Arnie Herber: Taken for granted

Continued from last week

While Arnie Herber and Don Hutson became the NFL’s predominant quarterback-wide receiver team in 1936 — Hutson leading in pass reception categories and Herber in yards passing and touchdown passes — Herber’s next two seasons were less spectacular.

Hindered by injuries, his standings fell over the next two seasons.

Herber bounced back in 1939 and helped lead the Packers to their fifth NFL title.

“By 1940, the years of battering began to show. Herber could still throw the ball 65 to 70 yards, but he had begun sharing the passing duties with Cecil Isbell, and it was Isbell-to-Hutson as often as Herber-to-Hutson,” Norman Macht wrote in “Arnie Herber: The Man Who Invented the NFL Passing Game.”

“The national spotlight had turned to Slingin’ Sammy Baugh, who had come from TCU in 1937 to begin a 16-year career with the Washington Redskins.
“In most histories of the game, Baugh is credited with revolutionizing football’s offensive strategy. But Baugh knew better.

“’Arnie has been around so long,’ he drawled. ‘They take him for granted. That is, everybody takes him for granted except the boys who are playing against him. Herber, without any doubt, is the greatest long passer in the game.’”

In April 1940, Arnie’s stepfather, August H. Voelker, was elected as mayor of Green Bay’s neighbor to the south — the city of De Pere.

By then, Herber was finally getting all of the press he was due, while also making some sponsorship revenues.

But as the 1941 season drew near, Herber was the last player to come to terms on his contract.

“The flashy passer has a tendency to build up weight during the off-season and right now he scales at approximately 212 pounds,” an Aug. 19, 1941, Press-Gazette article stated.

“Under his contract, however, it will prove expensive for him to carry excess poundage during the playing season.

“Herber will be weighed the Saturday before each game, and should he go over the 200-pound mark, he will automatically forfeit $50 of his salary. It was Herber, it must be mentioned, and not (Curly) Lambeau who proposed this unique incentive to keep in trim.

“’Despite having been a little overweight the last year or two, I still consider Arnie Herber as the best long-distance passer in America,’ Lambeau commented.”

To be continued