Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League [Hardcover]

Bob Carroll (Editor), Michael Gershman (Editor), David Neft (Editor), John Thorn (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 4, 1999

""Total Football II Offers in a Single Volume The Complete History of Professional Football.

Here are the most complete statistics for each of the nearly 18,000 players who' ve played in even a single NFL game. You'll find essays on the history of the game, its championship teams, most significant games, and greatest players--along with the legend, lore and mystique of football.

The official encyclopedia of the National Football League, "Total Football II" includes:

articles on the evolution of strategy through the years

histories of every team past and present

biographies of the NFL's 300 greatest players

football families

the most complete lists ever published of team rosters, awards, and the NFL draft

and more.

New to this completely revised and updated edition are a host of new articles, covering an eclectic range of football-related topics, from offensive formations to football at the movies.

This nearly inexhaustible wealth of gridiron material was provided by the NFL staff, the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the Pro Football Researchers Association, as well as by the game's foremost writers and historians.

The heart of "Total Football" is the Player Register with statistics provided by the Elias Sports Bureau, the NFL's official statistician since 1961, Bob Carroll and David Neft. For more than 30 years, Carroll and Neft have collected information on players, birthdates and places, high schools, and colleges attended. For "Total Football" they supplemented their research by contacting hundreds of former players and more than 400 colleges and universities.

If it's about football, you'll find itwithin these pages, the book that "Pro Football Weekly" and other experts have called "the best football book ever"

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

At just over seven pounds, the updated Total Football II has the heft of a refrigerator (see William Perry, defensive tackle, p. 1173), and, at 1812 pages, it covers about as much ground as a scrambling quarterback (see John Elway, p. 774). It has all the requisite stats that make a sports reference necessary, but that's just the straight-ahead stuff good for three yards a carry. Where Total Football II breaks free is in the razzle-dazzle of its essays and opinions. Argue with its list of the 300 best players ever (good as he is, shouldn't Terrell Davis have a few more seasons under his belt before "all-time" is stamped on his helmet?). Study how the game's strategies evolved, and learn how to read their diagrams. Even discover how to decipher the mysteries of what the quarterback means when he calls "Red right. Eighteen. Bob odd oh. On three" in the huddle, gets up to the line of scrimmage, and barks, "Pro. Blue 32. Blue 32. Down. Hut! (Pause) Hut! Hut!"

Football's blitz on the culture is covered in a series of smart essays that range from the mystique attending Super Bowl commercials to why football movies usually come up short. In a nifty examination of the game's penetration of the language, a scenario presents itself: "The average Joe woke up this morning, got into his car, found a seam in the northbound lane of the freeway, and drove to work. At his desk, he huddled with his coworkers, went over his game plan ..." and, well, you get the point. These are just some of the volume's many extra points, and it's the ingenuity of the extras that earn Total Football the right to celebrate in the end zone. --Jeff Silverman

Review

"The best football book ever." -- -- Pro Football Weekly

"Without a doubt, this is the best pro football book ever published." -- -- St.Louis Post-Dispatch

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1824 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; Rev Upd edition (August 4, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062701746
• ISBN-13: 978-0062701749
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 9 x 2.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,242,792 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This is the ultimate in reference guides, August 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (Hardcover)

I recently purchased this book (unfortunately, not through amazon.com - I'd have saved $ 18!), and it is amazing. Everything I ever wanted to know about NFL, AFL, and AAFC players - from the hall of famers to the obscure - was easily found and easily read.

The only drawback? Virtually no statistical information on the "other" leagues (WFL, USFL, and the 1930's versions of the AFL). But as it is, Total Football II is a phenomenal resource.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Must Have for Football Fans, October 28, 2001

By 

C. Baker "cbaker" (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (Hardcover)

This book is a must have for all serious football fans. It is the most complete one volume source of information about professional football.

My favorite sections include:

History of the game: The introductory essays on the history of pro football and the complete histories of each team is fascinating and an important context for many of the conventions and the culture of today's game.

History of players: Not only is there a complete roster of every player who has ever played in the National Football
League and it's antecedents, there are more detailed biographies of the "500 greatest players" as determined by the panel of writers responsible for this encyclopedia.

Complete game summaries of and statistics for all the playoffs, Super Bowls, and most important games in league history: I personally found this the most nostalgic reading, as I could remember where I was and who I was watching the playoffs and Super Bowls with.

And much, much more -- some more mundane (essays on player equipment) and some more interesting (history of defunct leagues like the United States Football League (USFL)).

I do have two complaints about the encyclopedia -- one minor and one a glaring omission.

My minor complaint is that they need a better copy editor. I found many typos, especially the detailed information about playoffs and Super Bowls.

My major complaint is that is has a woefully incomplete section detailing the individual records (most rushing yards in a game, etc.) which is a terrible omission. I can find a more complete listing of individual and team records in a sports almanac. A book purporting to be TOTAL FOOTBALL shouldn't need a companion book to round it out and have all the facts one might want at hand. I strongly recommend they improve on this in the next volume.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good reference, April 20, 2003

By 

Jerry Fry (Freeman, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Total Football II: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (Hardcover)

Don't expect to find a football book you can use exclusively from the rest. This is a good supplement to books like "The Pro Football Encyclopedia" (by Maher/Gill). If you're into statistics this is one of the best to have. Whereas "Pro Football Encyclopedia" has players longest gains, which this book doesn't, this book gives you kickoff and punt return stats for all players, the encyclopedia doesn't. This book is mainly about the NFL. I bought it for the statistics. It's also a good book to use if you want to find out more about a specific player (statistically speaking). Chapters like "The 25 Most Memorable Regular Season Games" and "The 300 Greatest Players" etc.. are not what I got this book for. I would prefer a book that leaves out author's opinions. I've seen games I'll never forget that I knew wouldn't make the list and also players. Although these chapters are somewhat interesting along with others I could live without half this book easily but like I said, it's a good season by season individual stat book that has information other books don't. It mainly depends on what you're buying this book for. There are statistics here excluded from other books but there are stats left out that ARE in other books, like blocked punts for instance, which may not seem to matter to most, but it all depends on what you're buying it for. It has stats other books don't, that's what I bought it for.