One of the very best autograph experiences I ever had. Humble guy, and wonderful humanitarian for starting the Tommy Nobis Center who helps with job training for people with disabilities. That place is still in operation, and his legacy lives on.
That's awesome that you got to meet my uncle. I have unfortunately only met him twice, when I was a toddler. He lived in Atlanta and I live in Texas so never saw him much
Tommy’s gone home now, R.I.P. Texas Longhorn Fans will never forget him. The middle linebacker who stopped Alabama and Joe Namath from the Texas (1) yard line for four straight downs winning the Orange Bowl. The first night bowl game to be broadcast nationwide! Thx. for the memories: Tommy!
4:08 Me: Come on! Say it! Say it! SAY IT!!! You know you want to!!! JaguarGator: ...Which is worse than if you did nothing but spike the ball into the ground on every single play. Me: YES!! There it is!
In the early years of the Falcons (1966-76) Tommy was a force to be reckoned with! Nobis was about the only bright spot on defense, with exception to Defensive End Claude Humphries. Being a resident of Georgia, and Falcon fan to boot the first 10-years of the franchise was rough. Coach Norm Van-Brocklin came along early 70's and made us respectable. We had added Tight End Jim Mitchell to the starting lineup and things started looking better. Journey man Quarterback Dick Shiner had some good games with the Falcons in the Van-Brocklin years, and these players gave us something to cheer about, also the players here all picked up the rest of the team, most especially Tommy Nobis! For most of Tommy's career, he was a huge fish in a small pond, the Atlanta Falcons pond. I wish that Tommy had played in the Dan Reeve years as Falcon Head Coach. Thanks for the great, great football memories Tommy Nobis!
You have to be a falcons fan because you do a lot of old Falcons vids. As a fan of the Falcons myself I appreciate you doing so. Please make more vids about Atlanta Falcons
He's a Jags fan but I won't be surprised if the Falcons are his second favorite. I don't care for the Jaguars much but consider Savannah about half and half of Falcons and Jaguars fans (I think). The other Falcons fans have went into the closet after 28-3 in the Super Bowl. I'm taking my hits and eventually the Falcons will finally win it all, "It doesn't rain forever." ~ The Crow (1994)
Historical correction: Future 49ers coach / Pro Football HOFer / offensive revolutionary Bill Walsh spent the 1976 season as the OC for the San Diego Chargers under HC Tommy Prothro. The Bill Walsh associated with the Falcons and referenced in this video was an O-line coach that none of us have ever heard of. H/T Wikipedia.
More context on that -39 net passing yard game: 46 passing yards, 85 yards lost on 8 sacks. Also, Falcons QB Scott Hunter went 1-4 for 2 yards, 0 TDs and 0 INTs while being sacked twice for 18 yards. Final passer rating: 39.6, the same as if you spiked the ball into the ground on every play.
That win over the Dallas Cowboys in 1976 was truly mind boggling. Scott Hunter was the Falcons quarterback because Bartkowski was injured (again)…and he might have actually been the third string quarterback on the roster when the season started. The Falcons defense was unbelievably stout that day, holding Roger Staubach to 157 yards passing, sacking him four times and picking him off three times, the last in the red zone in the closing minutes of the game …which was the final INT by Tommy Nobis in his career. Somehow the Falcons scored all 17 points in the 4th quarter. Scott Hunter completed 8 of 20 pass attempts for less than 100 yards…for the entire game. But the game was almost unrecognizable; both teams combined for over 300 yards rushing. It was like pre-shot clock four corners offense basketball. I saw it all, on a sunny, but windy as hell and cold November afternoon when I was 9 years old.
Steve Bartkowski was one of those players who played in the wrong decade. He was tailor made for a Bill Walsh style West Coast offense but was stuck in an era of grounding it out for 4 yards and a cloud of dust. He was also stuck on a terrible team with one of the worst offense lines (or worst offense period) that needed him to be peak Roger Staubach from day one. He had a great arm, was mobile and had great touch. On top of that he was a very intelligent football player. We only really saw glimpses of how talented he really could be because most of the time he was running for his life before he could evem check off his first read. I would have loved to see him play for a coach like Walsh because he checked all the boxes for what a good West Coast quarterback needed to succeed.
What I remember about the Falcons of the 70s is that they had some very good players surrounded by players that didn't belong in the NFL. They had one of the best centers in Jeff Van Note, tackles withe George Kunz, Dave Hampton at rb, Ken Burrow at wr. On the defense they had the best tandem of DE's in the league with Humphrey and Zook. Tommy Nobis, and underrated Greg Brezina at lb.
It's ashame Tommy Nobis left the way he did after the 1976 season. In 1977, the Falcons went 7-7 & won their 1st playoff game in 78. By the time Tommy retired in 76, the game of football & being on a losing team took its toll on him. I only saw highlights of him on NFL films and he was a great player. I definitely would put him in the same class with Butkus and Nitckie.
The fact that they gave up only 129 points and yet ended with a record of just 7-7 tells you everything you need to know about how pathetic their offense was that season.
Unfortunate that both Nobis and Butkus, two of the NFL’s greatest middle line backers of that era, ( along with the Packers Ray Nitschke and the Chiefs Willie Lanier), played on terrible teams who never made the playoffs. Both deserved better.
This was in an era before free agency. In the Twenty Teens or Twenty One Hundreds, one or other would have ended up in New England or someplace like Seattle and they would have been All World Superstars as well as filthy rich.
Yes they did ! And they both were the best of the best on HORRIBLE knees for most of their careers. There are far too many deserving players who are NOT in the HOF. Nobis without a doubt, Kenny Anderson ( almost identical stats to Dan Fouts ) Fouts is in why not Anderson ? Ken Riley, when he retired 3rd all time in INT's...I think even today he's # 5....why is he not in the hall ?
@@keithsowder275 Anderson and Riley aren’t in because they didn’t play in a major market. They also had the misfortune of playing in the golden era for the Dolphins, Steelers, and Raiders. During the prime of Anderson and Riley’s careers, Only after the 1977 season were none of those three teams in the Super Bowl. The media had a love affair with 4 franchises in the 70s (throw in the Cowboys) and a lot of great players on some not-so-good teams did not get the recognition they deserved, and deserved way more than Joe NaMYTH and some others garnered.
@@carspiv Spot on my friend! Namath is in the HOF simply for guaranteeing the first Super Bowl win for the AFL, Lynn Swann for 3 amazing catches that happened in Super Bowls, Bradshaw...4 rings. And it's a damned shame! So many more deserving players that are left out simply because of the market they played in. Just to name a few more..Willie Anderson, Reggie Williams, James Brooks, Randy Gradishar, Karl Mecklenburg, Bill Bergey, Harold Jackson ( he might be in...not sure ) and tons more!
Jerry Glanville's Gritz Blitz was born! Ultimately Bartkowski would develop into a quality QB by 1978 and the Falcons finally righted the ship and became a playoff team.
Tommy Nobis should be in the Hall of Fame.My Dad took me one week and my brother,Dave the next week to see that first season of the Atlanta Falcons.It was great.
Tommy was a friend of mine. My High School Jefferson High School played great football in the 60’s. I’ve always figured Tommy was recruited to play for Jefferson since he came from Emerson Jr High School. I played football in Junior high school and we were going to play Emerson. Coach said they have a big red headed kid that is the whole team, QB, linebacker, kicker etc and he is great.
Inept ownership always hurt the Falcons. In the late 70s, Leeman Bennett became the HC and they improved dramatically. Steve Bartkowski became a very good QB along with several other really good players (especially William Andrews). Too bad Nobis came along too early to play on those teams. They were super bowl caliber in 1980 before a playoff loss to the Cowboys that they never recovered from. Bennett was fired after a playoff loss to the Vikings in '82
@@nicoleknight9412 oh my bad all I had showing on my end was “the only reason he’s.” Another that should be in there is the original #54 for the Cowboys Chuck Howley. A truly great player
@@nicoleknight9412 and yet Butkus is and the Bears were horrible when Butkus played. Has zero bearing on what is an individual honor. Nobis should be in and should've been after the mandatory five year period expired.
I agree that he is the best defensive player not in the HOF. Incredible stats on a bad team. I always feel bad for those who make the Hall after they pass away. He deserved better.
What is ironic about this is that the following season, the Falcons had the best overall defense in NFL history and that defense is still ranked #1 all time in several categories. The offense was still learning how to walk and they might win games with scores like 6-3 or 3-0. But they would also lose them the same way. With Nobis retired and in the front office, that 1977 defense was made of some of the best talent that ever played the game. They wouldn’t make the playoffs until 1978, but that 1977 season is legendary for building the Atlanta fan base. That was when the Falcons were fun to watch. The Gritz-Blitz defense
Nobis had one of the worst cases of CTE, said his daughter. Though to his credit, he didn’t degenerate into depression and drug use. A cautionary note for anyone interested in playing football.
Not taking anything away from him when I say this but there's also a hell of a lot of good luck involved in that since people don't generally will themselves into depression so it's not like you can always just tough your way out of depression.
When asked what his major was at Texas, Nobis responded: Hittin' people in the gizzle. Poor guy was a great player stuck in a shyte franchise. (Archie Manning, anybody?) Fun fact: My brother played with Carl Ekern, (#55, 10:12 mark) in high school and they hammered Bartkowski's team.
Great comment! Solid Bartkowski comment. He was the real deal. He quarterbacked the team when they had their first running back with a 1000 yards rushing in a season, 1001? Only to lose 4 yards on the last carry / play of the season. 997 yards official. I’m remember the bumper sticker floating around Atlanta late 70’s. Go Falcons and take the Braves with you. I’m a lifelong Falcons fan FYI :)
@@marshallr4797 I grew up admiring Bradshaw and Pastorini, but I did read Bartkowski had an incredible arm. But back then I could never see him on TV except for highlights. It would have been great if he benefited the way Pastorini did when Offensive Coordinator Joe Bugel built a great line in 1977 to protect Dante...and suddenly his stats looked great.
Do a video about the Lions having 12 men on the field when their field goal special team squad ran on the field to kick the last second winning field goal to beat the Cowboys in the Silverdome in 1980. That was an amazing game, with an unforgettable ending. You should also do a vid on the great Billy Sims. The Lions were a scrappy, surprising team with him on the roster! Their theme song in 1980 was Queen's 'Another One Bites the Dust', a huge hit song at the time. I was a huge Cowboys fan back then living in the Detroit area, and I remember coming to school the next day with a 'Another One Bites the Dust' sign on my desk lol, which I quickly tore up, lol. I heard about that game for a long time at school, lemme tell ya lol. Landry if I recall correctly did not complain to the league about the non-call. The Detroit Free Press put a pic of the Lions lined up to kick the winning field goal on their front page the next morning, with each player numbered, and sure enough there were 12 men lined up. That's the way it goes sometimes. Great game though. Certainly worthy of a vid of yours.👍
I saw that (12 men) 2 other times; rams v Bears, then Pittsburg v ? (this is the one where Cower showd the photos of 12 men to the ref at half and was fined for doing so)
@@GetBenched2010 Oilers lost by a combined 96-14 to Oakland in 2 playoff games and were in a middle of a 9 game losing streak to the Raiders during this time period. In other words, Houston needed a little bit more than Tommy Nobis to get past Oakland
What if Atlanta had gone into the AFL? Both leagues were courting Atlanta and the franchise group chose the NFL; which led to the birth of the Miami Dolphins. If Atlanta is in the AFL, which NFL team has Tommy Nobis' rights? Does that team make Nobis choose to sign with the Oilers? One different decision makes ripples of change.
Your Uncle was a beast ! And maybe the most underrated player in NFL history ! I was never a Falcons fan...but if they were on I'd watch just to see Nobis play ! I'd have loved to have seen what he could have done with 2 good knees !
What's with the random jab at Greg Pruitt? Dude was a Pro Bowler 5 times, and finished his career with 13,000 APY. In his prime, he was dangerous (well, OK, he was also a fumbler, but still...)
As a young Falcon fan, Nobis and Humphrey were the first jerseys I ever bought. I hated to see Nobis retire after '76, but I also remember him hobbling around the field after every play. But my FAVORITE Falcon of all-time has to be William Andrews. I've never enjoyed watching ANY ball player play more than Andrews. With the possible exception of Earl Campbell his first 2 seasons. Just an amazing all around back that had what probably would have been a hall of fame career tragically cut short. And during training camp no less. '83, doing amazing things, '84 gone. Just another sad and tragic Falcon story.
He played in the same era as Butkus. Some say he was as good, yet both played for teams that couldn't win anything other than an occasional coin toss. The world remembers Butkus. Not so much Nobis. Damn shame.
Because Butkus played in Chi, and original NFL team. Nobis played in south , when south was consider small , and backwards, but he he should be in Canton. Deion is best Faclon.
How he isn't in the HOF is beyond me. He was every bit as good as Dick Butkus and Ray Nitschke, but because he played on terrible teams is probably why he isn't in the Hall. He was basically the whole defense early on.
When you're getting boatraced by a 1st-year expansion team, especially considering the expansion draft rules back in'76 (i.e., a lower-quality pool than what the Jaguars and the Panthers had to choose from in '95), you know things are going left. 30-13 is already a blowout, but that game wasn't even THAT close!
What a heart this man had! I knew him through his work with the Special Olympics. These opinions that you write about do not begin to cover the story of Mr. Nobis. I say, keep it in the locker room buddy.
Jim Marshall, L.C. Greenwood, Cliff Branch. There are others I would make arguments for, but to me these three men are deserving. In fact, Lynn Swann in the HOF and Greenwood not, is a joke.
LaVern Dilweg, Ox Emerson, Al Wistert.... I loved Sterling but he's not even top 15 or 20 of guys not in who should be in. He was a great player, fun to watch and I'd hardly miss a wink of sleep if they put him in. I think in terms of great short careers that aren't in but should be Sterling Sharpe and Shaun Alexander were both spectacular weapons. Sadly Jones/Hutchison get all of that credit and not the ball carrier.
Tommy Nobis, like Dick Butkus, had a perfect name for a linebacker. I remember the 59-0 game well; the Rams used all three of their quarterbacks (Haden, Harris, Jaworski), all of whom produced touchdowns, and the score would have been worse if Tom Dempsey hadn't missed 2 or 3 early convert attempts. Vin Scully was calling the game for CBS with Crazylegs Hirsch as his colour man, and late in the game Vin asked him if he felt sorry for his opponents if his team was winning such a lopsided game. Crazylegs said he didn't.
@@ibbetn1 You do: Saturday, Dec. 4, following Baltimore @ St. Louis on NBC. Early the next season, the Falcons got revenge--I think it was 17-6--when the Rams had Joe Namath at QB.
I had a big bet on the Cards over the Colts that day. Cards needed the game to have a chance at the playoffs I think. Colts were already in. I won the bet. Maybe that’s why I remember that day so well.
yeah look at the box scores of that season and tell me how much difference he would have made to the offense that could not support that great scoring defense.
Not sure if that doesn’t hurt him. The defense was great without him. On a side note. That defense was very good but played some of the worst offense’s in the league. The Broncos Orange Crush was the best in my opinion when the competition is taken into account.
Great job. Whomever is the Atlanta Falcons media representative is that has a vote for the HOF needs to showcase this video to the HOF committee like how the Eagles reporter Sal Paolantonio did for Harold Carmichael to get him enshrined. And that one was only 45 seconds. This could help Tommy Nobis' case.
@@astrostar49 I believe Zach has the highest HOF score on PFR for any ILB who's not currently in, plus it should be easier for him since he's not a Seniors candidate. But I do agree about Gradishar and Nobis.
Great story but you were wrong on Bill Walsh. There was another Bill Walsh en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Walsh_(American_football,_born_1927) who was a little known assistant coach and this is the one they are referring to. He was already on the Falcons staff in '76 as an assistant. The Bill Walsh you're referencing to was the offensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers that season.
Walsh should have been the Bengals coach after Paul Brown retired....but Brown screwed him. He kept promising him the job to keep him on the staff...then when he retired gave the job to O - Line Coach Bill "Tiger" Johnson. How different things could have been if Brown had kept his word !
This unofficial Official Jaguar Gator 9 historian will remind everyone you made two videos about controversial safety/touchback calls. The call at 8:20 appears to be an incorrect safety call.
Consider including the following sort of interest in your VO: Nobis' violent tackles left their marks on the liked of... (and as you show the clips): gayle sayers, Donny Anderson, Don Perkins, Charley Taylor, Ernie Green ... his intense play led to interceptions off of the likes of playoff starting QBs like Roman Gabriel and Joe Kapp... Mention the linemen whose blocks he fought through. Add the color of the names of others... you did mention SBartkowski and Gregg Pruit. Expand.
This was first out of many legends that Falcons either wasted and failed to build around. Matt Ryan is the "Mr Falcon" of my generation but the organization tried to screw him over only to screw themselves. Let's hope that Mariota has a career renaissance and win NFL Comeback Player of the Year with taking the rebuilding Falcons to the playoffs. 4 years is too long and I want to see some Falcons postseason football.
That was the gayle sayers after knee injury sayers. the pre knee injury he would have run past and away from nobis. the post knee injury sayers was a run thru the tackles runner.
there are NOT ENOUGH LINEBACKERS in the nfl pro football hall of fame !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! tommy nobis of the falcond, matt blair of the vikings and isiah robertson of the la rams certainly BELONG IN THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Add Bill Bergey and Harry Carson. And why is NT Tim Krumrie not in ? He revolutionized the position.....first NT I ever saw to make tackles 15 - 20 yds downfield...track down RB's on pitch plays and tackle them for a loss like an LB....consistently ! Before him all a NT was expected to do was eat up space and keep O - Linemen from getting out to block LB's !
My daughter and grandkids met him at an event in Colorado Springs, my daughter being a raider's fan didn't know who was but he signed a picture for them!
I'm confused -- Atlanta must have had a different Bill Walsh because the Bill Walsh that eventually coached in San Francisco was the offensive coordinator in San Diego in 1976.
Can you imagine being the ony one on the team busting your ass out for 10 years and having nothing to show for it thats enough for anybody to lose it (their minds).
Remember that in 1974 Joe Greene was close to quitting the Steelers. These guys made so little money that many could quit & make good money by virtue of their college degrees.
The AFL wanted him very badly. The NFL pulled out all the stops to keep him from signing with the Oilers(or any other AFL team). Bud Adams would've outbid Rankin Smith for Nobis if the NFL didn't hide or "babysit" him. That became a policy of the NFL because the AFL was drafting and outbidding the NFL for college players at that time(from '60-'66).
That’s right! I remember him being in the news a lot when he came out of college. There was a nasty bidding war going on between the two leagues with Nobis (60) right in the middle of it.
If Nobis had missed a practice under the same circumstances today, the media would be cheering him on to the point of wanting him to replace the team owner.
There are a couple of websites that have information and records for games and seasons going all the way back. What blows my mind is the film he gets. I mean, who had video of the final game in the Bills career of John Leypoldt? Yeah, it was a Monday Night game, but it was 1976. Just amazing.
One of the very best autograph experiences I ever had. Humble guy, and wonderful humanitarian for starting the Tommy Nobis Center who helps with job training for people with disabilities. That place is still in operation, and his legacy lives on.
That's awesome that you got to meet my uncle. I have unfortunately only met him twice, when I was a toddler. He lived in Atlanta and I live in Texas so never saw him much
Tommy’s gone home now, R.I.P. Texas Longhorn Fans will never forget him. The middle linebacker
who stopped Alabama and Joe Namath from the Texas (1) yard line for four straight downs winning the Orange Bowl. The first night bowl game to be broadcast nationwide! Thx. for the memories: Tommy!
Now the Falcons have Bijan.
4:08
Me: Come on! Say it! Say it! SAY IT!!! You know you want to!!!
JaguarGator: ...Which is worse than if you did nothing but spike the ball into the ground on every single play.
Me: YES!! There it is!
honestly think he should just make a whole video on that at this point lmao
[Insert runtime here] of JaguarGator9 saying "Worse than doing nothing but spiking the ball on every single play..."
Learning about so much random football history from watching this channel, Thank you!
Damn shame this man is not in the Hall of Fame! R.I.P Tommy!
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW
Texas Longhorn Tommy Nobis - cover of LIFE magazine in 1964 as the best college football player in the country.
The New York Jets feasted off that 64 Texas team. George Sauer, Pete Lammons, Jim Hudson, and John Elliot.
@@smitskee Lammons picked off Namath twice in the 1965 Orange Bowl
He died with a Severe case of CTE. I wonder if that had anything to do with him missing practice. Rip Tommy
If Nobis played for a team that wasn’t a joke year after year, and in a bigger market, he would’ve been in Canton 40 years ago
The MVP for the Falcons most of Nobis' career should have been their punter
And John James was one of the best ever
Billy Lothridge made the Pro Bowl one year
John James was a great one, partially because he got so much game experience. Seems like they were always punting.
When Nobis was at Texas, Darrell Royal said if he had 11 players on the field like Tommy he could win every game.
4:08 In an increasingly harsh, dystopian world, being able to reply on OBJ9 to say this is one of the tiny handful of comforts I still have.
In the early years of the Falcons (1966-76) Tommy was a force to be reckoned with! Nobis was about the only bright spot on defense, with exception to Defensive End Claude Humphries. Being a resident of Georgia, and Falcon fan to boot the first 10-years of the franchise was rough. Coach Norm Van-Brocklin came along early 70's and made us respectable. We had added Tight End Jim Mitchell to the starting lineup and things started looking better. Journey man Quarterback Dick Shiner had some good games with the Falcons in the Van-Brocklin years, and these players gave us something to cheer about, also the players here all picked up the rest of the team, most especially Tommy Nobis! For most of Tommy's career, he was a huge fish in a small pond, the Atlanta Falcons pond. I wish that Tommy had played in the Dan Reeve years as Falcon Head Coach. Thanks for the great, great football memories Tommy Nobis!
Great video man!!
You have to be a falcons fan because you do a lot of old Falcons vids. As a fan of the Falcons myself I appreciate you doing so. Please make more vids about Atlanta Falcons
He's a Jags fan but I won't be surprised if the Falcons are his second favorite. I don't care for the Jaguars much but consider Savannah about half and half of Falcons and Jaguars fans (I think). The other Falcons fans have went into the closet after 28-3 in the Super Bowl.
I'm taking my hits and eventually the Falcons will finally win it all, "It doesn't rain forever." ~ The Crow (1994)
Seriously, the Falcons need to go back to the red helmets.
And my Broncos need to go back to the old D with a horse inside it. Those retro uniforms were SO much better than what teams wear now.
28-3
@@juniormendez5311 BFD, I'm a Dolphins fan.
@@82dorrin As utterly painful as seeing that logo is (Browns fan), I would agree. The new logo is ugly.
Way on board
Historical correction: Future 49ers coach / Pro Football HOFer / offensive revolutionary Bill Walsh spent the 1976 season as the OC for the San Diego Chargers under HC Tommy Prothro. The Bill Walsh associated with the Falcons and referenced in this video was an O-line coach that none of us have ever heard of. H/T Wikipedia.
More context on that -39 net passing yard game: 46 passing yards, 85 yards lost on 8 sacks. Also, Falcons QB Scott Hunter went 1-4 for 2 yards, 0 TDs and 0 INTs while being sacked twice for 18 yards. Final passer rating: 39.6, the same as if you spiked the ball into the ground on every play.
49ers also led the league in sacks that season.
That win over the Dallas Cowboys in 1976 was truly mind boggling. Scott Hunter was the Falcons quarterback because Bartkowski was injured (again)…and he might have actually been the third string quarterback on the roster when the season started.
The Falcons defense was unbelievably stout that day, holding Roger Staubach to 157 yards passing, sacking him four times and picking him off three times, the last in the red zone in the closing minutes of the game
…which was the final INT by Tommy Nobis in his career.
Somehow the Falcons scored all 17 points in the 4th quarter. Scott Hunter completed 8 of 20 pass attempts for less than 100 yards…for the entire game. But the game was almost unrecognizable; both teams combined for over 300 yards rushing. It was like pre-shot clock four corners offense basketball.
I saw it all, on a sunny, but windy as hell and cold November afternoon when I was 9 years old.
Steve Bartkowski was one of those players who played in the wrong decade. He was tailor made for a Bill Walsh style West Coast offense but was stuck in an era of grounding it out for 4 yards and a cloud of dust.
He was also stuck on a terrible team with one of the worst offense lines (or worst offense period) that needed him to be peak Roger Staubach from day one.
He had a great arm, was mobile and had great touch. On top of that he was a very intelligent football player. We only really saw glimpses of how talented he really could be because most of the time he was running for his life before he could evem check off his first read.
I would have loved to see him play for a coach like Walsh because he checked all the boxes for what a good West Coast quarterback needed to succeed.
What I remember about the Falcons of the 70s is that they had some very good players surrounded by players that didn't belong in the NFL. They had one of the best centers in Jeff Van Note, tackles withe George Kunz, Dave Hampton at rb, Ken Burrow at wr. On the defense they had the best tandem of DE's in the league with Humphrey and Zook. Tommy Nobis, and underrated Greg Brezina at lb.
It's ashame Tommy Nobis left the way he did after the 1976 season. In 1977, the Falcons went 7-7 & won their 1st playoff game in 78. By the time Tommy retired in 76, the game of football & being on a losing team took its toll on him. I only saw highlights of him on NFL films and he was a great player. I definitely would put him in the same class with Butkus and Nitckie.
The next season, 1977, the Falcons set a record for fewest points allowed on defense for a season.
The Patrick Ewing effect.
The Grits Blitz
The fact that they gave up only 129 points and yet ended with a record of just 7-7 tells you everything you need to know about how pathetic their offense was that season.
@@ericbrower6769 the best pass defense and worst pass offense of all time
@@mikepastor.k6233 Jerry Glanville cemented his reputation with that season.
Thanks for posting, you do an excellent job as an historian for players who sadly have been forgotten.
Unfortunate that both Nobis and Butkus, two of the NFL’s greatest middle line backers of that era, ( along with the Packers Ray Nitschke and the Chiefs Willie Lanier), played on terrible teams who never made the playoffs.
Both deserved better.
I met willie Lanier in Richmond VA IN 1986
This was in an era before free agency. In the Twenty Teens or Twenty One Hundreds, one or other would have ended up in New England or someplace like Seattle and they would have been All World Superstars as well as filthy rich.
Yes they did ! And they both were the best of the best on HORRIBLE knees for most of their careers. There are far too many deserving players who are NOT in the HOF. Nobis without a doubt, Kenny Anderson ( almost identical stats to Dan Fouts ) Fouts is in why not Anderson ? Ken Riley, when he retired 3rd all time in INT's...I think even today he's # 5....why is he not in the hall ?
@@keithsowder275 Anderson and Riley aren’t in because they didn’t play in a major market. They also had the misfortune of playing in the golden era for the Dolphins, Steelers, and Raiders. During the prime of Anderson and Riley’s careers, Only after the 1977 season were none of those three teams in the Super Bowl. The media had a love affair with 4 franchises in the 70s (throw in the Cowboys) and a lot of great players on some not-so-good teams did not get the recognition they deserved, and deserved way more than Joe NaMYTH and some others garnered.
@@carspiv Spot on my friend! Namath is in the HOF simply for guaranteeing the first Super Bowl win for the AFL, Lynn Swann for 3 amazing catches that happened in Super Bowls, Bradshaw...4 rings. And it's a damned shame! So many more deserving players that are left out simply because of the market they played in. Just to name a few more..Willie Anderson, Reggie Williams, James Brooks, Randy Gradishar, Karl Mecklenburg, Bill Bergey, Harold Jackson ( he might be in...not sure ) and tons more!
Ironic that the next season, the 77 falcons had one of the greatest defensive seasons in NFL history
Jerry Glanville's Gritz Blitz was born! Ultimately Bartkowski would develop into a quality QB by 1978 and the Falcons finally righted the ship and became a playoff team.
Gritz Blitz!
@@GetBenched2010 CORRECTION: It was Leman Bennett's Gritz Blitz.
@@GetBenched2010 correction, correction, Jerry Glanville was the defensive coordinator that year who brought his scheme to the Falcons.
That season they had may be the best pass defense statistically of modern times and the worst pass offense as well.
Tommy Nobis should be in the Hall of Fame.My Dad took me one week and my brother,Dave the next week to see that first season of the Atlanta Falcons.It was great.
As Van Brocklin said pointing at Nobis - our team dresses there. I'll say as good as Butkus and Nitzschke - and that is saying something
Tommy was a friend of mine. My High School Jefferson High School played great football in the 60’s. I’ve always figured Tommy was recruited to play for Jefferson since he came from Emerson Jr High School. I played football in Junior high school and we were going to play Emerson. Coach said they have a big red headed kid that is the whole team, QB, linebacker, kicker etc and he is great.
Inept ownership always hurt the Falcons. In the late 70s, Leeman Bennett became the HC and they improved dramatically. Steve Bartkowski became a very good QB along with several other really good players (especially William Andrews). Too bad Nobis came along too early to play on those teams. They were super bowl caliber in 1980 before a playoff loss to the Cowboys that they never recovered from. Bennett was fired after a playoff loss to the Vikings in '82
If the HOF is for the best of the best Tommy Nobis deserves to be there.
The only reason he's not there is because he played for a very God-awful team.
@@nicoleknight9412 he is in Canton? I did not realize. I know he was over looked for years. Glad to see them correct this. What year was he inducted?
@@Boomhower89 I said he's NOT there because played for a very bad team.
@@nicoleknight9412 oh my bad all I had showing on my end was “the only reason he’s.” Another that should be in there is the original #54 for the Cowboys Chuck Howley. A truly great player
@@nicoleknight9412 and yet Butkus is and the Bears were horrible when Butkus played. Has zero bearing on what is an individual honor. Nobis should be in and should've been after the mandatory five year period expired.
I agree that he is the best defensive player not in the HOF. Incredible stats on a bad team. I always feel bad for those who make the Hall after they pass away. He deserved better.
Tommy Nobis and his chastise tackle welcomed many a running backs into and out of the NFL
Tommy Nobis, Jim Marshall. Alot of great defensive players that need to be put in the HOF.
These are great. Thank you!
Tommy Nobis and Claude Humphrey were the only elite players to suit up for the Falcons from the late 60's to the early 70's.
What is ironic about this is that the following season, the Falcons had the best overall defense in NFL history and that defense is still ranked #1 all time in several categories.
The offense was still learning how to walk and they might win games with scores like 6-3 or 3-0. But they would also lose them the same way.
With Nobis retired and in the front office, that 1977 defense was made of some of the best talent that ever played the game. They wouldn’t make the playoffs until 1978, but that 1977 season is legendary for building the Atlanta fan base. That was when the Falcons were fun to watch.
The Gritz-Blitz defense
Nobis had one of the worst cases of CTE, said his daughter. Though to his credit, he didn’t degenerate into depression and drug use. A cautionary note for anyone interested in playing football.
Not taking anything away from him when I say this but there's also a hell of a lot of good luck involved in that since people don't generally will themselves into depression so it's not like you can always just tough your way out of depression.
His daughter said away from the crowd like fans and banquets, he was a dangerous terror to his family.
When asked what his major was at Texas, Nobis responded: Hittin' people in the gizzle.
Poor guy was a great player stuck in a shyte franchise. (Archie Manning, anybody?)
Fun fact: My brother played with Carl Ekern, (#55, 10:12 mark) in high school and they hammered Bartkowski's team.
Yeildo14 - Does your brother ever talk about Bartkowski? He was before my time, but was said to have a cannon arm.
@@My_Fair_Lady It is a fun fact, not surprising a beta-male like you is jealous.
Bye.
Great comment! Solid Bartkowski comment. He was the real deal. He quarterbacked the team when they had their first running back with a 1000 yards rushing in a season, 1001? Only to lose 4 yards on the last carry / play of the season. 997 yards official. I’m remember the bumper sticker floating around Atlanta late 70’s. Go Falcons and take the Braves with you. I’m a lifelong Falcons fan FYI :)
@@marshallr4797 I grew up admiring Bradshaw and Pastorini, but I did read Bartkowski had an incredible arm. But back then I could never see him on TV except for highlights.
It would have been great if he benefited the way Pastorini did when Offensive Coordinator Joe Bugel built a great line in 1977 to protect Dante...and suddenly his stats looked great.
@@67marlins81 Not for many years. He said they chatted briefly after the game and that Bartkowski was a good dude.
Do a video about the Lions having 12 men on the field when their field goal special team squad ran on the field to kick the last second winning field goal to beat the Cowboys in the Silverdome in 1980. That was an amazing game, with an unforgettable ending. You should also do a vid on the great Billy Sims. The Lions were a scrappy, surprising team with him on the roster! Their theme song in 1980 was Queen's 'Another One Bites the Dust', a huge hit song at the time. I was a huge Cowboys fan back then living in the Detroit area, and I remember coming to school the next day with a 'Another One Bites the Dust' sign on my desk lol, which I quickly tore up, lol. I heard about that game for a long time at school, lemme tell ya lol. Landry if I recall correctly did not complain to the league about the non-call. The Detroit Free Press put a pic of the Lions lined up to kick the winning field goal on their front page the next morning, with each player numbered, and sure enough there were 12 men lined up. That's the way it goes sometimes. Great game though. Certainly worthy of a vid of yours.👍
Lions had the silver rush front as well led by bubba baker and doug english from ut.
I saw that (12 men) 2 other times; rams v Bears, then Pittsburg v ? (this is the one where Cower showd the photos of 12 men to the ref at half and was fined for doing so)
@@lorenzobeckmann3736 vs. vikings.
Imagine a world were Tommy Nobi's signed with the Oilers. He probably be a bigger name in football if he did.
they'd have beaten the Raiders and advanced to Super Bowl II easily. Who knows what happens from there.
@@GetBenched2010 Oilers lost by a combined 96-14 to Oakland in 2 playoff games and were in a middle of a 9 game losing streak to the Raiders during this time period. In other words, Houston needed a little bit more than Tommy Nobis to get past Oakland
Every time I hear my d00d mention a passer rating lower than 39.3, I get goose bumps cuz I know what's comin next.
As Falcon fans, we are all 1976 Tommy Nobis.
294 combined tackles in a 14 game season (Rookie year).
I have been waiting for a video on my Uncle :)
In that 1966 season, he had 294 tackles
Sometimes I wish he signed with Houston
What if Atlanta had gone into the AFL? Both leagues were courting Atlanta and the franchise group chose the NFL; which led to the birth of the Miami Dolphins. If Atlanta is in the AFL, which NFL team has Tommy Nobis' rights? Does that team make Nobis choose to sign with the Oilers? One different decision makes ripples of change.
@@tygrkhat4087 They would have settled it like everything else back in those days.....with a coin flip
Your Uncle was a beast ! And maybe the most underrated player in NFL history ! I was never a Falcons fan...but if they were on I'd watch just to see Nobis play ! I'd have loved to have seen what he could have done with 2 good knees !
One of the greatest players to never touch playoff field.
That 59-0 loss to the Rams certainly didn't help matters any.
What's with the random jab at Greg Pruitt? Dude was a Pro Bowler 5 times, and finished his career with 13,000 APY. In his prime, he was dangerous (well, OK, he was also a fumbler, but still...)
That rip putting Cappelletti into McCutcheon not seen any more. Heavenly Birthday Mr. Falcon R.I.P..
As a young Falcon fan, Nobis and Humphrey were the first jerseys I ever bought. I hated to see Nobis retire after '76, but I also remember him hobbling around the field after every play. But my FAVORITE Falcon of all-time has to be William Andrews. I've never enjoyed watching ANY ball player play more than Andrews. With the possible exception of Earl Campbell his first 2 seasons. Just an amazing all around back that had what probably would have been a hall of fame career tragically cut short. And during training camp no less. '83, doing amazing things, '84 gone. Just another sad and tragic Falcon story.
I saw William Andrews play HS football at Thomasville. He was truly a man amongst boys.
They sold jerseys with players' names on them back then??? 😲 I never knew that.
@@DolFan316 I honestly don’t remember if the names were there or not. I just remember I had their numbers.
Andrews was part of one of the greatest college Backfields in history at Auburn with Joe Cribbs and James Brooks !
45 Years Ago
He played in the same era as Butkus. Some say he was as good, yet both played for teams that couldn't win anything other than an occasional coin toss. The world remembers Butkus. Not so much Nobis. Damn shame.
Because Butkus played in Chi, and original NFL team. Nobis played in south , when south was consider small , and backwards, but he he should be in Canton. Deion is best Faclon.
@@erickennedy5993 South is still considered backwards, but these days it's because most of us are against slavery instead of for it.
How he isn't in the HOF is beyond me. He was every bit as good as Dick Butkus and Ray Nitschke, but because he played on terrible teams is probably why he isn't in the Hall. He was basically the whole defense early on.
I think it is very sad that even after all these years the HOF does not right what is definitely a wrong.
There's a LOT of wrongs they need to right !
This is how my highschool team was. We had a few great players but lost just about every game my 11th&12th grade year. We had a first time coach
When you're getting boatraced by a 1st-year expansion team, especially considering the expansion draft rules back in'76 (i.e., a lower-quality pool than what the Jaguars and the Panthers had to choose from in '95), you know things are going left. 30-13 is already a blowout, but that game wasn't even THAT close!
What a heart this man had! I knew him through his work with the Special Olympics. These opinions that you write about do not begin to cover the story of Mr. Nobis. I say, keep it in the locker room buddy.
Wow....I wish Nobis HAD signed with Houston. I always liked the Oilers, even as a Steelers fan as a little kid.
Bud Adams lied about the money. He did that to Ralph Neely.
@@davanmani556 I can believe that.
6:35 We're looking at the 2 worst teams in the league.
The 1976 Tampa Bay Bucs have entered the chat.
Tommy Nobis and Sterling Sharpe are the greatest players not currently in the Hall of Fame IMO
Jim Marshall, L.C. Greenwood, Cliff Branch. There are others I would make arguments for, but to me these three men are deserving. In fact, Lynn Swann in the HOF and Greenwood not, is a joke.
LaVern Dilweg, Ox Emerson, Al Wistert....
I loved Sterling but he's not even top 15 or 20 of guys not in who should be in.
He was a great player, fun to watch and I'd hardly miss a wink of sleep if they put him in.
I think in terms of great short careers that aren't in but should be Sterling Sharpe and Shaun Alexander were both spectacular weapons. Sadly Jones/Hutchison get all of that credit and not the ball carrier.
Tommy Nobis, like Dick Butkus, had a perfect name for a linebacker. I remember the 59-0 game well; the Rams used all three of their quarterbacks (Haden, Harris, Jaworski), all of whom produced touchdowns, and the score would have been worse if Tom Dempsey hadn't missed 2 or 3 early convert attempts. Vin Scully was calling the game for CBS with Crazylegs Hirsch as his colour man, and late in the game Vin asked him if he felt sorry for his opponents if his team was winning such a lopsided game. Crazylegs said he didn't.
If I remember right it was a Saturday afternoon game.
@@ibbetn1 You do: Saturday, Dec. 4, following Baltimore @ St. Louis on NBC. Early the next season, the Falcons got revenge--I think it was 17-6--when the Rams had Joe Namath at QB.
I had a big bet on the Cards over the Colts that day. Cards needed the game to have a chance at the playoffs I think. Colts were already in. I won the bet. Maybe that’s why I remember that day so well.
Man, imagine if he played one more year and was part of that 1977 Falcons defense
yeah look at the box scores of that season and tell me how much difference he would have made to the offense that could not support that great scoring defense.
@@One__Of__One yeah, it's so sad that while having one of the greatest defensive years in NFL history, they also had such an anemic offense
That Grits Blitz would have been that much better... amazing.
Not sure if that doesn’t hurt him. The defense was great without him. On a side note. That defense was very good but played some of the worst offense’s in the league. The Broncos Orange Crush was the best in my opinion when the competition is taken into account.
I know, you're a falcons fan! I am too!
3:51 That gets flagged every single time in today's NFL. Looks like a pro wrestling style clothesline.
Right about that!
Great job. Whomever is the Atlanta Falcons media representative is that has a vote for the HOF needs to showcase this video to the HOF committee like how the Eagles reporter Sal Paolantonio did for Harold Carmichael to get him enshrined. And that one was only 45 seconds. This could help Tommy Nobis' case.
If he gets in before Zach Thomas though I'll be pissed.
@@DolFan316 Thomas also deserves to be in. Guys like Nobis and Gradishar have been waiting way longer though. Just sayin.
@@astrostar49 I believe Zach has the highest HOF score on PFR for any ILB who's not currently in, plus it should be easier for him since he's not a Seniors candidate. But I do agree about Gradishar and Nobis.
I don't recall nobis being with them in the mid70s but I did remember buddy curry at middle linebacker but he came after nobis.
Great story but you were wrong on Bill Walsh. There was another Bill Walsh en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Walsh_(American_football,_born_1927) who was a little known assistant coach and this is the one they are referring to. He was already on the Falcons staff in '76 as an assistant. The Bill Walsh you're referencing to was the offensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers that season.
Walsh should have been the Bengals coach after Paul Brown retired....but Brown screwed him. He kept promising him the job to keep him on the staff...then when he retired gave the job to O - Line Coach Bill "Tiger" Johnson. How different things could have been if Brown had kept his word !
This unofficial Official Jaguar Gator 9 historian will remind everyone you made two videos about controversial safety/touchback calls. The call at 8:20 appears to be an incorrect safety call.
Consider including the following sort of interest in your VO: Nobis' violent tackles left their marks on the liked of... (and as you show the clips): gayle sayers, Donny Anderson, Don Perkins, Charley Taylor, Ernie Green ... his intense play led to interceptions off of the likes of playoff starting QBs like Roman Gabriel and Joe Kapp...
Mention the linemen whose blocks he fought through. Add the color of the names of others... you did mention SBartkowski and Gregg Pruit. Expand.
I always thought his career was incomplete.
At least the oilers were always competitive even when they weren't a contender.
where do you find this footage? lol amazing
This was first out of many legends that Falcons either wasted and failed to build around. Matt Ryan is the "Mr Falcon" of my generation but the organization tried to screw him over only to screw themselves. Let's hope that Mariota has a career renaissance and win NFL Comeback Player of the Year with taking the rebuilding Falcons to the playoffs.
4 years is too long and I want to see some Falcons postseason football.
The much needed context: 1:17
Nobody else gets inducted into the Hall of Fame until Nobis does.
That was the gayle sayers after knee injury sayers. the pre knee injury he would have run past and away from nobis. the post knee injury sayers was a run thru the tackles runner.
If he played in NY, Chicago or Boston, he AND Dale Murphy would be HOF’ers! Nobis was a class act. RIP
To answer the question at the start: Jim Marshall
there are NOT ENOUGH LINEBACKERS in the nfl pro football hall of fame !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! tommy nobis of the falcond, matt blair of the vikings and isiah robertson of the la rams certainly BELONG IN THE PRO FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Add Bill Bergey and Harry Carson. And why is NT Tim Krumrie not in ? He revolutionized the position.....first NT I ever saw to make tackles 15 - 20 yds downfield...track down RB's on pitch plays and tackle them for a loss like an LB....consistently ! Before him all a NT was expected to do was eat up space and keep O - Linemen from getting out to block LB's !
Randy Gradishar is my answer to must snubbed from the HOF defensive players
great player ,totally underrated
My daughter and grandkids met him at an event in Colorado Springs, my daughter being a raider's fan didn't know who was but he signed a picture for them!
I played against Randy G in high school. Glad he had such a successful career.
Wow I just assumed he was in the HOF
If Floyd Little and Charlie Sanders are in then yeah, Nobis should be in as well.
He should be in the NFL HOF.
I'm confused -- Atlanta must have had a different Bill Walsh because the Bill Walsh that eventually coached in San Francisco was the offensive coordinator in San Diego in 1976.
Walsh wasn't ever with the Falcons. Peppler said that was who should replace Marion Campbell as coach.
Yes, there were two Bill Walshes coaching football in the NFL: The genius we all know (born 1931) and the lesser-known o-line coach (born 1927).
Nobis set the unofficial record for tackles in a season in 1966
Rankin Smith’s drinking cost him a lot of players.
Tommy Nobis needs to be in the HOF.
Can you imagine being the ony one on the team busting your ass out for 10 years and having nothing to show for it thats enough for anybody to lose it (their minds).
Dude wraps u up ! Going down
Remember that in 1974 Joe Greene was close to quitting the Steelers. These guys made so little money that many could quit & make good money by virtue of their college degrees.
Seattle always had the nastiest colors to me but the silver at least drowned it out.
The huge numbers on the front of their jerseys were funny looking also.
Should be in HOF!
Give credit to the Falcons for just moving on and not making a big deal out of it.
The pick at 0:40 was a gift
Amazing that the next year, they surrender just 129 points for the entire season.
The AFL wanted him very badly. The NFL pulled out all the stops to keep him from signing with the Oilers(or any other AFL team). Bud Adams would've outbid Rankin Smith for Nobis if the NFL didn't hide or "babysit" him. That became a policy of the NFL because the AFL was drafting and outbidding the NFL for college players at that time(from '60-'66).
That’s right! I remember him being in the news a lot when he came out of college. There was a nasty bidding war going on between the two leagues with Nobis (60) right in the middle of it.
Archie Manning, Warren Sapp & Calvin Johnson had the same experience also when they were playing.
Sapp?!?! The player who has a ring?!?!
@@DolFan316 I was referring to the time he was on the 2006 Raiders then sent a letter to them in 2007 stating that “I Quit!”
Nobis needed to be an offensive lineman to help that team.
Yep, it’s Nobis and it’s not even close.
Moral of the story...
Don't re-sign with a loser.
Actually 4 falcons have their jersey retired. NObis, Bartkowski, Andrews, and Van Note
Yippy ky-yay, Tommy Nobis.
It's a shame Tommies not in the Hall
If Nobis had missed a practice under the same circumstances today, the media would be cheering him on to the point of wanting him to replace the team owner.
Have you watched every game ever played? How do you find all this information?
There are a couple of websites that have information and records for games and seasons going all the way back. What blows my mind is the film he gets. I mean, who had video of the final game in the Bills career of John Leypoldt? Yeah, it was a Monday Night game, but it was 1976. Just amazing.