Redskin's History 101: Legends of Lore - Pat Fischer

Tarhog & TK-IV II I's Redskin's History 101: Legends of Lore, Chapter 2

Pat Fischer

They called him ‘Mouse.’

At 5’ 9” tall and 170 lbs. soaking wet, Pat Fischer was a freakish combination of agility, guile, and gutsy determination. A big hitter wrapped in a tiny unassuming package. The legendary Johnny Unitas was once being interviewed at Redskin’s Park when a cameraman sarcastically asked, "Hey John – who’s that 'kid' playing corner?"

"That KID", Unitas reportedly replied, "is Pat Fischer, and if he hits you, he’ll knock your socks off!"

And in 213 NFL games, spanning 17 seasons, the ‘Mouse’ did just that.

Born on January 2nd, 1940, in St. Edward, Nebraska, Pat Fischer loved football from the start. Attending Omaha Westside High School, he played well enough to be named to Nebraska’s All-State team. Football ran in the family, and in 1958, Pat followed older brothers Rex, Cletus, and Ken to the University of Nebraska. While nothing in his time at Nebraska hinted at the NFL career to follow, Fischer did made his mark. Playing both defensive back and halfback for mediocre Cornhusker teams from 1958–1960, he led his team each year in all-purpose yards and kick-off return yards, and was a natural leader, serving as Team Captain. Despite his successes at Nebraska, however, the tough but diminutive Fischer never dreamed he had an NFL career ahead of him.

But Pat Fischer’s entire life turned out to be about defying expectations. In the 1961 NFL draft, he was selected in the 17th round by the St. Louis Cardinals (preceded 13 rounds earlier by future Redskin’s teammate Ron McDole). Fischer figured there was no way he would stick in the NFL, and was already planning to return to Nebraska to complete the 9 credit hours he needed to earn a degree, when to his astonishment, he made the team. Fischer was so small, he spent his first practices in shorts and a t-shirt while the team struggled to find equipment. Properly outfitted, Fischer quickly established a reputation for surprising quickness, impeccable instincts at the cornerback position, and administering punishing hits. From 1961–1967, he perfected his craft. He out-thought, out-reacted and out-positioned his nearly always larger and faster opponents, snaring 29 interceptions, and averaging 24.5 yds. as a kick-off returner.

In 1964, in his 4th NFL season, Fischer intercepted opposing quarterbacks 10 times, and made his first of 3 appearances as an All-Pro. During Pat's years with St. Louis, the Cardinals developed a great new defensive option, the ‘safety blitz,’ becoming the 1st NFL team to utilize the play. In order to give the safety time to reach opposing quarterbacks, Fischer himself came up with a new coverage technique, the ‘bump and run,’ physically harassing receivers all the way down the field. The tactic so altered the game it was later banned by the league.

Despite his success in St. Louis, the Mouse was not destined to spend his career a lowly Cardinal, but to wear the Burgundy and Gold. In 1968, he donned those sacred colors for the first time.

The Washington Redskins liked what they saw in Pat Fischer – toughness, tenacity, and discipline – and Head Coach Otto Graham gave up second and third-round draft choices for him in 1968. It turned out to be a bargain. Fischer quickly became a fan favorite at the left cornerback position. In fact, it's rumored that Fischer was the boyhood favorite of future Redskin’s owner Daniel Snyder, who "always liked an underdog." Whether it was his contagious grin, humble blue-collar attitude or small stature that drew fans to him, one thing was for certain--Pat Fischer could play.

Fischer endured yearly coaching changes in his inaugural four seasons with the Redskins; first Graham, then Vince Lombardi, then interim coach Bill Austin, and finally George Allen took the helm. They all shared one thing in common – they knew a football player when they saw one, and Pat Fischer fit the bill to perfection. Fischer had a reputation for intensity both on and off the field. Before games, he would reportedly sit for hours by himself, smoking cigarettes and envisioning the entire game in his mind. And on the field, he played with reckless abandon, a habit that would force two back surgeries upon him during his years with the Redskins, and ultimately end his career in 1977. Fellow teammate Richie Petitbon jokingly claimed that it was only Fischer’s horrible eyesight that explained his fearlessness in the defensive backfield and propensity for delivering surprisingly savage hits. But in reality, he simply had a warrior’s spirit.

In 1969, playing for the legendary Vince Lombardi, Fischer’s tenacity and skill were recognized again as he earned Pro-Bowl honors along with teammates Chris Hanburger, Len Hauss, Sonny Jurgensen, Larry Brown, and Jerry Smith. Legendary Redskins athletic trainer Bubba Tyer characterized #37 as the toughest player he’d ever encountered. When Darrell Green, an NFL great in his own right, one day reportedly described himself as a more "physical" player than Fischer, Tyer claimed all he could think was, "yeah, right."

Over the course of his Redskins career, Fischer, along with stars like Jurgensen, Kilmer, Ken Houston, Larry Brown, and Charley Taylor, would help lead his team to the playoffs five times, including 1972’s Super Bowl VII, a loss against Miami in their ‘perfect season’. He, and the rest of the ‘Over the Hill Gang’ developed a reputation for tough, opportunistic, overachieving play, particularly during the reign of another Redskins legend, Coach George Allen.

Pat Fischer was an anecdote-teller’s dream. He was rumored to be fond of chewing on a mouthful of ‘stick-um’ to relax before games. Supposedly finding it difficult to find well-fitting knee pads, Fischer would allegedly tape disposable diapers around his knees. It was also reportedly common for Fischer to send young fans in the stands after hot coffee to warm him during cold-weather games. But it was Fischer’s on-the-field performances that contributed most strongly to his legend. On November 2nd, 1975, he became perhaps the only player ever to get Hall of Fame Cowboys quarterback Roger "Captain Cool" Staubach's proverbial goat. Following a late game interception of a Staubach pass, Fischer’s vicious hit so frustrated Staubach that the normally calm quarterback threw a punch at the cornerback, earning a 15-yard personal foul penalty. The penalty set up a come-from-behind Redskins win, culminating with Billy Kilmer’s game-winning QB sneak in overtime before a raucous and jubilant RFK crowd.

Fischer was also on the losing end of another controversial play that year, which came to be known as the "Phantom Catch." Playing against the Cardinals on the road late in the season, the Redskins needed a win to take over 1st place in the division. On 4th down, with less than 2:00 left in the 4th quarter and the Redskins leading, Cardinal’s QB Jim Hart launched a pass into the end-zone toward his favorite receiver, Mel Gray. As the ball hit Gray’s hands, Fischer immediately connected with him, delivering a jolting blow and knocking the ball to the ground. The officials on the field ruled it incomplete, and the Redskins began celebrating and bringing their offense on to the field. But the officials weren’t done talking. Five agonizing minutes and a ruined Redskin’s season later, the officials reversed themselves, saying Gray had come down with the ball before Fischer knocked it out. The Cardinals tied the game, sending it into overtime, where they promptly kicked a field goal and won the game. The Redskins never recovered from the loss and finished in 3rd place that year, missing the playoffs. The play was so controversial, it would later actually become the subject of a court dispute. Film evidence (The Warren Commission had nothing on the NFL) clearly shows Gray did not maintain possession on the play.

Fischer had countless memorable match-ups with Mel Gray over the course of his remarkable career, as well as with another famed receiver of his day, Harold Carmichael, the 6’ 7” Philadelphia Eagle receiver whom the tiny Fischer routinely dominated. He took on almost every dominating back of his era, including 237 lb Larry Csonka, 215 lb Paul Hornung, and 228 lb Jim Brown, and made his own memorable ‘impression’ on each of them.

During 213 games over 17 NFL seasons, Pat Fischer amassed 56 total interceptions (4 returned for touchdowns) for a total of 941 yards, good enough to place him 15th on the NFL’s all-time interception list (two places ahead of Darrell Green). In his final season, Fischer was still putting on gutsy performances, and still managed to reel in 5 interceptions despite playing in tremendous pain. But time and the inevitable toll of innumerable hits against larger, stronger opponents finally proved too much even for Pat Fischer, and he was forced to retire in 1977. After being knocked out of a game against the Cardinals with a concussion in his final season, a reporter asked Fischer if he was badly hurt.

"Nah," replied Fischer. "I was just knocked out."

Following his retirement in 1977, Fischer dabbled in training racehorses, investment banking, real estate, and public speaking. In 1995, Pat was inducted into the Nebraska Cornhusker’s Football Hall of Fame (along with two of his brothers). He is a former nominee to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. In 2002, Fischer was recognized as one of the Washington Redskin’s 70 Greatest Redskins. Today, you may find Pat Fischer at any number of memorabilia and autograph sigings in rural Virginia. But he will always live on in the hearts and minds of Redskins fans as among the finest ever to wear the burgundy and gold.

"If you go over the middle, you might get the first down. But I’m gonna have to hit you. I’m

gonna have to punish you. That’s the rule." - Pat Fischer

“Cornerbacks never win games; they only lose them. At least in the fan’s eyes, anyway.

A brilliant play for a cornerback seems like a typical play to a fan. That is merely to

come up and knock the ball down” – Pat Fischer

:helmet:

Videography

Pat lays a lick!

A mouse medley

Thats 'Mr. Fischer' to you!

The 'Phantom Catch'

Fischer forces a fumble

1st of 56

2nd of 56

3rd of 56

3rd of 56 replay

Punishment

Slick moves

Too small?

Forcing another fumble

A huddle of legends

Even a legend can't win them all!

Deep ball coverage

Denying Roman Gabriel

Burned in the bowl

Sources:

NFL Films

Washington Post Archives

Washington Times Archives

Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Staunton Daily News Leader

Richmond Times Dispatch

Dallas Morning News

Roanoke Times & World News

(*special thanks to Iheartskins for his help in finding source material!*)

Fantastic read and video, guys! You'll have a hard time out-doing this one with Chapter 3.

But give it a shot, just in case

Okay....that's nice...... now about this whole Taylor and his number thing.

*

What?

uh oh

When I was playing football in HS, we heard alot about Pat Fisher and his tougheness and ability to play the game at its highest level at his size. Great role model the coaches used there.

Wow. Great read. Thanks alot for that! :notworthy :point2sky :logo: :notworthy

Let me be the first to say I think Fischer and Dustin Fox look a lot alike....(and I'm betting Dustin could lay somebody out if given the chance too)

wow, awesome!!! I really need to learn more of the team history and players. Who's next? Im hoping its Chris Hanburger, 10 time pro-bowler, and I bet many of us 'younguns' know nothing about him.

Originally posted by Mr. S

wow, awesome!!! I really need to learn more of the team history and players. Who's next? Im hoping its Chris Hanburger, 10 time pro-bowler, and I bet many of us 'younguns' know nothing about him.

Thanks! Not to beat our own drum, but its more work than you'd think. Theres not a lot of easy to find information on many of these players (unless they were a Hall-of-Famer).

We will never divulge 'who' or even 'what' is next - we're going wherever the wind blows. There are so many former Redskin's and such a storied history, its tough to choose the right 'next one', but eventually, we hope to get them all....or our ancestors will

If guys want to suggest, knock yourselves out, but remember, TK and I are rabid fans just like you, so chances are, we're going to go roughly the same direction you guys would (and Hanburger was an incredible Redskin - except for the haircut anyway).

Did Pat Fisher really invent the "bump and run"?

So they say

What really surprised me (so much so, TK had me triple-checking it) was that Fischer had more career INT's than Darrell Green. Fischer even played some offense (believe he may have led them in TDs one year) at Nebraska. According to Fischer, it was all about technique - he was a quick guy, but was generally outmatched in terms of physical ability. But he could read routes, and anticipate how plays were going to develop so effectively, it made him an incredible player.

When I read that all I could hear was John Facenda or Pat Summerall narrating a script in the backgroud while Fischer's highlights flashed across the screen with a cameo of Steve Sabol coming in now and then to introduce a new segment of Fischer's career. Pat Fischer's story has NFL Films written all over it. Nice job TK & Tarhog--I really enjoyed it.

Great write-up, I now know about someone who I had never heard of before. One small thing I noticed though

freakish combination of speed...

He out-thought, out-reacted and out-positioned his nearly always larger and faster opponents

Did he possess freakish speed, or was he slower than the majority of the receivers from that era? seems contradictory.

Again, that being said, it's a very well-done write-up, and I dont' mean to be negative.

Edit: I just watched some of the clips and wow, could he ever hit!

when i was a freshman, i played against fishers son who was attending loudoun county high school. his game was similar, small, but tough.

thanks for the work on that guys, keep it up.

Excellent read. Good job guys!

Originally posted by Joeythetapeworm

Great write-up, I now know about someone who I had never heard of before. One small thing I noticed though

Did he possess freakish speed, or was he slower than the majority of the receivers from that era? seems contradictory.

Again, that being said, it's a very well-done write-up, and I dont' mean to be negative.

Edit: I just watched some of the clips and wow, could he ever hit!

You've got a point

I believe he was freakishly 'quick' - he wouldn't have won a footrace with most opposing receivers, put it that way. But he was very 'quick', great reflexes, able to change direction in a hurry and get to the ball. He's one of those guys who seems to be a part of nearly every play, always around the ball.

To put it in elementary school terms, he wouldn't dazzle anyone in the 100 yd dash, but you should see him do the shuttle run.

Originally posted by Tarhog

You've got a point

I believe he was freakishly 'quick' - he wouldn't have won a footrace with most opposing receivers, put it that way. But he was very 'quick', great reflexes, able to change direction in a hurry and get to the ball. He's one of those guys who seems to be a part of nearly every play, always around the ball.

To put it in elementary school terms, he wouldn't dazzle anyone in the 100 yd dash, but you should see him do the shuttle run.

as a P.E. teacher, i can really appreciate that analogy:)

Originally posted by Tarhog

So they say

What really surprised me (so much so, TK had me triple-checking it) was that Fischer had more career INT's than Darrell Green.

It actually surprised us both. Big props to Tarhog for providing this list when I asked him about it.

1. Paul Krause - 81

2. Emlen Tunnell - 79

3. Rod Woodson - 71

4. Dick Lane - 68

5. Ken Riley - 65

6. Ronnie Lott - 63

7. Dave Brown - 62

7. Dick LeBeau - 62

9. Emmitt Thomas - 58

10. Mel Blount - 57

10. Bobby Boyd - 57

10. Johnny Robinson - 57

10. Everson Walls - 57

10. Eugene Robinson - 57

15. Lem Barney - 56

15. Pat Fischer - 56

17. Darrell Green - 54

17. Willie Brown - 54

19. Jack Butler - 52

19. Bobby Dillon - 52

19. Jimmy Patton - 52

19. Mel Renfro - 52

19. Larry Wilson - 52

19. Eric Allen - 52

Damn it guys...

I was hoping that Pat would fly under the radar...I wanted his avatar at 5,000 posts.

The guy is just like he played in real life, full of energy, very engaging, and hell of alot of fun to be around.

After only meeting him twice, He spoke to me like I was his grandkid and loves to joke around.

I tell you it is just fun to talk to the guy. especially if McDole happens to be around too.

thanks for this history

This is fricken awesome man, great job!

great work guys

Great job guys!

I always wanted to know more about Pat Fischer, and now I do, thanks to you guys!!!

Here is my favorite quote from the story:

Originally posted by Tarhog

On November 2nd, 1975, he became perhaps the only player ever to get Hall of Fame Cowboys quarterback Roger "Captain Cool" Staubach's proverbial goat. Following a late game interception of a Staubach pass, Fischer’s vicious hit so frustrated Staubach that the normally calm quarterback threw a punch at the cornerback, earning a 15-yard personal foul penalty. The penalty set up a come-from-behind Redskins win, culminating with Billy Kilmer’s game-winning QB sneak in overtime before a raucous and jubilant RFK crowd.

:laugh: Seeing Captain Cool taking a shot at Pat Fischer, that would be priceless!

do these have a repository somewhere? They are really well done and deserve a permenant home better than just the search button

I loved watching Pat play! He was as tough as they come pound for pound.

Originally posted by dreamingwolf

do these have a repository somewhere? They are really well done and deserve a permenant home better than just the search button

This is a new feature, but for as long as we create the profiles, they'll be stored in an archive (the 1st article on Sammy Baugh is listed on the frontpage just beneath the link to this one).

Great article guys. Apprciated the read. Speaking of which...

Tarhog: you have that Pat Fischer hanging yet?