Jack Patera obit

Jack Patera, first coach of Seahawks, dies at age 85

He was not on the list.

Jack Patera, the first coach of the Seahawks, died Wednesday at age 85 of pancreatic cancer, the team confirmed.

Patera died in Cle Elum surrounded by family and friends. He moved there in the late 1990s, he said in a 2014 interview with the Seattle Times.

Patera’s creative offense and willingness to take chances helped the Seahawks become an immediate hit among Seattle fans. He coached the Seahawks from 1976-82 and compiled a 35-59 record before being fired after the first two games of the 1982 season.

But that record doesn’t accurately indicate the success the team had early on, with winning records of 9-7 in 1978 and 1979, finishing a game out of the playoffs each year.

Patera was named the NFL’s Coach of the Year in 1978 when Seattle recorded its first winning record in its third season of existence, the best record at that time for any third-year NFL expansion team. The Seahawks averaged 344 yards per game that year — third-best in the NFL — and were powered by the passing tandem of quarterback Jim Zorn and Hall of Fame receiver Steve Largent.

“It was very fun for us,” Largent recalled in a phone interview Wednesday. “That we were 9-7 in year three and year four boded very well for the future of the Seahawks. That was really exciting. And I think a lot of that had to do with his leadership and the strong personalities he had on the team as players.”

No personality, though, was stronger than that of Patera, who played guard at Oregon and then linebacker in the NFL with the Baltimore Colts,St. Louis Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys from 1955-61.

Following a knee injury that ended his playing career, Patera got into coaching and made his name guiding two of the most well-known defensive units in league history — the Fearsome Foursome defensive line of the Los Angeles Rams and the Purple People Eaters defensive line of the Minnesota Vikings.

After his Purple People Eaters line helped Minnesota advance to three Super Bowls, Patera was named the Seahawks’ first coach on Jan. 3, 1976.

Seahawks players, a collection of rookie draft choices, undrafted free agents and veterans who were made available by their former teams in the league’s expansion draft (Seattle and Tampa Bay each entered the NFL in 1976) immediately found out they didn’t have much room for error around Patera.

“He was a hard guy but he was a fair guy,” Steve Raible, a receiver for the Seahawks from 1976-81 and now the team’s play-by-play announcer, said Wednesday. “He was one of those old-fashioned coaches — quiet until he wasn’t quiet, and then you knew exactly where he stood. But he was pretty fair with everybody.”

Patera sometimes even aimed his wrath at the media. He became famous for once holding a seven-second news conference after a tough defeat when he opened by saying, “Any questions” and then, hearing none immediately proffered, turned and left.

“Jack very much had a drill-sergeant personality, but along with that he had an incredible sense of humor,” Largent said. “So it was kind of like he had two different types of personalities. But he made it work.”

Patera, born Aug. 1, 1933 in Bismarck, N.D., guided the team through its expansion years, forming teams that belied his image as a tough, no-nonsense, defense-first guy.

“As a coach, you work with the personnel that you have and he had a quarterback who could scramble around and throw and a guy who could catch the ball if it was anywhere close to him,” Raible said.

Seattle had, in 1977 (5-9) and 1978 (9-7), what were at the time the best records for any second-year and third-year expansion teams. Patera was honored as coach of the year following the 1978 season when the Seahawks swept the Oakland Raiders en route to finishing a game out of the playoffs.

Along with the entertaining Zorn-to-Largent-led offense, Patera’s teams also were known for their propensity for trick plays, particularly fake field goals and punts. A 20-yard pass from Zorn to kicker Efren Herrera highlighted a Monday Night Football victory at Atlanta in 1979 and had announcer Howard Cosell loudly singing the praises of Patera and the Seahawks.

“I want to tell you, folks, this is the kind of play pro football needs,’’ Cosell wailed as the unlikely play concluded. “Not parity, but enterprise, inventiveness. (Seattle coach) Jack Patera is giving the nation a lesson in creative football.’’

Said Raible: “He enjoyed that stuff, and because (assistant) Rusty Tillman was so good at coming up with those things, for the most part they worked. Almost every single time, they worked.”

Patera, though, couldn’t quite get the Seahawks over the hump.

A 4-3 start in his fifth season in 1980 ended with nine defeats in a row as Patera never could put together a defense that ranked better than 24th in the NFL. Seattle somehow lost all eight home games that season.

The Seahawks went 6-10 in 1981 and Patera was then fired following a 0-2 start in 1982, the season known for its prolonged player strike.

The team released its player representative, Sam McCullum, just before the strike, a decision that helped lead to Patera’s firing. (The National Labor Relations Board later ruled McCullum’s release illegal and ordered the Seahawks to pay for any costs McCullum — who quickly signed with the Vikings — incurred as a result of the move).

Patera was only 49 at the time but never coached again.

“It was too bad the way it ended,” Raible said. “It was a shame because Chuck Knox came in (in 1983) and with a couple of additions — (running back) Curt Warner is not just any addition — but he (Knox) came in and won with all of Jack’s guys the very next year.”

Recalled Patera in 2014: “We didn’t have the great success. But we had an exciting team and good times. We had some fun times.’’

Raible said he once asked Patera why he never coached again.

“He just said, ‘It left a bad taste in my mouth. I had done what I thought I could do there. We helped build that team and then somebody took it and went further with it,”’ Raible said. “But he was going to get paid for a few years after that, anyway. But I think it just kind of soured him a little bit.”

Raible also said Patera knew that his old-school ways might not be a good fit as the game continued to evolve.

“I think he saw kind of the direction of things,” said Raible.

Raible stayed close to Patera through the years, and especially in the last year or so after Patera was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Raible said he had thought the end might come for Patera as long as six months ago.

“Then his doctor said, ‘Gosh, he could be here for another year.’ Somebody said, ‘It’s because he’s too nasty to die. Just too mean to pass on,’ ” Raible said.

Indeed, Largent said Wednesday he walked on pins and needles around his former coach for years.

“He had a way of striking fear in your heart so even though he and I had retired, there was still a respect/fear factor involved in our relationship,” Largent said.

Patera was honored by the team in 2016 on the 40th anniversary of the first season, raising the 12th Man flag before the season opener against Miami.

“He was a great coach,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said Wednesday. “He was a great dude. I know the guys that played for him really loved playing for him. When we met them, on the days they come in for alumni days, he was really important to all those guys. Really important to a lot of them. So we’ll miss him.”

Zorn tweeted shortly after the news of Patera’s death: “My favorite memories of Coach Patera are: 1. If you called him “coach”, he would call you “player”. He liked to go by Jack! 2. He came up with the greatest fake field goals of all time. We had one every game ready to use. Rest In Peace, Jack, your legacy lives on!”

Other key players who played for Patera were Dave Brown, Lyle Blackwood, Dan Doornink, Mike Curtis, Carl Eller, Kenny Easley, Don Dufek, Jacob Green, Norm Johnson, Dave Krieg, Pete Metzelaars, Sherman Smith, and John Yarno.

Bob Skoronski obit

Heralded former Packers offensive lineman Bob Skoronski dies at 84

Called “the most underrated football player” from the Lombardi teams

 

He was not on the list.

Bob Skoronski, offensive captain of the Vince Lombardi teams that won a record-tying three straight NFL championships in the 1960s and one of only nine players to play on all nine of Lombardi's teams in Green Bay, died Tuesday morning in a suburb outside Madison, Wis. Skoronski, 84, died of Alzheimer's disease.

While Skoronski might not have received as much acclaim as some of the other mainstays of the Packers' offensive line during the Lombardi era, he was as consistent as any of them.

"The most underrated football player on our team," former teammate Gary Knafelc said in 2016. "Whenever it came to grades, (Forrest) Gregg and Skoronski were always the top two. Bob was probably the smartest guy on our ball club. He could do it all. Bob was so good, nobody even thought about him. He was so underrated. Jerry (Kramer) and Fuzzy (Thurston) were always talking. Bob never said a word, just out-blocked everybody."

The Packers selected Skoronski in the fifth round of the 1956 NFL Draft and he started all 12 games as a rookie. In fact, Gregg was drafted in the second round the same year, but Skoronski earned more playing time. No matter the pecking order, then head coach Lisle Blackbourn presciently pegged their future.

"They are the kind of rookies with which to build a championship club," he said in early December before the final two games. "They have size, are learning fast and have class."

However, within four months, Skoronski and Gregg were both summoned for military duty. Skoronski served in the Air Force and missed the 1957 and '58 seasons. Gregg went into the Army and missed just one season.

The two were reunited in training camp in 1959, Lombardi's first season as coach, and started the season opener: Skoronski at left tackle and Gregg at right tackle.

Over the next five seasons, Skoronski usually started at left tackle, but also shared playing time with Norm Masters. In 1964, Lombardi traded perennial all-pro center Jim Ringo and moved Skoronski to center. He started the first seven games there and then moved back to left tackle where he started the final seven. More importantly, just before the 1964 opener, Lombardi also named Skoronski to replace Ringo as offensive captain, an exalted and permanent title in that era.

"It's the greatest honor I've ever had," Skoronski said at the time. "You've got to play on this team to understand what it's like being a Packer." Skoronski held the post for five seasons or until his retirement.

He also started every game from 1965 to 1967 – regular season plus post-season – as the Packers became the first team to win three straight NFL championships under a playoff format and the second overall. The 1929-31 Packers won three straight when championships were determined by the standings.

No team has won three straight titles since. Skoronski started the first two Super Bowls, the Ice Bowl and three straight NFL Championship Games. He also represented the Packers at the pre-game coin toss for all 49 games between 1965 and 1967.

"For my dad, being captain was a really big deal," said his son, Steve Skoronski. "Coach Lombardi picked that and the guys on that team knew that."

Skoronski was selected for the Pro Bowl in 1966 and was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 1976.

He was never a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but his quarterback, Bart Starr made a strong push on his behalf to the Hall of Fame voters.

"Bob Skoronski deserves to be in the Hall of Fame big-time," Starr said in 2012.

In an interview eight years earlier, Starr spelled out his reasons why he was in Skoronski's corner.

"If you checked his blocking grades each week, they were just a fraction under Forrest," said Starr. "We were right-handed passers and he was on our blind side. So he's sitting there with this huge responsibility and never getting enough credit because of Forrest's domination. (Skoronski's) a guy that I think has been overlooked even more. I think he's the next guy that ought to be in the Hall of Fame."

Besides Skoronski, the only other players to survive Lombardi's nine seasons as coach were Boyd Dowler, Gregg, Henry Jordan, Kramer, Max McGee, Ray Nitschke, Starr and Thurston.

Skoronski played one season under Phil Bengtson and announced his retirement on June 10, 1969.

Skoronski, along with his wife Ruth Ann, moved to Wisconsin when he started his pro football career and stayed other than during his two years in service.

Skoronski is survived by his wife and four adult children: Bob, Steve, Ron and Patti. Visitation will be Sunday, Nov. 4, from 3 to 6 p.m. at Cress Funeral Home, 6021 University Ave., Middleton, Wis. A mass will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Middleton.

Tom Braatz obit

 Football player and executive Thomas Braatz has died

He was not on the list.

Former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Washington Redskins, Los Angeles Rams, and Dallas Cowboys Tom Braatz has died. He also was the former general manager of the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers. He played college football at Marquette University.

Braatz attended Mary D. Bradford High School, where he was a teammate of future Pro Bowl player Alan Ameche. He also practiced basketball and track.

He accepted a football scholarship from Marquette University, where he played as a two-way End. He was named the team's co-captain as a senior.

Washington Redskins (first stint)

Braatz was selected in the fourteenth round (159th overall) of the 1955 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins. He spent two years out of football, while serving in the United States Army during the Korean War from 1955 to 1956 as a crypto operator. He returned in 1957, playing both at defensive end and linebacker. He was waived on October 13, 1958.

On October 16, 1958, he signed with the Los Angeles Rams to play as a defensive end. After playing in one game, he was released to make room for halfback Clendon Thomas on October 20, 1958.

In 1959, he was signed by the Green Bay Packers. He was released on September 22.

In 1959, he returned to the Washington Redskins and was asked to concentrate on playing linebacker.

Braatz was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1960 NFL Expansion Draft. He was used as a reserve linebacker, registering 49 tackles and one interception. He was placed on the injured reserve list on August 29, 1961. He would later announce his retirement.

After retiring as a player, he joined the expansion Atlanta Falcons as a part-time area scout in 1965. In 1968, he was promoted to director of player personnel. He was named the General Manager from 1982 to 1985. In 1986, he was reassigned to the post of director of college scouting.

On January 31, 1987, he was hired by the Green Bay Packers as the franchise's first Director of Football Operations. The position was created following several disappointing drafts under head coaches Bart Starr and Forrest Gregg. He was later promoted to Vice president of football operations, keeping the position until being fired on November 21, 1991, with the team having a 2-9 record. He was replaced with Ron Wolf. In 1992, he was hired as the Miami Dolphins Director of College Scouting until retiring in June 2003.

In 39 seasons as an NFL executive, he drafted or acquired 45 players who participated in 117 Pro Bowls. His teams played in 17 playoff games. He was inducted into the Pro Scouting Hall of Fame and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from Marquette University. He died on October 30, 2018, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

As an executive for the Falcons he brought in players and coaches such Claude Humphrey, George Kunz, Jeff Van Note, Joe Profit, John Zook, Jim R. Mitchell, Pat Sullivan, John James, Bob Lee, Dave Hampton, Greg Brezina, Nick Mike-Mayer,  Marion Campbell, Steve Bartkowski, Alfred Jenkins, Roy Hilton, Pat Pepplar, Bubba Bean, John Gilliam, Leeman Bennett, June Jones, R. C. Thielemann, Mike Kenn, Jerry Glanville, William Andrews, Lynn Cain, Junior Miller, Bobby Butler, Mick Luckhurst, Billy White Shoes Johnson, Gerald Riggs, Dan Henning, Mike Moroski, Scott Case, David Archer, Mike Pitts, Charlie Brown, Rick Donnelly, Mike Gann and Bill Fralic.