montanafan Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 When Ron Darby was having a tough time in pre-season, there was a lot of concern on this board with the McKelvin injury, I was reminded of Butch Byrd's rookie season in 1964. (yeah I am that old) Byrd was a rookie (4th round draft choice) and he got toasted all preseason, but Lou Saban kept playing him back there all preseason- he started that year, did a great job and Buffalo won their first championship, in part because of strong secondary play with Byrd, George Saimes, Hagwood Clark, etc. I hope Darby turns out the same way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffalothruMyVeins Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 An all-time great, and a Super Bowl? Yeah, I suppose that would be okay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoloinOhio Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Sounds good to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yungmack Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 When Ron Darby was having a tough time in pre-season, there was a lot of concern on this board with the McKelvin injury, I was reminded of Butch Byrd's rookie season in 1964. (yeah I am that old) Byrd was a rookie (4th round draft choice) and he got toasted all preseason, but Lou Saban kept playing him back there all preseason- he started that year, did a great job and Buffalo won their first championship, in part because of strong secondary play with Byrd, George Saimes, Hagwood Clark, etc. I hope Darby turns out the same way. I'm old too and, god, that was a great defense. I still think Saimes and Byrd are two of the all-time great Bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chandler#81 Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 interesting comparison. I'm not 'too'old', just very old and remember the '64 DROY well. A linebacker playing CB. Still too early for that great comparison, but I'll be keeping my eyes on it going forward. Darby is playing sound, great Corner! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 I'm old too and, god, that was a great defense. I still think Saimes and Byrd are two of the all-time great Bills. The best of the best was Tom Sestak. I don't consider myself old while others do. I consider myself excessively mature from an age standpoint! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Rodak says drafting Darby was a bad move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vorpma Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 When Ron Darby was having a tough time in pre-season, there was a lot of concern on this board with the McKelvin injury, I was reminded of Butch Byrd's rookie season in 1964. (yeah I am that old) Byrd was a rookie (4th round draft choice) and he got toasted all preseason, but Lou Saban kept playing him back there all preseason- he started that year, did a great job and Buffalo won their first championship, in part because of strong secondary play with Byrd, George Saimes, Hagwood Clark, etc. I hope Darby turns out the same way. Awesome post, I too remember Butch as a rookie, one of the all time greats. And one hell of a guy! The best of the best was Tom Sestak. I don't consider myself old while others do. I consider myself excessively mature from an age standpoint! 17th round draft choice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwight in philly Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 (edited) i love when the "old guys" post! so refreshing.. i thought butch byrd and booker edgerson were the two best corners at the time. as i recall, byrd was shaky in his first preseason game(s). did have a few missteps as a rookie.. but solid.. good at returning punts also.hopefully this will be a "glib free" thread. Edited October 9, 2015 by dwight in philly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanker Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Rodak says drafting Darby was a bad move. Well, from a certain perspective it was. From the perspective of a NewEngland P*A*T*S* fan who happens to be forced to cover the events of a team he despises. Most others don't see it that way though. Tony Green and Robert James were a very good duo at CB a little later on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevestojan Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 I thought you were saying he was a hybrid of Butch Rolle and Jarius Bird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Well, from a certain perspective it was. From the perspective of a NewEngland P*A*T*S* fan who happens to be forced to cover the events of a team he despises. Most others don't see it that way though. Tony Green and Robert James were a very good duo at CB a little later on. Greene was a safety but yes, both were great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBill Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Rodak says drafting Darby was a bad move. I guess we should just cut him now because his play is just a hoax.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Byrd was my first Bills autograph at the ripe old age of 5. Always nice to see a reference to one of the all time greats of the team. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwight in philly Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Greene was a safety but yes, both were great actually greene played corner too. not to nitpick.. but if memory serves me, he was either switched from safety to corner. or vice-versa. , Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mik Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 (edited) LOL. Darby = Byrd? Stupid. Edited October 9, 2015 by mik Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Green Lightning Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 I was there for Byrd's rook year. 4 games in you just forgot he was a rookie. Solid and smart. Sestak could play today. 6'4 or 5", 270 pounds and unblockable at times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 (edited) actually greene played corner too. not to nitpick.. but if memory serves me, he was either switched from safety to corner. or vice-versa. , Corner to safety. GO BILLS!!! Edited October 9, 2015 by K-9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBillsMagic1 Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 Darby is Revis but more athletic and better in tight coverage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwight in philly Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 (edited) Corner to safety. GO BILLS!!! ok.. i think that is when he seemed to intercept passes at an incredible rate.. at safety. many long INT run backs.. my mind is probably gone, but didnt he return an INT 103 yards against miami? ? maybe called back? not sure. Edited October 9, 2015 by dwight in philly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 ok.. i think that is when he seemed to intercept passes at an incredible rate.. at safety. many long INT run backs.. my mind is probably gone, but didnt he return an INT 103 yards against miami? ? maybe called back? not sure. I still get agita even thinking about that play. Those that didn't live it probably can't relate to our Miami rivalry when we went 0 for the 70s against that team. It's much like NE's**** recent dominance against us, but with ZERO wins to show for it. The Greene interception you recall was made while he was playing free safety. He intercepted that ball eight yards deep in his own end zone and proceeded to return it 108 yards for a TD. No flag was thrown until he had reached the opposite endzone and BAM!, there it lay, a phantom phuck-you from the football gods. I'd like to one day see him join Robert James on the Wall of Fame. He was one of the best players, regardless of position, to ever lace 'em up for us. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyHorseAteTheKid Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Greene was a rookie in 1971 and did not start a game... In 1972 he played CB and Started all 14 games,,, After 1972 he played FS for the bulk of his career,,, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 i love when the "old guys" post! so refreshing.. i thought butch byrd and booker edgerson were the two best corners at the time. as i recall, byrd was shaky in his first preseason game(s). did have a few missteps as a rookie.. but solid.. good at returning punts also.hopefully this will be a "glib free" thread. Can't you get it straight? I'm not old----I'm excessively mature!!! OJ is the best runner the Bills have had. But Cookie Gilchrist was one of the best runners during his short era. He was a freight train as a runner and a great blocker. During that era NFL teams were regionally shown on TV. Buffalo got the Cleveland games. I watched a lot of Jim Brown's extraordinary perfromances I consider Jim Brown to be the best player in the history of the game. He was unbelievable! I put OJ right behind him as a back. The stupidest (irrational) coaching blunder I have witnessed is the HC, John Roach, using OJ as a decoy. When Lou Saban took over the first thing he did was upgrade the OL and highlight OJ as a runner. I'm glad Lou Saban was belatedly put on the Wall of Fame and his family was able to witness the induction.. (I'm not criticizing Ralph Wilson because I understand why he didn't want him on the Wall while he was alive. Lou quit on him twice. Ralph knew that Saban would be voted in after he passed. So he wasn't against the eventual induction. The owner was old school with respect to the issue of loyalty so his position was very understandable and to be respected.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augie Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 When I was 8 or 9 years old Butch Byrd was at the front door talking to my father (my older sister babysat for them). I arrived to show them the new magic trick/physics experiment I had learned - if you put equal pressure on all sides of an egg it will not break. Apparently, my pressure was less than equal... and my egg exploded all over Mr. Byrd's nice brown suit like I had shot him with a Chicken Gun! I am still alive to tell the story. He is a fine human being. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffismagic Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 So far Darby has played like a top 10 pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Formerly Allan in MD Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 I'm old too and, god, that was a great defense. I still think Saimes and Byrd are two of the all-time great Bills. Booker Edgerson was the other corner, and he was great as well. Trying to remember the other safety, who was also solid. Was it Ed Rutkowski? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Booker Edgerson was the other corner, and he was great as well. Trying to remember the other safety, who was also solid. Was it Ed Rutkowski? Hagood Clarke. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwight in philly Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 (edited) Can't you get it straight? I'm not old----I'm excessively mature!!! OJ is the best runner the Bills have had. But Cookie Gilchrist was one of the best runners during his short era. He was a freight train as a runner and a great blocker. During that era NFL teams were regionally shown on TV. Buffalo got the Cleveland games. I watched a lot of Jim Brown's extraordinary perfromances I consider Jim Brown to be the best player in the history of the game. He was unbelievable! I put OJ right behind him as a back. The stupidest (irrational) coaching blunder I have witnessed is the HC, John Roach, using OJ as a decoy. When Lou Saban took over the first thing he did was upgrade the OL and highlight OJ as a runner. I'm glad Lou Saban was belatedly put on the Wall of Fame and his family was able to witness the induction.. (I'm not criticizing Ralph Wilson because I understand why he didn't want him on the Wall while he was alive. Lou quit on him twice. Ralph knew that Saban would be voted in after he passed. So he wasn't against the eventual induction. The owner was old school with respect to the issue of loyalty so his position was very understandable and to be respected.) LOL!.. il bet i am older! anyway,.. it was tough living thru the rauch years, followed by harvey johnson. I still get agita even thinking about that play. Those that didn't live it probably can't relate to our Miami rivalry when we went 0 for the 70s against that team. It's much like NE's**** recent dominance against us, but with ZERO wins to show for it. The Greene interception you recall was made while he was playing free safety. He intercepted that ball eight yards deep in his own end zone and proceeded to return it 108 yards for a TD. No flag was thrown until he had reached the opposite endzone and BAM!, there it lay, a phantom phuck-you from the football gods. I'd like to one day see him join Robert James on the Wall of Fame. He was one of the best players, regardless of position, to ever lace 'em up for us. GO BILLS!!! brutal .. just absolutely brutal , both the call and living thru the 70's playing miami. Edited October 10, 2015 by dwight in philly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherpa Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Butch Byrd's Utica Club commercial. Worst ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tennesseeboy Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 went to one of those pre-season games and came home thinking Byrd and Gogolak should be cut (Pete must have missed a field goal) Thank goodness our judgments aren't based on one game. I like the idea that he was a cornerback in a linebacker's body. He was great to watch. I think the other CB was Charley "Pork Chop" Warner. And....the defensive line of Tom Day, Tom Sestack, Jim Dunaway and Ron McDole was pretty intimidating as weas the linebacking corps of Tracey, Jacobs and Stratton. That was a terrific defense. Byrd is definitely one of the most outstanding Bills. Darby is terrific and he keeps reminding folks of Byrd he is in for a great career! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwight in philly Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 went to one of those pre-season games and came home thinking Byrd and Gogolak should be cut (Pete must have missed a field goal) Thank goodness our judgments aren't based on one game. I like the idea that he was a cornerback in a linebacker's body. He was great to watch. I think the other CB was Charley "Pork Chop" Warner. And....the defensive line of Tom Day, Tom Sestack, Jim Dunaway and Ron McDole was pretty intimidating as weas the linebacking corps of Tracey, Jacobs and Stratton. That was a terrific defense. Byrd is definitely one of the most outstanding Bills. Darby is terrific and he keeps reminding folks of Byrd he is in for a great career! warner did play corner too.. but always liked his kickoff return skills.. was a waiver pick up from the chiefs i believe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vorpma Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Well, from a certain perspective it was. From the perspective of a NewEngland P*A*T*S* fan who happens to be forced to cover the events of a team he despises. Most others don't see it that way though. Tony Green and Robert James were a very good duo at CB a little later on. Greene and James! Very true!! Butch Byrd's Utica Club commercial. Worst ever. Can't you get it straight? I'm not old----I'm excessively mature!!! OJ is the best runner the Bills have had. But Cookie Gilchrist was one of the best runners during his short era. He was a freight train as a runner and a great blocker. During that era NFL teams were regionally shown on TV. Buffalo got the Cleveland games. I watched a lot of Jim Brown's extraordinary perfromances I consider Jim Brown to be the best player in the history of the game. He was unbelievable! I put OJ right behind him as a back. The stupidest (irrational) coaching blunder I have witnessed is the HC, John Roach, using OJ as a decoy. When Lou Saban took over the first thing he did was upgrade the OL and highlight OJ as a runner. I'm glad Lou Saban was belatedly put on the Wall of Fame and his family was able to witness the induction.. (I'm not criticizing Ralph Wilson because I understand why he didn't want him on the Wall while he was alive. Lou quit on him twice. Ralph knew that Saban would be voted in after he passed. So he wasn't against the eventual induction. The owner was old school with respect to the issue of loyalty so his position was very understandable and to be respected.) I remember getting all the Browns games on WBEN TV, Brown as fun to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montanafan Posted October 10, 2015 Author Share Posted October 10, 2015 warner did play corner too.. but always liked his kickoff return skills.. was a waiver pick up from the chiefs i believe Yeah Charlie Warner played and I think another guy who played a lot in the secondary that year was Gene Sykes. I can't remember the exact statistic, maybe someone can help me, but pretty sure during the 64-65 run the Bills went like 13 games in a row without allowing a running touchdown. When Butch Byrd was traded in the late sixties, Larry Felser wrote a great article about him the day after he was traded. He talked about Butch Byrd's love of Buffalo and how it was reciprocated by Bills fans. In a sense, Byrd was the Fred Jackson of the sixties. Felser finished his column that day as follows: "They say Butch Byrd handled the news of his trade with class. It figures." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vorpma Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 LOL!.. il bet i am older! anyway,.. it was tough living thru the rauch years, followed by harvey johnson. brutal .. just absolutely brutal , both the call and living thru the 70's playing miami. I watched that play (Greene 108 Int) in Rojek's Bowling Alley in North Tonawanda; never seen a crowd go wild then go crazy like that play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 @billsupdates How rookie CB @realronalddarby has exceed @BuffaloBills' expectations through one month http://ow.ly/TfI30 #Bills Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vorpma Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Back in the 1060's, most players all had class and character, most were blue collar guys who played football for a living in the fall. Marty Schottenheimer played the card game Uecker at one of the local Taverns in Tonawanda, my father often played against him in tournaments. The players were very outgoing and respected the Buffalo area taking pride playing for the Bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3rdand12 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Geez you old farts really know how to reminisce . well done! each and all! love this place TBD sometimes. I really do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Back in the 1060's, most players all had class and character, most were blue collar guys who played football for a living in the fall. Marty Schottenheimer played the card game Uecker at one of the local Taverns in Tonawanda, my father often played against him in tournaments. The players were very outgoing and respected the Buffalo area taking pride playing for the Bills. Yeah, but then the battle of Hastings broke out and rules changes were implemented. It just hasn't been the same since archers were banned from the sidelines. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chandler#81 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Yeah, but then the battle of Hastings broke out and rules changes were implemented. It just hasn't been the same since archers were banned from the sidelines. GO BILLS!!! Ha! Yeah, and their Nick Names were legit: the Destryoer, the Hun, the Great! Hagood played CB, Saimes & Janik were S's. What a team! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Ha! Yeah, and their Nick Names were legit: the Destryoer, the Hun, the Great! Hagood played CB, Saimes & Janik were S's. What a team! Slight quibble, but Clarke was paired with Saimes at safety starting in '65. Byrd and Edgerson played CB on the '64 and '65 teams. Janik didn't crack the lineup until '66 when he replaced Edgerson at CB. I don't think Janik ever played safety and I'm pretty sure Clarke never played CB. I understand how all those players from teams so long ago seem to blend together over time, though. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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