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Ron McDole "The Dancing Bear"


Thanos

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from his earlier days in Buffalo

McDoleFrontSmall.jpgmcdole01.jpg

In 1971 McDole was traded to the Washington Redskins for three draft picks. George Allen, the Hall of Fame coach of the Redskins, was building his "over the hill gang" in Washington. :notworthy

"I was glad to be traded," McDole said. "Ralph Wilson and Pat McGroder did me a favor. John Rauch was not playing me. We had a lot of communication problems. The players kept getting younger and younger. I don't begrudge a young fellow a job if he earns it, that's the way the game works. But I don't think anyone should be handed a job just because he's young. One week we'd look like superman the next week we'd look like nothing. It seemed like all the guys around me were young kids."

Rauch tells a different story on the McDole trade.

"The first time I had an inkling that McDole wanted to be traded was the early part of February. He called me at the Bill's office and said he wanted to talk with me. We met at a coffee shop close to the Bill's office and over a beer Ron told me he would like to move on...too many of his friends had retired and he would like to make a fresh start somewhere else. As soon as he finished I immediately suspicioned that someone was tampering with him :laugh: . I told him I had no thought of trading him, he was under contract to the Bills and the coaching staff would make every effort to build around him. We enjoyed our beer and I thought the two of us got our thought out into the open and we would go on from there...rebuilding. Ralph Wilson was the one that traded Ron McDole to George Allen for three draft choices - -against my wishes."

For what ever reason McDole was traded, it was another sad day in a long line of sad days for Bills fans.

He wasn't sad to be traded but he was sad about leaving Buffalo.

"Buffalo and the fans were just super to me," he said. "I will never forget that special something that the players, especially myself, had with the fans."

McDole at 31, fit in perfectly with the Redskins, becoming an all-pro and playing for eight more seasons in Washington. He played in Super Bowl VII. It was one of the worst trades in Bills history. McDole was named to the Bills' Silver Aneversary Team in 1985. A few years later he made the Redskins' all-time team, as well.

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I got an autographed picture of him one time when he attended a restaurant opening in Rockville, MD.

It was common knowledge that he would sweat and lose about 20-25 lbs in one day during training camp practices. Then he'd go out and drink and eat dinner and gain most of it back. He was a pretty funny guy too. :cheers:

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Ron McDole was a stud!!! I loved seeing a D-lineman playing football in the era of "cage facemasks" playing DE in a old fashioned 2 bar facemask!!!

He was kind of a Sonny clone... ha,ha,ha

Mr. McDole was a solid DE on our "over the hill gang" defense!!!

Thanks for the memories Ron!!!

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redskins fans, i remember "the dancing bear". he was one of many of george allen's

veterans. i thought that he was a great defensive ball player. him,harold maclinton

chris hanburger, pat fischer. i remember those great players & the great games that

they played...............wayne

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