Word: allens
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Looking for Winners. As a nonviolent man in the world's most violent sport, Allen may be an anomaly. But he has long been regarded as one of the most brilliant tacticians in the game. After nine years as a small-college coach (Morningside in Iowa, Whittier in California), he served for eight years as an assistant to Head Coach George Halas of the Chicago Bears and was the architect of a stubborn defense that carried the Bears to the N.F.L. title in 1963; after the championship playoff, the Chicago players presented him with the game ball. Halas himself...
...Ability is not all there is to this game," says Allen, "and a good athlete is not always a winning one." What Allen looked for in Los Angeles was winners, and he was perfectly willing to trade away good athletes to get them. One of his first acquisitions was Bill George, a linebacker from the Chicago Bears, who is said to have begun his new career in Los Angeles by flattening a malingering teammate. Other trades brought the Rams such established stars as Flanker Bernie Casey, Halfback Tommy Mason, Linebacker Myron Pottios and Cornerback Irv Cross. Allen also drew heavily...
...since Vince Lombardi in 1959 took over a hapless Green Bay Packers team and turned it into a powerhouse that captured five N.F.L. titles in the next nine years has there been a success story to equal Allen's. The Los Angeles team that George inherited in 1966 had not enjoyed a winning season since 1958. That first year under Allen, the Rams won eight games and lost six. Last year, they scored the most points (398) in the N.F.L., allowed the fewest (196), and posted a record of eleven victories, one defeat and two ties before finally losing...
Charge! Under previous coaches, the Rams were noted for their wide-open offense and sievelike defense. Allen installed an uncomplicated ball-control offense, similar to Green Bay's, backed up by a brutal defense that relies heavily on the charge of the "Fearsome Four-some"-Ends "Deacon" Jones and Lamar Lundy, Tackles Merlin Olsen and Roger Brown. Between them, they weigh a total of 1,096 Ibs. Last season the Fearsome Foursome flattened opposing quarterbacks 43 times; this year they have already accomplished the feat 27 times-tops in the league...
...Allen's biggest contribution to the Rams' success is probably his nononsense approach to the game. Although he has never been known to criticize a player in front of teammates or to make a scene on the sidelines, Allen can be tough when he wants to. He slapped a $500 fine on one Ram player who showed up five minutes late for practice; any player who exceeds his prescribed weight at the regular Thursday weigh-in is automatically fined $100 per pound...