First Professional Football Player: Pudge Heffelfinger Gets Paid
Allegheny Athletic Association paid him $500 cash — stuffed into an envelope — just to show up and play one game. William "Pudge" Heffelfinger, a Yale All-American already famous for his blocking, took the money and crushed Pittsburgh Athletic Club that day. One fumble recovery. One touchdown. And just like that, a sport that preached pure amateurism quietly crossed a line it'd never uncross. The NFL's entire billion-dollar existence traces back to that single envelope changing hands in 1892.
November 12, 1892
134 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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