Eagles Cards Update

Today I have updated my "Vintage Eagles Cards Census" chart on this blog's sidebar. In the past few months, I have completed collecting the Eagles cards from '74, '75, and '76, and will be posting those sets on this blog soon. 

I have also added 1977-1980 to the sidebar chart. (I already have most of the 1979 Eagles.) Although not within the time period of this blog, I will be working to complete the Eagles' sets for 1977-1980 and also 1963. 

I also noticed recently that RetroCards.com has added the 49ers to their custom 1967 team sets (to go along with the Cowboys, Packers, Bears, and Saints.) I'm hoping they will eventually get around to the Eagles, not only for '67, but also for the 1969-72 sets.

John Meyers - DT

John Meyers was the Eagles' starting right defensive tackle from 1964-67. He played in all 56 games during that time, starting all but three. 

 

He was the Rams' 3rd-round pick in 1962, but played the '62 and '63 seasons for the Cowboys, playing every game those 2 seasons at right D tackle. He started every game as a rookie, and 7 in 1963. 

 

After the 1963 season, he was traded to the Eagles along with kicker Sam Baker and guard Lynn Hoyem for flanker Tommy McDonald. 

 

Meyers was released during training camp in 1968, and replaced in the lineup by 2nd-year man Gary Pettigrew, who had been the starting right end as a rookie. Still, it seems odd that he was released outright, given that he was a 4-year starter, and only age 28. The team chose to go with rookie Mike Dirks and the unproven Frank Molden (who had missed the previous 2 seasons, and started no games as a rookie in 1965) as the backups at defensive tackle.

There were no cards issued by Topps or Philly Gum for John Meyers. This is a custom card created by RetroCards, in the 1962 Fleer style. (It's out of focus because I enlarged a thumbnail.)

 

 

Where's Waldo John?

That wraps up the player reviews for those whose Eagles' career started in the 1960s (or 1950s, for Pete Retzlaff). Next we will look at the players who began their Eagles' career in the 1970s, in order of most games as an Eagle. (Harold Carmichael will lead off the list.) 

 

But first, a re-cap of the players reviewed so far:

There are 52 players here. If I was going to have an Eagles' fantasy team for the 1966-69 period, this one is fairly solid. There are a few stars here and there, and most positions have above-average players. The middle linebacking looks a little thin, but Rossovich could also play there. Honestly, the quarterback, outside linebacker, and guard positions could use an upgrade, but these are the Eagles we have to work with for that time period.

Randy Beisler - G/DT

Randy Beisler was the Eagles' 1st-round pick (4th overall) in 1966. He played every game in his first 2 seasons, but only started half the games.

I'm not sure what position he played in 1966 because regular guards Ed Blaine and Jim Skaggs started 13 and 14 games respectively. Maybe one of those 3 played left tackle for 4 games, since regular tackle Lane Howell only played (and started) 10 games that season. Beisler may have also been used at defensive end, as D-ends Don Hultz and Gary Pettigrew also missed a few starts, and Pro-Football-reference.com doesn't indicate any backup defensive end making some starts.

In 1967 Randy started 8 games, and it may again have been at left OT and defensive end, because Howell, Hultz, and Pettigrew missed a combined 8 starts.

Beisler only played 8 games in 1968, and started them all. He played at left DT, due to the regular (Floyd Peters) missing all but 5 games due to injury. That's a bit surprising, because DE Don Hultz had been replaced by rookie Tim Rossovich, and rode the bench for 9 games.


Another example of the freak-show that was the Eagles' front office in 1968/69:
After having bungled the 1969 draft (losing out on #1 pick O.J. Simpson by winning 2 of their final 3 games in 1968 after starting out 0-11, then compounding that blunder by picking RB Leroy Keyes one pick ahead of the Steelers taking Joe Greene) the Eagles cut their lone backup QB (John Huarte) on 9/1/69. One week later, realizing they needed a 2nd quarterback, Beisler was traded to the 49ers for backup QB George Mira.  

WHY WOULD THE EAGLES TRADE THEIR #1 PICK FROM 1966, WHO STARTED HALF THE GAMES FOR 3 SEASONS, FOR A BACKUP QB WHO WAS CLEARLY A STIFF? (6 starts in 5 previous years, 1 start in his only season with the Eagles, then waived a year later.) Answer: They're the Eagles... They did dumb stuff! (If you think they learned their lesson, revisit the Greg Barton/Pete Liske saga just 2 years later.)


Randy played guard for the 49ers for the next 6 years (starting almost every game from 1970-72). He would have come in handy for the Eagles, who tried to get by in those years with the likes of Mark Nordquist, Henry Allison, Vern Winfield, Tom Luken, Roy Kirksey, and an aging John Niland at guard.

Beisler finished his career with the Chiefs in 1975.

Beisler had no cards while with the Eagles. This 1968-style card is made by RetroCards.


Where's Waldo Randy?

1966 Eagles - Bonus Cards

Recently I posted the 1966 Eagles cards from Philadelphia Gum Co. Here are additional 1966 Eagles, printed and sold by RetroCards.

RetroCards makes vintage cards (mostly football) of players who were missing from the Topps or Philly Gum series. Although their focus seems to be on Cowboys, Packers, and Bears, they have made cards for all the NFL teams in 1963 and 1966.

These were the first cards I bought from them. Subsequently, I also bought the '67 Cowboys and Packers, '68 Eagles and Packers, and '71 Cowboys.

Vince Papale - WR

Vince Papale's Eagles' career was after the time period of this blog, but I'm going to make an exception.

I knew of Papale before he became famous as an Eagle. Back then I was on my high school's track team, and one of our opponents was Interboro High School, where Vince was the track coach. Later, he played for the Philadelphia Bell in the WFL, and yadda yadda yadda.

 (Some of his Philadelphia Bell teammates included ex-Eagles Ben Hawkins, Tim Rossovich, Ron Porter, and Vern Winfield.)

Papale only had one Topps card as a player (1977), but RetroCards has made these custom cards, which I bought last year:

"Invincible" is one of my favorite movies of the past 20 years, and I have watched it several times. (I actually have it on DVD, but it is broadcast so often that I think I've only watched the DVD once.)

I realize that "Hollywood" has jazzed up the movie somewhat, but here are some errors I noticed while watching:

1. Papale was from Glenolden, PA, not South Philadelphia.
2. The movie completely ignores his time in the WFL.
3. The touchdown he scored on a fumbled punt in his 2nd game (also seen in "real" footage in the closing credits) was called back.
4. His eventual friend Dennis Franks was also a rookie in Papale's 1st season, not a veteran like he implies in the movie ("Coach is putting each rookie with a veteran").
5. Besides Franks, the movie shows (as actors in non-speaking roles) Roman Gabriel, Mike Boryla, Tom Sullivan, Art Malone, Mike Hogan, Harold Carmichael, Charlie Smith, Guy Morriss, Jerry Sisemore, Wade Key, Dennis Nelson, Horst Muhlmann, Manny Sistrunk, Carl Hairston, Pete Lazetich, Bill Dunstan, Bill Bergey, Frank Lemaster, Terry Tautolo, Bill Bradley, and Larry Marshall, but there were no actual Eagles named "German" or "Banks" (two of his tormentors in the movie).
6. A white player named "Hogan" is shown sitting on the bench, but Mike Hogan was black.
7. "Bergey" is shown lining up on the kickoff coverage team, but I seriously doubt the team's starting middle linebacker would be playing on special teams.

8. I also read somewhere that Papale's wife Janet was not a bartender, but was an Olympic diver. Also, they married more than 10 years after his playing career was over. Meanwhile, he married another (2nd wife) while playing for the Eagles.

Ahh... Hollywood screenwriters.


Other stuff you may already know:
The real Vince Papale is shown briefly as a coach in the background during the 1st training camp workout.
The dude in the green cape at the public tryout is Tony Luke Jr, of Tony Luke's Steaks in Philadelphia.


I always knew I had a card of Dennis Franks with the Lions, but I thought it was from the 1973 set.

Lane Howell - T

Book-ending the Eagles' O-line along with Bob Brown for the 2nd half of the 1960s was Lane Howell.

Howell was the Giants' 15th-round pick in the 1963 draft. After two seasons as a reserve, he was traded to the Eagles for guard Pete Case.

Incidentally, the Eagles' top 3 picks in 1963 were all offensive linemen: 
#1 - G Ed Budde, who signed with the Chiefs and was a 7-time Pro Bowler in his 14-year career. 
#2 - C Ray Mansfield, who after 1 year as a reserve was sold to the Steelers and was their starting center through 1976. 
#3 -  C Dave Crossan, who didn't play for the Eagles, but was the Redskins' backup center from 1965-69. 

Howell played his final 5 seasons with the Eagles, and was the starting left tackle for all those years. He played 64 games for the Eagles, starting 58 of them.

Lane was cut at the end of training camp in 1970, The record shows he was claimed by the Rams, but released 2 weeks later, not having played any games for Los Angeles. (The record also shows the Eagles re-signed him in July 1971, but he didn't make the team.)

Howell passed away in January 2018 at age 76.

He had 2 brothers who also played in the NFL: Mike was a defensive back for the Browns from 1965-72, and Delles was a cornerback for the Saints and Jets from 1970-75.

Howell did not appear on any football cards issued by Topps or Philadelphia Gum. This is a custom 1966 card made by RetroCards, which I purchased along with 8 other 1966-style Eagles cards.

Where's Waldo Lane?

King Hill - QB/P

King Hill was the Eagles' backup quarterback for 8 seasons (1961-68) but only started more than 4 games once (6 in 1963), He was also their punter from 1961-63, and shared the punting with Sam Baker after that.

When we Philadelphia-area kids were playing backyard football in the late 1960s, someone always wanted to be King Hill. Why? I guess because no one liked Eagles' starting QB Norm Snead, and "King Hill" was a cool name, so... yeah...


Hill was the #1 overall draft pick in 1958 (by the Chicago Cardinals). How did he become a career backup (for the 1960s' Eagles, no less)?

After riding the bench in 1958 behind veteran Lamar McHan and fellow rookie QB M.C. Reynolds in '58, Hill started 10 games for the Cards in 1959, but returned to the bench for all but 1 game in 1960.

After the retirement of starting QB Norm Van Brocklin, the Eagles traded a first-round pick to acquire Hill before the 1961 season.  Sonny Jurgensen would be the starting QB for the next 3 seasons, relegating Hill to punting chores only (and a rare 6 starts at QB in 1963).

Jurgensen was swapped for Norm Snead after 1963, but Hill would remain the team's #2 quarterback for the rest of his Eagles' career.

Midway through the 1968 season, he was traded to the Vikings for a 3rd-round pick that would become safety Bill Bradley. Hill didn't see any QB action with the Vikings, but took over the punting chores from tight end Billy Martin.

King returned to the Cardinals for the 1969 season (as a punter only, since they had Charley Johnson and Jim Hart in the house) then retired after the season.

He was later a coach for the Oilers and Saints, and a scout for the Eagles.

Hill passed away in 2012 at age 75.

Here are King Hill's 1962 and 1964 cards, and also 3 custom cards that I purchased from RetroCards ('63, '65, '66).


Where's Waldo King?