Back inn the seventies both Oakland and Pittsburgh fielded teams that would knock other teams out of the game by intentionally causing injuries.
Late hits, unnecessary roughness, fights.
It was at a point for a while where the men involved should have been jailed. The fans should have demanded it. Their own teams should have demanded it.
The league should have asserted that this rose above the level of things mere league discipline could make right.
Today's crap didn't reach any new high point of disgusting behavior. Rather it just gradually crept up to a point where even people invested in the sport and willing to prostitute their ethics can no longer shoulder the load.
I’m not talking about the violence in the game, I’m talking about the stupid showboating after every tackle or offensive play over 3 yards. That crap didn’t fly in the seventies, which lead to post-play scuffles.
The whole “I just gotta be me” and “I have to keep it ‘real’” was fostered at the U, and has infested the league. Of course, ESPN aided this by highlighting it.
You bring back some memories. John Matuszak taking on the Orange Crush comes to mind.
And as for the violence, the NFL did change the rules in 1978, and teams adapted. You don’t see nearly the violence in the league by 1980 that you were seeing in the early to mid 70’s.