Past Venue: Mile High Stadium

Denver, CO
aka Bears Stadium



Year opened: 1948
Capacity: 76,273, up from 17,000 at opening and 34,000 for the first AFL season.

Names:
Bears Stadium, 1948-68
Mile High Stadium, 1968-2002

Pro football tenants:
Denver Broncos (AFL/NFL), 1960-2000
Denver Gold (USFL), 1983-85

Postseason games hosted:
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 34 Steelers 21, Dec. 24, 1977
AFC Championship, Broncos 20 Raiders 17, Jan. 1, 1978
USFL Championship, Panthers 24 Stars 22, July 17, 1983
AFC Divisional playoff, Steelers 24 Broncos 17, Dec. 30, 1984
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 22 Patriots 17, Jan. 4, 1987
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 34 Oilers 10, Jan. 10, 1988
AFC Championship, Broncos 38 Browns 33, Jan. 17, 1988
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 24 Steelers 23, Jan. 7, 1990
AFC Championship, Broncos 37 Browns 21, Jan. 14, 1990
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 26 Oilers 24, Jan. 4, 1992
AFC Divisional playoff, Jaguars 30 Broncos 27, Jan. 4, 1997
AFC Wild Card playoff, Broncos 42 Jaguars 17, Dec. 27, 1997
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 38 Dolphins 3, Jan. 9, 1999
AFC Championship, Broncos 23 Jets 10, Jan. 17, 1999

Other tenants of note:
Denver Bears/Zephyrs (minor league baseball), 1948-92
Denver Dynamos (NASL), 1974-75
Colorado Caribous (NASL), 1978
Colorado Rockies (MLB – NL), 1993-94
Colorado Rapids (MLS), 1996-2001

Notes: The east stands could be moved in their entirety in order to accommodate baseball. First stadium expansion in late 1950s was in hopes of landing a baseball franchise in the proposed Continental League, which never got off the ground. Stadium was originally privately owned by the Howsam family, owner of the minor league baseball Bears (and later the founding owners of the AFL Broncos), but was sold to the City of Denver in 1968, when it was renamed. Major expansions followed in ’68 and between 1975 and ’77.

Fate: Demolished in 2002, the site is now part of the parking lot for INVESCO Field at Mile High.



(Above is earlier view of then-Bears Stadium, as it looked in early days of AFL. Below view shows the stadium several expansions later)

1972: Packers Trade Donny Anderson to Cards for MacArthur Lane

On February 22, 1972 the NFL announced a straight-up swap of former Pro Bowl running backs as the Green Bay Packers sent Donny Anderson to the St. Louis Cardinals for MacArthur Lane.

Anderson, a two-time All-American at Texas Tech, had come to the Packers amidst great fanfare in 1966. Drafted in the first round of the ’65 draft as a future pick (a practice that was allowed at the time; he still had a year of college eligibility remaining), he signed for an estimated $600,000. Along with FB Jim Grabowski, the 1966 first round selection out of Illinois who signed for $400,000, much was made of the combined million dollar commitment made by Green Bay to both keep the highly-touted runners away from the AFL as well as provide successors to the aging starting backfield of HB Paul Hornung and FB Jim Taylor.

The 6’3”, 210-pound Anderson started off slowly in the NFL, running tentatively and blocking poorly – Coach Vince Lombardi considered moving him to flanker after the ’66 season. But while Grabowski, the power runner, was never able to fully recover from a 1967 knee injury and had a mediocre career (he was cut a year prior to the Anderson trade, signing on with the Bears), Anderson broke into the starting lineup when injuries began to decimate the backfield during the ’67 season and rose to the occasion, contributing to a third straight championship as well as a win in Super Bowl II.

While the Packers dropped to 6-7-1 in the first post-Lombardi coaching year of 1968, Anderson led the team in rushing with 761 yards and was selected to the Pro Bowl. With a crowded situation in the backfield (veteran Elijah Pitts and speedy Travis Williams were also available at halfback), he saw less action in ’69, but bounced back with 853 yards rushing and 36 pass receptions in 1970. In addition to his play at halfback, Anderson also was a highly-regarded left-footed punter.

Anderson was involved in a contract dispute with the team in 1971 and considerable animosity arose between him and Head Coach/GM Dan Devine, who arrived that same year. Also arriving was rookie FB John Brockington, who pushed him into a supporting role. Devine was critical of Anderson’s blocking and expressed a preference for backup HB Dave Hampton, who he considered to be a better blocker.

“I tried to overcome the fact that there was a line between us,” said Anderson immediately following the trade to St. Louis. “I tried to play better football. I couldn't do it because when someone is down on you, you've got to prove yourself day after day. I didn't feel I had to prove myself on that basis, but maybe I'll have to do it in St. Louis.”

MacArthur Lane was a year older than Anderson (Anderson was 28 and Lane 29 at the time of the deal), but also bigger at 6’1” and 220 pounds, which seemed a better fit in tandem with the 6’1”, 225-pound Brockington. Lane had also been a first round draft choice, taken by the Cardinals in the 1968 draft with the thirteenth overall pick. He also stepped into a crowded backfield situation in St. Louis and saw scant action as a backup and kick returner in his first two years with the club.

Lane had a breakout season in 1970, showing off his power-running skill to gain 977 yards on the ground while catching 32 passes for another 365 yards, and scoring a league-leading 13 touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl. But like Anderson, he also ran afoul of a new head coach, Bob Hollway, in 1971. Lane slumped to 502 yards rushing and was suspended for the season finale after publicly criticizing the team’s vice president, Bill Bidwill, due to a salary dispute.

Following the trade, Hollway said. “As far as the Cardinals - myself and management – are concerned, we resolved any problems we had with Lane. The trade came
about because we were able to get a more versatile running back.”

Both players expressed relief at the trade, although Anderson paid tribute to his prior experiences and the fans in Green Bay. “Certainly I will miss the players and the fans in Green Bay,” he said. “There's nobody in the world like them and I wish them the best of everything. I cannot deny that the greatest, most rewarding athletic experiences of my life were having the honor to play for Vince Lombardi and to have played in the first two Super Bowls.”


The deal worked more to the benefit of the Packers in 1972. Following a 4-8-2 record in ’71, the team went 10-4 and won the NFC Central Division title. The running game was the key to the conservative offense led by young quarterback Scott Hunter, who only went to the air 199 times and completed just 43.2 percent of those passes. While Brockington, who had gained 1105 yards as a rookie, followed up with 1027 in ’72 (thus becoming the first player in NFL history to rush for a thousand yards in each of his first two seasons), Lane (pictured at left) contributed 821 yards on 177 carries for a healthy 4.6-yard average, led the team with 26 pass receptions for another 285 yards, and was named the club’s MVP.

In St. Louis, the 4-9-1 record of 1971 was duplicated in ’72. Anderson played respectably in combination with veteran RB Johnny Roland, leading the team with 536 yards on 153 rushing attempts (3.5 avg.) and catching 28 passes for 298 yards. As he had in Green Bay, he also handled the punting, averaging 39.5 yards on 72 kicks.

The situation was different in 1973, when things did not go so well for the Packers. While the running tandem of Brockington and Lane was still considered to be one of the best in the NFL, there was still no viable passing attack to complement them. Hunter failed to improve at quarterback, and when backup QB Jerry Tagge was given the opportunity to start, he was found wanting as well, as was young veteran backup Jim Del Gaizo, obtained from the Dolphins amid much fanfare. Brockington ran for 1144 yards and Lane 528, although Lane’s yards per carry average dropped to 3.1. The team as a whole fell to 5-7-2.

Lane played one more season in Green Bay, with the numbers continuing to diminish, and played four years in Kansas City, where he ran the ball less but was used effectively as a receiver out of the backfield – he led the NFL with 66 catches in 1976. Overall, in 11 seasons he ran for 4656 yards on 1206 carries (3.9 avg.) with 30 touchdowns and caught 287 passes for 2786 yards (9.7 avg.) and 7 more TDs.

As for Anderson in St. Louis, his numbers improved in 1973 as he again led the team in rushing with 679 yards on 167 carries (4.1 avg.) with 10 touchdowns and caught a career-high 41 passes for 409 yards and three more scores. The team was still 4-9-1 for the third straight year, but under a new head coach, Don Coryell.

Coryell turned the team around dramatically in 1974, winning the NFC East with a 10-4 tally, but Anderson’s production dropped off significantly with the emergence of explosive all-purpose HB Terry Metcalf. Traded to Miami in the offseason, Anderson retired during the 1975 preseason. His overall totals were 4696 yards rushing on 1197 attempts (3.9 avg.), including 41 touchdowns, and 209 pass receptions for 2548 yards (12.2 avg.) with 14 TDs. He also averaged 39.6 yards on 387 punts.

MVP Profile: Tony Adams, 1974

Quarterback, Southern California Sun



Age: 24
1st season in pro football
College: Utah State
Height: 6’1” Weight: 195

Prelude:
Following an outstanding season at Utah State in 1972, Adams was drafted in the 14th round by the NFL’s San Diego Chargers for 1973, but could not get past a fellow rookie, Dan Fouts, or young veteran Wayne Clark and an over-the-hill Johnny Unitas on the depth chart. He signed with the Southern California Sun of the new World Football League for ’74.

1974 Season Summary
Appeared in all 20 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Passing
Attempts – 510 [2]
Completions – 276 [2]
Yards – 3905 [1]
Most yards, game – 376
Completion percentage – 54.1 [4]
Yards per attempt – 7.7 [2]
TD passes – 23 [4]
Interceptions – 18 [4]
Passer rating – 79.4 [3]
300-yard passing games – 3

Rushing
Attempts – 60
Yards – 217
Yards per attempt – 3.6
TDs – 8 [8, tied with four others]

Scoring
TDs – 8 [15, tied with five others]
Action Points - 2
Points – 58 [16, tied with Dennis Homan]
(Note: Touchdowns counted for 7 points in the WFL)

Postseason: 1 G (WFL First Round playoff vs. The Hawaiians)
Pass attempts – 21
Pass completions – 11
Passing yardage – 189
TD passes – 1
Interceptions – 1

Rushing attempts – 1
Rushing yards – 3
Average gain rushing – 3.0
Rushing TDs – 0

Awards & Honors:
WFL MVP: League (co-winner), Sporting News
1st team All-WFL: Sporting News

Sun went 13-7 to win Western Division. Lost WFL First Round playoff to The Hawaiians (32-14) – several key players refused to play after failing to be paid for the regular season finale.

Aftermath: Joined the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs in 1975 and played four seasons there. Strictly a backup, Adams started a total of seven games and never threw more than 92 passes in any one year. Moved on to the CFL and played for the Toronto Argonauts, where he again achieved some success as he passed for 2692 yards and 13 TDs in 1979. However, injuries limited his playing time in ’80 and he eventually retired. Adams made a brief comeback, returning to the Minnesota Vikings as a 37-year-old replacement player for three games during the NFL players’ strike in 1987, and put up good numbers, although the replacement team lost all three contests.

--

MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).

[Updated 4/12/12]
[Updated 2/15/14]

Past Venue: Cotton Bowl

Dallas, TX



Year opened: 1930
Capacity: 92,100, up from 72,000 when the Cowboys played there and 45,000 at opening

Names:
Fair Park Bowl, 1930-36
Cotton Bowl, 1936 to date

Pro football tenants:
Dallas Rams (AFL), 1934
Dallas Texans (NFL), 1952
Dallas Cowboys (NFL), 1960-71
Dallas Texans (AFL), 1960-62

Postseason games hosted:
NFL Championship, Packers 34 Cowboys 27, Jan. 1, 1967
NFL Eastern Conf. Championship, Cowboys 52 Browns 14, Dec. 24, 1967
NFL Eastern Conf. Championship, Browns 38 Cowboys 14, Dec. 28, 1969
NFC Divisional playoff, Cowboys 5 Lions 0, Dec. 26, 1970

Other tenants of note:
Southern Methodist University (college football), 1932-78, 95-2000
Dallas Tornado (NASL), 1967-68
Dallas Burn/FC Dallas (MLS), 1996-2002, 04-05

Notes: Hosted first two home games of Cowboys’ 1971 season before they moved to Texas Stadium in Irving. Hosted annual Cotton Bowl Classic, 1937-2009. Hosts annual Red River Shootout/Rivalry college football game between Univ. of Oklahoma and Univ. of Texas, 1932 to date. Hosts annual Dallas Independent School District Football Playoffs, 1974 to date. Hosted TicketCity Bowl, 2011. Used as a venue for FIFA World Cup, 1994. Referred to as “The House That Doak Built” due to expansions in 1940s that increased capacity to 60,000 to accommodate crowds who came to see SMU’s Heisman-winning halfback Doak Walker in action. Stadium is located at the state fairgrounds and replaced the Fair Park Football Stadium, which had stood at the same location. The grass field of 1930 to ’69 was replaced with AstroTurf from 1970 to ’93 before returning to grass in 1994.

Fate: Still in use following three major renovations, most recently in 2008.



(more recent view of stadium below, showing expansion that has completely enclosed the upper deck)



[Updated 2/16/15]

MVP Profile: Steve Young, 1992

Quarterback, San Francisco 49ers



Age: 31 (Oct. 11)
10th season in pro football, 8th in NFL, and 6th with 49ers
College: Brigham Young
Height: 6’2” Weight: 200

Prelude:
Young played his first two pro seasons with the Los Angeles Express of the USFL and joined the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who had picked him in the first round of the 1984 supplemental draft, for the ’85 season and appeared in five games. Traded to the 49ers following the 1986 season, he primarily backed up Joe Montana for four years until taking over as starting QB in 1991, when he led the NFL in passing (101.8 rating) and yards per attempt (9.0).

1992 Season Summary
Appeared and started in all 16 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Passing
Attempts – 402 [11]
Most attempts, game – 37 vs. Buffalo 9/13, vs. New Orleans 11/15
Completions – 268 [7]
Most completions, game – 26 vs. Buffalo 9/13
Yards – 3465 [2, 1st in NFC]
Most yards, game – 449 vs. Buffalo 9/13
Completion percentage – 66.7 [1]
Yards per attempt – 8.6 [1]
TD passes – 25 [1]
Most TD passes, game – 3 vs. Buffalo 9/13, vs. Atlanta 10/18, at Atlanta 11/9, vs. Tampa Bay 12/19
Interceptions – 7
Most interceptions, game – 1 on seven occasions
Passer rating – 107.0 [1]
400-yard passing games – 1
300-yard passing games – 3
200-yard passing games – 8

Rushing
Attempts – 76
Most attempts, game - 9 (for 69 yds.) at New England 10/11
Yards – 537
Most yards, game – 69 yards (on 9 carries) at New England 10/11
Yards per attempt – 7.1
TDs – 4

Scoring
TDs – 4
Points - 24

Postseason: 2 G
Pass attempts – 65
Most pass attempts, game - 35 vs. Dallas, NFC Championship
Pass completions – 45
Most pass completions, game - 25 vs. Dallas, NFC Championship
Passing yardage – 540
Most passing yards, game - 313 vs. Dallas, NFC Championship
TD passes – 3
Most TD passes, game - 2 vs. Washington, NFC Divisional playoff
Interceptions – 3
Most interceptions, game - 2 vs. Dallas, NFC Championship

Rushing attempts – 16
Most rushing attempts, game - 8 vs. Washington, NFC Divisional playoff, vs. Dallas, NFC Championship
Rushing yards – 106
Most rushing yards, game - 73 vs. Washington, NFC Divisional playoff
Average gain rushing – 6.6
Rushing TDs – 1

Awards & Honors:
NFL MVP: AP, PFWA, Bert Bell Award
NFL Offensive Player of the Year: AP
1st team All-NFL: AP, PFWA, NEA, Sporting News
1st team All-NFC: UPI, Pro Football Weekly
Pro Bowl

49ers went 14-2 to win NFC West and gain top playoff seed in conference. Won Divisional playoff over Washington Redskins (20-13) and lost NFC Championship to Dallas Cowboys (30-20).

Aftermath: Played six more full seasons with 49ers before his career ended three games into the 1999 season, after suffering a third concussion in four years. Had one more NFL MVP season, was a consensus 1st team All-Pro selection in each of the next two years, and was selected to the next six consecutive Pro Bowls. Led league in passing four more times (including next two years). Led 49ers to NFL Championship in 1994. Retired with highest career passer rating in NFL history (96.8) and second most rushing yards by a quarterback (4239). His #8 was retired by the 49ers and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Class of 2005.

--

MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).

[Updated 2/15/14]
[Updated 11/28/14]

Past Venue: Municipal Stadium

Cleveland, OH
aka Cleveland Stadium, Lakefront Stadium



Year opened: 1931
Capacity: 81,000

Names:
Cleveland Municipal Stadium, 1931-96

Pro football tenants:
Cleveland Indians (NFL), 1931
Cleveland Rams (AFL), 1936
Cleveland Rams (NFL), 1937, 39-41, 45
Cleveland Browns (AAFC/NFL), 1946-95

Postseason games hosted:
NFL Championship, Rams 15 Redskins 14, Dec. 16, 1945
AAFC Championship, Browns 14 Yankees 9, Dec. 22, 1946
AAFC Championship, Browns 49 Bills 7, Dec. 19, 1948
AAFC First Round playoff, Browns 31 Bills 21, Dec. 4, 1949
AAFC Championship, Browns 21 49ers 7, Dec. 11, 1949
NFL American Conf. playoff, Browns 8 Giants 3, Dec. 17, 1950
NFL Championship, Browns 30 Rams 28, Dec. 24, 1950
NFL Championship, Lions 17 Browns 7, Dec. 28, 1952
NFL Championship, Browns 56 Lions 10, Dec. 26, 1954
NFL Championship, Browns 27 Colts 0, Dec. 27, 1964
NFL Eastern Conf. playoff, Browns 31 Cowboys 20, Dec. 21, 1968
NFL Championship, Colts 34 Browns 0, Dec. 29, 1968
AFC Divisional playoff, Colts 20 Browns 3, Dec. 26, 1971
AFC Divisional playoff, Raiders 14 Browns 12, Jan. 4, 1981
AFC Divisional playoff, Browns 23 Jets 20, Jan. 3, 1987
AFC Championship, Broncos 23 Browns 20, Jan. 11, 1987
AFC Divisional playoff, Browns 38 Colts 21, Jan. 9, 1988
AFC Wild Card playoff, Oilers 24 Browns 23, Dec. 24, 1988
AFC Divisional playoff, Browns 34 Bills 30, Jan. 6, 1990
AFC Wild Card playoff, Browns 20 Patriots 13, Jan. 1, 1995

Other tenants of note:
Cleveland Indians (MLB – AL), 1932-33, 36-93
Cleveland Stokers (NASL), 1967-68

Notes: Hosted college football Great Lakes Bowl in 1947. Hosted annual Navy vs. Notre Dame college football game on 11 occasions from 1932 to ‘78. The stadium was occasionally used by Case Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University football teams. Hosted University of Illinois vs. Penn State in 1959 and four Ohio State football games. The end zone bleachers, which served as center field seating for baseball, became known as the “Dog Pound” during Browns games from the mid-1980s on. The first event held at the stadium was a World Heavyweight Championship boxing match in which Max Schmeling successfully defended his title against Young Stribling.

Some inaccurate, but commonly believed, “facts” about the origins of the stadium were that it was built as a WPA project (while publicly financed, it was completed before the existence of the WPA) and that it was constructed with hopes of luring the 1932 Olympics to Cleveland (the groundbreaking occurred after the games had been awarded to Los Angeles).

Fate: Demolished in 1996 and replaced by Cleveland Browns Stadium, which stands on same site. Pieces of the stadium were put in Lake Erie to create two artificial reefs.

Past Venue: Nippert Stadium

Cincinnati, OH



Year opened: 1924
Capacity: 35,097, up from 12,000 when first completed. Capacity was at 24,000 at the time the Bengals played there.

Names:
James Gamble Nippert Memorial Stadium, 1924 to date

Pro football tenants:
Cincinnati Bengals (AFL), 1968-69

Postseason games hosted:
None

Other tenants of note:
University of Cincinnati, 1924-89, 91 to date
Moeller High School, 2006-08

Notes: The site was being used by the University of Cincinnati for football as early as 1902, when it was known as Carson Field (which is still the name of the playing surface, if not the structure). While ground was broken in 1916 for a brick and concrete structure, it wasn’t fully completed until 1924. The field was converted from grass to AstroTurf in 1970 and to FieldTurf in 2000. The stadium was closed for major renovation in 1990, during which season the football team played home games at Riverfront Stadium. Stadium named for Jimmy Nippert, who died of blood poisoning after receiving a spike wound while playing football for the University of Cincinnati. Nippert’s grandfather, James Gamble of Procter & Gamble, provided the final $250,000 that allowed for the facility to be completed.

Fate: Still in use.


(Lower view is more recent, showing renovations. Top view shows stadium as it appeared when Bengals played there)