I"m finishing up one of the old game reviews that should be ready for next week. But as I was going back, I was able to get my hands on some of the 1987 games and got a hold of the Monday Night Giants vs. 49ers game. In that game, the Niners (who fielded one of the best Replacement teams) took on the Giants (who fielded one of the worst), and the Replacement Niners blew out the Replacement Giants. That game featured a guy named Edwin Lovelady make a circus catch for the Giants and Bill Walsh running the wishbone, which elicited laughter from Parcells on the other sideline and Walsh looked at him and shrugged.
Looking back, now coming up on 30 years later, it is still amazing to me that the NFL actually went ahead and did this. Where they had the strike after Week 2 (the Giants lost at Chicago in Week 1 and blew their home opener to Dallas to go to 0-2). The owners cancelled Week 3 games and went ahead and played games with an entirely new roster, with the exception of some guys who crossed the picket line. In all the replacement players/scabs lasted weeks. The Giants went 0-3 to bury their season and chance to defend their title. I wonder if the NFL will dare do anything to go back and talk about this little discussed part of NFL history in the 30 year anniversary. A few guys actually ended up having decent NFL careers and stuck (Jeff Criswell as a tackle with the Jets). Eugene Seal became a Pro Bowl special teamer with the Oilers. Plus you had Sean Payton playing QB for the Bears. Rick Neuheisel was the Chargers QB.
I could only imagine if there is another labor stoppage, with the amount of money in TV revenue and all the social media available, if the NFL would ever try to do this again. For those too young to remember, just imagine if the Giants fielded a team full of guys working on a loading dock or were playing semi-pro beer league football were put in Giants uniforms. And the games counted. BBI would have imploded if it was around in 1987.
Did that really happen or am I imagining that? If so how did LT do against the replacement players? Did he have like 6 sacks?
Did that really happen or am I imagining that? If so how did LT do against the replacement players? Did he have like 6 sacks?
Yes, this did happen. In one of the worst games of all time, the Giants lost 6-3 in OT at Buffalo. LT was held on every play, and he still got 2 sacks. I think the Buffalo OT said something to the effect that they couldn't throw a holding penalty on every play so he just mugged him the entire game. And he did play at TE late in the game to try to get the win, with Jeff Rutledge at QB (he crossed the line too).
Was it Bennett? I thought it was Lovelady (or I just remembered him for the awesome name). I'll have to go back and look later tonight.
http://bigbluevcr.blogspot.com/2015/02/1987-giants-vs-patriots.html - ( New Window )
LT vs the Replacements - ( New Window )
Catch - ( New Window )
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and it was voted the best catch of the 1st 25 years of MNF a couple of years later.
Was it Bennett? I thought it was Lovelady (or I just remembered him for the awesome name). I'll have to go back and look later tonight.
funny I met LT and Banks later that fall at a United Way thing at Merril Lynch where I worked. I them asked about that and LT said,quote, "he's being a dick", unquote.
In the NFL 1987 strike, the owners were able to avoid any significant pain by fulfilling their TV contract. I don't know the precise language, but the contract said something to the effect of: the networks had to pay if they were broadcasting legal "championship" games -- that is, if they were going to count in the standings. The agreement for season ticket holders is similar, I believe. (IIRC there's language printed on the back of MLB tickets that spells out the terms of your ticket, which includes seeing a "championship" game.)
By fielding teams and playing games that counted, the owners limited their pain. The players had bet that fans wouldn't accept that product, but as long as TV paid, it didn't matter much whether we fans accepted it or not.
So as long as the NFL games counted, the owners could keep the season ticket money and got paid by TV. If they canceled the games, or if they decided (even after the fact) that the games didn't count, they would be in breach of contract. TV wouldn't pay, or would sue to get their money back. Season ticket holders would sue. Pain.
A lot has changed in 30 years but this scenario could play out again -- unless the TV networks have put in a clause saying they don't have to pay, or pay full rate, for "replacement" games.
Nittmo wasn't a scab. He kicked for the Giants in 1989. John Madden said he looked like he should be playing tennis somewhere. Their kicker was some guy named George Benyola, and he blew the Bills game by missing a 40 yarder. However to be fair, he was probably kicking soccer balls around in Secaucus and the Giants asked him if he wanted to kick some field goals just driving up Route 3 a bit.
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NITTMO!!
Nittmo wasn't a scab. He kicked for the Giants in 1989. John Madden said he looked like he should be playing tennis somewhere. Their kicker was some guy named George Benyola, and he blew the Bills game by missing a 40 yarder. However to be fair, he was probably kicking soccer balls around in Secaucus and the Giants asked him if he wanted to kick some field goals just driving up Route 3 a bit.
D'oh! You just really messed up one of my (what I thought was) childhood memories about the GMEN!
I had it rolled up and carried it to my seat shoved up under my pant leg. I unfurled it about half way through the third quarter and security was on me in under a minute. They escorted me out. That's when I realized the NFL was just shy of a Fascist organization.
Anyone remember replacement RB Bo Almodobar? Local boy I knew from Nantucket.
I had it rolled up and carried it to my seat shoved up under my pant leg. I unfurled it about half way through the third quarter and security was on me in under a minute. They escorted me out.
Ha, I had a sign too. Briefly got it on tv before it was confiscated. But we saw the guy just throw it in the garbage, and waited a minute and took it out when he walked away.
the risk for career ending injury doesn't make sense.
I couldn't wait for the season to be over.
One of the worst seasons (as a Giants fan for me) Ever)!
They call them scabs for a reason. It took me. A long time to get over that.
They call them scabs for a reason. It took me. A long time to get over that.
Yeah, wouldn't watch any either. The whole season was a waste.
That whole season was a disaster . I saw the loss at home to the Cowboys. After the regulars returned , I flew to St Louis to see what turned out to be the last Cardinal home game in that city. Giants specials under Romeo helped cough up that one. Parcells was resigned to it all. The actual team finished at 500, I think it was 6-6 , and 0-3 for the faux Giants .
Best scenes: Madden's pre-game at Giants Stadium against the Skins: "It's like you throw a big party..and nobody shows up." And Walsh looking at Parcells across the field and smiling an Alfred E Neumann smile, when he unfurled the wishbone against the Giants. Never knew the guy had a sense of humor . (RIP)
That whole season was a disaster . I saw the loss at home to the Cowboys. After the regulars returned , I flew to St Louis to see what turned out to be the last Cardinal home game in that city. Giants specials under Romeo helped cough up that one. Parcells was resigned to it all. The actual team finished at 500, I think it was 6-6 , and 0-3 for the faux Giants .
Best scenes: Madden's pre-game at Giants Stadium against the Skins: "It's like you throw a big party..and nobody shows up." And Walsh looking at Parcells across the field and smiling an Alfred E Neumann smile, when he unfurled the wishbone against the Giants. Never knew the guy had a sense of humor . (RIP)
Bill Walsh had a great sense of humor.
There's a clip of him doing a mid week pre-game talk saying:
"Got to stay fresh for this game....got to stay fresh.
For some guys that means a lot of sex, and for some it means none at all."
With respect to the Giants/49ers MNF, that catch was insane.
I'll probably watch some of the replacement game footage on youtube to see what the game was like back then.
Link - ( New Window )
Regarding Bill Walsh, has anyone here read that book he put together that didn't sell at all but is basically a football bible? I've heard that book is amazing.