Charles Ross does a superb job breaking down the color line in professional football in “Mavericks, Money, and Men.” The NFL closed the door to black athletes, and gradually (and reluctantly) changed their policy over time. The last team to include a black player on their roster was the 1962 Washington Redskins. Attorney General of the U.S. Robert F. Kennedy issued an ultimatum: unless Marshall signed a black player, the government would revoke the Redskins’ 30-year lease on D.C. Stadium.
The rival AFL debuted with black players on all of their team’s rosters in 1960. Future hall of famer and Super Bowl champion Buck Buchanan was selected in the first round by the Kansas City Chiefs in 1963, however, he wasn’t drafted by a NFL team until the 19th round. Buchanan attended Grambling State, a historically black college, and his draft status demonstrated the difference in priorities of the two leagues.
The AFL/NFL rivalry would finally come to an end, as the leagues agreed to a merger, allowing all existing AFL teams to join the NFL’s sixteen existing franchises. in 1970. The NFL would adopt some of the AFL innovations such as the two point conversation, revenue sharing, and adding player’s names of jerseys. Ross provides a definitive history of the AFL, with the formation of the league at the hands of Lamar Hunt and Bud Adams.
The author documents the black player’s fight for equal rights, as many were not allowed to stay at the team’s hotels, access Taxis, or dine at restaurants. Due to backlash on civil rights, the 1964 AFL all star game in New Orleans was boycotted. Ross lays out the AFL’s timeline overlapping with the ever changing social fabric of the country, and the sport of football becoming the nation’s national pastime.
“Mavericks, Money, and Men” is a welcomed addition to this NFL fan’s library.
By: Charles Ross
Narrated by: Jim Woods
Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
Release date: 10-07-16
