Sammy Baugh still slingin' the stories

There's a hero living in our midst who grew up admiring Lazzeri, Ruth and the Yankees. He himself was scouted by Rogers Hornsby at a national baseball tournament in Denver. He might have been a two-sport professional athlete had he been given a shot at his natural position - third base. Instead, he was moved to shortstop and bumped up against slick Marty Marion. He knew enough about baseball to know at that time that he should stick with football. And what a player he became. In fact, in many respects he was to football what Babe Ruth was to baseball. He integrated passing into the pro game the way Ruth hit bombs probably before the word "nuclear" was on the lips of anyone on earth. And just as Ruth was one of the original 11 members inducted into baseball's Hall of Fame, this player was in the original class of 17 in Canton. His name is Sammy Baugh. As in "Slingin'" Sammy Baugh. As in Texas Ranger film star Sammy Baugh. Sammy Baugh understands today's wide-open game, the West Coast offense, the shot-gun offense, and the run and shoot offense, all those so-called innovative offenses, because that's the type of game that was devised for him by Dutch Meyer at TCU. It was the game he brought to the Washington Redskins for 165 games in 16 seasons. Oh, Sammy doesn't personally take credit for changing pro football. Humble pie runs through his body 'bout as much as rings and tattoos pierce Dennis Rodman's.

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