Apologies in advance if I am piling on (others have already responded); that is not my intent.
I just wanted to point out to all how very much football has changed, making comparisons from one decade to another in passer and receiving stats meaningless. To me the better stat comparison is to one's peers.
Grogan did indeed throw a lot of picks - even for his time. For six straight seasons he ranked among the top ten in the NFL in number of interceptions, from '75 - '80.
What is overlooked though is that Grogan was ranked in the top five in TD passes three times in that span - despite the very prolific and record setting running game.
- In '76 Grogan threw the 2nd most picks in the NFL, but was also 4th in TDs.
- In '77 he was again 2nd in picks, but was 5th in most touchdown passes.
- In '78 Grogan had the 3rd most picks - but also led the league in TD passes.
As a reminder, the Patriots ranked 2nd (2948 yards), 6th (2303 yards) and 1st (all-time NFL record 3165 yards) in rushing during that time.
Steve Grogan was not the most physically talented passed to make it to the NFL. His passing deficiencies are often overstated though.
One thing that can never be overstated is Grogan's grit, determination, motivation and leadership. For anybody that watched those clubs, there will always be a very special fondness for the '76-'78 Fairbanks/Grogan Patriot teams.
