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But Linebacker Sam Huff and his colleagues have proved that the defense can win ball games. All year long. Giant tacklers have been setting up touchdowns for their own offense, then digging in to stop enemy drives. When the Steelers were moving for the winning touchdown in an early game, the line held twice with 3 in. to go. The man who scored the deciding touchdown that beat the Steelers, 21-16: Sam Huff (on a recovered fumble).
Patterns & Plots. The mind behind the Giants' muscle is Defensive Coach Tom Landry, 35, a sharp-featured, whisper-voiced Texas back who learned his trade in the Giants' defensive backfield (1950-55) under Coach Steve Owen. Using the pro's basic 4-3-4 "umbrella" formation, Landry has plotted a score of basic defense plays, each capable of several variations tailored to the particular enemy's offense. The defense plan is called in a defensive huddle before each play, can be changed on a shouted code word if the offense lines up in an unexpected pattern.
To carry out his schemes, Landry has swarthy End Andy Robustelli (6 ft. 1 in., 230 Ibs.). who loves to dismantle quarterbacks. Wreathed in sweat and steam, Tackles Dick Modzelewski (6 ft., 260 Ibs.) and Rosey Grier (6 ft. 5 in., 285 Ibs.) block up the middle. Boss of the defensive backfield is gritty Jimmy Patton (5 ft. 10 in., 180 Ibs.), a fleet (9.9 sec. for the 100) ball hawk who has suffered concussions batting down passes.
Behind Landry's complex system of blitzing linebackers and slanting linemen is a single master principle: funnel the play to the inside so that Sam Huff can make the tackle. Says the Los Angeles Rams' Line Coach Don Paul: "We hold a special meeting to plan how we're going to get Sam Huff." Huff has perfected the linebacker's risky technique of guessing where the play is going and meeting the runner head-on in the hole. From hours of study, he knows what plays may be run from any formation. To discover which one is coming, he searches the offensive players for telltale clues. "If the center has his weight off the ball and is back on his haunches, it's going to be a pass," says Huff, "because he's getting ready to move back fast and pick up the red-dogging linebackers. If the guards have their weight off their hands, it's a run around end. They're already thinking about pulling out and leading the play.
"A back like Paul Hornung of the Packers, if he's coming straight ahead on a handoff, he'll have more weight on his hand and be more in a sprinter's position, so he can really blow into the line. So if I see that, I cheat over a little bit so that I can be right in front of him when he gets the ball. Ollie Matson, when he's coming straight ahead, he has his feet cocked, and when he's going to the outside, he has both feet even and no weight on his hands."
Intuition & Muscle. "It's uncanny the way Huff follows the ball," says the Green Bay Packers' Coach Lombardi. "He ignores all the things you do to take him away from the play and comes after the ball, wherever it is thrown or wherever the run goes. Sure, sometimes he goes with the fake. But that's when the ball is there."