Cardinals’ fans are familiar with the long, sad story concerning the current championship dry spell for the club that has now stretched into its 76th year. That will be 76 years this fall without an NFL title, the longest such streak in the National Football League, as well as in all professional sports! On this … Read more
Long before we could watch football games on our phones, or talk with our friends using our wristwatch, there was Dick Tracy. On this episode of “When Football Was Football,” we’ll visit the original Dick Tracy, a crime-fighting cartoon character whose fame achieved worldwide status thanks to a rather large former lineman from the Chicago … Read more
As we kick off our bonus coverage of the 1947 Chicago Cardinals championship run, we begin with a mid-season stumble that nearly cost the Cards any shot at the championship. After strolling through the early part of the schedule with a 7-1 record, the Cardinals looked forward to cruising towards the western division title in … Read more
In the early years of the 20th century before the start of the National Football League, semi-professional football teams could be found in a number of areas, including Chicago. I used the word “semi-pro” because the individuals playing the games were not always guaranteed that they would be paid for their participation. Written contracts were … Read more
In 1950, the Chicago Cardinals faced a challenging coaching predicament. After Jimmy Conzelman retired in 1948 following two straight trips to the NFL championship game, the club named Phil Handler and Buddy Parker as co-head coaches for the 1949 season. That experiment lasted only five games before Handler was booted upstairs while Parker was appointed … Read more