History of Football Essay

Foot wrap, Ameri mint, unadorned pillow slip of football spirited that developed in the United States in the 19th atomic number 6 from soccer (association football) and rugby football. Played by persistkeys and amateurs (generally male college or elevated school school aggroups), football is atomic number 53 of the ab bug out popular American sports, attracting thousands of participants and millions of spectators annually. The ancestor of American football whitethorn shoot been a coarse-grained tactics by the ancient Greeks, call backed harpaston. In this coarse-grained there was no recoil to the number of persisters.The object was to move a ball across a mark profligate by kicking, th course of instructioning, or running with it. Classical writings contains detailed accounts of the gimpy, including its rougher elements, such(prenominal) as ferocious tackling. Most advanced(a) versions of football, however, originated in England, where a form of the racy was cognise in the 12th vitamin C. In subsequent centuries football became so popular that discordant English monarchs, including Edward II and Henry VI, forbade the punt beca delectation it took stake away from the military sport of archery. By the middle of the 19th century football had break break into deuce distinct entities.Still popular today, these ii sports included the football association grainy, or soccer (the word being a slang adaptation of the cardinal letters, s-o-c, in Association), and rugby, in which pretenders ran with the ball and tackled. Modern football evolved out of these deuce sports. The Playing Field and the Ball The football playing battlefield is orthogonal in shape, measuring 100 yd (91. 4 m) long and 53. 5 yd (48. 9 m) wide. At both destructions of the 100-yard dimension, white lines called goal lines mark off the entrances to the curiosity z stars. individually police squad defends whizz end z iodine.A aggroup must hold out, breathe out, or kick the ball into the 10-yd (9-m) end zone on the opponents fractional of the field to make. Lines parallel to the end zones cross the field at 5-yd (4. 5-m) intervals. These lines advance the field a resemblance to a large gridiron. Another fix of lines, kn make as the human facelines, runs along both sides of the field. In addition, deuce rows of lines, called haschisch attach, run parallel to the sidelines. The hash marks ar 53 ft 4 in (16. 3 m) from severally sideline in college and high school football, and 70 ft 9 in (21. 6 m) from dampenly sideline in the subject area football union (NFL).each play must begin on or among the hash marks. forrader distributively play, the officials mall the ball either between the hash marks or on the hash mark closest to the end of the anterior play. Situated in the middle of the rear line of each end zone argon goalposts, consisting of a 10-ft (3-m) vertical pole topped by a horizontal crossbar from which two vertica l up well(p) posts extend. In college and maestro football, the posts are 18 ft 6 in (about 5. 6 m) apart. The football consists of an inf new-fashioned-fangledd rubber bladder encased in a lather or rubber disguise.The ball is an extended spheroid, having a circumference of 28. 5 in (72. 4 cm) around the long axis and 21. 25 in (54 cm) around the short axis. It weighs between 14 and 15 oz (397 and 425 g). Playing snip A game of football is divided into quad periods, k presentlyn as quarters, each consisting of 15 minutes of playing sentence. The maiden two periods score the first half(a) the import two comprise the second half. betwixt the halves, a rest period, usually lasting about 15 minutes, is permitted the players, who may leave the field. The police squad ups change halves of the field at the end of each quarter.The time stop at the end of each quarter and at trusted other times, when particular details occur or when designated by the officials. The Playe rs Football is vie by two fence team ups, each fielding 11 players. Each team tries to move the ball down the field to score in the end zone defended by its opponents. During a football game the teams are designated as the violative team (the team in possession of the ball) and the reason team (the team defending a goal line against the discourtesy team). Players involved in kicking situations are known as the superfluous teams.The 11 players of the wicked team are divided into two groups 7 linemen, who play on the line of scrimmage (an imaginary line designating the sight of the ball) and a backfield of 4 players, called backs, who infrastructure in various positions behind the linemen. The linesman whose position is in the middle of the line is called the center. On his unexpended is the go forth guard and on his right is the right guard. On the left of the left guard is the left tackle, and on the right of the right guard is the right tackle similarly, on the ends of the line are the tight end and the rip end.The back who usuallystands directly behind the center and directs the play of the offensive team is known as the signal caller. In a fit backfield defining, or T- brass, the fullback stands behind the quarterback, and the left and right halfbacks stand to either side of the fullback. Teams a lot employment wide receivers in the place of tight ends, split ends, halfbacks, or fullbacks. Wide receivers line up on the line of scrimmage but wide of the rest of the formation. The justificative team consists of a row of linemen, who comprise the cheerive line, a row of linebackers, and a collection of defensive backs, known as the secondary.The defensive line can use either number of players, though most teams use three or four linemen. Defensive linemen principally are responsible for stopping the oppositions haste attack and, in strait situations, investting pressure on the quarterback. The linebackers line up behind the defensi ve line and, depending on the situation, are used to stop runners, pressure the quarterback, or enshroud the oppositions receivers. Teams usually employ three or four linebackers. The secondary is comprised of cornerbacks, who c e reallyplace wide receivers, and safeties, who cover receivers, offer support in stopping the rushing attack, and pressure the quarterback.The secondary comm just consists of two cornerbacks and two safeties. Protective Equipment To value themselves from the often violent bodily contact that characterizes football, players wear elaborate equipment, including whippersnapper plasticized padding covering the thighs, hips, shoulders, knees, and often the forearms and pecks. Players also wear plastic helmets with guards that cover most of the face. The Officials Play is supervised by impartial officials. Professional and study college football programs use seven officials a lecturer, an umpire, a linesman, a field tag, a back judge, a line judge, and a sid e judge.The officials carry whistles and yellow penalty flags. They blow the whistles or play a trick on the flags to indicate that an intrusion of the approach patterns has been committed. The referee is in charge of the game at all levels of play. The referee supervises the other officials, decides on all matters not under other officials item jurisdiction, and enforces penalties. The referee indicates when the ball is dead (out of play) and when it may again be put into play, and uses hand signals to indicate specific decisions and penalties.The umpire makes decisions on questions concerning the players equipment, their conduct, and their positioning. The principal duty of the linesman is to mark the position of the ball at the end of each play. The linesman has assistants who measure distances gained or lost, using a device consisting of two vertical markers connected by a chain or cord 10 yd (9 m) long. The linesman must particularly watch for violations of the rule requir ing players to bear in veritable positions before the ball is put into play. The field judge times the game, using a stopwatch for this purpose.In some cases, the field scoreboard has a clock that is considered official. Game Procedure At the head start of each game, the referee tosses a coin in the presence of the two team captains to determine which team kicks off or receives the kickoff. At the start of the second half, these conditions are reversedthat is, the team that kicks off in the first half receives the kickoff to start the second half. During the kickoff, the ball is put in play by a place-kicking from the kicking teams 35-yd (32-m) line, or the 30-yd (27. 4-m) line in the National Football League (NFL).The NFL kickoff was locomote from the 35-yd line in 1994 to increase the importance of the kickoff return. The kicking team lines up at or behind the ball, while the opponents spread out over their territory in a formation calculated to answer them to catch the ball and run it back effectively. If the kick stays at heart the boundaries of the field, any player on the receiving team may catch the ball, or pick it up on a bounce, and run with it. As the player runs, the player may be tackled by any opponent and stopped, known as being downed. The player carrying the ball is considered downed when one knee touches the ground.Tacklers use their hands and arms to stop opponents and throw them to the ground. by and by the ball attack aircraft postman is stopped, the referee blows a whistle to stop play and places the ball on the spot where the runner was downed. Play also stops when the ball carrier runs out of bounds. A scrimmage (action while the ball is in play) past takes place. Before scrimmage begins, the team on shame usually gathers in a circle, called a huddle, and discusses the future(a) play it ordain use to turn out to advance the ball.A direct either signals the play choiceto the team from the sidelines, or the teams quarterba ck chooses from among the dozens of rehearsed plays in the teams repertoire. The defensive team also forms a huddle and discusses its near feat to slow the evil. Each play is designated by code metrical composition or words, called signals. After the teams do out of their respective huddles, they line up oppo billet each other on the line of scrimmage. If the quarterback analyzes the defensive concretion and decides that the chosen play should be changed, the quarterback can call an audible and shout the coded steerings for a new play.Play begins when the center crouches over the ball and, on a spoken signal, snaps itgenerally to the quarterbackby handing it between his legs. Based upon the chosen play, the quarterback can clog up the ball, hand it off to a teammate, or run with it. During the scrimmage, the players on the offensive team may check the defenders using their bodies, but they are constrained by specific rules regarding the use of their hands or arms. The playe r running with the ball, however, is allowed to use an arm to ward off potential tacklers.The offensive players check defenders, or try to force them out of the way, by performing a show known as blocking. Good blocking is considered a fundamental proficiency in football. Perhaps the most spectacular offensive play is the frontward pass, in which the ball is thrown in a in advance direction to an eligible player. The ball is n earlier always thrown by the quarterback, and those who may catch it include the other three backs and the two ends. A forward pass may be made further during scrimmage, and whence only from behind the line of scrimmage.A afterwardal pass may be made anywhere on the field anytime the ball is in play. The defending team tries to prevent the attacking team from advancing the ball. The defending players may use their arms and hands in their attempt to break through the opponents line to reach the player with the ball. The defending team tries to keep the offense from gaining any distance, or to stop the offense for a loss by tackling the ball carrier before the ball carrier reaches the line of scrimmage. The offense must advance the ball at least 10 yards (9 m) in four tries, called downs.After each play, the teams line up again and a new scrimmage takes place. If the team on offense fails to travel 10 yards (9 m) in four downs, it must surrender the ball to its opponent afterwards the fourth down. A team will often punt on fourth down if it hasnt gained at least 10 yards (9 m) in its previous three tries. In punting, the kicker drops the ball and kicks it before it touches the ground. By punting, a team can send the ball far away from its own end zone before surrendering it, thus weakening the opponents field position. Methods of Scoring.The object of the game is to score to a greater extent points than the opposing team within the regulation playing time. In college football, a game can end in a tie if both teams suck up scored the aforementioned(prenominal) number of points at the end of regulation time. In case of a tie in an exhibition or regular-season professional game, the teams play an extra time period, known as sudden death, in which the first team to score is declared the winner. If neither team has scored at the end of this 15-minute overtime period, then the tie is allowed to stand. In professional playoff games no ties are allowed, and the teams play until one scores.A team scores a touchdown when one of its players carries the ball into the opposing teams end zone or catches a pass in the end zone. A touchdown is worth 6 points. After a team has scored a touchdown, it tries for an extra-point re confine birth. This is an opportunity to score an additional one or two points with no time elapsing off the game clock. In college football, the offensive team lines up 3 yd (2. 7 m) from the goal line of the opponents and passes, kicks, or runs with the ball. A running or passing conversion in w hich the ball crosses the goal line counts for 2 points.A conversion by place-kick that propels the ball between the goalposts and over the crossbar counts for 1 point. In professional football, the offensive team lines up 2 yd (1. 8 m) from the goal line. A conversion attempted by place-kicking the ball is worth 1 point. In 1994 the NFL introduced the running or passing 2-point conversion. On offense, teams may also attempt to score by kicking a field goal, which counts for 3 points. A field goal is scored by means of a place-kick, in which one player holds the ball upright on the ground for a teammate to kick.For a successful field goal, the ball must be kicked between the goalposts and over the crossbar. After each field goal and extra-point conversion, the scoring team must kick off to its opponents. Finally, a defensive team earns two points for a safety when it causes the team on offense to end a play in possession of the ball behind its own goal line. If the offensive team do wns the ball behind its line intentionally, in certain situations, such as after receiving a kickoff, the play is known as a touchback and does not count in the scoring.When the offensive team suffers a safety, it must punt the ball to the opponents to restart play. Modern Football American football was made popular by teams working colleges and universities. These teams overshadowd the game for most of the first 100 years of football in the United States. blush today, despite greatly increased interest in professional football, extramural contestsplayed by some 640 teamare attended by to a greater extent(prenominal) than 35 million spectators each year. Many college stadiums hold more than 50,000 spectators one stadium, at the University of Michigan, holds more than 100,000.Many of the major universities are now grouped in conferences, such as the greathearted Ten (northern midwest), the Big Eight (midwest), the Pacific Ten (western states), the Southeastern Conference, and the Ivy League (northeast). The birth date of football in the United States is generally regarded by football historians as November 6, 1869, when teams from Rutgers and Princeton universities met in New Brunswick, New Jersey, for the first intercollegiate football game. In the early games, each team used 25 players at a time. By 1873 the number was reduced to 20 players, in 1876 to 15 players, and in 1880 to 11 players, where it has remained.In the 1900s, college football became one of the countrys most popular sports spectacles. Ranked among the greatest United States sports heroes of the 20th century are such student athletes as Jim Thorpe of Carlisle Institute George Gipp of the University of Notre Dame vehement Grange of the University of Illinois Tom Harmon of the University of Michigan Doak Walker of Southern Methodist University Glenn Davis and Doc Blanchard, the Touchdown check of Army (the U. S. Military Academy) Joe Namath of the University of Alabama and O. J. Simpson of the University of Southern California.In 1935 the Downtown acrobatic Club of New York City established an award honoring one of the outstanding college football coaches in the country, John William Heisman. Heisman is credited with legalizing the forward pass in 1906. The John W. Heisman Memorial plunder is awarded annually to the outstanding college player of the year, as decided by a national poll of sportswriters. After World War II ended in 1945, college athletes began to receive football scholarships, often brooking the players room, board, tuition, and incidental expenses while enrolled in college. College paradiddle Games and National Champions.College teams generally play about 11 games during the fall. The outflank college teams are awarded trips to so-called bowl games, matching outstanding teams in games that solve the seasons competition. The tradition was begun in 1902 at Pasadena, California, when Stanford University invited the University of Michigan to come t o California for a New Years Day contest. This event soon became the celebrated Rose Bowl game. Bowl games now represent the climax of the college season. Other notable bowl games include the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida and the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, Louisiana.In recognition of the great public interest in these games, major corporations now sponsor some(prenominal) of the bowls. Today, the champion college team is selected by national polls of coaches and sportswriters. In the accompanying table, the teams from 1889 to 1923 were Helms Athletic Foundation selections from 1924 to 1930, Rissman Trophy winners from 1931 to 1935, Rockne Memorial Trophy winners from 1936 to today, Associated Press (AP) poll selections and from 1950 to today, United Press planetary (UPI) poll selections. In cases where two teams won the honor in separate AP and UPI polls, a note has been made.Many members of the football community debate whether a poll of writers a nd coaches should determine a champion or whether the colleges should institute a more formal playoff system. Detractors of a playoff system argue that with such a system, the popular bowl games would lose their identity. In addition, players seasons would extend by one or two months, cutting into academic time. However, advocates for a playoff point to the arguable 1993 season in which the Florida State Seminoles won the number-one ranking over Notre Dame, a team that beat the Seminoles convincingly earlier in the season.Beginnings of Professional Football The first professional football game in the United States took place in 1895 in the town of Latrobe, Pennsylvania, between a team representing Latrobe and a team from Jeannette, Pennsylvania. In the following ten years many professional teams were formed, including the Duquesnes of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the Olympics of McKeesport, Pennsylvania the Bulldogs of Canton, Ohio and the team of Massillon, Ohio.Among notable college players who took up the professional game during its early years were Willie Heston (formerly at the University of Michigan), Jim Thorpe (Carlisle Institute), Knute Rockne (University of Notre Dame), and Fritz Pollard ( brownness University). The professional game attracted only limited public support during its first 30 years. The first alliance of professional football teams was the American Professional Football Association, formed in 1920. The admission fee was $100 per team.The teams pledged not to use any student player who still had collegiate eligibility left, as the good will of the colleges was believed to be essential to survival. The teams also agreed not to tamper with each others players. Jim Thorpe, a player-coach for one of the teams, became president of the league during its first year. The American Professional Football Association gave way in 1922 to the National Football League (NFL). Red Grange, the famous halfback from the University of Illinois, provided a t remendous remark for the league when he joined the Chicago Bears in 1925 and toured the United States that year and the next.His exciting play drew large crowds. at that placeafter, professional football attracted larger numbers of first-rate college players, and the increased patronage made the league frugalally viable. Strategically, the early NFL game was hardly distinguishable from college football at that time. There was no attempt to break away from collegiate playbooks or rule books. For 13 years the NFL followed the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Rules military commission recommendations. In the leagues early years, players considered the low-paying NFL a part-time task and held other jobs during the day.Thus, while college coaches could drill their players daily for hours, professional football coaches position practices in the evenings, sometimes only three or four times a week. Development of Offensive Strategies The offensive techniques and format ions prevalent in the coetaneous game developed from the ideas of early and mid-20th century coaches such as Walter Camp, Alonzo Stagg, down Warner, Fielding Hurry Up Yost, Bob Zuppke, Knute Rockne, and Paul Brown. Following very few historical precedents, these men innovated unique strategies that changed the nature of football forever.Stagg, direct out of the early T-formation, originated the between-the-legs snap from center to quarterback and put a player in motion in the backfield before the snap of the ball. In 1906 Warner unbalanced his line, placing four players on one side of the center and two on the other side, while shifting the backfield into a wing formation. The quarterback functioned as a blocker, quite a little close behind the line and a yard wide of the center. At the same depth, but outside the line, was the wingback. mystifying in the backfield was the tailback, who received most of the snaps, and in front and to the side was the fullback.This formation bec ame known as the Single-Wing, and it remained footballs basic formation until the 1940s. From the Single-Wing emerged Warners Double-Wing, with wingbacks set wide on either side of the line. This formation obligate the defense to spread itself across the field in order to protect against the pass, thus creating favorable conditions for the offense to execute unexpected running plays. The dodge is the same as todays draw and end-around concepts, but Warners teams could also pass from the formation.Warner would also open up the lines completely, splitting the ends into modern slot positions, inside the wingbacks. This was a four-receiver formation that evolved into the Shotgun offense, popularized by the San Francisco 49ers of 1960. manage the double-wing, the Shotgun utilized two wideouts and two slot players, with the passer set deep in the backfield next to a running back. The NFLs newest formation of the 1990s, the Run and Shoot offense, also resembles Warners formation. With Wa rners innovations, wing formations came to dominate the NFL.Coach Zuppke at Illinois ran single- and double-wing formations, often sending four or quin receivers downfield in pass patterns. Some teams would use a short-punt formation, with the quarterback and wings set on different sides, providing a more balanced look. At Notre Dame in 1923 and 1924, Rockne instituted his famous Four Horsemen offense. At the beginning of a play, Rockne set up the backs in a four-square, box alignment on one side. Then, in the famous Notre Dame Shift, the backs would shift out of the box and into a single or double wing. In later years, other coaches imitated Rocknes innovation and achieved similar success.For example, former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs implemented an offensive strategy called the Explode Package. Modeled after Rocknes Notre Dame Shift, the Explode Package helped the Redskins defeat the Miami Dolphins in the 1983 first-rate Bowl. In Gibbss system, the backs and receivers would jump into new positions before the snap, thus unsettling the defense. Although expert, the quarterbacks of the 1930s and separate of the 1940s seldom completed 50 percent of their passes, while many were even less successful. A major cause of these low percentages was the uncreated nature of pass-blocking schemes.With little protection, passers always had to throw while avoiding incoming rushers. In the 1940s Paul Brown, the coach of the Cleveland Browns, installed a blocking system which change the passing game forever. Brown changed the system by arranging the linemen in the form of a cup. They pushed most incoming pass-rushers to the outside. Anyone who penetrated the line was met by a firmly planted fullback named Marion Motley. From that point on, the passing game achieved a new significance. Other teams implemented strong blocking lines, providing the quarterback with more time to release the ball.The contemporary game of the 1980s and 1990s is noted for its exciting and effective passing plays in both the professional and college ranks. colored turf, the surface in many of the nations stadiums, provides excellent price for quarterbacks and receivers. With strong protection, talented quarterbacks make a perceivable difference to a game. For example, quarterback Joe Montana keyed the San Francisco 49ers three first-rate Bowl victories in the 1980s. Montana, who benefited from good protection, could instinctively read defenses and had the ability to deliver the ball accurately to his receivers while on the move.In college football, the University of Miami Hurricanes dominated the game in the late 1980s with a flashy passing game and a apace defense that could react effectively to the pass. Development of Defensive Strategies One physical contact aspect of modern football is its emphasis on defense as well as offense. This trend began after World War II (1939-1945), when college teams were allowed sluttish substitution of playersthat is, a pl ayer could enter and leave the game an unlimited number of times, as long as the ball was not in play during the substitution.This feature of the game led to the modern two-platoon system, in which one group of 11 players enters the game to play offense and a second group enters to play defense. Such a system has fostered the emergence of individual skills and specialization among players. Defensive football has acquired an extensive terminology of its own. In some ways defense is more complicated than offense, because defensive teams have fewer restrictions on their manner of lining up. Generally, however, the defensive formation is inflexible by the way the offense lines up.For example, when defending against opponents who are expected to throw many forward passes, a team might use a formation with a four-player line of two ends and two tackles. Three linebackers would stand directly behind the front four. In addition, two cornerbacks placed wider and farther back could defend a gainst mid-range assaults. Two safeties would position themselves deeper to protect against longer transmitting aerial attacks. Most of the innovative thinking by coaches in the NFL during the 1970s came on defense. Offensive statistics plummeted as defenses dominated.The newer game demanded speed at every position, in addition to strength and bulk. Great linebacker units with catchy names such as Doomsday in Dallas, Pittsburghs Steel Curtain, Minnesotas Purple People Eaters, and the Rams Fearsome Foursome dominated offenses. Teams turned the free safety position over to ferocious hitters such as the Raiders goofball Tatum and Dallas Cliff Harris. Rough, physical cornerbacks such as Pittsburghs Mel Blount and Oaklands Willie Brown employed tight bump-and-run techniques on receivers downfield. Professional Football Today.The present-day NFL game is immensely popular. It is played during the late summer, through autumn, and into January. Professional teams play 4 exhibition games be fore the start of the regular season, followed by 16 games in the regular season and then playoff games, when they qualify for the playoffs. Teams play one game each week, using the time between games to recover, practice, and prepare for the next game. Each team receives one week without a game, known as a bye, during the season. The NFL is a big business for players, owners, advertisers, and other industries tied to the sport.NFL franchises generate grand revenues for legions cities, in addition to promoting civic pride and national exposure. Thus, cities often compete for teams, offering prospective teams bigger and better stadiums, guaranteed fan support, and various economic incentives. In the 1980s three NFL teams relocated the Raiders moved from Oakland, California, to Los Angeles in 1982 the Colts moved from Baltimore, Maryland, to Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1984 and the Cardinals moved from Saint Louis, Missouri, to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1988. Other teams have agreed to sta y only with the promise of new facilities by their host cities.Throughout the years, other consortiums have sought to capitalize on the economic potential of the sport. For three years in the 1980s a new professional spring league, the United States Football League (USFL), competed with the NFL. The NFL lost players to the USFL, and NFL teams had to pay higher salaries to keep other players from leaving. However, the USFL soon folded, with much of its more talented personnel entering the NFL. Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the final examination contest of the professional season and determines the leagues annual champion. currently the Super Bowl routinely finishes among the all-time top 50 programs in television ratings, and the 1994 game reached an estimated 750 million viewers around the world. Now in all likelihood the most important single-day sporting event in the United States, the Super Bowl had more modest beginnings. In 1967 the champions of the American Football League (w hich merged with the NFL in 1970) and the NFL met in what was called the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. The name was later shortened to Super Bowl, named after a childs toy, the Super Ball. In this first game, the Green Bay Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10.The Los Angeles Coliseum, site of the game, fell far short of a sellout, although tickets were only $10 each. In comparison, the highest ticket price at the 1994 Super Bowl reached $250, with scalpers illegally charging more than twice that much. Rule Changes and Modern Developments The game of football has a recital of constant rule changes. Rule changes have been implemented to bolster the lighting of the game of football and to increase the games safety. By 1906 the game was extremely rough, and many injuries and some deaths had occurred.Educators considered dropping the sport despite its popularity on campuses. United States President Theodore Roosevelt, an ardent advocate of strenuous sports, declared that the g ame must be made safer. As a result, football leading revamped the game, and many of the rougher tactics were outlawed. In a constant attempt to guard public interest in the game, NFL rulemakers review trends in their sport. For example, in the early 1970s, the rulemakers brought the hash marks in closer to the center of the field to give offenses more room to throw wide.The move, which increased scoring and made the game more exciting, also helped bolster the running game. Ten NFL runners gained more than atomic number 19 yards in one season (1972) for the first time in history. During the next season, Buffalo Bills running back O. J. Simpson rushed for more than 2000 yards, the first time a player had gained that many yards in a single season. However, the passing game eventually suffered as defenses quickly adjusted. The Pittsburgh Steelers had a stranglehold on the NFL during the 1970s, with four Super Bowl victories.The dominant defensive athletes the Steelers put on the fie ld shut down the wide-open passing attacks that had developed in the previous era. By 1977 scoring was the lowest it had been since 1942, while offensive touchdowns had fall to their lowest levels since 1938. The rulemakers enacted serious measures after this low-scoring 1977 season, fearing a loss of public interest in the defense-dominated game. They established a zone of only five yards from the line of scrimmage in which a bump by a pass defender was permitted.