Tag: O.J. Simpson

O.J. Simpson dead at 76 after cancer battle

O.J. Simpson has died at the age of 76

Former Buffalo Bills running back O.J. Simpson has died at the age of 76.

Simpson, who went from one of the most popular people in America to a pariah after being charged with the murders of his ex-wife Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman, succumbed to cancer.

In 1994, he stood trial for the grisly double murders of his ex-wife and Goldman but was acquitted. In a civil trial the following year, he was found liable for their deaths and was ordered to pay $33.5 million.

Simpson was the 1968 Heisman Trophy winner at USC. That year, he established a then-NCAA single-season rushing record with 1,709 yards as he guided the Trojans to a Rose Bowl appearance, where they lost to top-ranked Ohio State despite Simpson’s 171 yards and 80-yard TD.

He rushed for 11,236 yards in 11 NFL seasons, nine with the Bills and two with the San Francisco 49ers.

Simpson led the NFL in rushing four times. His 2,003 rushing yards in 1973 was the first time a player reached that plateau.

O.J. Simpson offers his take on the Giants-Saquon Barkley situation

O.J. Simpson shares his two cents on the New York Giants, Saquon Barkley and the running back market in the NFL.

Almost everyone has an opinion on the Saquon Barkley situation these days. Both current and former players have chimed in on the ‘mistreatment’ of star running backs by NFL teams, claiming they are being minimized both on the field and off.

Barkley nor either of his fellow franchise-tagged running backs this offseason — Dallas’ Tony Pollard and the Raiders’ Josh Jacobs — were signed to long-term deals, which means they’ll likely end up playing the season for the $10.1 million franchise tender salary.

The latest former running back to voice their opinion on the matter is Hall of Famer O.J. Simpson. Yes, that O.J. Simpson.

Very few take Simpson seriously any longer but that hasn’t stopped him from dishing on current events. Simpson believes all three players deserve better.

“They (the Giants) will not win without Saquon having a good, healthy season,” said Simpson, in a Twitter post from poolside somewhere.

Simpson could be right. But then he veers off saying that Barkley and the others deserve ‘$15-16 million at the minimum’ which leads us to believe he hasn’t been following the running back market and its deflation this offseason.

Simpson also admits that he doesn’t know what the three backs were offered by their teams. Barkley, as we know, was offered upward of $12-14 million last fall by the Giants. His reps rejected the offer and the running back market has cratered since.

[lawrence-related id=712682,712673,712670]

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal]

O.J. Simpson: Giants should empty pockets for Saquon Barkley

O.J. Simpson believes the New York Giants should break the bank in order to sign RB Saquon Barkley long-term.

O.J. Simpson has long been a vocal supporter of New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley and that remains the case to this day.

With Barkley and the Giants at odds over a long-term contract and the franchise tag, Simpson again came to the running back’s defense with some sharp comments.

In a short Twitter video posted earlier this week, Simpson argues that the Giants aren’t capable of winning without Barkley and that no one on the team should be earning more than him.

There are several flaws in Simpson’s logic. Chief among them is the market value per position and how devalued running back has become in the NFL. It’s one thing to express displeasure over market values but it’s quite another to suggest the Giants should completely ignore them.

Simpson also conveniently ignored the fact that the Giants offered Barkley a contract that was above market value (new reports suggest $13 million annually) last season and had it rebuffed. That’s an offer that stood until free agency further diluted the running back market, at which point all offers were pulled.

As it relates to quarterback Daniel Jones, there is no data to support the claim that he threw more interceptions without Barkley in the lineup last year given that both players appeared in 16 games. If Simpson is referring to Jones’ earlier years, there are obviously a lot more factors at play than Barkley’s presence alone.

In fact, if that were the defense Simpson wanted to rest on, it would actually reflect poorly on Barkley for his inability to stay healthy over the course of those several seasons.

[lawrence-related id=708636,708638,708612]

[stnvideo key=”ZHJk5rRjf8-2681353-7491″ type=”float”]

Patriots’ three passing attempts are NFL’s lowest since 1974 Bills-Jets debacle

The Patriots attempted just three passes in their Monday night win over the Bills, who won in 1974 with just two passing attempts.

The Patriots are well-known for adjusting to any situation and any opponent. So, when Bill Belichick and his crew came into Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. and faced a snow globe situation with driving winds and wintry precipitation, you knew that Mac Jones wasn’t going to be throwing the ball all over the field. In the end, Jones attempted three passes, completing two for 19 yards. It was New England’s ground game and defense that got things done, not to mention a weather situation that didn’t really help the Bills, who have not had a great run game all season, and whose defense has been great for the most part, but vulnerable to power-running teams.

The last time a team threw fewer passes in a game than the Patriots did? Well, we have to go back a ways, though we’re staying in the AFC East.

September 29, 1974 — Week 3 of the season — saw similar weather conditions in Rich Stadium in upstate New York. As William M. Wallace of the New York Times News Service pointed out, the game featured winds at 20 miles per hour, with gusts doubling that. Rain was also a major factor. The ball had to be held on kickoffs, an American flag was frayed by the wind, and about half the crowd of 76,978 had left by halftime.

Joe Namath attempted 18 passes, completing two to his own receivers, and three to the Bills. Buffalo quarterback Joe Ferguson threw two early interceptions to the Jets, but both were erased by penalties, and after that, head coach Lou Saban decided to stick with the ground game. Those were the last two passes Ferguson attempted — just two attempts with no completions in the entire game.

Like the Patriots on Monday night, the Bills went on the ground pretty much exclusively, with O.J. Simpson gaining 117 yards on 31 carries, Jim Braxton gaining 84 yards and scoring a touchdown on 17 carries, and Ferguson gaining 14 yards and scoring a touchdown on 10 carries.

That was enough for the Bills to come out of the muck with a 16-12 win. The Jets scored one touchdown on a John Riggins run, and Bobby Howfield kicked two field goals in the third quarter, but the Bills had a bit more juice on the ground — which did not happen this time around.

“It was murder,” Saban said after the game. “Absolute murder.”

Namath echoed Saban’s thoughts.

“It was absurd. Ridiculous. If it was a golf tournament, they would have canceled it… I was missing guys on little cuts — six, seven yards out.”

Which is why Belichick wanted his quarterback to avoid the same fate.

O.J. Simpson: Giants are ‘soft,’ Saquon Barkley deserves better

O.J. Simpson shredded the New York Giants, calling the team “soft” and saying that RB Saquon Barkley deserves better.

New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley mustered just six yards on 15 carries against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night Football, which was the second-lowest output of his career for a full game.

Adding to that misery, Barkley averaged negative 0.7 yards before contact per attempt in Week 1, which speaks volumes about how atrocious the run blocking was.

“I have to be better, I have to be better for the team. We have to find a way to get the run game going. That’s how I truly believe,” Barkley said after the game.

The performance obviously didn’t sit well with Barkley, who was repeatedly cut down by the Steelers, but he didn’t allow his emotions to get the best of him or send him into a violent rage.

“I can’t just talk off of emotions,” Barkley said. “One thing that just pops in my mind is find a way to get the run game going for this team. I know that’s going to be a key part of our success. I truly believe and I still believe in it. Keep grinding at it, keep working at it and find a way.”

While Barkley refused to attack anyone, retired NFL legend O.J. Simpson, who was released from prison in 2017 after serving nine years on weapons and assault convictions, decided to do it for him.

Using Twitter, Simpson shredded the Giants, calling the team “soft” and admitting that if he were in Barkley’s gloves, there would be some bloodletting.

Warning: Language in the video is NSFW.

“He didn’t have a chance,” Simpson said of Barkley. “Watching that game, I can tell you I, Walter Payton, Barry Sanders. . . none of us could have gained any yards.

“The difference between myself, Walter and Barry is that I had Lou Saban and Jim Ringo coaching, Walter had [Mike] Ditka and Barry had Wayne Fontes. Tough guys. Guys that coached the offensive line not to do fancy blocking, but to take that [helmet] and stick that [helmet] on some [expletive].”

Simpson then took a few stabs at offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, who he feels over-complicates things and gets far too conservative.

“I always thought despite the points that they scored, when they got into big games they underachieved because they didn’t play physical — it was all about the scheme,” Simpson said of Garrett’s Cowboys teams. “And that seems to be what they’re doing with the Giants.

“They need to give Saquon a fullback. They need to give a running start at the line and let him break off a fullback’s block or double-team blocks. Stop with this fancy scheme crap and start hitting people.”

Simpson added that until the Giants get violent and start attacking, they’re not going to see the results they want.

“Giants, you’re soft! Anybody who looks at that [film] can see how soft the linemen are. They’re not driving anyone, they’re just getting in the way,” Simpsons said.

When someone gets in the way, you’ve got to take them out. At least that’s what Simpson believes when it comes to the Giants’ offensive line here in 2020.

[lawrence-related id=655823,655811,655814]

Distant replay: 50 years ago, the Bills used the fifth-overall pick on Al Cowlings

The Buffalo Bills drafted a player from USC in 1970 who became synonymous with O.J. Simpson throughout his football career and life.

Ahhh, the ties that bind. They start in college and who knows where the long and winding road will take you.

The Buffalo Bills were 4-10 in 1969 and finished in third place in what was then the AFL’s East Division. They were six games back of the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Jets in the regular season despite a rookie from USC named O.J. Simpson rushing for 697 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

The finish plopped Buffalo in the fifth overall spot in the common draft. The Steelers went first and took Terry Bradshaw. Four picks later, the Bills were up and they dipped into the Trojans for a defensive lineman/linebacker.

The Buffalo Bills used their first-round pick to choose Al Cowlings. Yes, that Al Cowlings, a close friend of Simpson since childhood.

Cowlings was a starter his first three years in Buffalo, where he was once again a teammate with Simpson. He made 40 starts as a Bill, but was traded to Houston Oilers after the 1972 season. In 1979, when Simpson was at the end of his Hall of Fame career with the San Francisco 49ers, who also added Cowlings to their roster for his final season.

Fast-forward to 1994, Cowlings was attached to Simpson in his infamous, slow-speed chase. Amazing where life can take some people on their journeys.

 

The 14 No. 1 overall picks who went on to be Pro Football Hall of Famers

14 No. 1 overall picks went on to become Pro Football Hall of Famers. Who are they?

Being selected No. 1 overall in a draft is an honor and tribute to talent. Sometimes it works out and other times it doesn’t. A look at 14 players who were the top pick in the draft and went on to earn a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. One comes with an asterisk: He was an AFL selection.

Bill Dudley

Jason Miller/Getty Images

Bill Dudley played three seasons each with the Steelers (1942, ’45-46), Detroit Lions (’47-49), and Washington Redskins (’50-51-53). His career was interrupted in 1943 and ’44 when he served with the Army Air Corp during World War II. He returned to the Steelers during the 1945 campaign. The 1946 season was, for Dudley, one for the record book; as he led the league in rushing, punt returns, interceptions, and “lateral passes” attempted. He was named the NFL’s Most Valuable Player that year. The following season, Dudley scored 11 touchdowns for the Lions on one punt return, one interception return, seven pass receptions, and two rushes. Six times Dudley was named first- or second-team All-NFL.

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5, Page 6, Page 7, Page 8, Page 9, Page 10, Page 11, Page 12, Page 13, Page 14, Page 15