The winners of the two leagues would get it on to finally decide which team was the true undisputed champion of American football; and it seemed the stars were aligned for this ultimate showdown because the principals from each League epitomized its persona.

The Green Bay Packers were as establishment as you could get, with their most dynamic figure being their head coach, Vince Lombardi. The AFL Champion Kansas City Chiefs were a highly talented, bonafide team as cocky as the Packers were stoic. If timing is truly everything, it could offer an intriguing explanation as to why the Big Game didn’t happen the year before… In 1964, the final standings in the world of pro football manifested thusly:

 

NFL East W L T % PF PA Cleveland 10 3 1 .769 415 293 St. Louis 9 3 2 .750 357 331 Philadelphia 6 8 0 .429 312 313 Washington 6 8 0 .429 307 305 Dallas 5 8 1 .385 250 289 Pittsburgh 5 9 0 .357 253 315 N.Y. Giants 2 10 2 .167 241 399	NFL West W L T % PF PA Baltimore 12 2 0 .857 428 225 Green Bay 8 5 1 .615 342 245 Minnesota 8 5 1 .615 355 296 Detroit 7 5 2 .583 280 260 Los Angeles 5 7 2 .417 283 339 Chicago 5 9 0 .357 260 379 San Francisco 4 10 0 .286 236 330
AFL East W L T % PF PA Buffalo 12 2 0 .857 400 242 Boston 10 3 1 .769 365 297 N.Y. Jets 5 8 1 .385 278 315 Houston 4 10 0 .286 310 355	AFL West W L T % PF PA San Diego 8 5 1 .615 341 300 Kansas City 7 7 0 .500 366 306 Oakland 5 7 2 .417 303 350 Denver 2 11 1 .154 240 438

Ironically, the magic number for both league championship games would be 27. Buffalo would defeat San Diego, 20-7, while Cleveland shocked favored Baltimore, 27-0, on a muddy field.

So, the first Super Bowl would have been the Cleveland Browns versus the Buffalo Bills.

Now let’s go to the tale of the tape:

The 1964 AFL Champion Bills:

(*) – denotes Starter; bold denotes All-League

Head Coach: Lou Saban

QB: Jack Kemp*, Daryle Lamonica, Ed Rutkowski

RB: Cookie Gilchrist*, Joe Auer*, Wray Carlton, Bobby Smith, Willie Ross

WR/TE:   Glenn Bass*, Elbert Dubenion*, Bill Groman, Ernie Warlick*

OL: Stew Barber*, Dave Behrman*, Al Bemiller*, Walt Cudzik, George Flint, Dick Hudson*, Joe O’Donnell, Billy Shaw*,

DL:  Tom Day*, Jim Dunaway*, Tom Keating, Roland “Dancing Bear” McDole*, Dudley Meredith, Hatch Rosdahl, Tom Sestak*

LB:   Harry Jacobs*, Paul Maguire*, Mike Stratton*, Jack Tracey

DB: Joe Abruzzese, Butch Byrd*, Hagood Clarke*, Ollie Dobbins, Booker Edgerson*, George Saimes*, Gene Sykes, Charley Warner

Specialists: Pete Gogolak (PK) Paul Maguire (P)

Overview: The Bills were the class of the league, leading the league in points scored and fewest points allowed. QB Jack Kemp had only a 44.2% completion rate (God only knows what the stat nerds would do with this if Kemp were Black) and a passer rating of 50.9.

Backup Daryle Lamonica played a significant enough part of that season to earn status as a “relief pitcher” of sorts who specialized in throwing deep to tight end Ernie “Big Hoss” Warlick, split end Glenn Bass and flanker Elbert “Golden Wheels” Dubenion; a precursor of Lamonica’s future as “The Mad Bomber.”

Cookie Gilchrist, 235 pounds of Canadian muscle, was the workhorse back, leading the league in rushing with 981 yards, six TDs and a 4.3 average per carry.

But as champions win with defense, the Bills were no reflection of an exception. The defensive front four of Sestak, Dunaway, Day & McDole was the League’s best with 50 quarterback sacks; still a team record to this day.

MLB Mike Stratton was All-AFL; and Byrd, Saimes, Sykes and Edgerson formed a secondary that was responsible for 19 interceptions. As a unit, the Bills gave up an average of only 65 yards rushing per game that year.  

The 1964 NFL Champion Browns: 

(*) – denotes Starter; bold denotes All-League

Head Coach: Blanton Collier

QB:   Frank Ryan*, Jim Ninowski.

RB:   Jim Brown*, Ernie Green*, Leroy Kelly, Charlie Scales.

WR/TE: Paul Warfield*, Gary Collins*, Walter Roberts, Clifton McNeil, Tom Hutchinson, Johnny Brewer.

OL:   John Brown, Monte Clark*, Lou Groza*, Gene Hickerson*, Dale Memmelaar, John Morrow, Dick Schafrath*, Roger Shoals, John Wooten*.

DL:   Mike Bundra, Bob Gain, Bill Glass, Jim Kanicki*, Dick Modzelewski*, Frank Parker*, Paul Wiggin*.

LB:   Ed Bettridge, Vince Costello*, Galen Fiss, Jim Houston*, Mike Lucci*, Stan Sczurek, Sid Williams.

DB:   Walter Beach*, Larry Benz*, Lowell Caylor, Ross Fichtner*, Bobby Franklin, Bernie Parrish*, Dave Raimey,   

Specialists: Lou “the Toe” Groza (PK); Gary Collins (P)

Overview: The Browns didn’t sneak up on the League because they already had the pedigree of being a dangerous team. QB Frank Ryan was a nimble passer who threw for 25 touchdowns, 19 picks and a 52% completion rate; with the bulk of those going to the versatile Gary Collins (8) and Ohio State rookie sensation receiver Paul Warfield (9).

Cleveland’s special teams were exceptional. The tandem of Walter Roberts (27.5 yards average on kick returns) and Morgan State rookie tailback Leroy Kelly (19 yards per punt return) made field position a constant threat for the Browns’ opponents. Placekicker Lou Groza tied for the league lead in scoring (115 points) with St. Louis Cardinals PK Jim Bakken; and the Browns’ 415 points were second only to Baltimore’s 428.

On defense, the Browns were more of a bend-but-don’t-break kind of team. They were fifth in the league in points allowed (293) and the strength of the defense lay in their secondary.   Walter Beach, Larry Benz, Ross Fichtner and Bernie Parrish were hard hitters and equally adept in coverage; their play in large part shut down the high powered Colts’ offense of Johnny Unitas, Lenny Moore, Raymond Berry and John Mackey.   

But the X factor for the Browns was the fact they had the best player in football in their starting lineup – Jim Brown.