Sports' Forgotten Heroes

Earl Morrall threw for over 20,000-yards during his 21-year NFL career. He was a part of three teams that won championships and was named NFL MVP in 1968 and he played a HUGE role in the Miami Dolphins perfect season of 1972. Not bad for a backup quarterback. In fact, Morrall played backup for guys like Fran Tarkenton, Johnny Unitas and Bob Griese. When Unitas went down in 1968, the Baltimore Colts didn’t lose a beat and Morrall led them to the NFL Championship. In 1972, after Bob Griese went down, Morrall picked up the slack and went 9-0 to help the Dolphins complete the NFL’s only perfect season. Joe Gibbs, who led the Washington Redskins to three Super Championships, once said the second most important position on a football team is backup quarterback and Morrall just might be considered the greatest backup ever. Morrall, who passed away in 2014, went 63-36-3 when he was called upon to step in and lead his team. The legendary Don Shula, who coached Morrall with the Baltimore Colts, knew the value of having