Hardest He Hung Up His Cleats? Trivia Quiz | American Football

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which player, known for heroics with another team during the 1960s, scored a touchdown in Super Bowl VI and later retired from the 1972 Dallas Cowboys?

Answer: Both players

Alworth, the premier receiver of the early AFL while playing for the San Diego Chargers, was traded to the Cowboys after the 1970 season. Ditka, next to George Halas the man probably most closely-identified with the Chicago Bears, actually only played half his career there: after six years with the Bears, he played two with the Eagles and four with the Cowboys. Both caught 7-yard touchdown passes from Roger Staubach in the Cowboys' 24-3 win over Miami in Super Bowl VI.

2. Which quarterback below did NOT play his final season for a California team?

Answer: Norm Van Brocklin

Van Brocklin played for the Los Angeles Rams in the 1950s before playing his last three seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles. His final game was the 1960 NFL championship in which his Eagles beat the rising Packers 17-13. Waterfield played his entire career for the Rams.

The pitiful final seasons of Namath and Unitas, with the 1977 Rams and the 1973 San Diego Chargers respectively, are often cited as examples of what happens when athletes don't know when to quit.

3. Paul Brown founded the Cleveland Browns, named them for himself, coached them to several titles, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With what team did he then unretire and prove himself even further as a coach?

Answer: Cincinnati Bengals

After his 1967 election to the Hall of Fame, Brown was part of the ownership group for the AFL expansion Cincinnati Bengals. He was the team's coach from their 1968 inaugural season through 1975, staying on as general manager after that. Brown's coaching record with the Bengals was 55-56-1, outstanding considering the team's predictably shaky first two seasons. Brown's Bengals went on to win two division titles in an AFC Central that included tough Pittsburgh and Cleveland teams.

In 2000, the Bengals moved to a new home - Paul Brown Stadium - making him possibly the only man in the history of world sports to have one team, and another team's stadium, both named for him.

4. What was the last NFL team for which Franco Harris played?

Answer: Seattle Seahawks

As Franco Harris' stellar NFL career wound down, he was rapidly closing in on Jim Brown's then-record 12,312 yards rushing. Brown didn't respect Harris and threatened to come out of retirement (he was close to 50 years old) to push his record higher.

He didn't need to though, as Harris had an undistinguished final season for the 1984 Seattle Seahawks, gaining 170 yards in eight games, leaving him almost 200 career yards short of Brown. The following season, Walter Payton passed Brown.

5. Offensive tackle Forrest Gregg retired after winning his third Super Bowl ring with this team:

Answer: Dallas Cowboys

After spending fifteen seasons in Green Bay and winning five NFL titles, Gregg added a sixth title by playing his final season for the 1971 Cowboys.

6. Running back Bronko Nagurski symbolized the early NFL. After retiring from football in 1937, with what team did he make a comeback in 1943?

Answer: Chicago Bears

After a six-year layoff, the Bronk rejoined his Bears team in 1943, seeing limited regular season action, but scoring a touchdown as they beat the Redskins 41-21 for the NFL title. He retired for good after that.

7. After spending the 1960s with the Green Bay Packers, where did defensive back Herb Adderley close out his NFL career?

Answer: Dallas

Adderley saw regular action for the 1970-1972 Dallas Cowboys, intercepting three passes in 1970 and six the next season.

Yes, if you've been reading the answers, the 1971 Cowboys had Lance Alworth, Mike Ditka, Forrest Gregg, Herb Adderley - PLUS their own stable of homegrown future Hall of Famers. Adderley and Gregg came into the season with two Super Bowl titles apiece, plus three NFL titles from before the first Super Bowl. Alworth and Ditka had both won a single league title. The Cowboys' locker room must have needed a safe to hold all the rings!

8. For whom did OJ Simpson play his final NFL season?

Answer: San Francisco 49ers

After nine mostly glorious seasons in Buffalo, Simpson wanted to return to his hometown, so was traded to the 49ers. He played his final two NFL seasons in San Francisco, gaining 593 yards in 1978 and 460 yards in 1979. Broncos of a different kind would of course figure prominently in his life several years later.

9. The four players below all had their glory years with the Kansas City Chiefs. Which one was playing for a different team when he retired?

Answer: Jan Stenerud

Dawson had a forgettable early career with the Browns and Steelers before being the backbone of the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs offense for his last 14 seasons in the NFL. Buchanan and Lanier were lifetime Chiefs. Stenerud was with the Chiefs from 1967-79 before playing four more stellar years for Green Bay and two for Minnesota, retiring after the 1985 season.

10. For what team did Eric Dickerson score his final regular-season NFL touchdown?

Answer: Los Angeles Raiders

Dickerson gained 91 of his more than 13,000 career rushing yards with the 1993 Atlanta Falcons in his final NFL season. But his final NFL touchdowns came during the single year he spent with the Raiders in 1992.

Source: Author d2407

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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He Hung Up His Cleats? Trivia Quiz

Not all of the best football players and coaches retired from the teams where they had their best years. See if you can identify what teams these all-time greats were playing for when they traded in their cleats for a gold watch.

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