George Blanda
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George Blanda (born
September 17,
1927) was an American football player. He was a prime example of players who were called "
NFL Rejects" by some. The
NFL Chicago Bears thought the
University of Kentucky's Blanda wasn't good enough to be a quarterback and wanted him to be a place kicker only. But in
1960, the formation of the
American Football League led to Blanda's signing by the
Houston Oilers as a quarterback and kicker. He went on to lead the Oilers to the first two league titles in AFL history, and he won AFL Player of the Year honors in
1961. Blanda once passed for 7 TDs in one game, and 36 in a season, 1961. Thirteen times he threw four or more touchdown passes in a game, and once he unleashed 68 passes, for Houston against Buffalo on Nov. 1, 1964. For three staight years,
1963 through
1965, he led the league in passing attempts and completions, and was in the top ten for attempts, completions, yards and touchdowns for seven straight years. He was a four-time member of the American Football League All-Star team. In
1967, when Blanda was almost 40, he left the Oilers but the
Oakland Raiders saw him as a contributing backup passer and a dependable kicker so they picked him up. At Oakland, he was a clutch kicker and a valuable "reliever" who pulled games out if fellow Hall of Famer
Daryle Lamonica was unavailable or ineffective. He was especially successful in this role in
1970, when he was named the NFL's MVP.
Blanda went on to become the oldest quarterback to start a title game, and the oldest professional football player, with the longest career, 26 years. He remains a strong supporter of the AFL heritage, recently saying: "That first year, the Houston Oilers or
Los Angeles Chargers (24-16 losers to the Oilers in the title game) could have beaten the NFL champion (Philadelphia) in a Super Bowl." Blanda said further: "I think the AFL was capable of beating the NFL in a Super Bowl game as far back as
1960 or '61. I just regret we didn't get the chance to prove it."
He is the placekicker on the All-time All-AFL Team. Blanda was one of only 20 players to play all ten years of the AFL, one of only three who were in every AFL game their teams played, and is a member of the
American Football League Hall of Fame, the
Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the University of Kentucky Hall of Fame.
Blanda held the record for most NFL games played (including his AFL games) with 340 until September 26, 2004, when it was broken by another placekicker, Morten Andersen.
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