John Mackey played RB and WR at Syracuse from 1960-’62.
He rushed for 259 yards on 58 carries, scoring 2 TDs while catching 27 passes for 481 yards and 6 TDs over his college career.
Selected by the Baltimore Colts in the second round of the 1963 NFL Draft.
Made an immediate impact as a TE, catching 35 passes for 726 yards and 7 TDs.
Over the next 7 following seasons- he never failed to reach 400 yards or catch at least 22 passes.
In ’65 he had 30 catches for 814 yards and 7 TDs.
Then in ’66 he caught 50 passes for a career high 829 yards and 9 TDs.
Finally in ’67 Mackey caught a career high 55 passes.
Caught an acrobatic75 yard TD from Johnny Unitas in Super Bowl V over the Dallas Cowboys.
He’d play with the Colts through the 1971 season.
After an acrimonious departure from Baltimore, Mackey played a final season in 1972 with the San Diego Chargers.
A knee injury ended his career- but over that period he played in 139 out of a possible 140 games- a testament to his durability.
ACCOLADES:
Syracuse Orangemen #88 retired
NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team
NFL 1960s All-Decade Team
Pro Bowl 1963, ’65-68
All Pro 1966-1968
Baltimore Ravens Ring of Honor
Pro Football Hall of Fame
100 Greatest Football Players
Nassau County High School Athletic Hall of Fame
NOTES:
John Mackey is considered one of the greatest tight ends of all time and he was the second pure TE inducted into the HoF in 1992. He revolutionized the position with his combination speed and power.
He was also instrumental in unionizing the players into the NFLPA, serving as the group’s first president after the merger, and held that capacity from 1970-’73. (He was blackballed at the end of his career, but squeezed out a final year in San Diego.) Mackey organized the first labor strike, and helped overturn the ‘Rozelle Rule’ (which was in regards to free agency).
Frontotemporal dementia entered his life and it became harder and harder for him to function, and after a few bizarre social episodes, he entered full-time assisted living. Mackey’s wife reached out to Paul Tagliabue, who then worked with then current NFLPA president Gene Upshaw to create a new plan that would help cover the cost of former NFL players struggling with dementia and Alzheimer’s. It was called the ’88 Plan’ in Mackey’s honor.
In a final note, it’s very important with Mackey to make sure that you are getting a certified autograph of his- as there is a bustling market of fake autographs of his circulating in the wild.
REC
YDS
AVG
TD
LG
331
5236
15.8
38
89t
EPITAPH:
7/6/2011- John Mackey passed away at the age of 69. His brain was posthumously donated to science, where it was discovered he suffered from CTE.
Mike Curtis played college ball at Duke from 1962-’64.
He’d go on to establish himself as one of the greatest athletes in Duke history, playing both LB and FB.
#1 pick of the Baltimore Colts in 1965 who planned to use him exclusively at FB.
Was also selected in the 3rd round of the 1965 AFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Made the transition to MLB in 1966 and the rest became history.
Played alongside ‘The Mad Stork’ Ted Hendricks, as the team lost Super Bowl III and won Super Bowl V.
Played for Colts from 1965-’75.
Joined the expansion Seahawks for ’76, eventually finishing career after the ’77 and ’78 seasons with the Redskins.
Started 125 of 166 contests over career.
ACCOLADES:
Duke Hall of Fame
All-Pro 1968, ’69
Pro Bowl 1968, 1970-’71, ’74
Colts MVP 1974
AFC Defensive Player of the Year 1970
NOTES:
Mike Curtis was one of these sweeping cheap Ebay pickups I did at the beginning of 2020. As a not really big name, I waited this one out- and then promptly forgot to scan the card in when I got it, so it waited in limbo for a while before I tracked it down.
I could make an argument for Mike Curtis to be in the HoF, but I doubt he will ever get in, as defensive statistics weren’t well tracked or considered spectacular at the time. He was an absolute terror patrolling the middle of the field and was extremely effective covering the pass for a LB.
EPITAPH:
4/20/20- Mike Curtis passed away from CTE in St. Petersburg, FL at the age of 77.
Earl Morrall is considered probably the best clutch backup QB of his generation -if not of all time. He played an undeniably long career in the league lasting some.. what 22 years? Although not considered for the HoF conversation, Morrall has been inducted into the ‘Hall of Very Good’. An excellent athlete, Morrall had also caught the eye of MLB playing SS in the College World Series for the Spartans, but opted to play football instead.
I had been eyeballing his autograph during the pandemic but thought it was too pricey. Once it hit about 10 bucks I pounced. It later got lost in the shuffle of incoming autographs and I had forgotten to scan it in.
ATT
CPD
YDS
PCT
TD
INT
RAT
LG
2689
1379
20809
51.3
161
148
74.1
98t
EPITAPH:
April 14th, 2014- Earl Morrall passed away at the age of 79 due to complications from Parkinson’s disease. It was later discovered he suffered from Grade 4 CTE.
Celebrating the game, the players, the cards, and the autographs for over 25 years.
