Synopses & Reviews
The year 1966 marked the birth of the National Football League as we know it, when owners in the NFL and the upstart American Football League agreed to an unprecedented merger, to take place at the start of the 1970 season. They also agreed to play, beginning at the end of the 66 season, a game between each leagues championa game that came to be called the Super Bowl.
The Birth of the New NFL tells the story of that historic season, leading to the game between the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. It also tells the off-the-field story, the one between warring owners and citiesa story often more brutal than the one on the field. Larry Felser has interviewed the leading men of the day, from Al Davis and Jack Kemp to Wellington Mara, Art Modell, Lamar Hunt, Gene Upshaw, Dan Rooney, and many others. He presents the struggles of top teams for the chance to represent their respective leagues in the biggest game ever, and provides a gripping, behind-closed-doors account of the wheeling and dealing it took to reach the agreement.
Review
A riveting insight into the men and egos who created the uniquely American spectacle we call pro football.”Tim Russert
Synopsis
An insider's view of the drama, intrigue, and machinations that gave birth to the modern-day NFL.
About the Author
Larry Felser is a former president of the Pro Football Writers of America. In 1983 he was elected to the writers wing of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He reported on the Buffalo Bills from their inception through 1962 for the Buffalo Courier-Express and from 1963 through 1976 for the Buffalo News.