Mike Curtis, 1st Seahawk Defensive Captain, Dies at Age 77

[RiverDog]

Those of us that are old enough will remember Mike Curtis well. He was taken by the Hawks in the 1976 expansion draft. The reported cause of death was complications of CTE, resulting from repeated blows to the head.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/n ... 111579036/

My fondest memory of Curtis comes from when he was a MLB for the Baltimore Colts. During a game, some fan comes running onto the field and grabs the game ball and starts heading off. Curtis comes by and with a forearm club, clocks the guy and sends him sprawling to the ground.

[c_hawkbob]

Aw man, one of my very favorite all time players ... RIP sir, now you can "look out the window hating the grass" in heaven.

[NorthHawk]

Yah, I remember that happening but I can't remember if I saw the fan thing live or just
on replays. Probably replays.

Curtis was one of the fierce LBs like Butkus, Nitschke (sp), and Lambert. In those days
it took a real man to venture into their territory and it's no wonder he ended up with CTE
or other cognitive problems with the hits he delivered.

[RiverDog]

Yah, I remember that happening but I can't remember if I saw the fan thing live or just on replays. Probably replays.

Curtis was one of the fierce LBs like Butkus, Nitschke (sp), and Lambert. In those days it took a real man to venture into their territory and it's no wonder he ended up with CTE or other cognitive problems with the hits he delivered.

My recollection is that I saw it live, but I can't swear to it. I used to watch football every Sunday, no exceptions. The NFL came on in the early time slot on CBS and Pat Summerall, the AFL in the afternoon, first on ABC and later on NBC with Curt Gowdy announcing.

10-4 on the linebackers, but I'll toss in Willie Lanier as one of those fierce MLB's you referenced. Players said that Lanier hit every bit as hard as Butkus, just that he didn't scream during the tackle like Butkus did.

[RiverDog]

Someone should do a piece on the evolution of the middle linebacker. And personalities. As I remember the position started out as a middle guard, or something, during the 5 man defensive lines of the day (?), the change apparently due to the increased passing.

Boy, there's been a MLB in the game ever since I can remember, and I started becoming aware of football back in the early 60's. Sam Huff was the first Mike I can remember seeing play. Teams weren't real pass happy back then, but perhaps not if you compare it with the 40's and 50's.

I'm only guessing, but rather than increased passing It might have something to do with a response to offenses playing their quarterback under center instead of the "Single Wing" formation, which looked like the modern day Wildcat.

BTW, the best book I've read about the history of the game, although it's as much if not more about the business side, is "America's Game" by Michael McCambridge:

https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Game-Fo ... 0375725067

[c_hawkbob]

Bill George is credited with creating the Mike position. as ObS said, he was the middle guard or nose guard in the 5-2 defense the bears were running in the 50's (and my HS still used in the 70's). In a game against the Lions in 1954 (I think) he got tired of the QB passing over his head as he hit the center after every snap and started standing up to intercept or otherwise disrupt short passes underneath, and so the 4-3 defense was born.

I don't have the link but I remember researching this for a post back on the old PI forum on this very topic, I remembered him being the guy because my uncle would tell me the story, but I did look it up back then so I'm pretty solid on it now. I think I probably went to the Hall of Fame website for my research if you want to verify.

[RiverDog]

Here's something I came across:

In 1933, the passing rules changed and became more friendly to offenses that could throw the ball downfield. By the 1940’s, vertical timing offenses were beginning to permeate the league. As the Browns dominated the All-American Football Conference from 1946 through 1949 with this new strategy, other teams rushed to design the antidote. After joining the NFL in 1950, the Browns beat every team on their schedule that season except the New York Giants; losing to them twice.

The Giants, then coached by Steve Owen, had begun to employ a new defensive scheme called a 6-1-4 alignment which allowed the two defensive ends to drop back into pass coverage. One of the Giants’ defensive backs, a player named Tom Landry, would actually teach and install the defense for the rest of the team. In 1956, Landry hung up his cleats and served as defensive coordinator. Opposite Vince Lombardi as the offensive coordinator, Landry installed a new scheme that helped the Giants win a Super Bowl (NFL Championship?), therefore causing an avalanche of copy cat teams hungry to match their success. Later, as a coach of the Dallas Cowboys, Landry would refine this defensive system into what is now known as the 4-3 defense.

https://www.canalstreetchronicles.com/2 ... -3-defense

It could be that we're both right. The origination of the 'T' formation, with the quarterback under center, started being used around the same time as the 6-1-4, aka 4-3 defense, came into vogue:

To cap the 1940 season, Chicago Bears coach George Halas used the T-formation to beat the Redskins 73-0 in the NFL championship game. Before long other teams saw that the T was more versatile than its predecessor, the single wing, and they adopted the T for themselves. By 1952, the Steelers (the last holdouts) switched to the T, and the single wing was out of pro football.

https://football.calsci.com/IFormation.html

Good discussion.