Hey it's me yo boi
@Beef Invictus coming in with more football picks. So I was gonna set my team name, location, and jersey with this pick. But I can't help but notice a Legend sitting there. Just not being drafted. And it's someone who ought to be on a team out of principle. So he shall be on mine, because if we finish this without drafting him then we've collectively f***ed up. Thank you for taking Polamalu off my plate so I can do the right thing here.
Sammy Baugh (S)
Sammy Baugh created the modern throwing QB. He came into the league shortly after the modern football itself came into being. Before that, its larger size made throwing it a T H I C C challenge. Prior generations of players rarely bothered much with it, meaning players and coaches in 1937 were still largely of the mindset that throws were more of a panic move in dire straits than a go-to play. It's not hard to find old-timey footage from this era of goofy-ass throwing plays where guys are tossing short passes like they're shooting basketballs for the first time. Then Baugh came in. The guy had learned how to throw tight spirals with a larger ball, so the new ball was EZ mode. He was also amazingly accurate, and very judicious with his pass selection so that no down was wasted with incompletion if it could be avoided; this is remarkable considering in that age, pass interference rules heavily favored defense. Baugh entered the NFL as a throwing tailback and left it as the best QB ever, and also as the first QB as we think of it; he birthed the position. This was a living revolution on the field, and Washington's gunslinging offense was absolutely wild to watch compared to the sport's norm. Two records still stand: Most seasons leading the league in passing (6) and most seasons with lowest interception rate (5). Now leading the league in passing isn't impressive for the reason's I've explained, but having the lowest interception rate considering the state of the game and how much he threw relative to everyone else really demonstrates his effectiveness. He topped out at 70% completion percentage in 1945 and lived just shy of 60% otherwise; trust me, this was impressive. So combine Patrick Mahomes and Alex Smith, I suppose, for a modern comparable.
He also played defense, which is why I'm plopping him at Safety. And he was really good at defense too. Not as good as on offense, but good enough that he basically won entire games on his own at times to a degree no other football player ever had before, ever has since, or ever will. He once had a game where he caught 4 INTs in addition to his 4 TD throws. That is Babe Ruth-tier stuff. He once led the league in passing, punting, and interceptions and that isn't just Babe Ruth-tier, that's being his equal for a season.
@Young Sandwich
