Billy Cannon

[JameisBrownston]

This is a weird career if I've ever seen one. If we assign him as a tight end, he appears to be a slam dunk for HOVG, one of the few best of the early TEs (possibly behind only Mackey and Ditka). His early rushing output only adds to his resume. He definitely looks like a better player than, say, Charlie Sanders. Am I missing something here? Is he being judged as a RB?

[RichardBak]

I was always a big Billy Cannon fan, though I remember him mostly as a Raider. He certainly had a more celebrated and productive career than Sanders (and I'm from Detroit)---a rushing title, MVP of the first 2 AFL title games, 1st Team All-AFL at HB and TE, etc. As TE's go he struck me as being more like Jerry Smith than a Ditka or Mackey type. Cannon's run-ins with the law (he spent a couple years in prison for counterfeiting) might be held against him by some.

[JameisBrownston]

I feel like a large part of the knock on him goes something like "half his career he was a RB who wasn't quite HOVG, and the other half he was a TE who wasn't quite HOVG". Legal issues would be a black mark for the HOF, but I figure if PFRA will induct Jim Tyrer, it isn't paying much attention to that.

[RichardBak]

I've always viewed versatility as a plus, so the fact that Cannon was all-league at two positions several years apart--on top of everything else--makes him an easier (for me) HOVG pick. To be honest, until I read this thread I thought he was already in.

The legal stuff doesn't bother me. In fact, because of this thread I just ordered a used copy of that Cannon bio A Long, Long Run. (Amazon thanks you.) Seems like he turned his life around after serving time in the pen.

[JameisBrownston]

What drove his conversion to TE anyways? He was definitely always a receiving-oriented back; maybe he was an elite pass protector for a RB as well?

[JohnTurney]

What drove his conversion to TE anyways? He was definitely always a receiving-oriented back; maybe he was an elite pass protector for a RB as well?

Tore his back muscles he called "the girdle", said he lost his lateral movement, could no longer turn upfield --- his words

someone else will have to tell you what docs call the girdle but I'd guess lower back ... apparently never healed right -- gave it a go
for a couple of years but move to TE made most sense, I guess

[RichardBak]

I took it to mean his hips, which would most def affect lateral movement. Funny thing is, I remember a quote from Sammy Baugh, Cannon's coach in Houston, to the effect that Cannon "had very few moves, almost no moves" even during the Oilers' great back-to-back AFL title years, so I guess lateral movement was never his strong suit even in his prime. I looked at some game footage from Cannon's Raiders days, and he's never running a crossing pattern---just straight-ahead schoolyard or a simple post. But he was a big guy (230 lbs.) and reportedly the AFL's best blocking back aside from Cookie Gilchrist, and he had speed, power, and great hands, so the move from FB to TE was a natural. Really, those injuries probably kept him from a HOF career.

[JuggernautJ]

I only know of this because I am being treated (physical therapy) for a similar problem.
Yay, football...!

The pelvic girdle is composed of the appendicular hip bones (ilium, ischium, and pubis) oriented in a ring, and connects the pelvic region of the spine to the lower limbs.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelvis

Edited to add: References to injuries associated with the Pelvic Girdle also and often include muscles and connective tissue that encapsulates and support the bone structure therein.

[sluggermatt15]

I wrote a biography on Cannon last year. From what I remember when researching him, when he joined the Raiders, head coach John Rauch converted him from a running back to a tight end. Not only because of his pass catching abilities, but he was a very physical player and could block really well.

[JohnTurney]

I took it to mean his hips, which would most def affect lateral movement.

that makes sense...I went back and found what he said...maybe someone can define it better. I don't know
for sure what it actually is.

2023-09-04_10-34-18.jpg (17.16 KiB) Viewed 2113 times