Today the NFL community has lost one of its own today in Gene Upshaw. Upshaw was a hall of fame player and has been the executive director of the NFLPA for the last 25 years. With his sudden passing, it is time to reflect on what he did for the game of football.
Playing Days: Not many people could say they had a career like Upshaw's. Upshaw was drafted by the Raiders in the first round in 1967 and the Raiders switched him to left guard. Upshaw then teamed up with Hall of Famers Art Shell and Jim Otto to form one of the greatest offensive lines that football has ever seen. Upshaw was the only player to ever win an AFL and an NFL championship and was also a seven time Pro Bowler. He also started in 207 regular season games. When eligible, Upshaw made the Hall of Fame on his first try and will always be remembered as one of the NFL's elite at the position.
While with the NFLPA, Upshaw did lots of great things that have changed the league forever.
Free Agency: With Upshaw's help, free agency started in 1993. This gave teams the ability to improve in other ways besides the draft and it would make for a more competitive league. Ever since this happened, TV revenue and marketing deals have skyrocketed and the NFL is now the most popular sports league in America.
Salary Cap: This is the main reason why the NFL is as popular as it is today. In baseball, you know that teams like the Red Sox and Yankees will always be in contention as they put together the best teams that money can buy. In football, teams have to build carefully in the draft and in free agency. But most importantly, it doesn't give any teams a competitive edge. Games in the NFL are now more competitive and a team who was 6-10 last year could end up making a deep run in the playoffs the next.
These are all things that Upshaw played a big part in. Today, the NFL loses a Hall of Fame player, a leader, a businessman, a husband and a father. Gene Upshaw will be missed.
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