Age: 25
2nd
season in pro football & with Bears
College: Florida
Height: 6’2” Weight: 225
Prelude:
Casares was
an All-SEC selection in both football and basketball in college and scored the
first touchdown in Florida’s 14-13 Gator Bowl win following the 1952 season. He
was chosen by the Bears in the second round of the 1954 NFL draft but spent a
year in the Army before joining the club for the ’55 season. While there were
concerns as to his having enough speed for the NFL, Casares rushed for 672
yards, including an 81-yard TD carry, and averaged a league-high 5.4 yards per
carry. He was selected to the Pro Bowl and was a first-team All-NFL selection
by the New York Daily News.
1956 Season Summary
Appeared in
all 12 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Rushing
Attempts – 234
[1]
Most attempts, game - 27 (for 104 yds.) vs. LARams 11/18
Most attempts, game - 27 (for 104 yds.) vs. LARams 11/18
Yards – 1126
[1]
Most yards,
game – 190 yards (on 17 carries) vs. Detroit 12/16
Average gain
– 4.8 [7]
TDs – 12 [1]
Pass
Receiving
Receptions – 23
Yards – 203
Average gain
– 8.8
TDs – 2
Passing
Pass attempts
– 3
Pass
completions – 0
Passing
yardage – 0
Interceptions
– 1
Punting
Punts – 1
Yards – 51
Kickoff
Returns
Returns – 3
Yards – 95
Average per
return – 31.7
TDs – 0
Longest
return – 49 yards
All-Purpose
yards – 1424 [4]
Scoring
TDs – 14 [1]
Points – 84 [2]
Postseason: 1
G (NFL Championship at NY Giants)
Rushing
attempts – 14
Rushing yards
– 43
Average gain
rushing – 3.1
Rushing TDs –
1
Pass
receptions – 4
Pass
receiving yards – 41
Average yards
per reception – 10.3
Pass
Receiving TDs – 0
Awards & Honors:
1st
team All-NFL: AP, UPI, NEA, NY Daily News, Sporting News
Pro Bowl
Bears went 9-2-1
to finish first in the NFL Western Conference while leading the league in total
yards (4537), rushing yards (2468), touchdowns (47), and scoring (363 points).
Lost NFL Championship to New York Giants (47-7).
Aftermath:
Casares
rushed for 700 yards on a NFL-high 204 carries in 1957 and received consensus
second-team All-NFL honors in addition to being a first-team selection by The
Sporting News. He was also selected to the Pro Bowl for the third of an
eventual five straight seasons. Casares, who was valued for his blocking as
well as power-running, went on to play a total of ten seasons for Chicago,
although he never had 100 carries or gained 500 yards in a season after 1961 as
assorted injuries slowed him down and Joe Marconi became the starting fullback.
He departed the Bears following the 1964 season and was the franchise’s
all-time rushing leader at the time with 5657 yards. Casares saw limited action
with Washington in 1965 and the AFL expansion Miami Dolphins in ’66, his last
season. Overall, he ran for 5797 yards on 1431 carries (4.1 avg.) and caught
191 passes for 1588 yards (8.3 avg.), scoring a total of 60 touchdowns.
--
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
[Updated 2/21/17]
[Updated 2/21/17]
