by Marie Vibbert

Looking forward to the 1968 NFL season!

The only big news this year is that The New York Giants and New Orleans Saints have switched divisions.  The New York Giants had finished second in the Century Division last year and will bring competition to the Dallas-dominated Capitol Division.  Hopefully they will not just beat up on Philadelphia and Washington, but if they do, with the advantage of short bus rides to those cities, they’ll be all the more able to knock Dallas off their perch.

Yankee stadium where the Giants played the Packers last October; that's Frank Sinatra and Lee Remick in the foreground.

Meanwhile, the Saints finished dead last in the Capitol Division last year and might do better against the softer teams at the bottom of Century – namely Pittsburgh and St. Louis.  They should be pretty evenly matched with St. Louis, and it’ll be fun to see two hot weather teams wrestle it out early in the season, as they do September 29.

The league negotiated these moves to make the divisions more evenly matched, and if that comes to pass, it is good news for football fans.  Who wants to watch a one-sided slaughter?

At the draft earlier this year, the Minnesota Vikings traded for the first pick, which they spent on Ron Yary from UCSC, an offensive tackle.  This is the first time the number one draft pick was an o-lineman, and about time, I say!  Coaches underestimate the vital importance of the line.  And Yary is well worth the pick.  As a junior, he was moved to the offensive line from defensive line (where he was a PAC-8 all star) and was a consensus All-American as a junior and a unanimous choice in 1967. He was the 1967 winner of both the Outland Trophy and the Knute Rockne Award, awards that annually go to the nation's top collegiate lineman. During Yary's three seasons, the Trojans compiled a 24-7-1 record.  I think Minnesota will be well pleased with their pick for many years to come!

The beleaguered Vikings traded their QB Fran Tarkenton to New York for the draft pick.  Despite the player it gained them, I cannot agree with being so profligate.  Tarkenton threw four TDs in his first game, which was also the Viking’s first game, and no rookie quarterback has accomplished that feat since.  For the past six years, Minnesota has suffered the problems typical of a young team, and Tarkenton has been one of their bright spots, leading 8 of the first 10 wins the team had in his first three years.  Sure, they only had three wins last year, but remember they had three ties, too.  What Tarkenton needed was a stronger offensive line to give his arm time, and now they have it – but no Tarkenton.

We’ll see if Tarkenton provides the spark to take New York forward from their 7-7 season.  They’ll also be happy to be away from the constant spanking by the Cleveland Browns, and as that rivalry has been so one-sided lately no one will miss it.  While they managed to win one this year, the last time they won against their division rival was five years ago, losing six straight games!  I’d be nervous if I were Dallas!

The Giants play their first division game against Dallas on November 10th – though I wish it were in New York for the snow.  But if the fine weather and fine home field refs manage to squeak a victory for Dallas, they’ll have to face New York again in New York in December, and I guarantee they won’t win that one.  Not a fan of Dallas; I think the team is weaker than their record shows.  They got lucky with some simple mistakes and questionable calls in their playoff win against the Browns last year, as was clearly evident when they were easily defeated in the next round by Green Bay.

The Packers and the Cowboys face off at the "Ice Bowl" which culminated last season

Speaking of the Browns, yes, I am pleased that the only team to come close to them is leaving the division, but they don’t need the help.  Remember that their record in their “bad year” 1966 was 9-5, same as it was last year.  It was pure politics and stat voodoo that kept them out of the playoffs for one year.  Last year proved that. 

Running Back Leroy Kelly went for over 1,000 yards rushing for the second straight season, along with 11 touchdowns, while Ernie Green, now out of the shadow of Jim Brown, went for over 700 yards for the second year. Frank Ryan showed he’s not so old and beat up after all, throwing for 20 TD passes.

I think Browns head coach Blanton Collier’s done a lot to re-shape the team after the 52-14 playoff loss to Dallas.  (I have questions about the officiating in that game, but besides I guarantee the results would have been different in Cleveland.  Warm-weather teams don’t play hard in the cold.) Perhaps too much, but it can’t be denied that a lot of our stars are aging out and young blood will do them well. 

It’ll be strange to see the Browns without place kicker Lou “The Toe” Groza, who has announced his retirement – yes for the second time, but this time for real.  He made 11 of his 23 field goals last year and is the last member of the original Browns team from 1946. For twenty-one seasons he has been a reliable offensive tackle and kicker, helping the team win eight league championships. He holds the NFL record for most points scored by a single player, most field goals made and most extra points made.  234 field goals, 641 extra points, and 1,349 points total!  For a man who started out on the offensive line! 1,603 points if you count the pre-NFL years.  Groza, at 44, has much of life ahead of him, but the game of football will forever be changed by his presence.

He will be succeeded, but not replaced, by Don Cockroft, who was drafted out of Adams State last year in the third round, a gifted young kicker who will have the advantage of a year studying under Lou.

The Browns spent their early draft picks shoring up the defense.  Marvin Upshaw from Trinity will be the only rookie on the tough D-line.  John Garlington and Wayne Meylan, from LSU and Nebraska respectively, will join the linebacker core.  With a strong, veteran offensive line and two great running backs behind them, Frank Ryan won’t have much to worry about at QB but hiding when and where he hands the ball off. 

The season looks pretty soft, too, starting off with the Saints and the Cowboys, who, I repeat, are not as good as their record shows, with two pretty-much guaranteed wins against Pittsburgh and one more chance to beat up New York as a non-division game.  I know I say this every year, but this time I feel almost bored with how sure I am.  The Browns will go all the way.  The Cowboys will find when they have a real division rival in the Giants they won’t even make the playoffs. 

But the real winners are the fans.  This promises to be a hard-hitting, hard-playing season.

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