January 20, 2015

Highlighted Year: Joe Aguirre, 1944

End/Placekicker, Washington Redskins


Age:  26 (Oct. 17)
3rd season in pro football & with Redskins
College: St. Mary’s (CA)
Height: 6’4”   Weight: 234

Prelude:
A pioneering Hispanic pro football player, Aguirre was chosen by the Redskins in the 11th round of the 1941 NFL draft. He caught 10 passes and kicked two field goals and eight extra points as a rookie. After missing the ’42 season, Aguirre came back to catch 37 passes, which ranked second in the league, for 420 yards (11.4 avg.) and 7 TDs in 1943. He received first-team All-NFL recognition from the New York Daily News.

1944 Season Summary
Appeared in all 10 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Pass Receiving
Receptions – 34 [3] 
Yards – 410 [6]
Average gain – 12.1 [14]
TDs – 4 [7, tied with four others]

Kicking
Field goals – 4 [2, tied with Roy Zimmerman]
Most field goals, game – 2 at NY Giants 12/3
Field goal attempts – 8 [2, tied with Roy Zimmerman, Frank Sinkwich & Augie Lio]
Field goal percentage – 50.0 [1, tied with Ken Strong, Roy Zimmerman & Lou Zontini]
PATs – 15 [6]
PAT attempts – 18 [6]
Longest field goal – 43 yards at NY Giants 12/3

Punting
Punts – 2
Yards – 87
Average – 43.5
Punts blocked – 0

Scoring
TDs – 4 [20, tied with seven others]
Field Goals – 4
PATs – 15
Points – 51 [5]

Awards & Honors:
1st team All-NFL:  AP, UPI, INS, NY Daily News, Pro Football Illustrated

Redskins went 6-3-1 to finish third in the NFL Eastern Division while leading the league in passing yards (2021).

Aftermath:
Aguirre followed up in 1945 with fewer catches (16) but led the NFL in field goals (7). He received first-team All-NFL honors from the INS and Chicago Herald American and was a second-team selection of the New York Daily News. Aguirre jumped to the new All-America Football Conference in 1946, following Washington’s coach, Dudley DeGroot, to the Los Angeles Dons. He was a first-team All-AAFC choice of the New York Daily News and second-team pick by UPI in ’46 and had his most productive pass receiving season in 1948 with 38 catches for 599 yards (15.8 avg.) and 9 touchdowns. After being limited to four games and three catches in ’49, and with the demise of the AAFC, Aguirre moved on to Canada in 1950. He led the West (WIFU) in scoring with 57 points for Winnipeg and was named to the WIFU All-Star team. After a second season with the Blue Bombers in ’51, he moved on to Edmonton for 1952 and caught 38 passes for 549 yards (14.4 avg.) with five TDs and was a second-team All-WIFU selection. Spending his last three seasons with Saskatchewan from 1953 to ’55, he became used more as a placekicker and kicked 19 field goals and 25 extra points while leading the WIFU with 85 points. Overall, in the NFL, Aguirre caught 97 passes for 1122 yards (11.6 avg.) and 13 TDs, kicked 13 field goals and 53 PATs, and scored 169 points. In the AAFC, he caught 63 passes for 1040 yards (16.5 avg.) and 16 TDs, kicked four field goals and 33 PATs, and scored 141 points. In Canada, he had 62 catches for 928 yards (15.0 avg.) and 7 TDs, kicked 40 field goals and 119 PATs, and scored 296 points. He received at least some all-league recognition in the NFL, AAFC, and WIFU.

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Highlighted Years features players who were consensus first-team All-League* selections or league* or conference** leaders (NFC/AFC since 1970) in the following statistical categories:

Rushing: Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Passing: Yards, Completion Pct., Yards per Attempt, TDs, Rating
Receiving: Catches, Yards, TDs (min. 10)
Scoring: TDs, Points, Field Goals (min. 5)
All-Purpose: Total Yards
Defense: Interceptions, Sacks
Kickoff Returns: Average
Punt Returns: Average
Punting: Average

*Leagues include NFL (1920 to date), AFL (1926), AFL (1936-37), AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974-75), USFL (1983-85)

**NFC/AFC since 1970