The Sam Huff Trade.....

at the time.

The Giants got some good players but couldn't make up for Huff.

It was mostly about the emotions involved and Sam's motivation to make the Giants suffer for it.

I don't recall that either team made a big turnaround.

They thought they got value in a trade in the form of Dick James (one of the best and most versatile multi-purpose players in the NFL. However he was getting long in the tooth) and a pretty young DE Andy Stynchula..It was a terrible trade. It was reported that he and Allie asherman were at severe odds..After the trade he loathed Sherman and carried that hate with him until his present dementia set in..

He was not nearly as valuable to the Giants as Eli is

decent DT. It was a big loss, as much about the end of an era as anything else. But the team was getting old all together at the time, and we were already heading for free fall if I remember correctly.

I was really young when he was traded, so don't remember the event itself, but I seem to recall Wellington Mara being miffed at Huff for something.

Sam Huff was the heart of the team. The Jints never recovered until the Perkins era. It was the end of the emphasis on defense and led to Fran Tarkenton and the offense carrying the team.

entire team in the locker room after the 14-10 loss to the Bears in the 1963 NFL Championship game. He was gone as of that moment.
The argument was that at halftime Huff guaranteed Sherman the defense would win the game if the Giants took no more offensive risks with an injured YA Tittle. An interception on a screen pass deep in Giants territory turned a 10-7 win into a 14-10 loss and an extremely angry Sam Huff went off on Sherman for ruining his "guarantee".

with the Redskins. They only had one season above .500, in his final year (a hardly dominant 7-5-2.) The trade was probably a bad one for the Giants but it's not like Huff turned the Skins into a powerhouse. (I wasn't around back then, just did some research.)

Would never have been allowed to finish that game today. It was a severe injury

Huff was an important cog in the defense and in the whole team at that point in time. A class act. Very sad event. I think I'm over it now but a tear can still form reading a post like this.

In comment 13193986 Pete in MD said:

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with the Redskins. They only had one season above .500, in his final year (a hardly dominant 7-5-2.) The trade was probably a bad one for the Giants but it's not like Huff turned the Skins into a powerhouse. (I wasn't around back then, just did some research.)

I forgot to add that one winning season was the one year Vince Lombardi coached Washington. Quite a detail to leave out.

playing for the Redskins. He was still highly regarded, but I was a young kid and I didn't know if it was because he was still really good or because of his past accomplishments.

for the responses. It was very informative

And since Sherman was coming off 3 straight trips to the championship game, he wasn't going anywhere. Huff changed plays in the huddle, was a pain to Andy Robustelli, his defensive coach and defiant to Allie Sherman. Although the trade was terrible, it's far from the only reason the team sunk so low for so long. By 1965, about 10 starters had retired. The drafts since the late 50's were all terrible and would continue to be well into the 70's. Keeping Huff and Modoleski may have helped them win a few games in the coming seasons, but it's doubtful they'd have been better than .500.

I think Huff was just about done in 1967 and injuried all of 1968. He came back as a player coach for Lombardi in 1969, but didn't do much.

Fans never forgave Sherman either.

I remember how important Huff was with us. That said, he didn't play lights-out later on either. Those were tough times.

It was a bad trade, but it wasn't the reason or even a major reason the team fell from glory to 20 years in the dumpster. If they hadn't made the trade, they still would have sucked for 20 years.

In comment 13193778 yatqb said:

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decent DT. It was a big loss, as much about the end of an era as anything else. But the team was getting old all together at the time, and we were already heading for free fall if I remember correctly.

As I recall, Dick James really seemed to play well against the Giants and that might have been a factor in the trade. But the roof was caving in on the Giants.

last year was my first year as a 7 year-old fan so I really only remember him playing for the Redskins.

I met him at the HOF game in '85. Saw him and said, "Hey, Sam Huff!" I was wearing a Giants t-shirt. He gets this big smile on his face and says, "Once a Giant, always a Giant."

Guess he finally got over it.

In comment 13194885 Giants_ROK said:

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last year was my first year as a 7 year-old fan so I really only remember him playing for the Redskins. I met him at the HOF game in '85. Saw him and said, "Hey, Sam Huff!" I was wearing a Giants t-shirt. He gets this big smile on his face and says, "Once a Giant, always a Giant." Guess he finally got over it.

I don't think it was ever about the team. His hate was directed specifically against Allie Sherman. And he never got over it.

In comment 13195033 Jim in Fairfax said:

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In comment 13194885 Giants_ROK said: Quote: last year was my first year as a 7 year-old fan so I really only remember him playing for the Redskins. I met him at the HOF game in '85. Saw him and said, "Hey, Sam Huff!" I was wearing a Giants t-shirt. He gets this big smile on his face and says, "Once a Giant, always a Giant." Guess he finally got over it. I don't think it was ever about the team. His hate was directed specifically against Allie Sherman. And he never got over it.

His hatred was originally against Sherman and Well Mara. After he retired and Sherman was gone, Mara made peace with him and hired him to the radio booth. Does anyone know why he only lasted a year or 2? I know he was partnered with Sonny Jurgensen in the Redskins booth for many years. Huff and Jurgensen became friends as senior members of the late 60's Redskins.

In comment 13195050 Spider 67 said:

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His hatred was originally against Sherman and Well Mara. After he retired and Sherman was gone, Mara made peace with him and hired him to the radio booth. Does anyone know why he only lasted a year or 2? I know he was partnered with Sonny Jurgensen in the Redskins booth for many years. Huff and Jurgensen became friends as senior members of the late 60's Redskins.

Don't know specificity. But I can say that, despite being loved by Redskins fans, he was a truly awful color man.

In comment 13194842 clatterbuck said:

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In comment 13193778 yatqb said: Quote: decent DT. It was a big loss, as much about the end of an era as anything else. But the team was getting old all together at the time, and we were already heading for free fall if I remember correctly. As I recall, Dick James really seemed to play well against the Giants and that might have been a factor in the trade. But the roof was caving in on the Giants.

Clatter, I seem to recall that too. But on our team he was lousy.