Baugh, Sammy

Sammy Baugh, in full Samuel Adrian Baugh, byname Slingin’ Sammy, (born March 17, 1914, Temple, Texas, U.S.—died Dec. 17, 2008, Rotan, Texas), first outstanding quarterback in the history of American professional gridiron football. He played a major role in the emergence of the forward pass as a primary offensive tactic in the 1930s and ’40s. He led the National Football League (NFL) in passing in 6 of his 16 seasons (1937–52) with the Washington Redskins. He also excelled as a punter and as a defensive back. In 1943 he led the NFL in passing, punting, and interceptions (as a defensive back).

At Texas Christian University, in Fort Worth, Baugh became the top passer in the Southwest Conference, a league noted for its wide-open offenses at a time when most football teams used the forward pass only sparingly. He led his team to a victory in the 1936 Sugar Bowl, helping to bring national attention to the conference and to football in the Southwest for the first time. Baugh was named a consensus All-American in his senior season.

After graduation in 1937, Baugh joined both the Redskins and the St. Louis Cardinals baseball organization, for which he played shortstop in the minor leagues for a few years. Baugh led the NFL in completions and passing yards per game in his first season and helped Washington to an 8–3 record and a spot in the championship game, where he threw three touchdown passes in a 28–21 upset of the Chicago Bears. Behind Baugh, the Redskins played in four more championship games, capturing a second title in 1942. He led the NFL in passing yards per game again in 1938, 1940, 1945, 1947, and 1948 and in average yards per punt in 1940–43. As a defensive back, he led the NFL in 1943 by intercepting 11 passes, which remains one of the highest single-season totals in league history. He had career aggregates of 1,693 pass completions in 2,995 attempts (56.5 percent) for 21,886 yards and 187 touchdowns, all of which were NFL records at the time of his retirement.

Baugh was head coach of two American Football League teams: the New York Titans in 1960–61 and the Houston Oilers in 1964. He was a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 1963.