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The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence. It was more successful than earlier rivals to the NFL with the same name, the 1926, 1936 and 1940 leagues, and the later All-America Football Conference.
William Lewis Shaw was an American professional football player who was a guard for the Buffalo Bills in the American Football League (AFL). After playing college football for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, he was selected by the Bills in the second round of the 1961 AFL draft. Shaw was the prototypical "pulling guard" who despite his size held his own against much bigger defensive linemen like Ernie Ladd, Earl Faison and Buck Buchanan. He won three straight Eastern Division titles and two AFL championships in 1964 and 1965 with Buffalo.
Floyd Douglas Little was an American professional football player who was a halfback for the Denver Broncos, initially in the American Football League (AFL) and later the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Syracuse Orangemen, twice earning All-American honors. Little was the sixth overall selection of the 1967 NFL/AFL draft, the first common draft. He was the first first-round draft pick to sign with the AFL's Broncos, where he was known as "the Franchise". Little was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
Ernest Ladd, nicknamed "the Big Cat", was an American professional football defensive tackle and professional wrestler. A standout athlete in high school, Ladd attended Grambling State University on a basketball scholarship before being drafted in 1961 by the San Diego Chargers of the American Football League (AFL). Ladd found success in the AFL as one of the largest players in professional football history at 6′9″ and 290 pounds. He helped the Chargers to four AFL championship games in five years, winning the championship with the team in 1963. He also had stints with the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Oilers. Ladd took up professional wrestling during the AFL offseason, and after a knee injury ended his football career turned to it full-time in 1969.
Junious "Buck" Buchanan was an American professional football defensive tackle who played for the Kansas City Chiefs in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). Buchanan was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990. He was selected to the NFL 100th Anniversary Team. Buchanan was massive for his era, standing at 6'7", and weighing 270 lbs. His height gave him a big advantage against lineman in the trenches.
The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). There are currently four teams that reside in the division: the Buffalo Bills, the Miami Dolphins, the New England Patriots, and the New York Jets. All four members of the AFC East were previously members of the Eastern Division of the American Football League (AFL).
Ernest Henry Wright was an American professional football player who was an offensive tackle for 13 seasons, from 1960 to 1969 in the American Football League (AFL), and from 1970 to 1972 in the National Football League (NFL).
Peter Falconer Beathard is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the American Football League (AFL), National Football League (NFL), and World Football League (WFL). He is the younger brother of former NFL executive Bobby Beathard and is Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback C. J. Beathard’s great-uncle.
The 1961 NFL draft took place at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia on December 27–28, 1960. The league would later hold an expansion draft for the Minnesota Vikings expansion franchise. This draft was also the first regular draft for the Dallas Cowboys as they had only participated in the 1960 NFL expansion draft that year.
Max Winter was a Minneapolis businessman and sport executive who helped found the Minnesota Vikings.
The 1960 NFL draft in which NFL teams take turns selecting amateur college American football players and other first-time eligible players, was held at the Warwick Hotel in Philadelphia on November 30, 1959. Many players, including half of those drafted in the first round, signed with teams in the newly created American Football League, including the first overall pick and Heisman Trophy winner Billy Cannon. At the time of the draft, the Cardinals were still the Chicago Cardinals; they moved to St. Louis in March 1960. The Dallas Cowboys were enfranchised in January 1960 after the draft.
George William Wilson Jr. was an American professional football player. He played college football at Xavier University and for the American Football League's (AFL) 1966 expansion team, the Miami Dolphins. In 1965, Wilson was selected in the 20th round of the National Football League (NFL) draft by the Detroit Lions, with the overall 277th pick. However, he eventually signed with the AFL's Buffalo Bills, who selected him as the 96th pick in the 12th round of the Red Shirt draft. In 1966, Wilson was traded to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a 13th round 1967 draft pick. At the time, the Dolphins' head coach was his father, George Wilson Sr.
The 1962 NFL draft was held on December 4, 1961 at the Sheraton Hotel in Chicago, Illinois.
Ernest Melvin Koy Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a running back for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns from 1962 to 1964 and was selected by the Giants in the 11th round of the 1965 NFL draft.
James Everett Saxton Jr. was an American professional football player who was a halfback for the Dallas Texans of the American Football League (AFL) in 1962, when the team won the AFL Championship. He played college football at Texas, where he was an All-American and a finalist for the Heisman Trophy in 1961. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
John Paul Guzik III was an American professional football player who played three seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) with the Los Angeles Rams and Houston Oilers. He was selected by the Rams in the fourth round of the 1958 NFL draft after playing college football at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was a consensus All-American in 1958. He was a member of the Oilers team that won the 1961 AFL championship.
Ernest Henry Calloway is an American former professional football player who was a defensive lineman for four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Southern Tigers and was selected by the Eagles in the second round of the 1969 NFL/AFL draft.
The 1926 All-Pro Team consists of American football players chosen by various selectors at the end of the 1926 season as the best players at their positions for the All-Pro teams of the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL). Selectors for the 1926 season included the Green Bay Press-Gazette poll, the Chicago Tribune, and Collyer's Eye. Three players were unanimously selected as first-team players by all three selectors: fullback Ernie Nevers, halfback/quarterback Paddy Driscoll, and tackle Ed Healey.
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