February 3rd, 2013 |
Published in
Milestone Birthdays
Chris Bahr, a longtime kicker in the NFL, is celebrating his 60th birthday today. Bahr played from 1976 to 1989 for the Cincinnati Bengals, Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, and San Diego Chargers. He played on two Super Bowl Championship teams with the Raiders, in 1980 and 1983. Before his NFL career, Bahr played one season for the Philadelphia Atoms of the North American Soccer League, and he played on the U.S. National soccer team in the qualifying rounds for the 1976 Olympics. Bahr’s younger brother, Matt Bahr, also played in the NASL and NFL.
Bahr is pictured here on his 1978 Topps football card. He also appeared on a 1977 Topps card, and on many cards after 1978. I don’t have his newer cards yet, but you can find them on eBay.
Happy birthday, Mr. Bahr!
January 21st, 2013 |
Published in
Milestone Birthdays, Record Holders
Today is a milestone birthday for two players in the Vintage Football Card Gallery: Jim Kearney is 70 years old, and Tony Davis is 60.
Kearney played defensive back from 1965 to 1976 for the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, and New Orleans Saints. He was a member of the Chiefs team that won Super Bowl IV against the Vikings. In 1972, Kearney returned four interceptions for touchdowns, tying an NFL record. He still shares that record with Ken Houston and Eric Allen.
Kearney is pictured here on his rookie card, a 1973 Topps. He also appeared on a few other cards and stamps.
Tony Davis was a running back from 1976 to 1981 for the Cincinnati Bengals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He also returned punts for two seasons with the Bengals. As far as I know, Davis did not appear on any regular issue football cards, but he did appear on University of Nebraska Playing Cards in 1973 and 1974. His 1973 card is pictured here, and you can see his 1974 card in the Gallery.
Happy birthday, Messrs. Kearney and Davis!
October 10th, 2012 |
Published in
Halls of Fame, New in the Gallery
In honor of Alex Karras, who passed away this morning, today I identified all of the cards of Outland Trophy winners in the Vintage Football Card Gallery. The Outland Trophy is awarded annually to the nation’s outstanding college interior lineman; Karras won it in 1957. You can see the all-time list of winners on the sportswriters.net site.
Pictured here are cards of two other winners, a 1960 Mayrose Cardinals Mike McGee, and a 1974 Wonder Bread Mike Reid. Click here to see the rest, or use the Gallery’s advanced search page to do more complex searches.
March 24th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Lonnie Wright, who played defensive back for the Denver Broncos in 1966 and 1967, passed away yesterday. Wright also played four seasons for the Denver Rockets and one for the Floridians of the American Basketball Association. The Denver Post web site has a summary of his athletic career.
Wright appeared on one football card, a 1968 Topps card that shows him with the Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals acquired him from Denver in the 1968 AFL Expansion Draft, but he retired from football before playing for the team. He also appeared on one basketball card, the 1971 Topps card pictured here. Like his football card, Wright’s basketball card pictures him in a Denver uniform, but with a different team.
January 27th, 2012 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Greg Cook, a quarterback with the Cincinnati Bengals from 1969 to 1974, has passed away. Cook was an American Football League Co-Rookie of the Year in 1969, but he suffered an injury during the 1969 season from which he never fully recovered. He led the AFL in passer rating, completion percentage, yards per attempt, and yards per completion in 1969. After the 1969 season, he appeared in just one regular season game, in 1973.
Pictured here are Cook’s rookie card, a 1970 Topps, and his 1969 Tresler Comet Bengals pre-rookie card. Cook also appeared on several other cards in 1970, all of which showed the same image as his regular-issue Topps card. You can see all of Greg Cook’s football cards in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
January 28th, 2011 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Danny Brabham, a linebacker from 1963 to 1968 for the AFL’s Houston Oilers and Cincinnati Bengals, passed away on January 23. He played college football at Arkansas. Brabham’s obituary at arkansasonline.com includes a summary of his college and pro football career.
Brabham appeared on two football cards, both with the Oilers. His 1966 Topps card is pictured here; he also appeared on a 1967 Topps card.
January 8th, 2011 |
Published in
Player Deaths
Bill “Tiger” Johnson, a center for the San Francisco 49ers from 1948 to 1956, passed away on January 7. Johnson was a Pro Bowler for the 49ers in 1952 and 1953. After his playing days, Johnson went on to a long coaching career, including three seasons as the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals. An article on the San Francisco Chronicle web site provides a nice summary of Johnson’s career.
Pictured here is Johnson’s rookie card, a 1950 Bowman. He also had a 1955 Bowman football card, and he appeared on numerous 49ers team issue photos, both as a player and a coach. You can see several of Johnson’s cards and team issue photos in the Vintage Football Card Gallery.
