Throwback Thursday: Nagurski vs Hinkle

Football has changed greatly from the game of the 1930s. As much as it changes, you will always find blocking and tackling as the foundation. Few have ever blocked and tackled better than the Chicago Bears' Bronko Nagurski and the Green Bay Packers' Clarke Hinkle. The Bears and Packers have fought for a long time. In the 1930s, the championship ran through them. When Nagurski joined the Bears in 1930, the professional football world began to tilt towards Chicago. He effectively ended a Packer dynasty and started a new one in Chicago. He was too big. Too strong. Football was made for a player like Bronko Nagurski. His name just screams football. No team had an answer. That was until Clarke Hinkle entered the fray. On paper, it was a mismatch. Hinkle, 30 pounds lighter than Nagurski, was determined to hold his own with anyone on the football field. Hinkle's creed was "get to the Bronk before he gets to me". A tactic he used to perfection one day in 1934. Trapped on the sidelines by Nagurski, Hinkle escaped his tackle by driving directly into and over him. Nagurski was helped from the field with a broken nose and fractured rib. Nobody did this to Nagurski. Especially a "little guy" like Hinkle. Unlike players today, Nagurski and Hinkle never left the field. Each played fullback on offense and linebacker on defense. Each faced the other every time that they were on the field. Much has been made of the fantastic battles between Cleveland Browns runningback Jim Brown and New York Giants linebacker Sam Huff. They were fierce. Each got a nice breather when the Giants offense had the ball. Nagurski and Hinkle battled for 60 minutes. The two were great friends off the field. This was evident when Hinkle selected Nagurski to present him for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1964. Imagine, a Packer and a Bear as fine friends. It's inconceivable.

I would have loved to see Clarke Hinkle and Bronko Nagurski play football. Two of the all time greats just getting after it. Playing football simply as it was always meant to be played. One other thing that has always struck me about Hinkle is that he was always smiling.