Pride and Prejudice -- an FOF9 Lions dynasty, starting 1966

[Passacaglia]

Wednesday, April 26, 1967

At 2.2, I take OLB Jim Lynch -- he's on top of the board, and his blue bars look better than everyone else. I've got two 55/55 OLBs, so not a huge need, but I usually like to take best player available.

At 3.1, it was a little tougher. No one jumped out at the top of the board. My staff suggested TE Alvin Reed. His blue bars didn't look all that great, and none of the other TEs had blue bars looking great, either. Looking at the top of the board again, I liked G Larry Little -- but then again, some of the other Gs at the top looked good, too. I ended up going with Little -- his pass blocking and blocking strength were high, but low run blocking. I figure I can live with that, compared to other Gs whose pass and run blocking were high, but strength was low. I don't want to get pushed around. We started a bit of a run on Gs -- Denver took Don Bruce at 3.2, Atlanta took Tom Regner at 3.3, and Miami went IOL with C Bob Hyland at 3.4. Our next pick is 4.3, at Alvin Reed was taken by the Chiefs at 3.24.

[Passacaglia]

Thursday, April 27, 1967

We've got the 4.3 pick next. My staff recommends RT Cas Banaszek, and he seems pretty good to me. There's also WR Don Alley, but I feel like he has a chance to drop to me in the 5th, so I'll take Banaszek.

And I end up getting Alley at 5.2!

At 6.1, my staff selects TE Tom Beer. Sounds good.

At 7.3, my staff suggests T Torre Ossmo, but I already took a T. ILB Frank Nunley seems good, though.

[Passacaglia]

Friday, April 28, 1967

Okay, I feel like I'm going to need to look at my for-real roster so that I can know who to cut as I get ready for late free agency. So here we go:



Nice! Griese looks like he will be a star. Jim Lynch can hopefully become a starter in year 2, Larry Little can be a marginal starter or solid backup eventually. Banaszek can maybe earn a roster spot, and the rest will probably get cut.

So apparently I didn't make an offer to Ray Hinze, and he was an RFA. Whoops. Hopefully I can get him. I'm also picking up the best LS that I can, and the only other player that seems worth taking is OLB Nelson Toburen. He's 51/51, and run defense 83, so he can play short yardage and be a good backup.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, May 1, 1967

Two jams this week.

[Passacaglia]

Tuesday, May 2, 1967

Got all three! I made a few cuts to get them in, but currently we're right at the cap with $0 room exactly, and 71 players. I would still have plenty of room when I cut down to 53, but there's really no one else out there that I want to get.

I guess this is a good time to think about the QB controversy. I don't think I'm in any kind of win-now mode, but I do think I owe it to the team to try to succeed this year. So I'm going to let Plum start. The good thing about the 1966 format is that only division winners make the playoffs -- I figure if we're not good, we'll get eliminated pretty early, and Griese will get some playing time.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, May 8, 1967

Summer vacation is here, so I guess it's going to be all about the music for a while! We had a bit of a shortage of Detroit music on the charts in late April and early May, but it's going to start coming back this summer. We'll pepper in some interesting draft tidbits, too.

Two jams this week.





Feels like the version of Respect by The Rationals just happened. It surprised me that Aretha's version didn't chart THAT long, despite its lasting success -- it came on and off the chart the same week as Ain't No Mountain High Enough.

I don't know if it was apparent from all the 1st round trade talk, but the Top 10 was weird, with the Giants drafting twice in a row at 4/5 and the Patriots drafting twice in a row at 6/7. Here are the Giants picks:





Looks like Bobby Bryant would have been a good pick too, though I'm obviously happy with Griese. CB was not really a need for the Giants, they needed an LT and an LB, and an S. Still I like the pick for them, he's a good player and they can fill other positions later. DE was kind of a need for them, and Decker looks pretty good.

And the Patriots:





Interesting choice going two WR for the Patriots. Here are their WRs:



Gilliam looks like a good choice, but Robinson seems like a waste of a pick. Meanwhile, they have holes at both Tackle spots, and one of the OLBs. They have three good ILBs though, so maybe they could move one? Also, this team has surprisingly few holes for a team that went 4-10 last year. I mean, they do also need a QB badly, but there wasn't much there with Griese gone.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, May 15, 1967



At #9, the Jets took Lem Barney, who I was bummed about since he was a famous Lion.



Good pick for them. They could use a good CB, too.

And at #10, the Redskins took RT Rayfield Wright, who I was considering:



Good pick for them, too. They really need an RT.

I don't know if I mentioned it, but Gene Upshaw looked really good, even though I didn't need a G. He went to the Cowboys at #13.



And I also thought DT Alan Page was good, but had no need there. He fell all the way to the Chiefs at #24:



Always awesome for the league to let the Super Bowl champion have a stud DT. It's actually a big need for them -- they play a 4-3 with Buck Buchanan at one DT, and didn't have anyone good at the other spot, and the so-so players they did have are with other teams anyway.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, May 22, 1967



Let's look at some first round busts now! I'm thinking if you're drafting someone in the 1st round, you want his future value to at least be in the 60s. I'll spoiler this if you don't want to see it.

Spoiler

#2 RB Larry Conjar, Atlanta, 33/49
#7 WR John Robinson, Boston, 32/55
#11 RB Floyd Little, San Diego, 49/49
#15 WR Danny Abramowicz, Chicago, 39/48
#17 CB John Rowser, Cleveland, 37/46
#18 S Raymond Brown, Philadelphia, 27/41
#19 ILB Willie Lanier, Pittsburgh, 34/57
#21 RB Ben Woodson, Oakland, 44/52
#22 TE Billy Masters, Houston, 35/42

[Passacaglia]

Monday, May 29, 1967



2nd round -- some definite bad picks, maybe it's unfair to call them busts in the 2nd round. A steal for the Patriots, getting 45/68 S Rick Volk at 2.21

3rd round -- We took Larry Little, who seemed close to other Guards taken right after. Little came out 29/52, Denver's pick Don Bruce was 13/57, and Atlanta's pick Tom Regner was 19/53. Worst future guy, but a 13/57 has pretty far to go to reach that potential. TE Alvin Reed, who our staff suggested, came out 31/42. Best player here was the Dolphins taking C Bob Hyland at 3.4, who came out 23/63. I don't know if you can call him a breakout, since for one, his current is low, and for another, he was the first C taken. The Dolphins have a 38/38 C in Bob Goode -- I think they should start the rookie, but we'll see.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, June 5, 1967



4th round -- Bubba Smith, the #1 pick in real life, went here to the Dolphins at 4.6, but he sucks. Interesting. The Bills got G John Demaire at 4.10, who came out 28/66.

5th round -- Pretty much no talent at all here. The Chiefs got a steal in G Freddie Woodson at 5.4, who came out 17/52.

6th round -- The Redskins get a 31/59 FB Ray McDonald at 6.8, but he was the first FB taken. They have a 37/50 FB, so he might not start.

7th round -- The Browns take G Ron Zwernemann at 7.19 he's 23/52.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, June 12, 1967



Time to look at our depth charts:



This is interesting -- coordinator recommendations suggest that Griese starts, and Ray Hinze over George Preas. I guess I'll leave that for now. I was thinking Plum was the way to go, but as I look at my O-line, I don't think I should expect to compete this year. So maybe Griese is the way to go.



For RB, I just went with the recommendations. For TE, I gave Bill Anderson some more PT to prevent Ron Kramer from getting tired. For WR, I put Finch in as more of a starter, hoping he can reach his potential. I tried to prevent Bass from being tired, but he's by far my #1 WR, so it feels inevitable.



I've got my run defense guys coming in on goal-line situations to give Kearney a needed break. I'd love to have him stay in for those situations and sub him out for nickel or dime situations, but I'm already having to deal with my other S, Webb, also with low endurance.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, June 19, 1967



Time to start cutting down to 60 from the 71 we have on roster now.

1. ILB Harry Butsko -- He can be a good blitzing LB, but his overall rating is 25/26, so if he's doing anything other than blitzing, we're screwed. OLBs Lou Levanti and Wayne Walker are better pass-rushers and better overall, and I don't mind playing them at ILB if I need to.
2. ILB Frank Nunley -- Our 7th round pick, who came in at 19/29, and he's not even specialized like I like my defenders.
3. G Chuck Walton -- He's a 32/32 G who was on the team last year, but has fallen to #5 on the depth chart now that we drafted Larry Little in the 3rd.
4. DT Denis Moore -- He's 25/37, and our 5th DT in our 3-4. No need for him at all.
5. QB Karl Sweetan -- 33/39, pretty bad as even our backup QB last year, with a 58.2 passer rating.
6. WR Don Alley -- Our 5th round pick, coming in at 19/41.
7. WR John Henderson -- 40/42, he was on the team last year. Only Karl Finch had a lower yards per routes on the team, but at least Finch has some potential.
8. P Pat Studstill -- He's 67/67, obviously good, but we don't need a 2nd P and we signed Paul Maguire.
9. FB Tom Nowatzke -- Same deal here. He's 53/53, but we only need one FB, and we signed Mike Lind.
10. TE Tom Beer -- Our 6th round pick. 26/43, but not good enough to keep on as a 4th TE.
11. T Cas Banaszek -- Our 4th round pick. 27/49, but he's our #5 T and the potential is not there.



So we've cut down to 60, and so has everyone else. We still spent the most of our cap money -- we're here to win, not sure about these other chuckers with $1-2M in cap room. And even if someone good does become available, we've got $400K to get them if we want. Although, with everyone else having so much room, I can't imagine anyone good getting cut as we go down to 53. Plus, it's going to be hard enough for me to cut 7 guys, adding another FA means I'd have to cut even more. We're at $5.47M in cap spent for 1968, with 43 players. With the cap being at $7.2M next year, that gives us a lot to play with to sign another 1-2 WRs and 1-2 Ts.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, June 26, 1967



Let's take a little time to look at who we're gunning for, the Chiefs. Interesting that they are not starting Alan Page at DT.



And the NFL Champion Packers.



I don't see either of these teams as being THAT much better than us now. Better, but not much. I feel like giving my guys another year to play together, a year of improvement for Griese, and a few players added next offseason, we'll be right there with these guys. The goal this year is just "be a real team", 1968 is "compete for playoffs" and by 1969, the goal should be winning the Super Bowl.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, July 3, 1967



We can look at the other division winners now.

The AFL East was won by the Houston Oilers.



The NFL East was won by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, July 10, 1967



How about we look at the rest of the NFL West?

[Passacaglia]

Monday, July 17, 1967



I just noticed an interesting fact, that we are the oldest team.



Really surprising to me since I hate signing old people. Maybe it's because I cut 5 of my 7 draft picks.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, July 24, 1967

[Passacaglia]

Monday, July 31, 1967

[Passacaglia]

Monday, August 7, 1967

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Monday, August 14, 1967

[Passacaglia]

Monday, August 21, 1967

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, August 27

Preseason is here! Our annual matchup with the Broncos.



Sure, it doesn't matter, and the Broncos are as bad as we were, but it's a big win! We gave Griese the start, and he did not disappoint:



Plum had the better passer rating, but that's because of his TDs. I'll take Griese's 10/12 passing and a higher yards per attempt instead. Griese's 4 drives led to 10 points -- would have been 13 if not for a blocked FG. There was a 3-and-out in there. Griese threw to Bass for 6 yards, Marsh ran for 3, then Mason lost a yard on 3rd and 1. It happens. Fine game for a rookie.

[Passacaglia]

Monday August 28, 1967






LICKING OUR WOUNDS



Escaped the preseason relatively unscathed. Jim Tucker is not a big loss, and he should be fine for the opener vs. Atlanta.


Cutting to 53 is going to be hard. Our depth chart has 5 safeties, 5 CBs, 8 LBs, 3 DTs, and 4 DEs -- that's 25 players who are just expected to participate. And that's not including our 2nd round pick, OLB Jim Lynch, and return man CB Charley Warner.

First cut will have to be Larry Little.



He's actually solid, but I don't think I'll need a 4th G, and he's clearly the worst, and doesn't have potential to move above the others. I also want to make fun of my image downloader for choosing this nonsense picture further down instead of the obvious headshot at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Little

With that, we've released picks 3-7 from this draft, and the only two we're keeping are Griese and Lynch.

We'll also get rid of Charley Warner. Warner was brought in to be the kick returner, and Lincoln is almost as good at that, so he can be both PR and KR. I probably should have realized roster spots would be at a premium and not signed Warner in the first place.

OLB Lou Levanti is next. He's the 2nd best pure blitzer on the team, and we probably don't need two. If Walker gets hurt, it's not like we really need one -- we'll just bring in a better pass defender in his place.

DT Bill Miller is similar. He's a goal line guy, and he's not on the depth chart there because we don't need to sub Karras out for that.

DE Clair Appledoorn is the same. Run defense, not on depth chart. If another run-stopping DE gets hurt, we'll figure something out -- maybe put a DT in that spot.

I don't usually look at chemistry, but I have been keeping an eye on it a little for this dynasty as I slow things down. One of the factors about deciding on Griese over Plum was that Griese was neutral chemistry-wise, and Plum had a couple negatives and no positives. Although honestly, it was mostly that he just led the team to a 1-13 season -- I don't care how bad the team around him is, that's just not our QB. He can find a team next year and see if he can revive his career there. Anyway, maybe it took playing a game for Griese to check in with some chemistry:



This is a decent enough argument for me to cut Coia. He and Tucker were tied for the 2 worst future value WRs. Tucker's injury means I can't cut him anyway.

And for the last cut, I'm going to go with RT George Preas. I'd been projecting him as the starter over Hinze, but Hinze is up to 42/59, so it's seeming like he can develop, and since I'm going with Griese as the starter, I may as well stick with Hinze here. Everyone else on the roster is either part of the depth chart, needed to fulfill minimum position requirements, or a backup at a position (ie the #2 C or #3 G), other than Jim Lynch, and whichever of LT Daryl Sanders (50/50) and RT George Preas (50/50) is not the #3 T. I don't want to cut Lynch, since I'm hoping he can be a starter in 1968 and later. I could cut one of the LBs who only make the depth chart in specialized situations, but they do seem like good players to have in those spots. And keeping Sanders over Preas seems like the right call -- Preas is in his 13th year, and I feel much more comfortable sticking an LT into the RT spot than the other way around.

With that last cut, we're down to 53. We've got $660K in cap room, and we're at $5.29M spent next year, so $1.91 in cap room, with 39 players signed. If you're curious who we still need to sign...

[Passacaglia]

Friday, September 1, 1967

Opening day! As usual, we start with just the AFL in the first week, and they play 1 game Friday, 1 game Saturday, and 1 game Sunday.

In today's game, Boston travels to Oakland. Boston was pretty crappy in 1966, going 4-10, and Oakland went 10-4, but still missed out on the playoffs. Boston is also suffering from their QB Babe Parilli having a Strained Achilles Tendon. He's 43/43, and their backup Dennis Claridge is 36/36, so maybe it's not a huge deal. The Patriots also signed our cast-off Larry Little, and are planning to start him at G, in place of Len St. Jean (54/54), who is Out for 3 weeks. Little will return to being a backup I'm sure when St. Jean is healthy.



The Patriots jump to an early lead, finding themselves up 17-7 in the middle of the 2nd, but then the game settles into the better team taking over, and midway through the 4th, they are up 28-20. The Patriots score with 3:37 but miss the 2 pt. conversion, and it's 28-26. No matter -- Patriots S Goose Gonsoulin forces a fumble from Oakland RB Clem Daniels on the 2nd play of their drive, and Claridge leads Boston down the field to win the game, 33-28. With 5 seconds left, Flores completes a pass for 58 yards to Biletnikoff to get to the Patriots 16, but time expires. Maybe time for one more play could have changed things.

Goose Gonsoulin is a familiar name -- I mentioned him on March 31.

Denver S Goose Gonsoulin (61/61) signs with Boston for 2 years, $420K. He's a guy I had in my back pocket if we didn't get Paulson, so now I guess we better get Paulson.

I frown as I think that we did not get Paulson, either. Enjoy it, Pats.

[Passacaglia]

Saturday, September 2, 1967

Miami at Denver today. Neither team was very good in 1966 (4-10 for Miami, 1-13 for Denver). Does Denver's #1 pick S Ken Houston help the team? Does their new QB Gary Cuozzo do a better job than Tobin Rote did for them? Miami also has been apparently starting the coach's son, George Wilson Jr., at QB. It's a tough call who is better between him and George Izo, but Izo is probable anyway. Neither are very good, though.





Coach's son delivers the win! This despite throwing a pick-6, and Broncos DE Pete Duranko sacking him 4 times.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, September 3, 1967

This is the fun one -- Chiefs at Oilers, in a replay of the AFL Championship game.



Great game if you like field goals.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, September 4, 1967





LICKING OUR WOUNDS

No game last weekend for us, so nothing interesting here -- just another week closer to full strength for Jim Tucker.

A quick peek at the FA market revealed no one at all worth signing from the teams that played this weekend cutting down to 53.

But we need to get down to 47 active players. First pass is to add 5th WR Bill Malinchak, backup C Bob Whitlow, and OLB Jim Lynch to the inactive roster. From there, everyone else feels needed. We also add LB Wayne Walker, LB Nelson Toburen, and S Dicky Moegle, since they are only on the depth chart a little bit.

[Passacaglia]

Friday, September 8, 1967





Kind of a slog here until the Bills offense wakes up. Lamonica looks like he had a decent day overall, just that the Bills ran the ball too much.

[Passacaglia]

Saturday, September 9, 1967





The Chiefs go into New York and get punked! I don't know what happened here. I still maintain the Chiefs are not the best team out there, despite winning the Super Bowl, but the 6-8 Jets beating them this badly??

And the NFL starts with the top 2 teams in the West, which is the Packers and Colts, just like 1966.





And just like 1966, Baltimore wins a close one, and is in the lead spot in the West. These two will play again December 10, potentially with the same stakes as last year.





Coach's son almost leads the Dolphins to a comeback. Could have gone to OT if they didn't try to get cute with the 2 pt. conversions. How about Raiders WR Art Powell with 2 TDs in each game so far?

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, September 10, 1967

Our turn! We start with a home game against Atlanta. I feel like we should win this easily. Both our teams were 1-13 in 1966, but we've made a lot of improvements, while all Atlanta did was add Donna Reed. I guess it's time to see if our improvements helped. This is a test in that if we lose, we'll know we still have a long way to go, but if we win, it won't say much about our ability to compete with better teams.



Good stop for the defense, but Ray Hinze makes me immediately regret cutting George Preas by allowing the sack. Then Proverb Jacobs says, "don't worry, you're actually deficient at both tackle spots" and allows a sack on the other end. Griese fumbles, but recovers it, so we get the pleasure of punting on 4th and 32.



Another good stop. Grr on Montalbo for the penalty on the 0 yard punt. I'm not sure how our PR was able to field a punt that only went to the line of scrimmage, but whatever. Griese shows that when allowed to throw the ball he can make thing happen, with the 18 yard pass to Tucker. Proverb Jacobs shows his "prowess" again with the penalty, and Charley Leo joins the fun.



Donna Reed leads the Falcons down the field for a drive, but we manage to stop them before they can score a touchdown. I can't give credit to the goal-line defense here -- looks like we ran nickel on the 4th and 2 they converted, and the 3rd and 4 where we stopped them.



Bass had me pissed off, dropping his 2nd pass, with no catches, in the 1st quarter. But he made up for it with 3 catches, 59 yards, and a TD the rest of the drive. Still: Don't drop the ball.



The Falcons were dirivng again when our 2nd CB John Griffin picks off Donna Reed in the end zone.



What a drive. A couple nice runs, and Griese hits 5 different receivers, including #3 TE Bob McLeod for the TE. I love being up by 2 scores.



Larry Muff saves the day here. The Falcons were driving again, the third straight time they were in FG range, when he blocks a pass causes a penalty (why not, I'll assume that's his doing), then gets half a sack to knock them out of FG range. McCord and Muff coming in on passing downs worked exactly like it was supposed to there. Now we've got a minute to see if we can add to our lead.



Okay, Bass. I see how it's going to be for us. You're going to be the guy who gives me headaches constantly, but makes so many great plays that I have to live with it. Incidentally, I just noticed after this game that Bass is a Red Flag, so that's fun. Anyway, Bass gets his drop out of the way early, follows it up with 3 catches again, but this time adds a fumble for good measure. Luckily, Mason recovers it. We botch the whole scoring thing with Maguire's false start, but it's good to see us with a 14-3 and being able to move the ball effectively as we go into halftime.



Bass! Okay, these weren't drops or anything necessarily his fault. Twice Griese threw into double coverage, and the other one was a pass defensed. So, fine. Atlanta drives on us again, but again we stop them before the goal line.



Bass!! He gets his 3 catches this drive too, but without a drop, and without a fumble. And Bob McLeod with another big catch, too. Our C Bob Stem gets hurt here, which is annoying. And the defense follows it up with a 3-and-out, nice!



Bob McLeod with another big catch here, but not much else this drive. Short-yardage defense with a nice 4th and 1 stop.



And we take advantage for a quick FG, and another 4th down stop for the defense. Feels like between Bass and the defense, we've just about put them away here.



Felt like we barely ran the ball until this point -- Mason just had 6 carries before this drive. But he ices the game here.

Spoiler

It felt like Bass should have been player of the game, with 11 catches and 167 yards, but he sure ate targets to do it. 21 of Griese's 39 passes? Sheesh. Plus the fumble. Clean that up, and we're good.

Darrius McCord is taking well in his transition from starter to coming in on passing downs. He had 1.5 sacks, 2 blocks, and 2 hurries.

But hey, we're 1-0 with a very comfortable win! We're at Chicago next week -- the Bears just lost at home to the 49ers, 21-13.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, September 11, 1967





LICKING OUR WOUNDS



We talked about Bob Stem being hurt -- Bob Whitlow will take his place. Ron Kramer will stay on the active roster, since we need 3 TEs.

[Passacaglia]

Friday, September 15, 1967

Prime time for us as we go to Chicago to take on the Bears! Let's see how we do against a real team.



Not a great start. The Bears had no trouble moving the ball, AND got a big play for the TD. And our response is Proverb Jacobs allowing ANOTHER sack, plus Karl Finch getting hurt. Ugh. Oh, and it's like Abramowicz heard me call him out as a bust on that reverse.



I know last week I said I love being up by two scores, but here's another weird little quirk about me -- I actually also hate being down by two scores. At least we held them to a FG this time, but we're going to need real stops. Pretty annoyed with LeBeau for the penalty that negated Fields's sack. And really I feel like it was only their own penalty that stopped them, not us.



We're on the board! But Abramowicz seems determined to show me up. Like I said before: We need stops.



This TD seemed necessary. We haven't had a stop yet, and we can't be down two scores AND give them the ball back. I don't know why, but being down 2 points felt way closer than 3. Or maybe it's the higher scores -- down 10-7 felt like maybe we got lucky once, but down 16-14 feels like we're in a game with them (even though we're still chasing them).



Um, yeah, still looking for that stop. I felt like that illegal motion penalty should have been accepted when it happened, and that was proven to be the case.



Bass with a fumble here. I spent a lot of time fretting about Bass during the week. Loved his performance, but didn't love his drops and his fumble. He's the only guy who is "red" on the depth chart, meaning he's in so much that he'll get tired. This makes sense, he is by far my best WR, and he showed he can produce last year for Buffalo -- I want him in, a lot. But maybe the fatigue is affecting him? The drops and fumble came early last week, and early this week, too, so it's not like this is happening because he's getting tired late in games. I only have 4 WRs active, and I didn't see a way to get Bass to stop being red without getting another WR red. Maybe there was a way, but I wasn't willing to give Hinton and Tucker more playing time than Bass. I considered making a LB inactive, but in the end I decided I'd wait until an injury opened a sport for my 5th WR, Malinchak.

But hey, we got a stop! And Bass gets us almost to FG range right before halftime.



Bass! It would have been nice to have scored before halftime, but getting back in range seems like a big deal.



We get the stop, but do nothing with it.



Not looking good.



I felt like our run game has been pretty much non-existent, which is fine I guess, we probably should be a pass-first team eventually as Griese develops. But Mason gets a nice run here.

As I was watching the game, I felt confident that we could get a stop and win, but as I am pasting the screenshots, this has "we played them close, moral victory" written all over it.



McCord! Not a complete stop, but now all we have to do is score a TD and win the game.



Okay, NOW all we have to do is score a TD and win the game. We've got just a little less time to do it. Keith Lincoln gets us started with a nice punt return to put us at the 50, too.



This is the Lions so far encapsulated in one drive -- we make mistakes, then big plays to make up for it, Bass gets 3 catches and a TD.



McCord! Muff! Ineligible players downfield! Abramowicz! Lions win!

Spoiler

Bass's stat line looks a lot better here. 10 targets and 10 catches. I like that. Still had the fumble, though. I'm feeling inclined to just roll like this -- he's too good to rest, especially compared to the rest of the team.

Not shown here is Darris McCord -- 3 sacks today after 1.5 last week! His 4.5 sacks on the year are better than the 4 he had in 9 games in 1966 -- the switch from starter to passing down DE has been huge for him.

Also not shown is Charley Warner -- keen eyes may have noticed that he got signed by the Bears and played in this game. He returned one kick for 34 yards, and got a lot of reps at CB, too.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, September 17, 1967

Time to sit back and watch the rest of the leagues play.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, September 18, 1967





LICKING OUR WOUNDS



We talked about Finch being hurt, but so is Jon Arnett. Marsh is a capable backup, though.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, September 24, 1967

Okay, big test today. Home game against the Packers. 71 degree weather, rain, 10 mph wind.



Okay, I said Marsh is a capable backup, but I didn't think we'd come out acting like he's our bellcow, getting more early rushes than even Tommy Mason does. Guys, you know Mason's not the one hurt, right? Anyway, Maguire buries them with a nice punt, and we get a stop. So that's good!



Again with Marsh, although I have to admit, it seems to be working here. Pretty annoyed with Doug Van Horn, my best offensive lineman, getting holding penalties two weeks in a row. Oh, and obviously, the Packers TD is bad.



Holding penalty kills another drive. And Griese really hasn't had anything going for him yet.



Holding again kills us, this time on the defensive side -- we had them stopped at our 41. Blah.



Well, put these two FGs together and it's like a Touchdown, right? Griese gets a long pass in, but holding kills ANOTHER drive, at least this time it's in FG range. And we finally get a drive with no penalties, but get stopped at the 1. I'd have wanted us to go for that, though.



Well that's no fun.



Another FG, and we're within one score at halftime. This was the first drive that feels like "us" -- maybe it's the wind and the rain preventing us from really opening things up like we usually do.



Perfect way to start the 2nd half! 3 plays, no yards, get the ball back. Now let's tie this game.



I can't argue with kicking the FG on 4th and 5. I liked the call to go for it at the 32, but come on, why didn't you do it at the goal line??



McCord! But, Griese with the first INT of his career. I guess there's rarely a good time for a pick-6, but that seemed really bad.



Trading a couple 3 and outs. Time not on our side here, guys.



Okay. In the 4th quarter, I'd have wanted a 6 minute drive to end in a touchdown, but at least we're within one score now.



EXCUSE ME!?!?!?!?! 4th and 3 with 3:30 left, down 8 points, and we're trying a 60 yard FG in 10 mph wind?!? Get the first down here!!



Oh and what a surprise, we don't get the ball back. 60 yard FG attempt. What a crock.

Spoiler

[Passacaglia]

We're about a fourth of the way through the season, so good time to look at the overview. I feel like we've definitely hit our goal of being a "real team" -- things may shake out differently, but we're 2-1. We could look at it as our only loss was by one score to the NFL Champions, or that we've only beat winless teams. But still, so far, real team.

Some of the stats here are skewed because of the number of games. The Dolphins, Oilers, and Raiders have all played 4, while the Bears have only played 2. I guess everyone else has played 3, so it's mostly good. Nice to see Griese up there with passing yards -- he was #1 in passer rating until this past week, too. McCord leading the leagues in sacks! And we're charting in the team statistics column on the right, too, which are per play or per game, so the unevenness doesn't matter there -- #3 in points scored, passing yards, and yards per play.

Too soon to tell much about division races, though the Raiders are pulling away. They're 1.5 games ahead, and just beat the Chiefs 27-26, on a 41-yard TD pass to Fred Biletnikoff with 1 second left (after the Chiefs scored a TD with 39 seconds left).

[Passacaglia]

Monday, September 25, 1967



LICKING OUR WOUNDS

No new injuries and everyone is 1 week closer to full health than last week. I'll spare everyone the screen shot fatigue.

Next up for us is a trip to LA to face the Rams in another Friday night game.

[Passacaglia]

Friday, September 29, 1967



Not great to let them drive the field like that, but we'll take the fact that it's only 3 points.



Now that's the Lions offense I'm used to seeing! And we get the stop, but we are buried at our own 1.



We at least dig ourselves out of the hole before the drive falters. And the Rams go the wrong way once they have the ball, getting sacked and getting a holding penalty.



There we go! Bass even bails us out from the false start on 3rd and 1. I love being up two scores.



Well that was fast. I know I said last week there's no good time for a pick-6, but I feel like I'm okay with this one. Get the ball back and let's take the lead.



That FG attempt is a tough call, I could see choosing either way. I feel like Garo should have hit that, though.



Garo makes up for it here. Tied it up at halftime, and I'm feeling confident.



Garo again. Glad to see us hitting our FGs again. Although, I'd rather not have another 5 FG game like last week, so how about some touchdowns?



Not a good set there. Hopefully we can keep them backed up, get the ball back, and score.



It feels like Dick Bass is killing us. But at least we get the ball back.



Super annoyed when the 3rd and 10 conversion gets negated by a holding penalty, but we make up for it by getting 3rd and 20 with a huge play!



That was close. They got pretty close to FG range there. I don't know who their kicker is, but I'd have kicked the 54-yarder to tie it up there. But hey, a punt that nets 17 yards in field position is fine with me. And we again make up for a holding penalty with a big play. That's a tough call to decide what to do on 4th and 2 at their 41. I'm glad we didn't try to kick a super-long unhelpful field goal like we did last week, at least. And Maguire buries them. I'm feeling pretty safe -- they can't go 98 yards in 2:18, can they?



Excruciating. Our defense slowed them down *just* enough.



Wow. I really thought we were going to lose as Dick Bass hit that 11 yard run. Our backup S Bruce Maher with the INT that saves us! And, his return put us basically in FG range to start us off. I don't love kicking the FG on 2nd down with plenty of time on the clock, but whatever. We're 3-1!

Spoiler

Hard not to look at this and feel like we wasted a lot of plays running the ball. I'd much rather do what the Rams did -- 24 carries for one back, 5 yards per rush -- than what we did, 37 carries for two backs who split it, for less than 3 yards per carry overall. Bass with another 10+ catch game, but not many yards. OLB Ernie Clark was the sack guy today with 2, instead of McCord, who didn't have any. That's fine.

So we're 3-1, the Colts are 3-0, and the Packers are 2-1. If I didn't know better, I'd say we're actually in the thick of things for the NFL West! Trying to to get too ahead of ourselves, though. On the other hand, could we have beat the Packers and be 4-0 if we started Plum?

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, October 1, 1967

Time for the rest of the games!



The Jets make out like bandits here, getting a win, and a loss for everyone else in the AFL East. The FOF Probability thing has them as an 83% change to win the division.
The Chiefs pull closer to the Raiders with a win over the Patriots. Broncos and Chargers get their first wins.
Cowboys and Cardinals are on top in the NFL East at 4-0 and 3-1.
Colts get the week off, but are still on top of the NFL West at 3-0. Packers and Lions right behind them at 3-1.

This was also supposed to be a hard stretch for us, at least based on last year's records. Road games against 8-6 Chicago and 8-6 Los Angeles, and a home game against 12-2 Green Bay. Now, we've got what should be an easier stretch -- home games against 2-2 San Francisco, 2-2 Minnesota, and 0-3 Chicago (yes, I'm including them in the hard stretch and the easy stretch, but it makes sense), before we travel to Baltimore.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, October 2, 1967

No jams today. The charts that I've been using, from WKNR radio in Detroit, switched from Mondays to Thursdays to publish, so we'll make the switch with them.

LICKING OUR WOUNDS

No new injuries here. Ron Kramer came in for a couple special teams plays last week, and he's going to be full strength for our next game. He's going to get the start, but I'm making sure I get Anderson in for passing formations, so Kramer isn't tired.

[Passacaglia]

Thursday, October 5, 1967





We should probably catch up on transactions. We saw Charley Warner play for the Bears. The TE we cut, Tom Beer, signed with the Eagles, on the same day, September 16. Tom Nowatzke signed with the Chargers, George Preas signed with the Redskins, and Cas Banaszek signed with the Giants on September 30. Good to see those guys find spots.

[Passacaglia]

Saturday, October 7, 1967

The NFL gives us a matchup between the East winner Steelers and East 7th place Giants. Unfortunately, both teams are 1-3.





Bookie Bolin wins player of the game with 7 key run blocks, but he had 15 opportunities to do it. Bobby Bryant getting it done for the Giants -- 3 passes defensed, and none were caught on him. And Roger Brown with a good game for the Steelers -- 1 sack, 1 blocked pass, and 2 hurries.

And the AFL gives us a few games today:





The Jets were 6-8 last year, now they are 5-0! And the Oilers were 11-3 last year, upgraded the QB position with Billy Kilmer, and now they're 2-4.





Chiefs move up to 3-2, trying to keep pace with the 3-1 Raiders. Chiefs S Johnny Robinson is killing it with 6 INTs in 5 games. The Chiefs have a 5.4 interception percentage. That seems crazy high to me (2nd place is the Chargers at 4.4 percent, and we're in 8th place with 1.9 percent).





Chargers have won 2 in a row to move up to 2-3. I missed that Gail Cogdill signed with the Chargers. He's played in all 5 games, but had no targets. 2 tackles on special teams in this game. Broncos #1 pick S Ken Houston led the team with 9 tackles, but had 6 passes caught on him.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, October 8, 1967

A little injury news. It looks like San Francisco QB John Brodie checks in as probable. I don't see where the injury happened exactly. He threw a TD pass last week against Green Bay to make it 43-27 Packers, then the Packers scored a TD to make it 50-27, and backup George Mira came in after that. And, it looks like Mira gets the start against us today. So, we better win.



Good start for our offense. If they keep it up like this, and with Brodie out, should be no problem here.



That tripping call was pretty annoying, we had them stopped.



It feels like we haven't talked about Bass in the bad way for the last couple weeks. He's cut out the fumbles, which is obviously good, and hasn't needed as many targets as he did Week 1, so it seems like we've been okay to keep him in as much as we do. But the OPI was pretty annoying here.



Hmm. Maye we should be worried about Mira.



Kinda feel like I'd rather have just picked up that 4th and 1 (although I had a feeling we weren't going to get that 3rd and 3), but it's obviously good to have the lead. And Bass with another penalty after a catch -- still better than the fumbles.



And SF comes back to tie it up. This game is feeling uncomfortably close.



Maguire with a nice punt to make sure they don't have a good chance for a 2-minute drill 2nd quarter score. Tied at halftime.



Good stop, and a couple penalties make it so we're starting at the 31 instead of the 1.



Ugh, another FG from inside the 5. But Maher with another interception, two weeks in a row! Not bad for a guy who really kind of just slipped onto the roster. I feel like he would have been cut, if not for Allan Webb's poor endurance so Maher comes in for Webb in passing situations. And if I had thought of how Webb would need a sub then, I'd have looked to sign someone else.



Again with this? I don't know if I've mentioned it, but I actually like being up by TWO scores. I'm kind of feeling like we've figured out their offense and they are unlikely to score, though I'm not sure why, and even if we have, anything can happen.



Sometimes it's annoying to have a good Punter. Again, I'd have wanted to go for it there, but I guess I have to grudgingly accept that it's a good choice if we bury them at the 4.



The 49ers get themselves out of the hole, but get the ball back at the 20. With 3:55 left, this is probably their last chance.



Hmm. Okay, I guess they will get one more chance.



McCord! We're somehow 4-1!

Spoiler

80% passing for Griese, the backs running well. How was this even close? I guess settling for those FGs inside the 5. McCord picks up another 1.5 sacks, plus 4 hurries.

And for the rest of the Sunday games...



We saw the Jets go up to 5-0, but again everyone else in the East loses. Probability thing has them at 95% chance to win the division now.
Raiders win too, and stay a game ahead of the Chiefs.
The Falcons beat the Cowboys! That's two in a row for the Falcons, and the Cowboys only loss! Has Donna Reed made the Falcons a real team? Browns get their first win over the Cardinals, so the Cowboys are still a game ahead. 3-2 Redskins in the mix now, too.
The Rams beat the Packers in Green Bay, and that puts us alone in 2nd place! Colts let the Bears hang around too long -- they were up 27-13 late in the 4th, but the Bears scored, and got the ball back to try a game-winning drive, but couldn't do it.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, October 9, 1967

LICKING OUR WOUNDS

No new injuries again. Arnett and Finch are 2 weeks to healthy. We'll keep them inactive for Minnesota, but they should be ready to play Chicago.

[Passacaglia]

Thursday, October 12, 1967





Now that we've caught up on the backlog of transactions (although I should mention that the Chargers dropped Nowatzke on Saturday the 7th right before their game), Thursday is probably a good day to focus on our next opponent.

We've got 2-2 Minnesota this Sunday. They were 7-7 last year.



So far, this whole team seems like a big waste of this guy:



Rated the best QB in the leagues, player of the year in 1966. And this year, they're not good in any of the offensive categories. They are best in sacks and 2nd in passing yards allowed. The Purple People Eaters isn't exactly coming to fruition here -- DT Alan Page just got drafted by the Chiefs, DT Gary Larsen looks middling, and they still have their DC from 1966, Marion Campbell, who is running a 3-4 anyway. But their DEs look great -- Carl Eller is 90/90 (4 sacks) and Jim Marshall is 79/79 (1.5 sacks). As crazy as it is, the defense is carrying the team led by the best QB in the leagues. Also, Tommy Mason takes on his former team.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, October 15, 1967

Everyone plays today!



I guess Gary Larsen didn't like me calling him middling. Well played.



We get some penalty help we don't need, but still can't convert TDs.



The Vikings offense finally gets a turn and has no problem scoring a TD.



We get back in the game fast, and get a stop!



Despite Tommy Mason being the guy wanting to go off against his old team, Amos Marsh is the hot hand today. Sucks to miss the FG.



Not good, but at least we stop them in the end, and stay within a score at halftime.



We get the stop and things are looking good, bur Griese with the immediate interception, and we're down two scores again.



A touchdown?? Us? Granted, the Vikings helped us out with three penalties inside the 10.



Hey hey! It feels like that's the way we need to score TDs -- big plays, since so many drives stall. Larsen with a sack that put us in trouble, but I'll forgive him -- fine, maybe you're not middling!



Griese with another pick, obviously not great. But it's okay -- we can move the ball, and even score TDs this game. We're fine.



Anderson's fumble almost blows it for us, but Griese makes up for it here. The Vikings give us some penalties that help. Griese almost stalls us at the goal line with the two incompletions, but hits Bass on 3rd down -- thanks guys.



I'd have liked to see Tommy Mason get the chance to at least put the game away by himself, but again, Marsh had the hot hand. We win, and are 5-1!!

Spoiler

I think this is the first time anyone other than Griese was player of the game in one of our wins.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? The Colts lose in San Francisco (who are still starting George Mira by the way) and drop to 4-1! That puts our 5-1 record on top of the NFL West! And the Packers lose -- to the 0-4 Bears? Up is down.

Jets have the week off, but get help from the rest of the East still sucking. Oilers and Patriots lose to West teams, and the only East winner was against themselves when the Dolphins beat the Bills. Jets probability has moved up to 97% now.
Chiefs win and Raiders lose, so they're both tied at 4-2! Chargers win over the Raiders puts them at 3-3. They lost their first three at home, then won their next three on the road. Feels like they are worth keeping an eye on, only a game back.
Cowboys drop another one, this time to the Eagles, and now they are 4-2. Cardinals and Redskins lose and can't capitalize on it. Whole division is a mess, everyone is within a game of 3-3.
And in the NFL West...I'm still in shock. Probability thing gives us a 57% chance to win the division.

[Passacaglia]

Thursday, October 19, 1967



LICKING OUR WOUNDS

I've noticed that FOF9 shifts a player's injury status on Thursdays. Since we just moved the jams from Monday to Thursday, we might as well move "Licking Our Wounds" from Monday to Thursday, too.

Still no new injuries. Last Thursday, I noticed that Finch went from 2 to 1 weeks, but Arnett stayed at 2 weeks. Today, Finch is at full health, and Arnett is still at 1 week. I haven't been keeping track of where he should be, but Bob Stem will be healthy in 4 weeks.

I want to have 5 WRs so that none of my guys get tired there. I looked at some player cards, and the two LBs that I have coming in for short yardage and goal-line -- Furey and Toburen -- just have like 5 plays total for the season each. I don't think that justifies a spot on the active roster, certainly not two. I added Furey to the inactive, and Lucci takes his place in the depth chart. And even with all 5 WRs active, it was still hard to make sure no one is in the red here. Bass's player card indicates he's tired, so this is going to be needed for him.

Next opponent -- the Bears!



We already beat them in Chicago, and now we get them in Detroit. They are fresh off their first win, over the NFL Champs, too -- will that give them some momentum? This feels like the ultimate trap game with Baltimore next week, and besides, I think we've been more lucky than good, but the Bears don't look all that great, either. Rain likely, 55 degrees.

[Passacaglia]

Sunday, October 22 1967

All games on Sunday today.



Abramowicz with a big catch again. I still say he's a bust.



Van Horn gets more holding penalties than I'd like (which is 0), but Griese with a 20 yard scramble to make up for it!



Griese to Bass for the big play to make up for another holding penalty!



Kearney with a sack on a blitz that saves the day here. Pretty cool since I don't think Kearney is usually a blitzer.



There we go! Score the TD (and on a prolonged drive, not just a big play), get a 3-and-out, and suddenly we're up two scores and have the ball!



Well, that half didn't end great. McCord was doing his part to get us the ball back with good field position, but that pass to Abramowicz screwed that up. I want to say the timeout was a mistake, but they got into FG range with enough time regardless -- if we didn't call timeout, it could have been that Champion's sack didn't happen, and they'd have had an even closer attempt. Whatever, we're still up 8, I'll take it.



I really wanted to see us go up 24-9 and yes, I'm going to get mad about punting on 4th and 2 at the 43 -- especially with the touchback. But having some time go off the clock is fine, too.



Blah, rookie QBs, I guess. Champion with another sack! He's my pass-rushing NT. I'm not sure what to expect from that position, while he is a pass-rusher, it's not like I expect him to rack up the sacks while playing NT. But it's cool to see him get a couple today.



Van Horn with another hold. Guess it doesn't matter, since it was declined.



There's that 24-9 lead I was looking for! So weird to be the team with more TDs than FGs, while the other team has just FGs. That's supposed to be our thing, but they can have it. Also, cool to see the 5th WR, Malinchak, checking in with a big catch.



Sure, take 4:30 off the clock and still be down two scores.



A lot of stupid at the end of this drive, but the run game was getting to done for quite a while there, and ran a lot of clock.



Bobby Thompson with the dagger. Hello, 6-1!

Spoiler

I know I got mad at Griese for the pick, but his completion percentage is really making up for it.

6 sacks for us! McCord adds 1.5, and Champion coming in big with 2.5!

Colts lose again?? We're sitting at 1.5 games ahead? The probability thing gives us a 71% chance of winning the division. I guess that'll either go way up or way down when we go to Baltimore next week.
In the NFL East, the Cowboys drop their third in a row, but are still tied for the division lead at 4-3, with the Redskins and Cardinals.
Chiefs win a big game over the Jets, and the Raiders and Chargers both win to keep this race close.
The Jets loss doesn't really hurt them in the AFL East, since the AFL East sucks.

[Passacaglia]

Monday, October 23, 1967

LICKING OUR WOUNDS

I decided I didn't like to have "Licking Our Wounds" on Thursday. That was probably fine when there were no new injuries, but when there are, it's weird to wait until Thursday to mention them.



Lucci and Griffin are both starters, but in spots where we have guys almost as good as backups. Lucci is 49/49 and we have a 48/48 and two 47/47s that can go in and probably be the same. Griffin's a little better -- he's 53/53 and we have a 48/48 and a 46/46 to go in. That effect will get worse when we're trying to figure out who will play nickel and dime, too. It was a little hard to fill the depth chart and make sure no one was red -- in the end, Ernie Clark and Bobby Thompson are going to be. Carver Shannon is the better CB, but he's already tired, so we're going to have to lean more on Thompson.

Getting Arnett back will be interesting. That pushes Marsh down to 3rd string, which does not sound great, since he's been getting 5.4 yard per carry.



Mason and Marsh seem like they have a thunder-and-lightning kind of thing going. Mason and Arnett feel like a lightning-and-lesser-lightning. I've got Marsh in on the bigger packages, the 221 and 230. I'm tempted to keep it like this and have Arnett jut sub in when needed. Maybe I'll just replace Marsh with Arnett in the only package he's in that's not big, the 113. I'm already thinking that I don't need 4 RBs, so this talk is all good as I plan to have just 3 next year. Lincoln is solid too even though he's just there as a return man -- I don't mind giving him the occasional carry as the #3 guy.

Oh, and Bass is not tired anymore!

[Passacaglia]

Tuesday, October 24, 1967

We're halfway through the season, time to look at the overview.



I'm still in shock to see these division standings. We're not just way on top of the division, but we have the best record in both leagues! And this is with starting some younger guys over established players. In case you're curious, Milt Plum is 60/60, and Griese was 45/74 when we drafted him -- he's now 52/74. On April 5 when I looked at RT, George Preas was 50/50 and Ray Hinze was 36/59 -- now he is 47/59.

Cool to see Griese at #2 in completions and passing yards. Taliaferro would knock him down to #3 in passing yards if the Jets had played 7 games, though. Griese is also #2 in completion percentage, 2nd only to Staubach. He's #3 in yards per attempt, behind Staubach and Jurgensen. He's #6 in QB rating. Not bad for a rookie. But, just to tamper our expectations a little bit, his 74 future rating is not THAT amazing. It's 5th, behind Fran Tarkenton, John Hadl, Johnny Unitas, and Roman Gabriel. Unitas is in his 13th year, so who knows how long he'll be around, but my point is that I don't think we can expect Griese to be a GOAT or anything, though my hope is that with a better team around him, it will seem like it.

Tommy Mason has 4 Rushing TDs, which actually puts him at a tie for 3rd, despite not being listed.

Bass tied for #2 in catches, but not yards. He's #7 there. It's whatever -- ideally I have a better #2 and #3 so that I don't have to care about him this much. Note that he's not top 3 in targets -- for all my griping about him catching something like 50% of his targets in our first game, he's up to 75.6%, while Powell is 66.7% and Taylor is 62.1%.

McCord has leveled off a bit, but he's back on this list with 8.5 sacks.

Van Horn has the most key run blocks in both leagues! Jim Otto has a much higher percentage though, 62.8% to 51.8%.

And in a league leading stat I'm not that happy about, Garo is tied for the lead in field goals. He's also got the worst percentage of those three guys -- he's 15/21, Bobich is 15/18, and Kramer is a perfect 15/15. Yes, Garo has more attempts than anyone else. I should check to see if he's tired.

And in the team stats, it's cool to see us charting on both offense and defense -- #3 in yards per play on offense, and #2 in opponent passing yards per game for the defense. We're also #2 in yards per passing attempt, behind only Dallas.