muddled recent Titans looks.

Cons:  A few minor tweaks—like perhaps bolder numbers or helmet logo placement—could push it higher. Also the thin red stripe on sleeve falls short.

Overall, solid work. Grading it out: B.

Seymour Siwoff former Owner of Elias Sports Bureau receives Ralph Hay Award from Pro Football Hall of Fame

 By John Turney 

Siwoff, who led Elias for an incredible 67 years until his passing in 2019, played a pivotal role in NFL history. Under his leadership, Elias became the league's official statistician in 1961, bringing consistency, accuracy, and innovation to how the game’s numbers were recorded, preserved, and expanded—including the creation of new statistical categories that helped shape modern analysis.

Hall of Fame President Jim Porter highlighted Siwoff's impact: "Seymour used his knowledge, talent and passion for numbers to help the NFL record and preserve its history through a game-by-game, consistent application of statistics, and over time the creation of new statistics to track. You cannot tell the history of the NFL without its statistics, and Seymour — and his decades of work at Elias Sports Bureau — did more in that area than any other individual."

Siwoff has been nominated for the Pioneer Award at least since 2003 (then known as the  Daniel F. Reeves Pioneer Award) when he began to write annually to suggest he (and Merv Corning) be recognized. It finally came to fruition, at least for Seymour. Congratulations to him and everyone at Elias.

The Ralph Hay Pioneer Award, named after the Canton Bulldogs owner who hosted the NFL's foundational meeting in 1920, recognizes significant innovative contributions to professional football. Established in 1972, it's been awarded sparingly—only 11 times before—with the most recent going to Spanish-language broadcaster Fernando Von Rossum in 2024. Siwoff becomes the 12th recipient.

Note: Siwoff was also a semifinalist for the Class of 2026 in the contributor category, though this award recognizes his pioneering legacy separately.

This is a well-deserved nod to a behind-the-scenes giant whose work remains foundational to how we understand and celebrate NFL history.

Previous recipients:

• 1972 — Fred Gehrke: L.A. Rams halfback who first painted logos on helmets.
• 1975 — Arch Ward: Initiated the Chicago All-Star Game.
• 1986 — John Facenda: The iconic "Voice of NFL Films".
• 1992 — David Boss: NFL Properties VP and creative director/photographer.
• 2001 — George Toma: Longtime head groundskeeper known as the "God of Sod".
• 2004 — Pottsville, PA: Recognized for the city's undying spirit and support of NFL history (Pottsville Maroons).
• 2007 — Steve Sabol: President of NFL Films and influential filmmaker.
• 2012 — Art McNally: Pioneer in NFL officiating and the implementation of instant replay.
• 2016 — Joe Browne:  Longtime NFL executive who helped shape the league's global image for over 50 years.
• 2022 — The Forgotten Four:  Marion Motley, Woody Strode, Kenny Washington, and Bill Willis, who reintegrated pro football in 1946.
• 2024 — Fernando Von Rossum: Trailblazing Spanish-language broadcaster who introduced the NFL to millions of fans.
• 2026 — Seymour Siwoff: Former owner of the Elias Sports Bureau, recognized for preserving and innovating NFL statistics

We're pleased to see that the Hall is taking better advantage of this award, naming a recipient every couple of years, rather than every four or five. It is a good way to recognize folks who are memorable and have bestowed upon us pleasures that have made the game of pro football part of our fiber.