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1984 Topps football card of former NFL receiver Frank Lewis. Lewis started his pro career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but when they drafted Lynn Swann and John Stallworth in the same year, he became expendable and was traded to the Buffalo Bills. He had played 7 seasons in Pittsburgh and played on 2 Super Bowl-winning teams, and was thought to be winding down in his career when he was traded. However, he played another 6 years for the Bills and was a solid player, even being named to the Pro Bowl in 1981.

1986 Topps football card of former NFL running back Marcus Allen. A six-time Pro Bowler in his career, Allen played for the Raiders and Chiefs for a total of 15 years, and was one of the greatest all-around backs of all time. He was the first player to amass 10,000 yards rushing and 5,000 receiving in a career, and also passed for 6 career touchdowns on halfback option passes. He was MVP of Super Bowl XVIII, and his touchdown run against the Redskins in that game is one of the great plays in championship game history. Allen was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2003.

1982 Topps football card of former NFL player Ted Hendricks, who had an amazing 15 season pro career with 3 different teams – the Colts, Packers and Raiders. Nicknamed “The Mad Stork” because of his tall, thin frame, Hendricks was an 8 time Pro Bowler, a member of both the All Decade Team for the 1970s and the NFL’s 75th Anniversary All Time team. He was one of those unique players whose teams always won when he played for them, as he played for 4 Super Bowl winning clubs. He was a defensive playmaker, and also had a knack for blocking kicks, with 25 for his career. Hendricks was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.

From www.CheckOutMyCards.com , a 1962 Topps football card of former NFL quarterback Billy Kilmer, who had a long career in the league that was quite a roller coaster ride. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 1961 but in his second season, he fell asleep while driving his 1957 Chevy and drove it off the Bayshore Freeway into the San Francisco Bay, suffering a broken leg that was so severe he missed the entire next season. He never produced much for the 49ers, and was picked up by the New Orleans Saints in the 1967 expansion draft, where he labored with that losing organization until he got his break and was traded to the Washington Redskins, joining coach George Allen’s “Over-the-Hill Gang” of old, recycled veterans. Kilmer led the ‘Skins to the Super Bowl in 1972, where they lost to the unbeaten Miami Dolphins. Kilmer played well enough that year that he was voted to the Pro Bowl, the only time he received that honor in his 18 year career.

1966 Topps football card of former Oakland Raider receiver Fred Biletnikoff. Remembered for wearing his uniform shirt sleeves cut short and for using heavy amounts of “stickum” on his hands, he was an all-time great with the Raiders, playing 14 seasons. He was a six-time Pro Bowler, a member of the All Time American Football League team, and was the MVP of Super Bowl XI, which Oakland won. Biletnikoff was a long-time receivers coach for the Raiders after retiring, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1988. The award for the annual outstanding receiver in college football is named for him.

1979 Topps football card of former NFL running back Roland Hooks, who is best known for backing up Hall of Famer O.J. Simpson with the Buffalo Bills in the 1970s. He played 7 seasons for the Bills and scored 12 touchdowns in his career, with 4 of them coming in a single half, on his first 4 carries, in a 1979 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Hooks is currently a high school coach in Nevada.

1989 Topps football card of former Dallas Cowboy quarterback Troy Aikman, who took a beating in his rookie year playing on a bad team, but eventually carved out a successful 12 year career. He was a 6-time Pro Bowler and led the ‘Boys to 3 Super Bowl titles, being named the MVP in one of them. Aikman was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006, and since retiring as a player has served as the lead football analyst on Fox NFL games. He once was co-owner, along with Roger Staubach, of a NASCAR racing team called Hall of Fame Racing, and is also a part owner of baseball’s San Diego Padres.

1963 Fleer football card of former Buffalo Bills’ tight end Ernie Warlick, who was another stalwart on the team’s back-to-back American Football League championship teams in the 1960s. Like a lot of players of his era, Warlick began his pro career in the Canadian League, playing 5 seasons with the Calgary Stampeders. He joined the Bills in 1962 and played 4 years with them, and was an AFL All Star all 4 of those seasons. After retiring, Warlick became the first African American sportscaster in the Buffalo market, and was elected to the Buffalo Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame in 1998. He is active in the Bills Alumni Association today.

We’re featuring 2 old Topps football cards today, for a reason. On the left is a 1970 Topps card of former Minnesota Viking quarterback Joe Kapp, who played 8 years in the Canadian Football League before joining the NFL Vikings, and leading them to Super Bowl IV, where they were upset by the Kansas City Chiefs. On the right is a 1959 Topps CFL football card of former Hamilton Tiger Cats defensive lineman Angelo Mosca, who was a legendary CFL player who played in 9 Grey Cup championship games, more than any other player in league history. Mosca was also a professional wrestler, fighting under the nicknames King Kong Mosca and The Mighty Hercules. Kapp and Mosca were involved in a confrontation in the 1963 Grey Cup game when Kapp took exception to a late hit by Mosca on his running back. The reason we featured their cards together was because recently, at a CFL reunion luncheon, the pair, now both in their 70s, renewed the nearly 50 year old feud when they exchanged blows on stage, which was caught on video and became an internet sensation.

1962 Fleer football card of former Buffalo Bills’ offensive lineman Billy Shaw, who was a classic “pulling” guard in his 9 year career with the Bills. Shaw was one of the American Football League’s most outstanding offensive linemen, being named an AFL All Star 8 times. He was a mainstay on the Bills’ 2 consecutive league titles in 1964 and ’65, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999. He holds the distinction of being the only player ever inducted into Canton who played his entire career in the AFL.