Thereafter, he was never the same runner.Pitts played on all five of Lombardi's championship teams and his value was perhaps best measured by his intangibles, most notably his versatility and attention to detail. He'd do anything to please Lombardi. Died July 10, 1998, at age 60.The browser you are using is no longer supported on this site. By then, Pitts also had developed an innate feel for when to plant and cut, as well as patience when he had the ball in his hands, two other requisites of Lombardi's halfbacks, always the ball carriers on his famed power sweep.Earlier in his career, Pitts was a talented 190-pound speedster playing for a coach who demanded his halfbacks, above all else, run under control on his signature play, Red Right 49. By then, he was a different back. Waived by the Bears before the season opener, Pitts played eight games in 1970 with New Orleans and the Los Angeles Rams. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. In the pre-Super Bowl era, when the NFL Draft was a relatively primitive exercise, sleepers were obscure players from small schools who were sometimes unknown even to NFL scouts.Few players in history ever fit the tag better than Pitts.Legend has it that when his name was announced in the draft room, it drew gasps of disbelief. It is named in honor of Conway native Elijah Pitts. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. In fact, in his first five seasons, Pitts started only three games: two in 1963 when Hornung was suspended and he was No. "Can run like hell," Tunnell wrote in one of his scouting reports. Along the way, the 6’1”, 205-pound Pitts became a valued runner, receiver and special teams player. Late in his career, he briefly played for the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints. Not just quick. "It took him awhile to learn that he had to give those guys a chance to make those plays. He could really fly. 1 draft pick Tom Moore, a big, fast back taken with the fifth overall selection in 1960. Pitts led the Packers in kickoff returns in 1965 and in punt returns in 1969. Thanks to his eternally sunny disposition, Pitts was a favorite of Lombardi and his teammates. Pitts was a valuable contributor to the Lombardi Era Packers. NFL footage © NFL Productions LLC. When he returned to the Packers in 1971, he signed as a free agent.Pitts retired following the season, but remained with the Packers as a college scout for two years. Elijah Pitts entered the NFL as a sleeper from a small, historically black college in Little Rock, Ark. NFL and the NFL shield design are registered trademarks of the National Football League.The team names, logos and uniform designs are registered trademarks of the teams indicated. Pitts scored two touchdowns in the original Super Bowl.He was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1979.
After carrying the ball only 12 times in the first five games that season, Pitts seized his first big opportunity by rushing for a career-high 99 yards on 21 attempts against Detroit in the eighth game and 89 yards on 18 carries against Minnesota the following week. Elijah Pitts entered the NFL as a sleeper from a small, historically black college in Little Rock, Ark. Pitts also played defensive back during the one-platoon era of college football and ran the 100- and 440-yard dashes on Philander Smith's track team.Pitts played in 120 games in his first nine seasons with the Packers and then in six more when he returned to the team in 1971. Elijah Pitts was an American football halfback in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers, the Los Angeles Rams, and the New Orleans Saints. "The thing about Elijah was that he was so fast, he'd outrun those guards," said Red Cochran, Lombardi's backfield coach from 1959-66. © 2020 NFL Enterprises LLC. 2 choice in the NFL Draft. "Over Pitts' first five seasons, he served as a special teams standout and as a third-string halfback behind future Pro Football Hall of Famer Paul Hornung and former No. "Great kid. He fit into the system. Elijah Pitts entered the NFL as a sleeper from a small, historically black college in Little Rock, Ark. That was back when all teams gathered in a hotel ballroom to make their choices and supposedly one wag rhetorically asked, "Is that Philander Smith from Elijah Pitts or Elijah Pitts from Philander Smith? But he was fast. He might not have had the reported 9.7 speed in the 100-yard dash that intrigued the Packers when they drafted him, but he was still more than fast enough and, better yet, he had grown to be a 200-plus pounder, the kind of big halfback coach Vince Lombardi coveted in his offense. Elijah Eugene Pitts (February 3, 1938 – July 10, 1998) was an American football player, a halfback in the National Football League for eleven seasons, ten with the Green Bay Packers.
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