Top 100 Pro Football Books of All-Time By Chris Willis, NFL Films

[TanksAndSpartans]

100-81: http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.c...=1458503604530

80-61: http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.c...l-time_95.html

60-41:http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.c...l-time_18.html

40-21: http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.c...l-time_19.html

20-1: http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.c...l-time_20.html

I thought this might give us some good discussion - all collectors are motivated differently, but for me learning about the players, the teams, the times, etc. especially from the eras that predate my memory and/or birth is a big part of what sparks my passion for collecting. And heck, with the prices and difficulty in obtaining some of the out of print books, an argument could be made that the books themselves are collectable.

I’m definitely going to use Willis's list to find some future reading. Here are the ones I’ve knocked out already:

88) The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
87) The Games That Changed the Game: The Evolution of the NFL in Seven Sundays
86) Monster of the Midway
74) Passing Game: Benny Friedman and the Transformation of Football
69) The First 50 Years/75 Seasons
46) Headslap: The Life and Times of Deacon Jones
37) The Scrapbook History of Pro Football
36) Red Grange and the Rise of Modern Football
26) The Sunday Game: At the Dawn of Professional Football
18) Pigskin: The Early Years of Pro Football
16) Pro Football's Rag Days
10) The Game That Was
7) Fatso! Football When Men Were Really Men
3) What a Game They Played

I’ll add comments on just a few for now, but I’m always happy to discuss further. I consider 87 a great unexpected find - I bought it for the Xs and Os, but its much more than that - fun to read, good history, great player analysis etc. I recommended 18 to a fellow board member because I think it’s a fantastic historical overview, the kind of book I would say read this one first and go into specific areas from there depending on what sparks your interest. 7 is the only one I can’t recommend - probably it’s just my taste, but I didn’t enjoy it and took exception to a few of the things said like Chuck Bednarik can’t block. Really? Finally, I stumbled on 26 as a result of a Kindle search - I like it so far, but I’m still pretty early on and it isn’t the only thing I’m reading, so its going to be a while before I finish.