Tom Flores inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
LOS ANGELES TIMES [Story Link]
CANTON, Ohio —
It required more than two silver trophies for Tom Flores to get a gold jacket.
It took a (pirate) shipload of patience too.
Just wait, baby.
Flores, the soft-spoken Raiders coach who was at the helm for two of the club’s three Super Bowl victories, was inducted Sunday into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a fitting capstone for a trailblazing career that began more than 60 years ago. He was a quarterback and one of 20 men to play all 10 years in the American Football League.
…
His pro career began as one of 11 quarterbacks at training camp in Santa Cruz for the inaugural season of the Oakland Raiders.
“We were just a bunch of guys who didn’t have a home stadium,” he said. “Most of the guys in training camp had no idea where Oakland was. I had to tell them. We were playing in San Francisco. That new league gave us all an opportunity to play football and continue.”
(Photo Credit: David Richard / Associated Press)