This 1964 AFL football card of Buffalo Bills defensive back Ray Abruzzese is yet another example of mistaken identity. The player on the card is Ed Rutkowski, a rookie that season out of Notre Dame who was never really a regular but made a name for himself with the Bills on special teams and just being an all-around utility man. He even served as the team’s “disaster” QB at one point of his career. Rutkowski followed teammate Jack Kemp into politics after his football career ended, serving as the Erie County Executive for a long period of time. I don’t know what ever happened to Ray Abruzzese though.
Margaret
June 21, 2010 at 11:02 pm
I didn’t remember this, I had been reading a biography on Namath that Dave K. lent me.
admin
June 17, 2010 at 2:48 pm
Wow, you are spot-on. I looked it up on Wikipedia and it turns out that Abruzzese played an important role in the growth of the AFL. Listen to this story: “Though it’s little-known, Ray Abruzzese had a major impact on the growth of modern Professional Football. He roomed with Joe Namath when both were at Alabama. When Namath was deciding between signing with the NFL’s Cardinals or the AFL’s Jets, he told Jets owner Sonny Werblin that he would lean toward the Jets if they would acquire Ray Abruzzese. Bills owner Ralph Wilson cooperated and, for the good of the league, traded Abruzzese to the Jets.”
Margaret
June 17, 2010 at 2:21 pm
I think Abruzzese played on the Jets and was friends with Joe Namath, going into business with him.