Willie Wood Made the Most Memorable Play of Super Bowl I. He Has No Recollection.

[FLPanhandle]

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/05/sports/football/willie-wood-made-the-most-memorable-play-of-super-bowl-i-he-has-no-recollection.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=image&module=photo-spot-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=1



The Green Bay Packers’ agile, lissome safety, Willie Wood, snatched the wobbly pass thrown by the Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback, Len Dawson, and zigzagged to the doorstep of the Chiefs’ end zone, setting up an easy Packers touchdown. Green Bay never looked back in a 25-point rout of Kansas City in the first Super Bowl.

Wood’s interception is one of the most famous plays in Super Bowl history.

Fifty football seasons later, Dawson, who played 19 years of pro football, recalls it well.

“Maybe the No. 1 play I wish I could have back,” he said.

Wood remembers nothing of the play.

He does not even recollect playing in the first Super Bowl, on Jan. 15, 1967, or ever being on an N.F.L. roster.

Wood, who spends most of his time in a wheelchair, has been at an assisted living center in his hometown, Washington, for the last nine years, first for physical woes — debilitating neck, hip and knee operations — and later because dementia robbed him of many cognitive functions.

Nonetheless, Wood, 79, likes to wear a green Packers cap most days now as he sits in his sunny room listening to jazz and 1950s doo-wop. Wordlessly and impassively, he will point to the logo on the cap as if he knows it has some shadowy meaning in his life. But specifics elude him.

When asked about various photographs on the walls next to him — pictures of his wedding or the day in 1989 when he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame — Wood stares vacantly.

“Do you remember going into the Hall of Fame, Willie?” Dee Dee Daniels, an assistant living coordinator at the center where Wood lives, asked one morning last month.

Wood cast his eyes downward and shook his head side to side: no.

“You were the best of the best,” Daniels said.

Wood, who sometimes goes days without speaking, suddenly looked up, his eyes glistening as he raised an eyebrow as if to say, “I was?”

Len Dawson, a Hall of Fame quarterback with the Chiefs, at his Kansas City home last month. He said his pass that was intercepted by Wood was “maybe the No. 1 play I wish I could have back.” Credit Christopher Smith for The New York Times

Dawson earned a spot in the Hall of Fame, too, and has spent much of the last five decades as an award-winning national and Kansas City-based television and radio broadcaster. At 80, he is a Midwest sports institution.

As fluent as he is, Dawson, who has not seen Wood since 1967, grew quiet when the conversation turned to the troubles of his football peers.

“I’ve got teammates who have some problems like Willie Wood,” he said. “I think maybe from concussions and things like that. It’s, well, it’s a rough game.”

He paused.

“They all have problems, particularly the offensive and defensive linemen,” Dawson said. “I’ve been lucky. The game has been good to me.”

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I'm a big football fan but they have to fix the concussion problem

[flygal]

23. or boxing?

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. If they fix the problem

I guarantee most fans will not like the results. Why the NFL has been fighting this.

For the record, a few other sports need to fix it too.

[FLPanhandle]

3. The sport had to change once for safety

I'm sure a number of fans didn't like the forward pass.

Change is coming, NFL like it or not.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

4. Argh, I do not like this subject

can we stop NASCAR and Indy Car drivers from dying and getting maimed, first?

[nadinbrzezinski]

5. Actually those two have much lower levels of injuries

and a lot of innovation from there, (crumple zones and seat belts for example) have benefited the wider public.

Trust me, if cars that roll out of a factory had as extensive crumple zones as NASCAR or INDY, the insurance industry would have a real cow.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

6. OK let me think of another sport to pick on

Lawn darts?

[nadinbrzezinski]

8. I am sorry to have given a serious answer

I won't do that again

[Aristus]

7. The 3/4's of a season I played school football in Texas,

as a 5'1" cornerback (and running back for just one scrimmage), was enough to convince me to stay away from football.

Getting flattened repeatedly by huge linemen made me wonder why anyone would want to go on playing.

My parents yanked me from the team because my grades were suffering. A move my coach didn't seem to understand. In Texas, education takes a back seat to almighty football.

I'm glad they pulled me from the game. I'd rather have a working brain than all the on-field glory in the world.

My heart aches for this guy...

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

9. I played 4 years of high school and one year of college

Violent chaos from all directions. I don't know how much I enjoyed it. I think it was fun. But even at that level, the game moves much faster than it looks like on TV. But nothing beats watching football all day on Sunday on the TV. It's a beautiful, graceful game from that distance.

I should never have stopped playing soccer.

[JanMichael]

11. When i was 16 i was asked to try out for punt and kick off returns.

i was playing jv baseball and had wrestled the year before and was pretty fast and durable. but i was 5'5" and 127lbs soaking wet and the thought of getting crushed by 200lb nut cases made me say thanks but no way.

i ended up playing soccer and by no influence of intelligence i shied away from practice heading exercises. that is when soccer players damage their brains ... 50 back and forth head butts.

[AngryAmish]

10. Cannot fix it.

Game is unsafe.

[Odin2005]

12. This is heart-breaking.

[LiberalElite]

13. I'm not a fan and don't know the rules or anything - so,

could someone please explain how they're getting profound brain injuries when they all wear helmets? I don't doubt the severity of the injuries. This is a sincere question. Thanks.

[petronius]

16. The brain injury results from the brain bouncing around inside the skull

when the head is jolted from the rapid stops and changes of direction that occur in football hits/collisions. It's not the external impact, but rather the brain hitting the inside of the skull. A strong enough jolt leads to concussion, and a lifetime (or less) of concussions and near-concussions leads to the chronic damage.

Helmets--at least the current versions--don't soak up enough of the acceleration to prevent concussions, particularly as players get bigger, faster, stronger...

[Elwood P Dowd]

18. I played 6 years of football

starting in Jr High and then in high school. Was a starter back in the old days when at that level we played both ways and rarely got a substitution. I had what they called "getting your bell rung" a few times, but back in those days there was zero knowledge about concussions in football. Played with and against guys that later on played college ball and even one guy that played a couple of years in the NFL. That one guy rang my bell a couple of times. You get dizzy and somewhat disoriented, but the coaches and refs would just say suck it up and keep playing.

People watching on TV do not realized how rough that sport is and how physically beat up a player can get even at the high school level. I love watching the sport, but knowing what I know today and with all the aches and pains from just playing 6 years, no way would I even think about doing it over again.

[phylny]

24. Our daughter is an athletic trainer at the

high school level and she hates football - not only because of the tremendous injuries, but because the coaches put tremendous pressure on her and on the kid she's evaluating to do it as fast as possible and get them back into the game.

[Liberal_in_LA]

14. Sad

[Greybnk48]

15. For those of us that remember that day

and that team it's very hard to read what's happened to Willie and even harder to see him like this. His orthopedic problems are bad enough...

[Ex Lurker]

17. Football has severe problems to deal with, and it remains to be seen whether they're even fixable

OTOH, I'm willing to bet there are residents of that facility who didn't play football and have similar disabilities as Mr Wood, so it's hard to apportion how many of his issues are a direct result of his playing days. People unfortunately tend to break down as they get older, athletes or not, and some have it worse than others. The other gentleman in this story, Len Dawson, doesn't seem to have the same degree of difficulties.

[nomorenomore08]

19. There's got to be some space-age material out there, by now, to provide better head protection.

Whoever patented a new and better football helmet would make a fortune.

Of course, it's too late for the Willie Woods (and Junior Seaus) of the world.

[Ex Lurker]

20. The best thing they could do is eliminate helmets altogether

which would keep players from using their head as a weapon. It wouldn't eliminate the problem entirely, because CTE has been found in other sports, too-the the brain still sloshes around against the inside of the skull. But it would help some. Ironically, equpment designed as a safety measure has become the problem.

[FLPanhandle]

21. This is true

Rugby has fewer concussions because the players naturally try to protect their unhelmeted heads and hit with shoulders/arms instead of leading with their heads.

[SDJay]

29. I Agree

The helmet is seen as a weapon and players feel invulnerable when they wear them despite the fact that it's been shown in several tests that these helmets are not nearly protective enough to prevent TBIs.

Take away their weapons.

[a kennedy]

22. Only way to stop the pipeline to the NFL......mothers and fathers NOT letting their kids

play in the peewee leagues. No up and comers, no NFL. It's already happening, parents aren't letting kids play football, numbers are down. It's going to take some time, but the NFL will be a thing of the past. I love football, but I've got my eyes covered half the time, I hate the hits, and the networks keep playing them over, and over, slow motion, I just can't watch it.

[phylny]

25. This might freak some people out, but it's NOT REAL

Makes fun of networks playing them over and over:

[link:

|

[a kennedy]

26. Could you have least found a different team then MY PACKERS to showcase??

[phylny]

27. I sorry

[SDJay]

28. Disclaimer: This Is Totally Anecdotal

But I have a close friend who helps to coach his kid in a flag football league here in North County San Diego. Over the years he's gotten to know a few high school coaches, and for those who may not be aware San Diego turns out a LOT of big-time college and ultimately NFL talent. Think Reggie Bush, Alex Smith, Ricky Williams, etc.

Anyway, he was talking to a guy on a local high school staff recently at a school that's very well known for its football program. This coach told him that 10-15 years ago, it was simply assumed that at least 150 kids would try out for football every year. That number has dwindled by more than half in recent years while their soccer, basketball, water polo and track programs have all gotten bigger.

Again, this is anecdotal, but it could be a sign that parents are absolutely stepping in and steering their kids towards different, safer sports at least for the brain.

I understand that the NFL doesn't want to radically change the product because it's the unquestioned king of American sports right now, but eventually it's going to start dying a slow death if they don't do something. It's already happening on lower levels.

Oh... and by the way... that friend of mine is not going to allow his son to play tackle football.

[a kennedy]

30. Ah yah, this is exactly what I'm talking about......and thanks for this.....

"Oh... and by the way... that friend of mine is not going to allow his son to play tackle football." It's happing, and thank gawd, football is a horrible horrible violent sport. Ugh..... and like I say, I watch with my eyes covered half of the time.

[SDJay]

31. I Should've Mentioned

that I totally agreed with your first post. Incidentally, I'm also a Packer fan - family has season tickets to Lambeau, etc. - but I too have found myself increasingly troubled when watching, especially when I see someone's brain get turned into scrambled eggs. I feel like I may be at least indirectly contributing to all of this in some way.

Question - Were there just as many brain injuries 40-50 years ago that were simply not diagnosed or has it progressed to the point where guys are now so incredibly big and fast that they've crossed some physics threshold where the brain can no longer take the abuse? Or is it both? The reason I ask is because I was watching the 'lost game' not long ago - the rebroadcast of Super Bowl I - and it really hit me how the OL of that era would now be running backs and linebackers. A 300-pounder back in the day was considered an anomaly. Now it's a prerequisite for many positions.

[KamaAina]

32. Um, quite a few 79-year-olds who never played football have dementia

Not really the best example.

[Crepuscular]

35. I was thinking the same thing

Lot's of 79 year olds have had hip and knee replacements, as well. My Mom is 92, never played pro-football and has had a hip and both knees replaced. No dementia thankfully but my 85 year old FIL has some and he didn't play football either. Not trying to take anything away from Willie Wood or minimize the concerns over concussions in pro-sports but his afflictions are shared by millions who never played pro sports, so the assumption that his are due to football may or may not be the case.

[HughBeaumont]

33. Like I always said to my sister: "Sports are great. Then you turn 30."

That was about the time recurring back/shoulder/knee pain started happening to her. She had been playing basketball from 8th grade to college. Before that, she was in gymnastics from the time she was 8 and suffered her share of breaks and sprains in that. She can't stand for long periods of time and has trouble lifting heavy objects. For the longest time, that's what I had to take trips down to MD for. Any time she needed something moved or assembled, I had to do it.

Then I look at the example of my dad, who took up powerlifting in his late 20s/early 30s. He was like Superman to me. Now at 69, he has early stage Parkinsons, has mobility problems, walks with a hunch and has slurred speech.

These are two sports that one would think are relatively safe compared to the constant slamming of football, but just seeing the damage done makes me grateful I didn't take up sports as a kid and stuck with band.

I officiate roller derby - some of the hits these women take are brutal. I saw a particularly nasty fall in November and waved the medic over almost immediately. Her head bounced off the concrete and the helmet she was wearing was a hockey helmet, not even near enough to have lessened that impact. She had to be gurneyed out and her neck and body stabilized.

It's high time we took this problem seriously, but it isn't going to be easy to tame football.

[progressiveinaction]

34. Voluntary Sport

There are people out there that want to ban football, but of course the people that play football are doing so entirely voluntary. To my knowledge not a single person has ever been forced to play the game. With the level of understanding out there now about the dangers, people that partake in the game know what they're getting into, just like many other dangerous activities.

Not to mention the other glaring point...the man is 79 years old, we do not know if football is the cause of this.

Sad situation but let's not jump to conclusions.