Your 'All Time' Football Team

[Blue Hen]

...No active players. Football careers cannot be accurately ranked until they are complete. Also, not restricted to any amateur or professional status....just your idea of the greatest players to ever play this sport ( football) on this planet (Earth). And again, fellers, an 'all time' team, not a last 10 or 20 year team.

[Blue Hen]

Offense
"""""""""""""
RB - Jim Brown
RB - Gayle Sayers ( Campbell, Payton, & Sanders soooo very close)
QB - Joe Montana ( Marino or Unitas would work too)
TE - Kellen Winslow ( John Mackey in reserve )
WR - Don Hutson (Steve Largent in reserve )
WR - Jerry Rice
G - John Hannah
G - Gene Upshaw
C - Mike Webster ( Otto & Stephenson right there, also)
T - Jim Parker
T - Anthony Munoz

Defense (using a standard 4-3-4)
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

DE - Bruce Smith
DE - Deacon Jones
T - Bob Lilly
T - Joe Greene ( Randy White, NG...if using a 5 man DL)
LB - Lawrence Taylor
LB - Dick Butkus (Chuck Bednarik in reserve)
LB - Willie Lanier ( Jack Ham in reserve )
CB - Dick 'night train' Lane
CB - Herb Adderly ( Mel Blount in reserve)
S - Ronnie Lott
S - Ken Houston ( Larry Wilson in reserve )


P - Sammy Baugh ( Ray Guy close)
K - Jan Stenarud
K/P Ret - Gayle Sayers
"""""""""""

[Doc]

OFFENSE

WR - Jerry Rice and Randy Moss

TE - Kellen Winslow

RB - Jim Brown and Barry Sanders

QB - Joe Montana

T - Anthony Munoz and Forrest Gregg

G - John Hannah and Jim Parker

C - Mike Webster

PK - Morten Andersen

DEFENSE

DE - Reggie White and Deacon Jones

DT - Randy White, Joe Greene and Bob Lily

LB - Lawrence Taylor, Dick Butkus, Jack Lambert

DB - Ronnie Lott, Ken Houston, Mike Haynes, Rod Woodson

Punter - Ray Guy

[Blue Hen]

great team, Doc

[Doc]

Here's a baseball team....

1B - Lou Gehrig
2B - Joe Morgan
3B - Mike Schmidt
SS - Ozzie Smith
OF - Henry Aaron
OF - Willie Mays
OF - Babe Ruth
C - Johnny Bench
P - Bob Gibson
P - Sandy Koufax
P - Steve Carlton
P - Gregg Maddux
P - Warren Spahn

[Blue Hen]

whew !... great team, Doc.


Here's mine :

LHPs - Warren Spahn, Sandy Koufax, Lefty Grove, Steve Carleton
RHPs - Christy Mathewson, Walter Johnson, Bob Gibson, Roger Clemens, Satchel Paige
C- Josh Gibson
1B - Stan Musial/Lou Gehrig
2B - Rogers Hornsby
SS - Honus Wagner ( A-Rod could slide in here or at 3b when career complete)
3B - Mike Schmidt
OF - Babe Ruth
OF - Ty Cobb/Willie Mays
OF - Ted Williams
( Barry Bonds, Henry Aaron, Oscar Charleston - reserves)


batboy - Pete Rose

[Doc]

Although I couldn't tell you what the #'s are...

Aaron is a no brainer - Milwaukee Brewers
Warren Spahn finished his career with the Giants
Phil Niekro played his final days with Toronto - he has to be one
Dale Murphy played for Colorado - a two time MVP
That leaves HOFer Eddie Mathews - he has to be Detroit

I would think these are the guys.

[Doc]

Wow, Doc! Go Braves! Two of your players have their jersey numbers retired from the Braves and a third we claim, even though he hasn't been around in a few years.


Hm. The Braves have retired five numbers (in addition to Robinson's). None ended their careers with the Braves, but I guess that might not be unusual. Those five players ended their playing careers at Colorado, San Francisco, Toronto, Detroit, and Milwaukee (Brewers). I bet Hen could name them.

Can you name the retired Reds numbers? I think there are 9 in addition to Robinson's 42.

[Doc]

1- Manager, Fred Hutchison
5 - Johnny Bench, Catcher
8 - Joe Morgan, Second Base
10 - Sparky Anderson, Manager
13 - Davey Concepcion, Shortstop
24 - Tony Perez, First Base
Frank Robinson, Out Field
Ted Kluzewski, First Base
Joe Nuxhall, Pitcher and Announcer

Marty Brennaman has also been retired as an announcer - they have a microphone up as recognition.

[Lincoln Tower]

I know much more about baseball history, than football history...so here goes...off the top of my head

C - Bench
1B - Gehrig
2B - Hornsby
SS - Ripken
3B - Schmidt
OF - Cobb
OF - Clemente
OF - Aaron
DH - Ruth (yay, American League basball!!!)

Starters
Walter "Big Train" Johnson
Sandy Koufax (when healthy)
Greg Maddux
Fergusen Jenkins
Steve Carlton

BP
Mariano Rivera
Hoyt Wilhelm
Dennis Eckersly
John Smoltz (long man)

[Blue Hen]

Nice description of the game, NCT. There is so much chess playing going on...truly the 'thinking man's' game. It's also more difficult to master than FB. You just don't see college kids jump right to MLB and become stars like you do in Football and basketball. It takes lots of time to master baseball skills(in the minors)
Too bad the business of baseball and the juicing issue is such a mess. 'Old time' baseball ( Oh..1900 -1970 or so) really fascinates me. Have you watched Ken Burns' 'BASEBALL' documentary.?

[Blue Hen]

Clemente is a little surprising. Have you read much about catcher,Josh Gibson....the Black Babe Ruth of the Negro Leagues ? Offensively, he was far superior to Bench. Bench was masterful at handling pitchers and defensively.

[Blue Hen]

Very Good. It's special

[Lincoln Tower]

Speaking of Josh Gibson and the Burns documentary...

There are a bunch of interviews with former Negro Leaguer (and colorful charatcer) Buck O'Neill. He talks alot about Gibson, best Negro League hitter of all time, and Satchel Paige, best pitcher of all time, were on the same team for much of their careers. Eventually, they faced each other on opposing teams. And Paige struck him out on 3 pitches.

[Lincoln Tower]

Clemente and Cobb get nods for being well rounded. Clemente was a 5 tool player, 3,000 hits and great defensively. Cobb's hits, runs and sb records lasted for years, and when he retired, his power numbers were among the best for his era.

Mays would fit that description, too. But who do I leave out?

[Blue Hen]

Picking out the 3 starting all time outfielders is about the toughest of all the positions. Only Ruth really locks down one of the 3 slots. How do you leave out...
Ty Cobb - the most difficult man to get out in the history of the game ?
Mays - Excellenc in all phases
Ted Williams - The greatest offensive force, after Ruth.

and then you have Aaron, Bonds, DiMaggio, Musial, Mantle, Speaker, Clemente, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Frank Robinson, and Oscar Charleston, whom old Negro league guys will tell you was 'at least' as good as Mays.


14 into 3...........Nice problem to have for the all time outfield.

[Doc]

Baseball was my game. I loved it...played it from sun up to sun down. We lived by a park and as soon as we woke up,it was up to the park to play; we only took breaks to eat and we were back at it. It was quite different for my boys. Today there are so many other things to do...they both lost interest in baseball by the age of 11 or 12. My oldest son gravitated to volleyball where he played on the state championship team last year and my younger son plays lacrosse. My daughter never really got in to softball but now she plays field hockey.

I still love going to baseball games (when someone gives me tix) but have to admit the salaries, steroids and selfish attitudes of some of the players have turned me off somewhat. I haven't bought tickets to a professional game(Baseball or football) for many years....my sports entertainment $$'s are spent exclusively on college football.

[Blue Hen]

Sounds so much like my childhood days, Doc. Grew up in a row house community in Wilmington , Delaware.......baseball played at the corner sandlot, morning to dark, except school hours, and there were wall to wall kids. Our house was at the end of a row, and served as the left field wall, and it suffered lots of broken windows from the 'Ruthian' shots of about 175 ft. When we weren't playing 'ball' we were flipping baseball cards and trading baseball cards and playing a game called 'Dice Baseball'. Old Connie Mack Stadium was about 20 miles up the Delaware River and our dads were always loading up bunches of us to go see the Phillies play......the old Richie Ashburn , Robin Roberts, Curt Simmons Phillies. Played Little League ball, too, but was crushed to not make my Junior HS baseball team. To this day, I still believe that I was the last guy cut....same thing when I tried out for the HS team. Anyway, a childhood I wouldn't trade for anything.
Most Kids today, in general, don't have the attention span or patience, or mental capacity and focus to learn and appreciate baseball.