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Here is part four in my "No AFL" series.

Here are the first three parts:

Part 1: https://www.alternatehistory.com/disc...d.php?t=114350

Part 2: https://www.alternatehistory.com/disc...d.php?t=114510

Part 3: https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=115183

Here is part four, and it picks up with 1975:

Gary Davidson, a California executive, and David Dixon, a New Orleans antique dealer, decided in 1974 to start a new spring league for play beginning in 1975. The league will be named the United States Football League, and begins with teams in Los Angeles(Stars), New York(Titans), Denver(Broncos), New Orleans(Hurricanes), Kansas City(Cowboys), and Phoenix(Scorpions). The league struggles in it's first season, but comes up with innovations like the two-point conversion. They don't get the real big players early on, but they vow to make a run at the big stars in the future. The LA Stars win the league championship, beating the Kansas City Cowboys.

NFL Draft: The Lions get the first pick, and they select DT Randy White.
St. Louis, needing to replace Roman Gabriel, selects QB Steve Bartkowski.
The Colts select RB Walter Payton out of Jackson St. Washington, picking fourth, selects LB Robert Brazile. Seattle, picking fifth, selects Purdue WR Larry Burton. Other picks: The Champ Steelers select LT Doug France, the runner-up Eagles select CB Louis Wright, and the Niners select Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson.

Coaching changes: Lombardi retires, and Don Coryell, the HC at San Diego State, is hired to replace him.
Jack Pardee, the old LB who retired with the Bears in 74, replaces Joe Schmidt in Detroit.

Stadiums: The Lions move into the Pontiac Silverdome, and the Kings move into the brand new Kingdome.

TV Contract: CBS and NBC sign up until 1980 to cover the Sunday, Saturday, and Thanksgiving games. ABC renews it's deal to cover MNF until 1980.

NFL Championship future sites:
1977: Miami's Orange Bowl
1978: LA Coliseum
1979: Pontiac Silverdome

NFL 75
AFC East: The Bengals and Steelers battle until the last day for the title. The Bengals win their first AFC East title, and the Steelers get a WC. Miami, building a young D with rookies Neal Colzie and Gary "Big Hands" Johnson and John Matuszak and "Too Tall" Jones, challenge for a playoff spot and get the second WC. The Patriots are still competitive, but lose Griese and Csonka for stretches and finish 5-9. The aging Browns fall to 3-11, and Daryle Lamonica announces his retirement. Brian Sipe fills in admirably, and will get a look moving ahead.
AFC West: The 49ers, led by Ken Anderson, the "Soul Patrol" in the secondary, and rookie Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson, win the West. The Oilers, led by QB John Reaves, John Riggins, and WR's Charlie Joiner and veteran Otis Taylor, finish second. The Rams, with an aging defense, finish in third, the Colts in fourth, and St. Louis, with this being Gabriel's last season and breaking in a new QB, finish last.

NFC East: Don Shula's Eagles win the East again. The Redskins, with QB Danny White, new HC Don Coryell, RB Larry Brown, and Rookies Freddie Solomon and TE Walter White, get a playoff spot, along with the Greg Cook-led Falcons. Floyd Little, the Falcons all-time leader in rushing, retires at the end of the season. The Texans, led by Kenny Stabler, finish in fourth, but are competive, led by Kenny Stabler and Ahmad Rashad. The Giants slump to last, and Joe Namath announces his retirement.
NFC West: A wild three-team race between the Vikes, Bears, and Pack is decided on the next to last day. The Pack manage to pull it out. The Bears finish in second, and the Vikings third. The Kings manage to stay in it until the final few weeks, and the Lions finish with one of the worst records in the league.

NFL Playoffs
First round
AFC: Bengals 21, Dolphins 17
49ers 31, Steelers 17
NFC: Eagles 28, Falcons 17
Packers 14, Redskins 10
Championships
AFC: 49ers 17, Bengals 10
NFC: Eagles 31, Packers 14
NFL Championship(at Seattle Kingdome): Eagles 24, 49ers 10

1976
The new league starts offering contracts to NFL Players. Out of the prominent names, Kenny Stabler leaves the Texans to play for the New Orleans Hurricanes, Terry Metcalf leaves Green Bay to play in Los Angeles,
and Chuck Foreman leaves the Vikings to play with the Denver Broncos. They also come after certain rookies, like Chuck Muncie, who goes to the Rival league to play in New York, and Joe Washington, who signs with Phoenix.

Stadiums: The Colts move into the brand new Baltodome.

NFL Draft: The aging Giants, losing Namath, pick QB Richard Todd first overall. The Browns, with the second selection, take DE Lee Roy Selmon to rebuild an aging Defense. The Lions, picking third, take CB Mike Haynes. The Gunners select RB Mike Pruitt, the Colts select WR Billy Brooks, and the Pats select RB Bubba Bean. In other picks, the Champion Eagles select DE/OLB Kim Bokamper, The 49ers select Heisman winner Archie Griffin, and the Packers select RB Lawrence Gaines.

Labor news: The collective bargaining agreement runs out, and the players go on a strike that lasts training camp and part of the pre-season. They are after higher salaries, a higher pension, and, mainly, the Free Agency that Baseball was able to gain. They come back with a new five-year agreement by the middle of the pre-season, but it doesn't allow for FA.

Coaching: Tommy Prothro resigns from the Kings, and John McKay takes over his job.
Jack Patera takes over the Texan job from Abe Gibron.

NFL 76
AFC East: The Steelers and Bengals stay in their customary spots, with Pittsburgh regaining the East. The Bengals get a WC, along with the Dolphins, who have the best D in the league and add WR Sammy White to help out Jaworski. The Pats still are competitive, as Rookie RB Bubba Bean fills in admirably for injured RB Larry Csonka, but finish in fourth. Csonka announces that he will play in the USFL next year for the New Orleans Hurricanes. The Browns bring up the rear. Paul Warfield announces his retirement.
AFC West: The 49ers say this will be the year, and get the best record in the AFC. The up and coming Oilers, helped by rookies LB Larry Gordon and CB Pat Thomas, challenge for a WC and miss. The Colts come in third, the Gunners in fourth, and the aging Rams in last. Craig Morton leaves the Rams to go to the USFL's Denver Broncos for 77.
NFC East: Greg Cook's Falcons strike back to take the East in Tommy Nobis's last year, as the Falcons get a stronger offense bolstered by rookies Tony Galbreath, Ike Forte, and Butch Johnson. The Eagles, with injuries to Pastorini and O.J. Simpson, still get a Wild Card. There are rumblings that Simpson will be traded to the West Coast in the offseason.
The Redskins finish in third and get the other WC, while the Texans and Giants finish fourth and fifth.
NFC West: The Bears, led by QB's Joe Theismann and Billy Kilmer, who retires at the end of the season, win the West. Duane Thomas provides the Bears with good RB play, but also gives Coach Allen headaches. The Kings, in their first year with John McKay, battle for a playoff spot, and come up short. The Pack finish in fourth, the Vikes in fifth, and the Lions last.

Playoffs:
First round:
AFC: 49ers 27, Bengals 20
Steelers 17, Dolphins 10
NFC: Atlanta 14, Washington 10
Philadelphia 20, Chicago 14
Championships:
AFC: San Fran 24, Pittsburgh 14
NFC: Atlanta 21, Philadelphia 20
NFL Championship(At Pasadena's Rose Bowl) San Fran 34, Atlanta 17

1977

The USFL signs more rookies. The biggest signings are by New Orleans, who signs Tony Dorsett, and New York, who signs Marvin Powell. Also, the USFL expands to San Antonio(Gunslingers) and San Diego(Mariners).

NFL Draft: The Browns select USC RB Ricky Bell with the first overall pick. The Giants, picking second, select DE Eddie Edwards. Detroit, building defense, selects DT Wilson Whitley. The Rams have a few needs, to replace an aging D-line and Morton, who went to the USFL. They wanted Joe Roth, but he passed away of cancer. The second-best QB, they feel, is Tommy Kramer. So, they trade down to the 12th spot with the Colts and pick up an extra second rounder. The Colts pick DT Gary Jeter with the fourth overall pick, and the Rams use the 12th pick on QB Tommy Kramer. In other picks, the Champion Niners take WR Stanley Morgan, the Falcons take CB Raymond Clayborn, and the Steelers take LB Robin Cole. The Eagles, in a draft-day trade, move O.J. Simpson to the Rams for Lawrence McCutcheon and a first-round draft choice in 79.

NFL 77
AFC East: The Steelers, focused to get their title back, take the East with a 13-1 record. The Dolphins challenge for the East, and get a WC. The Bengals struggle with an 8-6 record as Bradshaw and Randy Gradishar miss most of the season with injuries. The Pats finish fourth, and the rebuilding Browns bring up the rear.
AFC West: The Niners still retain their West crown. The Oilers get the other playoff spot, the Colts, with Walter Payton, Dan Fouts, and Rookie DT Gary Jeter, challenge but come up short. The Gunners finish fourth, and the rebuilding Rams bring up the rear.
NFC East: The Falcons win it again, led by defensive reinforcements A.J. Duhe and Nolan Cromwell. The Redskins get a WC, led by Danny White, Walter White, Freddie Solomon, and new offensive rookies Wendell Tyler and Pete Johnson. The Eagles, struggling with injuries, finish in third. The Giants and Texans, with young later-round QB Jim Zorn replacing Ken Stabler and throwing to WR Steve Largent, bring up the rear.
NFC West: The Kings win their first ever division title. The Pack, with offensive reinforcements Tony Reed and Wesley Walker, get the WC. The Bears fight all year with QB Joe Theismann and old vet LB Mike Curtis, but finish third. Curtis announces his retirement at the end of the season. The Vikes finish fourth, and the Lions show some improvement but still finish last. It is apparent, however, that HC Jack Pardee is building a strong defense.

NFL Playoffs
First round:
AFC: Steelers 31, Oilers 10
Dolphins 17, 49ers 16
NFC: Atlanta 24, Green Bay 14
Seattle 21, Philly 17
Championships:
AFC: Steelers 28, Dolphins 10
NFC: Falcons 21, Kings 17
NFL Championship(at the Miami Orange Bowl): Steelers 35, Falcons 28

1978
Coaching Changes
Sam Rutigliano takes over for Nick Scorich in Cleveland.
Paul Brown resigns in Cincinnati to move to the front office. Forrest Gregg, former Packer assistant, takes his place.
Dan Devine resigns to take the Notre Dame job after Parseghian's successor fails, and Bart Starr takes over the HC job.

The new league announces expansion for the 79 season. The two new cities will be Tampa(Buccaneers) and Indianapolis(Racers). That brings it to ten teams.

NFL Draft: Dallas gets the first pick, and takes Earl Campbell of Texas. Cleveland takes WR Wes Chandler. The Rams select DE Art Still to rebuild their D-line. The Giants pick RB Terry Miller fourth. The Lions, with the fifth overall pick, take WR James Lofton of Stanford. Minnesota picks WR John Jefferson. The Pats take OL Chris Ward, and the Gunners take TE Ken McAfee. In other picks, the World Champ Steelers take TE Ozzie Newsome, the Falcons take LB John Anderson, and the 49ers take DT Don Latimer.

NFL 78

AFC East: The Steelers win it again, with a 11-3 record. The Dolphins go 10-4 and get a WC, and the Bengals bounce back to take the other WC. The Browns, led by Brian Sipe, Ricky Bell, Lee Roy Selmon, and rookies Wes Chandler and Larry Bethea, improve to fourth. The Pats, with aging QB Bob Griese and Bust RB Bubba Bean, finish last.
AFC West: The Niner machine just rolls along, racking up their fifth West Title in a row. The Colts finish in second and just miss a playoff spot. The Oilers, struggling with John Riggins' contract demands, Otis Taylor's retirement, and injuries to S Ken Houston and WR Charlie Joiner, fall to fourth behind Bum Phillips' improving Gunners. The Rams finish fifth, but O.J. Simpson has a 1,000 yard season, Tommy Kramer shows improvement, and Art Still is the defensive rookie of the year.
NFC East: In an exciting three-team race between Atlanta, Washington, and Philly, the Redskins take it on the last day. Philly gets a WC, and Atlanta misses the playoffs barely. Dallas finishes in fourth, but they have an exciting offense with QB Jim Zorn, WR Steve Largent, and RB Earl Campbell. The Rebuilding Giants finish last.
NFC West: The Kings, with Jim Plunkett, J.V. Cain, Wilbert Montgomery, Sherman White, and Mike McCoy, win the West by a game over the Packers, who get the WC. The Bears are a team in crisis. Duane Thomas, their trouble-making RB, was cut by George Allen. Also, it was announced that Allen might not be back for the 79 season as his contract expires. The Lions, with their improved defense, rookie WR James Lofton, and Gary Danielson, a QB that they drafted in the later rounds a few years ago, finish fourth. The Vikes finish last, despite the exploits of rookie WR John Jefferson and rookie QB Doug Williams, their second-round pick.

NFL Playoffs
First Round
AFC: Steelers 28, Bengals 17
49ers 21, Dolphins 10
NFC: Washington 28, Green Bay 21
Seattle 24, Philly 14
Championship Games
AFC: Steelers 31, 49ers 21
NFC: Washington 21, Seattle 17
NFL Championship Game(at LA Coliseum) Steelers 34, Redskins 17

With their fourth Super Bowl title, the Steelers are considered the team of the 70's.

1979

With talks of a possible merger between the NFL and USFL heating up, the USFL decides to decrease it's pursuit of NFL Players. They still get some of the college gems, like Tom Cousineau, Jack Thompson, and Al Harris.

The league announces where future NFL Championship games will be held:
1980: Rose Bowl
1981: Astrodome
1982: Minneapolis Metrodome
1983: Orange Bowl

Stadium News: The Vikings announce that, in 1982, they will move to a new dome in Minneapolis.

NFL Draft: With the first pick, Boston selects RB Ottis Anderson of Miami, Fla. Minnesota picks second, and adds strength to the D by taking DE Mike Bell. The Giants select WR Jerry Butler of Clemson. The Eagles, with the Ram's pick, select TE Kellen Winslow. Dallas selects DT Dan Hampton, Cleveland selects Barry Krauss, and Houston selects RB Charles Alexander, then trade RB John Riggins to Chicago for their first rounder, and choose hometown WR Willis Adams from Houston U. In other picks, The champ Steelers select DT Manu Tuiasosopo, the Redskins take LB Jerry Robinson, and the Niners select RB Eddie Lee Ivery after Archie Griffin bombs. As for QB's, after taking OT Kent Hill in round 2, Tom Landry and the Pats take a flier on a kid from Notre Dame named Joe Montana at the top of the third round. Phil Simms, who some had in the first, drops to the second round and the Eagles. Steve Fuller, another highly-touted prospect, goes to the Bears in the third.

Coaching Changes:
The Pats, floundering under HC Ken Meyer the last few years, fire him and bring in Tom Landry, who resigned with the declining Giants three years ago after he took, what he called, a much needed break from coaching.

George Allen, after some doubt, signs a new contract with the Bears through the 1982 season.

NFL 79:
AFC East: The Steelers, coming off back-to-back championships, struggle with the dreaded injury bug and finish a disappointing third. The Dolphins win their first division title, and Bradshaw's Bengals finish second and get a WC. The Browns finish a strong fourth, and Landry's way takes over in Foxboro as the Pats finish last.
AFC West: The Colts, under shrewd rebuilding by GM Don Klosterman over the past several years, finally put a team together to knock off the Niners. Dan Fouts, Walter Payton, Billy Brooks, and Rookies Al Harris and Dan Ross lead the Colt resurgence. The 49ers still get the second playoff spot, despite St. Louis's best efforts, led by WR Alfred Jenkins, QB Steve Bartkowski, RB Mike Pruitt, and DE Wally Chambers. The Oilers and Rams round out the division.
NFC East: Philadelphia, led by Dan Pastorini, Lawrence McCutcheon, and Rookie TE Kellen Winslow, win the East with an 11-3 mark. The NFC Champ Redskins come in second, and the Falcons, with help from defensive rookies Marty Lyons and Mark Gastineau, finish third and get the other Wild Card. The NFC Champ Skins get the second. The Texans keep improving, but are still a year or two away, same as the Giants.
NFC West: Green Bay wins the west by two games over Seattle, who suffer injuries to Jim Plunkett and Wilbert Montgomery. The Bears fight for a playoff spot as well, but come in third, right ahead of the improving Lions and Vikings.

Playoffs
First round
AFC: Miami 24, San Fran 14
Cincinnati 17, Baltimore 10
NFC: Philadelphia 14, Atlanta 7
Green Bay 24, Washington 10
Championship Games
AFC: Miami 28, Cincinnati 17
NFC: Green Bay 21, Philadelphia 10
NFL Championship(at Pontiac Silverdome): Miami 24, Green Bay 17

Part 5: The 80's and a Merger
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