With age comes perspective. As a Chiefs fan, it took me a long time to appreciate what a once-in-a-lifetime talent Fred Biletnikoff was. Growing up in Kansas City and wearing the Chiefs arrowhead symbol on my chest, I hated everything that had to do with the Oakland Raiders (except for Super Bowl 2 where, for only one day I pulled passionately for the AFL Raiders to beat the NFL Packers!) When Fred Biletnikoff and the Raiders would come to old Municipal Stadium in Kansas City, the stadium was packed (50,000-plus) and the buzz was incredible! And he was one of the Raiders I booed most intensely. At that time I didn't/couldn't appreciate the fact that I was watching one of the greatest wide receivers of ALL TIME perform his artistry and grudgingly knew that he was 100% deserving of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When he lined up to start a play, all of us worried that he'd catch a key touchdown pass that would break our hearts and many times he did! Congratulations on the Pro Football Hall of Fame Fred. Your induction is well deserved and thank you for the memories/nightmares that will live in my mind forever. And one last thanks: I'm not sure what persuaded you to sign with the Raiders instead of a NFL team, (I think you joined the Raiders during the AFL-NFL signing wars of the 1960's) but thank you for choosing to play in the AFL. You helped to make the league I loved a GREAT league! Best of luck, good health to you Fred, and Long Live the AFL!
Chiefsfansince1964 What Ms. chanandlerbong 420 said! I grew up in the Bay Area, became a Raider fan in ‘66. Fred Biletnikoff was a hero to every slow white kid in sports. The Raider-Chief rivalry was one of the best. Otis Taylor also one of the best WR of all time.
@@ms.chanandlerbong5351 Thank you Ms.chanandlebong 420. I meant every word of it and I know every Chiefs fan of my era felt the same way, some grudgingly so. But Fred Biletnikoff was one of the best of all time for so many reasons that his inclusion in the Pro Football Hall is undeniable. Men like him helped shape the pro football world we enjoy today and I was lucky enough to see him play in person several times. I didn't know it at that time but those were some of the best days of my life. Long Live the AFL!
@@balrog322 Thanks for the kind words Jed. And I totally agree with you on the rivalry and on Otis Taylor's greatness too. Don't understand why he's not in the Pro Football Hall as well, but hopefully in time. As a white kid growing up in suburban Kansas City, Otis was my first hero. My mom let me take one of my white t-shirts and use a red marker and write the # 89 on the front and back and sleeves too, then let me put stripes on the sleeves to look like a Chiefs road uniform. Then I'd wear it to school under my dress shirt, (Catholic Grade School) and when we went out to recess, we'd all play football and my dress shirt came off and I was Otis Taylor. Those were magic days. Long Live the AFL!
Growing up in Buffalo NY my team is the Bills but been a backer of the Raiders since 83 when I was 11 and Marcus Allen and Cliff Branch play. Don't know why but seeing Allen destroy the dominant Redskins defense and seeing Branch's career highlights as he was retiring made fall in love. But the Chiefs are by far my favorite opponent always a lights out game. Len Dawson, Derrick Thoamas are a few Chiefs legends I admire and respect
Hey Fred you are only my absolute favorite football player of all time! During my teen years I had my grandmother sew a number 25 on a black jersey I had so that I could pretend that I was you. I played a lot of "touch football" with the other kids where I lived. Every time I caught a touch down pass (which was often) I would say "Touchdown Biletnikoff"!!!!! Hey Fred Thank you for all the great performances!!!! I used to tell myself you are "Sure Hands Biletnikoff"!!!!
Omg! THIS guy! Some of the greatest hands ever. What treat to get to see him play on Sundays. True Raider when it really meant something to be a Raider.
My favorite all time receiver. Best hands and best route runner. Seemed like he had eyes in the back of his head sometimes. I started watching the NFL in 1968
Wow! I was always a big Fred Bilentnikoff fan and being from Philly, I was a huge Tommy McDonald fan. It was awesome to hear how McDonald had a big influence on Fred. Their styles very much resembled each other. These two guy even wore the same #25. Loved watching Fred and Tommy, both are Hall of Famers!!! BTW I never saw either one drop a pass!
Hey Fred, You were absolutely my favorite player. What really blows my mind is all the incredible catches you with no gloves. I can't imagine what you would do in today NFL. The guy that is most similar to your style today is Adam Thielen. You were the best!
babyblueLEGEND ha ur funny I know long time nfl fans who know a lot about the hall of famers and have never heard of this guy lol played when football players were "getting" better the 80s was when players were the best
He used an illegal substance to make it easier to catch the ball. You can't say he has the best hands when players like Cris Carter, Larry Fitzgerald, Randy Moss, Marvin Harrison, Steve Largent and potentially OBJ (he hasn't been playing long enough to make that argument, but he has serious promise) were catching the ball without stickum.
givemetoast "like no other kind of receiver" you say that after Biletnikoff mentioned the very Hall of Fame receiver he patterned himself after? seriously? also, "like no other kind of receiver" yet he's a throwback? a throwback to what if he's like no other?
Grew up right near the Oakland Coliseum back then, and when we played touch football in the streets of Oakland we all tried to copy Fred Biletnikoff's style. The man had the magic touch.
When we played football in the neighborhood when I was a kid I was fred I lined up at line of scrimmage just like him he is one of my all time favorites
Fred was the first receiver that I know of to stand straight up on the line of scrimmage. All the other wide receivers used a 3 point stance. At 13 years old, when I first saw Biletnikoff on the line of scrimmage, he looked like he was playing in a Flag football game! Lol. Everyone uses that stance now.
As a kid I my home town in Chino Calif. My friends and I played tackle football every friggen day. Football was year round for us at Ramona jr. High after school and weekends. I fashioned my style of catching after you Fred. Soft handed and relaxed. And I soon found my self being picked first everyday. Long story short, I just want tro thank you Fred. You will never cease to be my favorite football player of all time. Your names heard every time football is the topic. Love you man, Randy Shores
Hello, Fred! For some out-of-the-blue reason, your name popped into my head yesterday and today. I am in my late 50’s and, when I think of tough football players from the 60’s and 70’s, your name pops into my head. Honestly, I had forgotten that you were a great wide receiver. But, I just watched a few of your videos. Congratulations! I also looked you up on Wikipedia. I had no idea you were the receiving coach for the Raiders until relatively recently. Your success just went on and on! Congratulations! I’m glad to hear you are still around.
Man, who would have thought that I would grow up and be able to read a note for ALL to see about Freddy Bilitny. This is what I called my idle in the 70's.I was a Miami fan but always wanted Freddy Bilityny to do well. He was a joy to watch. Poetry in motion.
Thank you so much for all the great memories. You are my favorite football player of all time. I would go to all the Raider home games and watch the precise routes you ran, hoping to lean from you. I have a jersey that you signed. I will treasure it always. You are the best ever.
Luv u Fred! 45 yrs ago playing touch football in the street, or Tackle in the local graveyard, I was a slow white guy with good moves and great hands....I always yelled out ur name after a good down n out with great inside head fake and toe tapping catch on the sideline....FIRST DOWN!
Speaking about Fred having great hands! I new this since he was in 5th grade and my self in sixth grade. I threw him his first TD pass in JV football Erie Pa East High.Fred hàd great hand's and moves in grade school. John G Erie Pa.
I'm so glad have been a raider fan since 1968 and sold malts and sodas at the coliseum, while living five blocks away and having true earlier years signed memorabilia.... I saw a lot of these games personally year after year.... Generation Blanda, Lamonica, Stabler and Plunket alumni... John Madden, speaks for himself.. Carr...Hmmmm!
man I miss the real Oakland Raiders. Al Davis built a mystique around this team, then abandoned Oakland for LA. the mystique started to disappear after a few years in the southern California sun, then Al was smart enough to return to Oakland, where they should have never left and should never leave. for a few years, the Raiders got their swagger back, but then through Al Davis hanging on too long, lost it completely. the Raiders now are a joke compared to the 60's-70's era. and now his son, after trying to blackmail Oakland into paying for his private company's new stadium, is abandoning the loyal Oakland fan base for the eclectic citizenry of Las Vegas. I was a Raider fan since i was 9 years old in 1980. but this latest abandonment after the home fans stuck with a team that has had one winning season in 17 years, they can go screw themselves. it wasnt the Oakland Coliseum that made the Raiders losers. it was the same thing that made them winners in the 60's-70's. the Davises
refreshing how honest fred is about deliberately becoming tougher physically . He looked a bit odd his running style and could have a difficult personality to deal with at times . But he had some of the greatest moves and hands of all time . Cliff Branch the world class sprinter and other oakland wide receiver said Fred taught him a lot about being a reciever .
FB I saw you walking out of the Alameda training building you had a clipboard and me and my primo drove up to you. We said hay that's Freddy B... I'll never forget you looked scared. We said FB don't be scared your a God in Oakland and got his autograph . Welcome home.
In the late 60's into the mid 1970s defensive backs would regularly vote for Biletnikoff as the toughest receiver to cover ( not long bomb but more importantly in the 15 to 40 yd range) . he used many difficult moves on a defensive back to get open or catch the ball .
Fred wasn't the fastest receiver . But he had so many moves that just dumbfounded defensive backs . Back in the day when nfl defensive backs had an official voting process for hardest receivers to cover , Biletnikoff won that award many times or was in the top 5 .
Been a Raiders fan since 1972. I played pop warner football as a wide receiver because of Belitnikoff and even wore Stickum.May have not been fast but ran routes to perfection. I think Jerry Rice learned from him. He did not wear shoulder pads either which was crazy. I will be getting a White Road Raiders jersey soon with number 25!
@@panama8009 Look at the films. Those are shoulder pads. Biletnikoff always wore his jersey ripped at the front collar and his sleeves were slit. You can see the front plate of his shoulder pads in the Super Bowl XI highlights.
He sounds like a regular guy, but at that time, as a 3rd down receiver, he was peerless. There have since been several great receivers with either great hands, incredible moves, toughness and cool headedness under pressure, but they all owe something to Freddy B. I too would always try to get number 25 when I played.
Biletnikoff ran better routes than anyone and hadthe best hands too,It seemed like he was with the raiders for about 30 years lol. A great great great receiver in the top 5 or 7 of alltime.
In the World of Baseball: Don't forget the "corked" bat!!!, pine tar covered bat and the "lively ball" !!!! These three things would help the ball reach the seats more often!!!! In my book the ball is the enemy!!! And Astro Turf also helps the hitters. I am sure that great ball players of past would have had improved numbers if they could bat up while wearing frogman gloves hit a "lively ball" with a "Corked Bat" covered with pine tar, on Astro Turf!!! Lol.!!!! I would like to see a computer crunch out numbers of what they would have achieved!!!!!! Lol!!!!! Just imagine this: I am playing short stop and Rogers Hornsby come up to the plate. His Batting average is .401 with 42 home runs!!!!! And this time he will he is wearing frogman gloves, using a "corked bat" totally covered with pine tar to hit a "lively ball" and the field is made of astro turf. I know one thing I will be feeling very nervous to say the least!!!! Lol!!!!! Ha! ha!!!!
Different era. Different rules. BTW, couldn't you have found a better troll name? Walker Gillette was a sorry-ass receiver that backed up Ahmad Rashad (formerly Bobby Moore) in St. Louis with the Cardinals.
Fred Biletnikoff had the best hands of any wide receiver in NFL history. If he could get a finger on the football he'd catch it. I reject anybody undermining his tremendous talent in catching a football because he used Stick Em. Yeah, it's OK for wide receivers today to use gloves and that's not cheating. C'mon, give me a break.
I liked him on the flank for short yardage. He looked like a regular guy from the stands. But never dropped the ball. Unlike Obama. Darn, I didn't want to get political.
Obama was a clutch QB. Now Trump dropped the ball AND fumbled. Both Bushes threw costly INTs. Clinton was The Snake: left-handed, savvy, and charming the pants off all the women.
@@JAWrightonline Obama sucked; think for yourself; he sold us out to Iran and China, you fool, bad mouthed US businessmen for 8 years; soldiers hated Obama too, they love Trump.
@@DexterHaven Correction: W.Bush sold the U.S. out to China, putting our country trillions of dollars in debt, to accept an enormous loan to fight an unnecessary war. Secretary of State Colin Powell (who endorsed Obama in '08 after another disastrous Bush administration; elect a Bush, get a recession) told W. BUSH that it would be less costly to capture Bin Laden than go to war. George W. Bush squandered a $5.5 billion surplus that he inherited from the Clinton administration, put the U.S. in trillions of dollars in debt, neglected the people in New Orleans during the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and the Stock Market crashed under Bush's failed economic policies. Obama, meanwhile, saved the auto industry (and the jobs that come with it), created affordable Healthcare, captured and wasted Bin Laden in the third year of his first term of office (something W. Bush failed to do in his two full terms), and shaved the debt Bush left behind. Trump, on the other hand, is a pathetic joke and a woeful embarrassment. The only good thing he did was beat Jeb Bush in the Republicans' primaries in 2016. The Bushes dislike Trump, the McCains dislike Trump, the overall Republican party dislikes Trump. Enough about pathetic U.S. Republican presidents. This is Biletnikoff's download, not theirs. It's about his greatness, not their failures. BTW, Freddie B. is a liberal. The combination of Pennsylvania and the eclectic air of Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco shaped him.
@@JAWrightonline You offer a litany of adjectives to mask a paucity of facts.You have no credibility when you say "the overall Republican Party dislikes Trump"; Trump had over 85% support from them in the polls and in voting, dummy, crushing Jeb Bush and the rest of the GOP in the primaries as far back as 2016; so you are refuted thus. Hate and bias warp your toxic thinking. Yuck. Fighting is necessary sometimes, because of dumb asses like you; thus, the wars in the past, because you are hopeless.
@@JAWrightonline You repeat like a dumb robot: Bush's "failed economic polices" as if you think you know what you are talking about, but you are just repeating cliches. What policies are you speaking of? It was a subprime-lending driven collapse based on Democrat policies from Clinton to Barney Frank and Obama's support for it as a senator, you fool. Bush's only mistake was to compromise with Democrat policies on FNMA lending standards. Then when they proved ruinous to banks and real estate, Obama pretended he did not vote for those policies for years as a senator and played victim as president, and you were stupid enough to believe it, because you can't think for yourself or connect the dots. Now tell me what "failed economic policies" by Bush you had in mind, you warped wimp.
i don't give a hoot about what anyone says about Biletnikoff or Hutson or any of those older guys, but those older guys caught the ball with their "bare" hands---no gloves. Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, and any wide receiver who used gloves to help them catch the ball don't impress me at all because those gloves are like cheating because they provide a better grip and suction. even Jerry Rice admitted that he'd cheat at times if he could win... old school was cool! and i'm not even an old guy...
when they have an award named after you, the best wr in college you know your the best out there.
With age comes perspective. As a Chiefs fan, it took me a long time to appreciate what a once-in-a-lifetime talent Fred Biletnikoff was. Growing up in Kansas City and wearing the Chiefs arrowhead symbol on my chest, I hated everything that had to do with the Oakland Raiders (except for Super Bowl 2 where, for only one day I pulled passionately for the AFL Raiders to beat the NFL Packers!) When Fred Biletnikoff and the Raiders would come to old Municipal Stadium in Kansas City, the stadium was packed (50,000-plus) and the buzz was incredible! And he was one of the Raiders I booed most intensely. At that time I didn't/couldn't appreciate the fact that I was watching one of the greatest wide receivers of ALL TIME perform his artistry and grudgingly knew that he was 100% deserving of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. When he lined up to start a play, all of us worried that he'd catch a key touchdown pass that would break our hearts and many times he did! Congratulations on the Pro Football Hall of Fame Fred. Your induction is well deserved and thank you for the memories/nightmares that will live in my mind forever. And one last thanks: I'm not sure what persuaded you to sign with the Raiders instead of a NFL team, (I think you joined the Raiders during the AFL-NFL signing wars of the 1960's) but thank you for choosing to play in the AFL. You helped to make the league I loved a GREAT league! Best of luck, good health to you Fred, and Long Live the AFL!
As a raiders fan that was classy🤙
Chiefsfansince1964 What Ms. chanandlerbong 420 said! I grew up in the Bay Area, became a Raider fan in ‘66. Fred Biletnikoff was a hero to every slow white kid in sports. The Raider-Chief rivalry was one of the best. Otis Taylor also one of the best WR of all time.
@@ms.chanandlerbong5351 Thank you Ms.chanandlebong 420. I meant every word of it and I know every Chiefs fan of my era felt the same way, some grudgingly so. But Fred Biletnikoff was one of the best of all time for so many reasons that his inclusion in the Pro Football Hall is undeniable. Men like him helped shape the pro football world we enjoy today and I was lucky enough to see him play in person several times. I didn't know it at that time but those were some of the best days of my life. Long Live the AFL!
@@balrog322 Thanks for the kind words Jed. And I totally agree with you on the rivalry and on Otis Taylor's greatness too. Don't understand why he's not in the Pro Football Hall as well, but hopefully in time. As a white kid growing up in suburban Kansas City, Otis was my first hero. My mom let me take one of my white t-shirts and use a red marker and write the # 89 on the front and back and sleeves too, then let me put stripes on the sleeves to look like a Chiefs road uniform. Then I'd wear it to school under my dress shirt, (Catholic Grade School) and when we went out to recess, we'd all play football and my dress shirt came off and I was Otis Taylor. Those were magic days. Long Live the AFL!
Growing up in Buffalo NY my team is the Bills but been a backer of the Raiders since 83 when I was 11 and Marcus Allen and Cliff Branch play. Don't know why but seeing Allen destroy the dominant Redskins defense and seeing Branch's career highlights as he was retiring made fall in love. But the Chiefs are by far my favorite opponent always a lights out game. Len Dawson, Derrick Thoamas are a few Chiefs legends I admire and respect
Hey Fred you are only my absolute favorite football player of all time! During my teen years I had my grandmother sew a number 25 on a black jersey I had so that I could pretend that I was you. I played a lot of "touch football" with the other kids where I lived. Every time I caught a touch down pass (which was often) I would say "Touchdown Biletnikoff"!!!!! Hey Fred Thank you for all the great performances!!!! I used to tell myself you are "Sure Hands Biletnikoff"!!!!
Omg! THIS guy! Some of the greatest hands ever. What treat to get to see him play on Sundays. True Raider when it really meant something to be a Raider.
My Favorite Oakland Raider of all time! My favorite player of all time! Yes, I lived in Oakland most of my life.
My favorite all time receiver. Best hands and best route runner. Seemed like he had eyes in the back of his head sometimes. I started watching the NFL in 1968
Fred Biletnikoff was my childhood idol.
Wonderful story
I loved Fred, and Daryl during those early AFC games. Week in and week out they were the best.
Wow! I was always a big Fred Bilentnikoff fan and being from Philly, I was a huge Tommy McDonald fan. It was awesome to hear how McDonald had a big influence on Fred. Their styles very much resembled each other. These two guy even wore the same #25. Loved watching Fred and Tommy, both are Hall of Famers!!! BTW I never saw either one drop a pass!
loved watching fred play!
The annual award given to the year's best wide receiver in NCAA football bears his name.
A great receiver. One I'll never forget.
Was awesome to watch growing up as my 2 favorite receivers Fred and Tommy McDonald. Fred your one of my heroes. Thanks
Hey Fred, You were absolutely my favorite player. What really blows my mind is all the incredible catches you with no gloves. I can't imagine what you would do in today NFL. The guy that is most similar to your style today is Adam Thielen. You were the best!
he had stickum
Best hands the nfl has even witnessed. Period.
He used Stickums for his hands
Kai Thompson And?
babyblueLEGEND ha ur funny I know long time nfl fans who know a lot about the hall of famers and have never heard of this guy lol played when football players were "getting" better the 80s was when players were the best
Kobe Hannible Are you claiming that you know people who have never heard of Fred Biletnikoff ? A simple yes or no will do.
He used an illegal substance to make it easier to catch the ball. You can't say he has the best hands when players like Cris Carter, Larry Fitzgerald, Randy Moss, Marvin Harrison, Steve Largent and potentially OBJ (he hasn't been playing long enough to make that argument, but he has serious promise) were catching the ball without stickum.
One of my favorites!!! He was like no other kind of receiver. Loved the ol’ time “throwback” aspect he brought to the game.
givemetoast "like no other kind of receiver" you say that after Biletnikoff mentioned the very Hall of Fame receiver he patterned himself after? seriously? also, "like no other kind of receiver" yet he's a throwback? a throwback to what if he's like no other?
You were great bud. Thank you for the memories.
I agree, best hands and best in the clutch.My favorite of all time. Thanks for the memories.
And feet.
Love you Fred...against Miami in 1974 AFC Playoffs..you made a great catch twice .Thank you for the memories.
I wish Fred could come back to Erie to pay a visit and meet fans. Hes my favorite receiver of all time. He didnt need gloves.
Grew up right near the Oakland Coliseum back then, and when we played touch football in the streets of Oakland we all tried to copy Fred Biletnikoff's style. The man had the magic touch.
When we played football in the neighborhood when I was a kid I was fred I lined up at line of scrimmage just like him he is one of my all time favorites
I used that stance as well! I also had great moves until I injured my ankles.
this guy is awesome!
Love it! One of my favorite players as a kid. The guy was fearless.
I love ya Fred ! ❤. It was a blast watching you play when I was young.
Fred was the first receiver that I know of to stand straight up on the line of scrimmage. All the other wide receivers used a 3 point stance. At 13 years old, when I first saw Biletnikoff on the line of scrimmage, he looked like he was playing in a Flag football game! Lol. Everyone uses that stance now.
He was always my favorite wide receiver to growing up he has got to be in the top five all-time at anybody's list
He was beyond awesome at Wide Receiver.
Thank you Fred for all the great years!!!
Great concentration and incredible hands
He also relied on his outstanding moves and fakes.
Fred i always wished u played for my Cowboys you were Awesome enjoyed watching you!!
Love ya, Freddie!
As a kid I my home town in Chino Calif. My friends and I played tackle football every friggen day. Football was year round for us at Ramona jr. High after school and weekends. I fashioned my style of catching after you Fred. Soft handed and relaxed. And I soon found my self being picked first everyday. Long story short, I just want tro thank you Fred. You will never cease to be my favorite football player of all time. Your names heard every time football is the topic. Love you man, Randy Shores
Fred, you were the first reciever i ever saw look down to see where your feet were near the side line and drag them inbounds to get pass completions!
Hello, Fred! For some out-of-the-blue reason, your name popped into my head yesterday and today. I am in my late 50’s and, when I think of tough football players from the 60’s and 70’s, your name pops into my head. Honestly, I had forgotten that you were a great wide receiver. But, I just watched a few of your videos. Congratulations! I also looked you up on Wikipedia. I had no idea you were the receiving coach for the Raiders until relatively recently. Your success just went on and on! Congratulations! I’m glad to hear you are still around.
Freddy is the first prolific receiver who extended his hands and came back to the ball before receptions, a true innovator
Notice great hands & no gloves!...just the most stickum you ever saw on a receiver. Love ya Fred B. HOF
The best hands ive ever seen been watching the NFL since 1974
Fred is one of my favorite football players of all time 🏈
McDonald and Biletnikoff ....my 2 favorite receivers...never saw them drop a pass.
Man, who would have thought that I would grow up and be able to read a note for ALL to see about Freddy Bilitny. This is what I called my idle in the 70's.I was a Miami fan but always wanted Freddy Bilityny to do well. He was a joy to watch. Poetry in motion.
He played 1 season for Montreal at age 37, similar to Chad Johnson....past their prime but a love of the game, not money keeps em going.
Thanks for posting the clip.
That was really good. Wish it was longer...
Thank you so much for all the great memories. You are my favorite football player of all time. I would go to all the Raider home games and watch the precise routes you ran, hoping to lean from you. I have a jersey that you signed. I will treasure it always. You are the best ever.
I live in the Philadephia area, it was very common to see Tommy McDonald around great guy always took time with the fans
Luv u Fred! 45 yrs ago playing touch football in the street, or Tackle in the local graveyard, I was a slow white guy with good moves and great hands....I always yelled out ur name after a good down n out with great inside head fake and toe tapping catch on the sideline....FIRST DOWN!
Happy birthday Fred Biletnikoff
Another all-time great. Perhaps the greatest hands of any receiver ever. The stickum may have halped but it was LEGAL.
Love that guy.
Fred wasn't big, wasn't fast and wasn't strong, but he caught Everything thrown his way. He was beyond great!!
Fred was awesome 👌 👏
2nd-best receiver ever.
Speaking about Fred having great hands! I new this since he was in 5th grade and my self in sixth grade. I threw him his first TD pass in JV football Erie Pa East High.Fred hàd great hand's and moves in grade school. John G Erie Pa.
I'm so glad have been a raider fan since 1968 and sold malts and sodas at the coliseum, while living five blocks away and having true earlier years signed memorabilia....
I saw a lot of these games personally year after year....
Generation Blanda, Lamonica, Stabler and Plunket alumni...
John Madden, speaks for himself..
Carr...Hmmmm!
man I miss the real Oakland Raiders. Al Davis built a mystique around this team, then abandoned Oakland for LA. the mystique started to disappear after a few years in the southern California sun, then Al was smart enough to return to Oakland, where they should have never left and should never leave.
for a few years, the Raiders got their swagger back, but then through Al Davis hanging on too long, lost it completely. the Raiders now are a joke compared to the 60's-70's era.
and now his son, after trying to blackmail Oakland into paying for his private company's new stadium, is abandoning the loyal Oakland fan base for the eclectic citizenry of Las Vegas.
I was a Raider fan since i was 9 years old in 1980. but this latest abandonment after the home fans stuck with a team that has had one winning season in 17 years, they can go screw themselves.
it wasnt the Oakland Coliseum that made the Raiders losers. it was the same thing that made them winners in the 60's-70's. the Davises
refreshing how honest fred is about deliberately becoming tougher physically . He looked a bit odd his running style and could have a difficult personality to deal with at times . But he had some of the greatest moves and hands of all time . Cliff Branch the world class sprinter and other oakland wide receiver said Fred taught him a lot about being a reciever .
My fav
Always think of Nick Nolte's character in North Dallas Forty when watching Fred Biletnikoff highlights.
he knew young , and fortunately had the ability . but that bit about the mental part is awesome
FB I saw you walking out of the Alameda training building you had a clipboard and me and my primo drove up to you. We said hay that's Freddy B... I'll never forget you looked scared. We said FB don't be scared your a God in Oakland and got his autograph . Welcome home.
yes
In the late 60's into the mid 1970s defensive backs would regularly vote for Biletnikoff as the toughest receiver to cover ( not long bomb but more importantly in the 15 to 40 yd range) . he used many difficult moves on a defensive back to get open or catch the ball .
Watched him play for years. He was money.
Fred wasn't the fastest receiver . But he had so many moves that just dumbfounded defensive backs . Back in the day when nfl defensive backs had an official voting process for hardest receivers to cover , Biletnikoff won that award many times or was in the top 5 .
Been a Raiders fan since 1972. I played pop warner football as a wide receiver because of Belitnikoff and even wore Stickum.May have not been fast but ran routes to perfection. I think Jerry Rice learned from him. He did not wear shoulder pads either which was crazy. I will be getting a White Road Raiders jersey soon with number 25!
He wore shoulder pads. No one ever played without shoulder pads. It's illegal and highly insane.
@@JAWrightonline look it up. Those days were different.
@@panama8009 Look at the films. Those are shoulder pads. Biletnikoff always wore his jersey ripped at the front collar and his sleeves were slit. You can see the front plate of his shoulder pads in the Super Bowl XI highlights.
@@panama8009 You've been pretty quiet since my last response to you, P Red. The lesson I taught you always stands true: Film don't lie.
Hey no problem happy that its being enjoyed.
The greatest receivers in AFL history.....
Don Maynard
Lance Alworth
Fred Biletnikoff
Charley Hennigan
Best Hands Ever
Fred didn't take NO SHIT OFF NOBODY!! RAIDER FAN SINCE '76 RN4L!!!
This could have EASILY been 10 times longer....
Pat Case , gone now , loved Fred
when Fred was young, he looked like Tarkenton
He sounds like a regular guy, but at that time, as a 3rd down receiver, he was peerless. There have since been several great receivers with either great hands, incredible moves, toughness and cool headedness under pressure, but they all owe something to Freddy B. I too would always try to get number 25 when I played.
STUD !! Any era #25 would have hung !! ...I am not even a fan, but RESPECT GREATNESS !!
Uno de los mejores receptores de RAIDERS nos dio grandes momentos
Skinnier then the qbs but those hands man...
This is my dads 1st cousin :D
Biletnikoff ran better routes than anyone and hadthe best hands too,It seemed like he was with the raiders for about 30 years lol. A great great great receiver in the top 5 or 7 of alltime.
He used stickum
O Dorkzy O It didn't help. Every wide receiver would have used it if it did.
Yes he did and some guys use steroids and in baseball they through spitballs.
manny4552 Jerry Rice wore gloves. Cheater.
In the World of Baseball: Don't forget the "corked" bat!!!, pine tar covered bat and the "lively ball" !!!! These three things would help the ball reach the seats more often!!!! In my book the ball is the enemy!!! And Astro Turf also helps the hitters. I am sure that great ball players of past would have had improved numbers if they could bat up while wearing frogman gloves hit a "lively ball" with a "Corked Bat" covered with pine tar, on Astro Turf!!! Lol.!!!! I would like to see a computer crunch out numbers of what they would have achieved!!!!!! Lol!!!!! Just imagine this: I am playing short stop and Rogers Hornsby come up to the plate. His Batting average is .401 with 42 home runs!!!!! And this time he will he is wearing frogman gloves, using a "corked bat" totally covered with pine tar to hit a "lively ball" and the field is made of astro turf. I know one thing I will be feeling very nervous to say the least!!!! Lol!!!!! Ha! ha!!!!
Biletnkoff could catch a watermelon dropped from a spaceship! The Raiders were full of super talent. Especially at passing and catching.
My Aunts father :O
French B was awesome on the football field
Bob chandler reminded me a lot of Fred Beletnikoff.
Anyone remember the "coffin corner" back in the day?
I remember when he played for Mtl.
190 GAMES 589 RECEPTIONS, I WAS SURPRISED TO LOOK THAT UP, HE AVERAGED JUST 3 CATCHES A GAME, WOW!
Different era. Different rules. BTW, couldn't you have found a better troll name? Walker Gillette was a sorry-ass receiver that backed up Ahmad Rashad (formerly Bobby Moore) in St. Louis with the Cardinals.
@@JAWrightonline GO FUCK YOURSELF
Ditch the background noise. I want to hear what Fred Biletnikoff has to say.
What's the name of the instrumental?
Fred Biletnikoff had the best hands of any wide receiver in NFL history. If he could get a finger on the football he'd catch it. I reject anybody undermining his tremendous talent in catching a football because he used Stick Em. Yeah, it's OK for wide receivers today to use gloves and that's not cheating. C'mon, give me a break.
I agree. Stickum doesn't run routes or fight off a Defensive Back.
If the football was anywhere near Biletnikoffs hands chances are he was coming down with it.
Stickum Fred!
His stats are almost identical to McDonald's. Even one NFL championship apiece.
We used to call him "Bullet"nikoff.
And look at those QB's he had.
Back when I LOVED the Raiders.
It was once said: "Biletnikoff runs the 40 in about a week, but could shake his own shadow if he had to".
I liked him on the flank for short yardage. He looked like a regular guy from the stands. But never dropped the ball. Unlike Obama. Darn, I didn't want to get political.
Obama was a clutch QB. Now Trump dropped the ball AND fumbled. Both Bushes threw costly INTs. Clinton was The Snake: left-handed, savvy, and charming the pants off all the women.
@@JAWrightonline Obama sucked; think for yourself; he sold us out to Iran and China, you fool, bad mouthed US businessmen for 8 years; soldiers hated Obama too, they love Trump.
@@DexterHaven Correction: W.Bush sold the U.S. out to China, putting our country trillions of dollars in debt, to accept an enormous loan to fight an unnecessary war. Secretary of State Colin Powell (who endorsed Obama in '08 after another disastrous Bush administration; elect a Bush, get a recession) told W. BUSH that it would be less costly to capture Bin Laden than go to war. George W. Bush squandered a $5.5 billion surplus
that he inherited from the Clinton administration, put the U.S. in trillions of dollars in debt, neglected the people in New Orleans during the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and the Stock Market crashed under Bush's failed economic policies.
Obama, meanwhile, saved the auto industry (and the jobs that come with it), created affordable Healthcare, captured and wasted Bin Laden in the third year of his first term of office (something W. Bush failed to do in his two full terms), and shaved the debt Bush left behind.
Trump, on the other hand, is a pathetic joke and a woeful embarrassment. The only good thing he did was beat Jeb Bush in the Republicans' primaries in 2016. The Bushes dislike Trump, the McCains dislike Trump, the overall Republican party dislikes Trump.
Enough about pathetic U.S. Republican presidents. This is Biletnikoff's download, not theirs. It's about his greatness, not their failures. BTW, Freddie B. is a liberal. The combination of Pennsylvania and the eclectic air of Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco shaped him.
@@JAWrightonline You offer a litany of adjectives to mask a paucity of facts.You have no credibility when you say "the overall Republican Party dislikes Trump"; Trump had over 85% support from them in the polls and in voting, dummy, crushing Jeb Bush and the rest of the GOP in the primaries as far back as 2016; so you are refuted thus. Hate and bias warp your toxic thinking. Yuck. Fighting is necessary sometimes, because of dumb asses like you; thus, the wars in the past, because you are hopeless.
@@JAWrightonline You repeat like a dumb robot: Bush's "failed economic polices" as if you think you know what you are talking about, but you are just repeating cliches. What policies are you speaking of? It was a subprime-lending driven collapse based on Democrat policies from Clinton to Barney Frank and Obama's support for it as a senator, you fool. Bush's only mistake was to compromise with Democrat policies on FNMA lending standards. Then when they proved ruinous to banks and real estate, Obama pretended he did not vote for those policies for years as a senator and played victim as president, and you were stupid enough to believe it, because you can't think for yourself or connect the dots. Now tell me what "failed economic policies" by Bush you had in mind, you warped wimp.
I thought He would play forever…Ageless and never Injured….
NO GLOVES MAN, NO GLOVES
He didn't need it he used stick 'em!
Gloves today are the modern day stickem. You could catch a greased pig 🐖 with the gloves they wear!
i don't give a hoot about what anyone says about Biletnikoff or Hutson or any of those older guys, but those older guys caught the ball with their "bare" hands---no gloves. Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, and any wide receiver who used gloves to help them catch the ball don't impress me at all because those gloves are like cheating because they provide a better grip and suction. even Jerry Rice admitted that he'd cheat at times if he could win... old school was cool! and i'm not even an old guy...
He had stickum