John Eisenberg

A few years ago I had the title for a potential short story set around the early days of the NFL pop into my head, but I knew next to nothing about the sport’s beginnings. So I picked up a couple of books for research. I still haven’t written that story and this has been sitting on the shelf since. I decided with the start of a new football season this might be a good time to actually give it a read.

Although I enjoy watching and supporting my team - The Ravens (coincidentally the author, John Eisenberg, turns out to be a member of The Ravens staff), I’m not really a fan of the sport overall as such.

But this turned out to be a fascinating story of the faith that five very different men put in the idea and potential future of pro-football. Covering the years from the formation of a league no one cared about in the 1920s to its ground breaking deal in the late 50s that positioned it as the TV sport of the future this is a no-holes barred look at the people who made it happen.

Ironically the book does loose some momentum when it diverts away from the human story into gameplay and match descriptions. But overall it’s an engrossing story of passion, rivalry, friendship, and above all a shared common belief.… (plus d'informations)

When I first picked up this monograph on the "war" between the NFL expansion team Dallas Cowboys and the upstart AFL Dallas Texans I did not have high expectations. After all, what more could really be said about the history of the maverick AFL and its eventual merger with the longer tenured NFL?

Well, I dare say I was wrong because Eisenberg has written a very interesting account of how Lamar Hunt, the owner of the Dallas Texans and founder of the AFL, and Clint Murchison, another oil magnate who finally received a chance to own and expansion team because of the AFL, waged a battle within the city for football supremacy.

First off let's be clear that the Dallas Cowboys, despite being in the NFL, did have some clear advantages being in the older league, but these advantages were evened out because it was an expansion team, and as such, a losing team. And fans don't want to root for losing teams. The Texans, on the other hand, had creative owner in Lamar Hunt but also a roster that included some local stars that made it an attraction as well. But the Texans did not have the advantage of having well known NFL teams to play home games against. So all things being equal, the competition was pretty even.

This book recounts how both teams tried to recruit local talent and be the team to draw the most fans to games. Lamar Hunt here was a bit of genius and while a nice fellow, manipulative. He made sure he got a stadium lease that disadvantaged the Cowboys in their first year, gave away tickets to make it appear the gate receipts were a lot larger than they really were, and the battle to sign college players was comical. Hunt also staged halftime shows to try to draw fans in and make professional football both sport and spectacle.

And for the most part Hunt succeeded. And despite their sometimes bitter competition, Hunt and Murchinson maintained a respect for one another. For example, Lamar Hunt jumped out of a birthday cake at Murchinson's birthday bash.

All the nitty-gritty details of the throw down between these two teams is here, and told in very lucid prose.

So why did Hunt and the Texans ultimately leave? Part of it was simply he got a deal too good to refuse from Kansas City and he started to realize it would be hard for two professional football teams to be successful in Dallas. Another reason too was likely he had more than his own team to worry about; he had the survival of an entire league on his mind. And thus the Dallas Texans became the Kansas City Chiefs.

If you like football history and are interested in the American Football League and Lamar Hunt, this is a great place to start. Because here you have the rivalry between the two leagues played on mostly even terms in one city. I highly recommend it.… (plus d'informations)

Much as been written about Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers dynasty of the 1960's, but John Eisenberg's book is the first to provide details about Vince Lombardi's first season with the Green Bay Packers.

When Lombardi took over as head coach Green Bay was a losing team with a culture of losing, and even quitting, in games. He was starting at ground zero with a group of players who were used to and even accepted losing. Once a team establishes a culture of losing it is extremely difficult to break it out of that cycle. Losing becomes a habit and it becomes acceptable.

But it was not acceptable to Vince Lombardi. After taking over the head coaching duties prior to the 1959 season Lombardi wondered what he had gotten into after watching game film of this woeful team.

Through punishing practices and motivational tactics more akin to an Army drill sergeant than a professional football coach, Lombardi made it clear to his players that losing was not acceptable and he was gong to work them out of it, literally. His practices were brutal affairs and his drive for perfection a tangible force.

While that first season ended with a mediocre 7-5 record, Lombardi accomplished one amazing feat. The Green Bay Packers were no longer losers and quitters. Instead Lombardi established the mental and physical groundwork for the dynasty yet to come.

The most amazing thing about Lombardi's feat is he turned the team around with essentially the same players who were so woeful before. Normally a team breaking out of losing streak essentially has to clean house and build from scratch. Not Lombardi. He worked, cajoled, intimidated, and rebuilt this team from the inside out turning a can't do mentality into a can do winning one. And that is why Lombardi is praised as possibly being one of the greatest coaches of all time in any sport.

Lombardi also made some key decisions that propelled the team forward. He finally settled on future Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr as his starter for the future. He created an offensive attack that utilized the unique talents of Paul Hornung instead of trying to turn him into a power running back, letting Jim Taylor handle those duties. And he helped players like offensive linemen Jerry Kramer, Forrest Gregg, and Fuzzy Thurston advance from good to great. And by practicing the bread and butter plays, especially the sweep, until it was second nature, he made the game more simple for his offensive players, and difficult to stop for opponents.

This is a well written book where you get the inside story from many of the players of that era, like Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, and Jerry Kramer. Fans of professional football should enjoy this look back at how Vince Lombardi launched a dynasty.… (plus d'informations)