Today In Patriots History July 2: Happy 55th Birthday to Troy Brown

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History
Troy Brown​

Happy 55th birthday to Troy Brown
Born July 2, 1971 in Barnwell, South Carolina
Patriots WR/PR/KR/DB, 1993-2007
Uniform #80 (and #86 in 1994)
Pats 8th round (198th overall) selection of the 1993 draft, from Marshall


After initially being cut at the end of his rookie training camp, thankfully no other NFL team bothered to check in on "Bingo". Bill Parcells re-signed the extremely versatile Troy Brown in mid-October, and the rest is history.


Troy Brown has so many iconic and legendary plays they are too numerous to remember and list all of them. A few that come to mind though are his crucial 23-yard catch and run on the final drive of Super Bowl 36; his play in the previous game, the AFCCG at Pittsburgh when he returned a punt for a 55-yard touchdown and followed that up by picking up a blocked field goal attempt, and alertly lateraled to Antwan Harris for a TD; on a sweltering hot and humid day in south Florida catching a sideline pass and racing for an 82-yard overtime game-winning touchdown, thus ending a 13-game losing streak at Miami; the time he alertly caused Marlon McCree to fumble an interception back to the Patriots in the AFCCG versus the Chargers; or being called upon to play defense in mid season - and finishing second on the team with three interceptions.

A walk off (sprint off?) humidity buster that left the locals speechless in Miami (while their stadium sounded like a Pats home game).


Troy Brown celebrating the iconic punt return touchdown with Antwan Harris in the 2001 AFCCG versus Pittsburgh.​

Rather than go on, I highly recommend taking a few minutes to check this piece on number 80's career. Along with a lengthy resume of impressive statistics there are some great quotes from Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft. Bingo indeed...

Fans vote Troy Brown as 2012 Patriots Hall of Fame inductee

The Patriots announced today that Troy Brown has been voted by fans as the 18th player and 19th member to enter the Patriots Hall of Fame.

www.patriots.com

Troy Brown's Patriots Hall of Fame Nomination Almost Never Happened, As Receiver Reflects on Nearly Giving Up on Football - NESN.com

FOXBORO, Mass. — No one looked at Troy Brown in October 1994 and saw a Patriots Hall of Famer. About a year and a half earlier, the Patriots took Brown in the draft's eighth round, a round that ceased to exist after that season. Then, Brown was cut in his second training camp with New […]

nesn.com

PRO FOOTBALL; Patriots End Miami Drought In Overtime (Published 2003)

New England Patriots defeat Miami Dolphins, 19-13, in overtime (M)

www.nytimes.com

Dolphins Falter in Overtime

MIAMI -- The New England Patriots needed two missed field goals and their longest pass play of the season to finally win in the Miami heat. Tom Brady hit Troy Brown on an 82-yard scoring play in ov…

www.theledger.com

Troy Brown worked his way into Hall

FOXBORO — Standing inside The Hall at Patriot Place, Troy Brown tried on his red Hall of Fame jacket for the first time. “It feels good,” he said yesterday, standing next to a large black-framed photo of himself. Tomorrow, the former wid…

www.bostonherald.com

Troy Brown: New England Patriots Of The Past - Last Word On NFL

Troy Brown was one of the earliest players to perfectly encapsulate the Patriot Way. A key piece of three championships, Brown spent 15 years in New England

lastwordonsports.com

Troy Brown | The Patriots Hall of Fame

www.patriotshalloffame.com

Patriots WR Troy Brown retires - UPI.com

Troy Brown, the all-time leading receiver for the New England Patriots, has retired after 15 years in the NFL.

www.upi.com

Troy Brown, the all-time leading receiver for the New England Patriots, has retired after 15 years in the NFL.​

He owns New England records for receptions (557), punt returns (252) and punt return yardage (2,625). Brown spent his entire career with the Patriots.​

Known for his versatility, Brown filled in at defensive back for the Patriots in 2004 and is the only New England player to have both a reception and interception in the same game.​

He was selected to the Pro Bowl after the 2001 season in which he amassed 1,119 receiving yards on 101 catches.​

Dec 20, 2003: Troy Brown fends off Jets corner Ray Mickens during the fourth quarter.
The Pats won 21-16 to improve to 13-2, while Herm Edwards' Jets were eliminated and clinched a losing season.



December 6, 2001: Punt returner Troy Brown (#80), eludes Cleveland's Ryan Kuehl (#87), as Lawyer Milloy (#36), at far right, lays out the Browns Dwayne Rudd (#57) with a killer block that helped spring Troy on the way to this 85-yard second quarter punt return for a touchdown that broke a 10-10 tie, and ultimately provided the winning points in New England's 27-16 victory, their fourth in a row.



Nov 30, 1997: Wide receiver Troy Brown makes an 18-yard catch for a touchdown as defensive back Ray McElroy of the Indianapolis Colts misses the tackle.
The fourth-quarter play gave the Pats a 20-10, providing the winning margin in a 20-17 game at Foxboro Stadium

Troy Brown Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College | Pro-Football-Reference.com

Checkout the latest stats for Troy Brown. Get info about his position, age, height, weight, college, draft, and more on Pro-football-reference.com.

www.pro-football-reference.com

Troy Brown Pro Football Record

The trusted source for pro football information about Troy Brown. Get statistics, transactions. biographical data and more at Pro Football Archives.

profootballarchives.com

Troy Brown - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[WhatJustHappened]

Wouldn't he be 55 if born in 71?

 

[jmt57]

Today in Patriots History
20th Century News​

July 2, 1971:
Patriots sign free agents Jack Maitland and Rocky Bleier

After playing in ten games as a 16th round draft pick in 1968 for the Steelers, Rocky Bleier was drafted by the Army to fight in Viet Nam. While there he was shot in the left thigh and took shrapnel from a grenade in his right leg. After multiple surgeries he was discharged in July of 1970 and began to work out with Steeler teammates, though doctors had told him to not expect to ever play football again.

Bleier could not walk without any pain, went on injured reserve and was later released. The Patriots took a flyer on the Notre Dame running back as he was attempting to get back into football shape. In October Pittsburgh owner Art Rooney called Billy Sullivan asked Billy Sullivan if he could have Bleier back, now that his rehab was nearly complete. Heading into the second season after the AFL and NFL merged, Sullivan was eager to please one of the old time NFL owners and obliged, getting virtually nothing of any value in return. Bleier went on to play ten more seasons as a lead blocker for Franco Harris, winning four Super Bowls - while the old guard NFL owners continued to look down their noses at Sullivan and the rest of the old AFL owners and their teams.

As for Jack Maitland, he was also a running back selected in the 16th round, but by the Baltimore Colts in 1970, out of Williams. Maitland played in all but one game for the Pats from 1971-72 in a backup role and on special teams. He scored one touchdown, with 26 carries and five receptions.

A side note on Rocky Bleier: his cousin Bob Bleier was a quarterback out of Richmond that was signed by the Patriots as an undrafted rookie in 1987. After being cate late in training camp, Bob was re-signed as the team's QB for the three 1987 replacement games.





July 2, 1973:
New England signs Brian Dowling to a contract. BD had been an 11th round draft pick in 1969 by Minnesota, with the Vikings trying him at quarterback, wide receiver and running back in training camp before releasing him. He played for the Bridgeport Jets of the Atlantic Coast Football League in 1969 at QB and WR while teaching math at Cheshire Academy and serving as an assistant coach at Yale. Dowling was on the Pats taxi squad in 1970-71, then got some playing time in '72 as a backup to Jim Plunkett and holder on kicks.

From September 29, 1969:

Ex-Yalies Hill and Dowling Shine on Professional Teams | News | The Harvard Crimson

Calvin Hill, one of the best players on Yale's football team last year, carried 23 times for 138 yards and

www.thecrimson.com

Calvin Hill, one of the best players on Yale's football team last year, carried 23 times for 138 yards and two touchdowns to help the Dallas Cowboys edge the New Orleans Saints, 21-17 on Sunday. Last week Hill was the NFL Offensive Player of the Week.​

Meanwhile, Brian Dowling is second-string quarterback for the Bridgeport Jets of the Atlantic Coast Football League. Dowling. who was often compared to the legendary Frank Merriwell and was featured last fall in the CRIMSON's "Making of a Hero" was the starting quarterback for the winless Jets until they acquired an NFL veteran.​

From November 20, 1977:

Dowling Gets Phone Call And New Chance to Play (Published 1977)

www.nytimes.com

Brian Dowling, the former star quarterback for Yale who is now 30 years old, was watching the Minnesota-Cincinnati game on television last Sunday as a temporary resident in the Boston home of his wife's parents. Fran Tarkenton of the Vikings had a broken a leg. So had Lynn ****ey of the Packers, the announcers said, and Bill Munson of the Chargers; Brian Sipe of the Browns was out with a fractured shoulder and Terry Bradshaw had left the Steelers’ lineup with a bruised shoulder.​

Dowling's response was less than imperturbable. The pulse may have quickened. Would anyone remember him? Perhaps the telephone might ring for him one more time.​

It did.​

Dowling had spent eight years since he had left Yale after so much acclaim - trying to find a place in pro football with little success. He had been with seven teams in four leagues.​

The evening phone call was from **** Corrick, the Packers’ director of pro personnel. Would Dowling fly to Green Bay on Monday and join the team?​

He would and he did.​

The Packers play the Redskins tomorrow at Washington in the weekly Monday night game and in place of ****ey they will start David Whitehurst, a rookie from Furman who has been in two games briefly, attempting five passes, completing two. Dowling will be the backup quarterback for the Pack.​

Dowling's recent past is illustrative of the dislocation the marginal professional athletes endure in the add-and-subtract process of the varsity squads. He had been the third quarterback of the Redskins last summer and was dropped when Washington made its final squad cut.​

On Oct. 25, the last date the Redskins could re-sign him as a free agent this season under the league rules, came and went as did Nov. 1. So the Dowlings packed up and went home to Boston, moving in with her parents. Dowling began working again with a life insurance company. Short of a miracle or a disaster, the game he had loved to play for much of his life was behind him.​

After Yale, where he starred with Calvin Hill, he had spent one training camp with the Minnesota Vikings, the club that drafted him in 1969; one season with the Bridgeport Jets of the Atlantic Coast League; four with the New England Patriots behind Jim Plunkett; one with the New York Stars-Charlotte Hornets of the World Football League, plus a trial in 1976 with the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian League.​

Corrick and other personnel directors keep lists of free-agent players who might be useful in emergencies like one would of backup doctors or dentists.​

“Dowling played against us last summer in our exhibition game with the Redskins,” said Corrick. “We were impressed and remembered him.”​

The Packers had two quarterbacks, and after ****ey was hurt Corrick had to move quickly. He reached Tim Temerario, the Redskins’ personnel director, who was glad to help out. Not all rivals are so obliging. Temerario had an inoperative Virginia phone number for Dowing, but there was a referral to a number in Boston.​

“It may take some doing,” said Corrick, “but you can almost always track them down.”​

Dowling said last week: “I had pretty much considered myself retired. I wasn't going to have an identity crisis if I didn't play again.”​

Looking back, he had no regrets about the eight years. “So much of this business,” he said, “is getting the opportunity—being in the right place at the right time. I'll be ready Monday and if I do play I expect to do well.”​

•​

Reference was made here last week that the television film of “The Godfather” had captured the rating competition on Monday night against the football game, Dallas-St. Louis. When the national figures were available, they showed that the shares of the audience for the movie and the game were almost the same, 42 percent to 40, respectively. It was the highest rating and the largest audience the Monday night game had ever attracted.​

From 2001:

Dowling, Brian - Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame

Brian Dowling is an athletic legend at St. Ignatius High School. He led his team to a City Basketball title, sinking four clutch free throws in the title game’s last 34 seconds to turn a 13 point deficit into a 53-50 victory. He also made the state tennis doubles finals as a sophomore and the […]

www.clevelandsportshall.com

Brian Dowling is an athletic legend at St. Ignatius High School. He led his team to a City Basketball title, sinking four clutch free throws in the title game’s last 34 seconds to turn a 13-point deficit into a 53-50 victory. He also made the state tennis doubles finals as a sophomore and the regional singles finals as a senior. But it was as a football quarterback that Dowling achieved bigger-than-life status. In six high school and college seasons he played in just one losing game, when, as a prep junior in 1963, injuries sent him to a hospital at half-time of the City Championship Charity Game. He avenged that loss in the following year’s Charity Game, breaking loose for a 71-yard TD run and passing for four touchdowns in a 48-6 rout. At Yale, his teams were 21-0-1 in games he played and 5-6 in games he missed with injuries. The tie came in his final collegiate game when Harvard scored 16 points in the final 42 seconds to earn a 29-29 draw and a share of the Ivy League title with Yale. The previous year, his 66 yard touchdown pass with 2:16 left had beaten the Crimson 24-22 for the Ivy League Crown. An honorable mention All-American and the Outstanding Player in New England as a senior, he currently lives in Lowell, Massachusetts.​

July 2, 1973:
The Pats also re-signed Reggie Rucker, who started at wide receiver for the team from 1972-74 on this date

The former BU Terrier had 126 receptions for 1,884 yards and ten touchdowns in his 43 games with the Patriots. He then went on to play seven more seasons with the Browns, and 12 years overall in the NFL.

Reggie Rucker, ex-Cleveland Brown who stole from anti-violence nonprofits, files for bankruptcy

Former Cleveland Browns wide receiver Reggie Rucker and his wife filed for bankruptcy, claiming they owe hundreds of thousands to the IRS, creditors and the attorney who represented him when he was prosecuted for embezzling from his anti-violence nonprofits.

www.cleveland.com

]​

July 2, 1975:
The Patriots acquire Bob Howard from San Diego in exchange for a 1976 fifth round draft pick

The cornerback was a second round draft pick in 1967 from San Diego State and had played in 102 of a possible 112 games for the Chargers from 1967 to 1974. Howard took over as the starting left corner in '75, with John Sanders moving from CB to free safety. Bob was a three year starter in New England, missing just one game while picking off ten passes. Over 13 NFL seasons Bob Howard played in 169 games with 147 starts, registering 37 interceptions and ten fumble recoveries.

Former SBHS star dead

The San Diego Chargers wore light blue uniforms trimmed in gold and had lightning bolts on their helmets in 1968 when they played the Los Angeles Rams in an August preseason game. John Hadl was zinging passes for the Chargers, Lance Alworth…

www.pasadenastarnews.com

July 2, 1989:
Willie Banks passes away at the age of 43 from arteriosclerosis.

Banks was a backup guard who played in 13 games for the Patriots in 1973.

Willie Banks, a guard who played for...

Willie Banks, a guard who played for the Washington Redskins, New York Giants and New England Patriots in a six-year pro football career, died Sunday of arteriosclorosis at his home in Brentwood, Md.

www.latimes.com

July 2, 1999:
Part time scouting assistant Matt Walsh is given a full time job in the Pats video department.

Nothing to see here, I'm sure nobody would ever hear his name again.

Ex-Patriots employee Walsh sends eight videotapes to league

The official source for NFL news, video highlights, fantasy football, game-day coverage, schedules, stats, scores and more.

www.nfl.com

Spygate revisited: How Patriots scandal, false Rams connections impacted legacies | Sporting News

How Patriots Spygate scandal, false Rams connections impacted legacies

www.sportingnews.com

 

[jmt57]

Wouldn't he be 55 if born in 71?

Yes, correct; good catch.

I had it right in the title but wrong in the post.

Thanks