History
The birth of the blitz is considered to be on December 1, 1957, when the defense of the San Francisco 49ers forced five fumbles against quarterback New York Giant Chuck Conerly. Don Ettinger, a linebacker for the New York Giants, invented the blitz during his brief NFL career (1948 – 1950).
Initially, the term "Red Dog" was coined in 1961 by longtime San Francisco 49er announcer Bob Fouts, during a training camp photo op with his Irish Setter Casey posed with his front legs raised up on quarterback John Brodie. From there he used the term when describing a linebacker rushing the opposing quarterback, although the term was later supplanted by 'blitz.'
Larry Wilson, free safety for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1960 to 1972, pioneered and perfected the safety blitz, a play originally code-named "Wildcat." Defensive coordinator Chuck Drulis is widely credited with inventing the safety blitz. Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau is widely regarded as the inventor of the zone blitz.
Read more about this topic: Blitz (gridiron Football)
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