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C.A.: 1991 Score Frank Reich

(I've been out of the loop as the covid booster sent me for a loop. Outside of two naps and going to bed at 11:15 p.m. yesterday -- very unusual for this night owl -- I thought I was doing OK. Then I realized I have more than a day's worth of blog posts that I had ignored! It was worse than I thought! I have some catching up to do. But first it's time for Cardboard Appreciation. This is the 311th in a series):
 

I hope you don't mind the semi-rare detour into football this post, but the Buffalo Bills are trying to do something they haven't achieved in more than 30 years.

If the Bills beat the Jets on Sunday, they will win the AFC East in back-to-back seasons. They haven't done that since they won four straight AFC East championships from 1988-91. That was back when I was covering the team!

I am aware that was a long time ago, but it takes certain moments for it to hit you smack in the beak.

For example, every time I see Frank Reich on the sidelines of an Indianapolis Colts game, it throws me. I still think of him chiefly as the Bills' backup quarterback 30 years ago, and the man at the helm in the biggest playoff comeback in NFL history.

Reich is now known primarily as the Indianapolis Colts' head coach and has been since 2018. That's weird.

Just about all of the Bills players that I covered back then are in their late 50s or early 60s. A couple of them are younger than me by a year or two. Four of them have passed away. Bills fans just lost defensive end/linebacker Mark Pike, known for his special teams play, last month at age 57. Starting center Kent Hull died 10 years ago (!!) at age 50.

Bills quarterback Jim Kelly and linebacker Darryl Talley have gone through very well-known health struggles.

While I will root for Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs, Devin Singletary, Dawson Knox, Micah Hyde and the rest tomorrow and through the playoffs, the Bills team from 1988-91 is the only team that has my true devotion.

That team is like the mid-to-late 1970s Dodgers team for me. I remember players and plays more distinctly for that team than I do others. And the Bills from back then are extra special because I was able to walk on the field where they walked, walk through the locker room and the Bills Stadium hallways, dine in the press box and watch the game there, all while barely having an idea what I was doing as I was fresh out of college trying to figure out my job.

The post-career struggles of NFL players are well-documented. Since I don't live in Buffalo anymore, I don't hear a lot about those old athletes. Some, like Pete Metzelaars, Steve Tasker, James Lofton, Mark Kelso and Ray Bentley have remained public figures. Don Beebe's son plays for the Vikings. Others, I have no idea.
 
Hope they're doing well. And rooting on the Bills tomorrow.

Comments

Obviously I hope the Bills fail in their quest to repeat as AFC East Champs. I'm sure you'll understand my reasoning why.
Fuji said…
Those early 90's Bills teams were fun to root for. I rooted for them in all four Super Bowls... and I'll root for them again tomorrow (even if I can only name two players on the team).
Jupiterhill said…
I was a fan of those Bills teams, and I will only think of Reich as the Bills QB in that comeback game. I've long said its the greatest football game I've ever watched. I remember Sorting cards while watching the game in the first half. By the end of it I was into football so much more than I ever was before.
Frank Reich also led a great college football comeback but thinking you probably already knew that.

I used to be a Marino Dolphins fan, but not anymore so I no longer despise the Bills.
bryan was here said…
Frank Reich finally got a Super Bowl ring as the OC with the Eagles!

I remember rooting for those Bills teams back then and they broke my heart. I wanted them to win because they were playing the Eagles' rivals in each of their Super Bowls.
carlsonjok said…
I remember those seasons. I loved that team with all my heart and the 4 straight Super Bowl losses just broke me. I drifted away from pro football after that and never went back.

I was living in Columbus, Ohio at the time and remember having to drive around out in the country east of the city in order to pick up the radio broadcasts from a station in Erie.
Billy Kingsley said…
They might have the best team name in all of sports.
John Bateman said…
Bought a lot of 1991 Score Football back in the day - Reich part of the greatest comeback ever that I saw live on TV. 9except maybe the Patriots victory over the Falcons)
Kin said…
I was an Oilers fan and remember that game well. It was the second time my childhood heart truly was in agony and it was just a glimpse of things to come from "my" teams.

I also feel like you do. I may actively pull for certain teams nowadays, but I don't really have a loyalty of fanhood outside of the Blackhawks.
Trevor P said…
I'm glad the Bills won the division, but it's too bad that Reich lost his game today and missed out on the playoffs today.

I had no idea that Kent Hull had passed!
Matt said…
Let's Go Bufflalo! That '88-'91 group was special for so many reasons, and hopefully this current group will be too!
AdamE said…
I guess I haven't watched a Vikings game because I didn't realize Beebe's son played for them. I hope he wears the same mushroom helmet topper his dad did.
Jon said…
A bunch of days have passed since this post was new, so I hope you're feeling better by now! Given how much trouble I had with the second vaccine shot, and how many people seem to be having problems with these boosters, I'm really hoping I can avoid getting one if possible.