Meet the Redskins S ome teams in the National Football League NFL constantly try new ideas in the hope of winning The Washington Redskins prefer to stick with the proven way They make powerful blocks jarring tackles and battle over every yard Near the end of most games their opponents are huffing and puffing while the Redskins are getting their second wind More than 70 years ago when the Redskins played their first game in Washington D C professional football was just trying to survive Today it is the country’s favorite sport The Redskins are an important part of that success story They were popular from the first time they took the field Now they are a bigger hit than ever This book tells the story of the Redskins They are not a team for fans of clean uniforms The dirtier the Redskins are the happier they feel and the better they play Call it tradition Call it superstition Better yet just call it Redskins football The Redskins celebrate a touchdown They have a history as an offensive powerhouse 5
Glory Days T he NFL was not yet 10 years old when the Great Depression hit the United States Most fans could no longer afford to attend games and the league struggled to stay in business Fortunately for the NFL a man named George Preston Marshall believed that pro football would be a success in the long run Marshall was a wealthy businessman from the Washington D C area In 1932 he bought a team in Boston Massachusetts and named it the Braves A year later he changed the name to the Redskins The Redskins were a good team Their early stars included Turk Edwards Cliff Battles Ernie Pinckert Jim Musick and Wayne Millner Still Marshall could not find a way to fill the stands in Boston In 1937 he moved the Redskins home to Washington That season they signed their first great passer Sammy Baugh 6
With Baugh leading the way Washington finished atop the NFL’s East Division in 1937 and four more times from 1940 to 1945 The Redskins were league champions in 1937 and 1942 The stars of those great teams included ends Bob Masterson and Joe Aguirre plus linemen Dick Farman Steve Slivinski and Willie Wilkin After Baugh retired the Redskins fell on hard times In the years after World War II they enjoyed only two winning seasons despite having plenty of stars In the 1950s and early 1960s Washington had talent up and down its roster including quarterbacks Eddie LeBaron and Norm Snead running backs Charlie Justice and Don Bosseler and receivers Hugh Taylor and Bill Anderson The team’s defensive leaders were Gene Brito and Chuck Drazenovich Perhaps the biggest reason for Washington’s poor record was Marshall’s unwillingness to sign African-American players During the nation’s racial tension of the 1960s he feared that white fans would not root for black players It took a personal plea from President LEFT Sammy Baugh prepares to throw a long pass ABOVE George Preston Marshall is pictured on the team’s 1962 yearbook 7
