Age: 25
(Sept. 10)
3rd
season in pro football, 2nd with Bills
College: Omaha
Univ. (now Univ. of Nebraska at Omaha)
Height: 5’10” Weight: 177
Prelude:
Briscoe was a
quarterback in college, where he passed for 2283 yards and 25 touchdowns as a
senior in 1967 and the team won the Central Intercollegiate Conference
championship. He was chosen by the Denver Broncos in the 14th round
of the ’68 AFL/NFL draft with the expectation that he would be a defensive back
or wide receiver. But when starting QB Steve Tensi was injured early in the
season, he started five games (and thus became the first African-American to
start at quarterback in the AFL or NFL). Highly mobile, “The Magician”
completed only 41.5 percent of his passes, but they were good for 1589 yards
and a league-leading 17.1 yards per catch. He also tossed 14 TD passes and
rushed for 308 yards, scoring three touchdowns and averaging 7.5 yards per
attempt. With the Broncos unwilling to commit to him as a quarterback, he was released,
signed by Buffalo during preseason in 1969, and shifted to wide receiver. Despite
joining the team late and changing positions, he caught 32 passes for 532 yards
(16.6 avg.) and scored five TDs.
1970 Season Summary
Appeared in all
14 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Pass
Receiving
Receptions – 57
[2, 1st in AFC]
Most
receptions, game – 7 (for 145 yds.) vs. Miami 10/18, (for 78 yds.) vs.
Baltimore 12/13
Yards – 1036 [2,
1st in AFC]
Most yards,
game – 145 (on 7 catches) vs. Miami 10/18
Average gain
– 18.2 [12]
TDs – 8 [7,
tied with Charley Taylor]
100-yard
receiving games – 4
Rushing
Attempts – 3
Yards – 19
Average gain
– 6.3
TDs – 0
Scoring
TDs – 8 [14,
tied with Willie Frazier, Leroy Kelly & Charley Taylor]
Points – 48
Awards & Honors:
2nd
team All-NFL: PFWA
1st
team All-AFC: AP, UPI, Pro Football Weekly, Sporting News
Pro Bowl
Bills went 3-10-1
to finish fourth in the AFC East.
Aftermath:
Briscoe
followed up in 1971 with 44 catches for 603 yards (13.7 avg.) and five
touchdowns. Having played out his option with the Bills, he moved on to the
Miami Dolphins for 1972 and saw limited action as backup to WR Howard Twilley,
catching 16 passes while the team went undefeated in winning the NFL title.
Briscoe moved into the starting lineup in ’73 and had 30 receptions for 447
yards (14.9 avg.) and two TDs but appeared in only four games in 1974 and was
traded, playing for the Chargers and Lions in 1975 and finishing up with New
England in ’76. He never again appeared at quarterback after his rookie year,
but in eight seasons as a wide receiver he caught 224 passes for 3537 yards
(15.8 avg.) and 30 touchdowns, with 133 of those receptions for 2171 yards (163
avg.) and 18 TDs coming with the Bills.
--
Highlighted Years features players who were consensus
first-team All-League* selections or league* or conference** leaders 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
