Dick Stanfel was a star in an era before pro football became America’s favorite reality television show. It was before stadiums had domes and artificial turf, when offenses bore little resemblance to what by comparison are the high-wire circus acts of the 21st Century, and when a four-figure contract was what a Pro Bowl player earned in a year, not on a single play.
But excellence was appreciated and rewarded then as it is now, as are the bed-rock qualities inherent in physical competition that bind players through generations – tough, resilient men playing a tough game being foremost among them.