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Number Crunching: #24
by Chris Brophy
25/3/2010
After the return of this series last time with number 23 we move swiftly on to one of the most difficult choices yet at number 24. It’s a number littered with Hall of Famers, NFL Champions, All Decade team members and players who have produced some of the NFL’s most endearing memories. It even has a current player who is worthy of nomination based on his career thus far but with this a series for retired players we step back to the 50’s and 60’s to find our selection, a versatile player who stands out in any era and wades through the many great defensive backs we also had to consider to become our all-time number 24. Read on to find out more:
FD’s All Time #24: Lenny Moore, Running Back Flanker (Baltimore Colts)
 The great Baltimore Colt teams of the 50’s and 60’s have already graced these pages before and I dare say before this series is all said and done we’ll have talked about them again but in Lenny Moore they possessed one of the all-time great offensive threats who was so difficult to defend and capable of winning any game in his own right.
At Penn State Moore gained the attention of pro teams as one of the finest all-around players in the country. When we say all-around that includes defense where he was regarded as the team’s best on both sides of the ball. Nicknamed the Reading Rambler his shifty, elusive style of running drew many admirers and his coach Rip Eagle described his talents as the ability to moving at full speed in two steps and what appeared to be his change of direction in mid-air. Current Penn State coach and living legend Joe Paterno pronounced Moore as probably the best player I’ve coached, all-around.
The Baltimore Colts promptly snapped him up in the first round of the 1956 draft. He took little time to establish himself within the Colts offense and whilst it took a couple of years for the results to come through in the win column for thr team as a whole, Moore teamed up with Alan The Horse Ameche to give the Colts a dynamic ground attack that couldn’t be forgotten about if the ball was going to be put in the air as well. If Moore couldn’t get himself out into the pass route he’d be found sticking a devastating block to a defender a part of his game often overlooked.
The Colts offense saw dramatic statistical improvement. In 1956 they ranked 4th on offense and were the second ranked rushing offense despite only managing 5 wins all season. Moore himself had over 600 yards rushing at 7.5 yards per carry with 8 scores and another score as a receiver in that rookie season. In 1958 Moore’s third season – the Colts were ready for a run at the NFL Championship and Moore excelled himself with just less than 600 yards rushing at 7.3 yards per carry and 50 receptions for just over 900 yards (an average of 18.8 yards per reception!). He scored 7 TD’s on the ground and found paydirt the same number of times as a receiver.
With a 9-3 record the Colts were NFL West Champions and would face the New York Giants in the NFL Championship game. It’s a game that is now regarded as one of the greatest games ever with 17 Hall of Famers either playing or stalking the sidelines. Moore would have 124 yards of offense in the game that the Colts would win with an Alan Ameche touchdown in overtime to take their first NFL title.
The following year the Colts would repeat as NFL Champions (defeating the Giants again) and Moore was again a key figure. In the actual Championship game he opened the scoring on a 60 yard reception from QB Johnny Unitas. The Colts had put their stamp on NFL history but the addition of Moore to their stable of stars had proved to be a massive difference as he was the conundrum opposing coaches often failed to solve.
 Whilst the Colts after 1959 never won another Championship during Moore’s tenure with the team he continued to produce excellent performances and stats. In 1960 he averaged over 20 yards per reception off 45 catches and in 1961 he would once again average 7 yards per rush and rack up over 600 yards on the ground. However, an injury in 1962 ended his season and it also meant 1963 was a struggle and many pundits began to believe he was now past his prime but he had one final glory year left up his sleeve and in 1964 he went on an offensive rampage through the league as he rushed for 584 yards whilst adding 21 receptions for 472 yards at an eye-watering 22.5 yards per reception. The icing on the cake was a then league record 20 touchdowns. He received one press award for NFL MVP in that year whilst another named him NFL Comeback player of the year. Whatever award you think he deserved, it was a season for the ages and between 1963 and ’65 Moore scored a TD in 18 straight appearances (it’s not noted as a consecutive games record because of a five game absence for injury in between) , a record that stood for 40 years until a certain LaDainian Tomlinson broke it in 2005.
The Colts would go to the Championship game again but this time the Cleveland Browns stopped the Colts dead in their tracks with a 27-0 thrashing. Jim Brown was the star performer and it was ironic he and Moore would battle at the top level in the pros after they had clashed in college whilst Brown was at Syracuse.
Moore would enjoy another solid season in 1965, managing 900 combined rushing and receiving yards and helping the Colts back to another Championship game but this time they were just edged by Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers 13-10 in a real defensive battle. Moore would go on for two more years but his skills were starting to erode and after the 1967 season he retired.
His number was retired by Baltimore and he would go on to be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1975. In 1969 the NFL’s 50th anniversary team was selected by sportswriters and Moore was a member. He is the only player in NFL history to have recorded 40 rushing and 40 receiving touchdowns.
Moore was the ultimate weapon in a time when the offensive side of the game was still growing. Backs were runners, blockers or receivers not usually a combination of all three but Moore could do all as well as anyone if not better. In more modern times we have seen excellent runners and receivers like Marcus Allen, Roger Craig, Thurman Thomas, Marshall Faulk and the aforementioned LaDainian Tomlinson but Moore was the guy who set the standard for all-around backs. He also had to play in a period of transition for America as black athletes were still treated differently than their white team mates and whilst men of all colours and creeds could play together as one on the football field they would go their separate ways after the final whistle had blown.
Honourable Mentions
Lenny Moore was the ultimate choice a number 24 but he faced some stiff competition and perhaps the fact the three other main contenders were defensive backs meant he stood out more than three guys who were as good as each other in many ways.
 First up we have Willie Wood, a member of the Packers dominating teams of the ’60’s who the Pack found as a free agent coming out of the University of Southern California. Wood was a superb free safety who was a danger with the ball in his hands which he also showed as an excellent punt returner. He played in six NFL Championships with the Pack and Super Bowls I & II and went on to be named to the 1960’s All-Decade team as well as making it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Another great safety and punt returner was the Lions Jack Christianson who twice in his rookie season returned two punts for touchdowns in the same game. Teams developed the spread punt formation to counter his excellent return ability. He was a dominant safety though teams began adjusting their pass routes to avoid Christiansen. Don’t pass at him, don’t punt to him was the saying. He was an All-Pro six times and was named to the Hall of Fame in 1970.
One of the greatest moments in Super Bowl history belongs to long time Raiders cornerback Willie Brown when he took a Vikings interception 75 yards for the clinching touchdown in Super Bowl XI. Who can forget the commentary old man Willie…he’s going all the way!!
Brown had found his way into the league with the Denver Broncos after been cut from the Oilers as an undrafted rookie. He was then traded to the Raiders where he enjoyed a fantastic career, teaming up with Skip Thomas in the 1970’s to form one of the best corner tandems of all-time. Brown would go on to remain with the Raiders after his playing days in a coaching and player development role. As a player he played in two Super Bowls (II & XI) and coached the Raiders secondary in another two (VX & XVIII). For his feats as a player he was elected as a member to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1984.
The past decade has seen two number 24’s dominant in the defensive backfield. First up we have Champ Bailey who is enjoying a sure-fire Hall of Fame career with the Broncos after starting out with the Redskins. Ty Law, like Willie Brown, has an interception for a touchdown in a Super Bowl (XXXVI) and he has been to 5 Pro Bowls and named All-Pro twice.
Finally, we mention another running back, the New York Jets Freeman McNeil. In his 12 year career with the Jets he rushed for over 8,000 yards, caught 295 passes and scored 50 touchdowns, making three Pro Bowls and been named All-Pro once (1982). He has paid a visit to the Diner’s history section before for his part in the NFL players fight with the league owners over free agency.
Learn More about past NFL greats in our History Archive
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