Today's Tidbit... The NFL's First Face Mask?
I've previously written about the evolution of nose guards and face masks. Until now, I thought transparent plastic face masks first appeared in the early 1950s when Riddell produced one for Otto Graham, but a friend, Ron Pomfrey, provided the following image of a helmet John Woudenberg wore with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1940 to 1942. It is a great item!
Ron acquired the helmet and other items directly from Woudenberg, who claimed it was the NFL's first face mask. A claim like this sometimes comes down to how we define a face mask. For example, if not earlier, NFL players wore executioner's masks in 1931. Jay Berwanger, the 1935 Heisman Trophy winner, wore a birdcage face mask his entire career at Chicago, and enough college players wore birdcage face masks in the 1930s that face masking became a penalty in 1937.
Still, while I've seen references to NFL players wearing face masks before 1940, I have not seen example images. Does anyone have example images of NFL players wearing birdcage or transparent face masks before 1940?
Click here for options on how to support this site beyond a free subscription.