Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

NWebster wrote:I do have some trouble with the arbitrariness of the date ranges.

This. Always been my issue with "All-Decade" teams.

NWebster wrote:I like this series, and do think its valuable debate. I do have some trouble with the arbitrariness of the date ranges.

It would be interesting if someone authoritative put together all-decade teams for decades beginning in 1 and ending in 0, decades beginning in 2 and ending in 1, etc.

I have begun a mid-decade teams, from 1925-35, but I use a small slide, meaning if a guy was good from 1924-33 he would get a nod, or 1926-35

Essentially is means mid-decade. Interestingly, I take Lilly and Olsen off the 1970s team, and puts them on the 1965-75 team, for example.

Page and Greene are first-team 1970s and Jordan and Roger Brown I have for 1960s, with Karras next.

Jimmy Johnson would be a CB on the mid decade team of 1965-75 as would Charley Taylor. Of Tarkenton the 1965-75 QB, and Namath would also fit in there . . .

Ted Hendricks would not be on the replacement 1980s, but he would be in the 1970s . . . anyway, you get the point.

I would use awards and stats as the major criteria and one of the great things Pro Football Reference has a search engine that can break down awards and stats very quickly. . They are a work-in-progress for a blog I've begun, and I see some choices need to be changed, but will be seeking input from some folks . . . .here are a couple of examples'.

JohnTurney wrote:

Bryan wrote:

JohnTurney wrote:In 1994 the NFL had a group of HOF writers and Sabol and a couple of others picks a Combined NFL-AFL All-1960s team

I think it is much better than the original.

Charley Taylor, wide receiver;
Lance Alworth, wide receiver

If we are talking about strictly the decade of the 1960's, would it make sense to have Don Maynard over Charley Taylor?

It was a vote . . .I am sure Maynard got some votes by the committee, but Maynard is certainly qualified

Might be that they voted for one Split End and one Flanker, and Maynard nor anyone else in this universe, was going to touch Alworth.

rhickok1109 wrote:It would be interesting if someone authoritative put together all-decade teams for decades beginning in 1 and ending in 0, decades beginning in 2 and ending in 1, etc.

That would be interesting, done complete you could see exactly when a player would join and subsequently fall off the "all-decade" teams. Though while it would address what 10-year periods are used, it wouldn't address that 10-year periods are used (why "all-decade" and not "all-half-decade, or all-7 year span, or all-11 year span, etc), so it's still arbitrary, in that sense.

That's why I like season to season All-Pro teams. Can put it together yourself going year-to-year. Or specific to one player, you can do career span ... e.g. if a players career started in 1993 and ended in 2005 you could simple use those 13 seasons for that player (i.e. was he the best at his position during his career?), instead of being tied to an arbitrary amount of years.

That's very cool, John Turney! Thank you

Nice job, John!!

Ken Crippen wrote:Nice job, John!!

Thanks, but it's just the first stages, I need to move some players, and at some point I was just adding names, I see I have Tom Fears as a flanker, which he wasn't .. . things like that . . .I did all those over a couple of days and have yet to edit it and fix it up.

Date ranges are a problem. Decade lists are nice to look at because we often compartmentalize our lives and our culture by decades. But what about a player who doesn't fit neatly into a decade? In that regard, John's point about mid decade teams is a good one.

So then you propose a "best ten years" list, regardless of when those ten years fell. But then you end up comparing someone who played in the 1930s with someone who played in the 1990s. Is that a bad thing? Maybe, maybe not?

It's just problematic. But it's fun.

I read this article somewhere, I think it was about OL Dennis Harrah (not sure though), about how he played in several distinct eras of football. Was thought provoking and well written. The problems that arise when trying to sandwich players on decades lists made me think of it. I will try to find it.