Dick Shiner. I’ll pause while you snicker like a sixth grader telling a joke about pooping.
All out of your system? Good. Now, Dick Shiner…
Geez, Louise. Get a grip. Eww—that was the wrong thing to write.
He was named Richard Shiner, which doesn’t inspire any mirth or giggles…but he took the name “Dick”. You don’t see that name much anymore—just ask Dick Felt or Dick Post.
God. Again? Sigh…Done? Good.
Shiner was a minor star out of Maryland when the Redskins drafted him in 1964. He proved himself a dependable backup, but who wound up backing QBs who were studs, such as Sonny Jurgensen, Frank Ryan and Fran Tarkenton. So, he never got many chances to prove himself, even briefly with the Browns, who had yet to sign Fair Hooker and missed out on creating the most unfortunately named passing combo in NFL history.
He would start most of the 1968 and 1969 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers (becoming Chuck Noll’s first starting QB), which earned him this ’70 Kellogg’s card. Then Pittsburgh drafted Terry Bradshaw, and he was traded to the Giants (to back up Tarkenton) and a year later went to Atlanta.
With the Falcons in 1973, he hit the ultimate high and low points a quarterback could hit—he recorded the first “official” perfect passer rating in a 62-7 blowout of New Orleans. Then the next week, he recorded an 0.0 passer rating against the Rams. He was traded that season to the Patriots, where he was again a backup—this time to Jim Plunkett.
In 1974, Shiner played in only one game…and he took himself out after leading the Patriots on an 80-yard touchdown drive. Why? He wanted to give third-string quarterback Neil Graff a chance to play in his very first NFL game. “I wanted Neil Graff to get experience,” he said. “Neil was a good kid, and I knew my time in the NFL was coming to an end.”
Like Felt, Post, and Hooker, Shiner’s cards are valued primarily for their potty-mouth humor–this is the second-highest valued Kellogg’s ’70 card as a result. Sad, especially when Shiner was a dependable backup that teams relied on, and gave him a solid career far longer than others ever had. And, at the end he knew how to bow out gracefully. Not many pros know how to do that.
Dick Shiner. A gentleman.
Time to enjoy some Shiner highlights!
