Pete Rozelle Interview (page: 8 / 9) Pro Football Hall of Fame	Print Interview

You mentioned that drawn-out litigation really gets you down. Could you tell us a little about the Al Davis matter, and what a mess that was for you?

Get the Flash Player to see this video. Pete Rozelle: That was a direct challenge to the NFL constitution, which said you have to have a three-quarters approving vote if you're going to move your franchise. And we had Davis challenge that in his move from Oakland to Los Angeles. And it was sitting there in the constitution, and I couldn't just say, "Oh, I'm not going to press this." I brought it to the attention of the owners, and I said, "I think we have to defend this constitution." So we had two trials over a couple of years. They were long ones. And the trial was in Los Angeles, where he ultimately won with the jury. So he was permitted to move from Oakland to Los Angeles. And that decision in itself triggered a couple of other moves. From Baltimore to Indianapolis, that bothered people in the Baltimore area of course. But stability is a great thing in sports, and the fans feel a definite loss when they lose a franchise, it's not good for a sport.

[ Key to Success ] Integrity

That was a particularly long and ugly battle with Al Davis. He seems to have been somebody that did get under your skin.

Pete Rozelle: Sure. It bothered me and a lot of other people in the NFL. I find it difficult to accept. You have someone that agrees to be a part of a league. And the basis for the league is this constitution which the league members write up. These are the rules we are going to abide by. They all agree to abide by them. And then one of them, using the antitrust laws of the country, says, "Well, I want to move my franchise, and this is an illegal rule," after he agreed to accept it. And that part, I found difficult to accept. The other thing that particularly bothered me with Al was he found fit to testify for the United States Football League when that league was operated partially by Donald Trump. Filed suit against the NFL. He testified for them. And they won kind of a partial victory, I think they won a dollar -- treble was three dollars, they got -- after a lengthy trial in New York. But those two instances were really annoying.

There were some extraordinary incidents in Gene Klein's book about the team owners. Do you remember an incident with the bathroom, and people running after each other?

Pete Rozelle: No, I wasn't there. That was the AFL before the merger. Wait a minute! I remember one very heavy verbal attack, and we will forget who it was against, but it was George Halas, the founder of the league. He got so mad at this owner once at a meeting, and he said, "This man is full of ____! This man is a liar! This man is a cheat! This man is full of chicanery!" He even went way back, remembered the word from the distant far ages, but he was very heated. And there was something, to see George Halas so emotional.

You were able to soothe the savage beasts on a lot of occasions.

Pete Rozelle: There was some of that, but also there was a lot of cooperation. They were a good bunch, all quite different, but in the final analysis, they did a good job of staying together enough to build a league.

When Al Davis won the right to move the team, did you feel that was in some ways the beginning of the end?

Pete Rozelle: I knew it. Because I knew it could cause problems, as it did with the transfer of the Baltimore franchise, and the franchise from St. Louis to Phoenix as an aftermath of that suit.

Did you think that cost you the loyalty of some of the fans?

Pete Rozelle: They obviously were very upset about it. I don't think it helped the image of the league too much.

Al Davis isn't very popular in L.A. or Oakland either.

Pete Rozelle: He sure had success with building a pretty good football team, on occasion. The Oakland people wouldn't care for Al, I guess.

Looking back at your career, and how young people might learn from your example, what personal characteristics do you think are most important for success?

Pete Rozelle: Education. Thorough preparation. Patience. Understanding. Communication with people. Those are the ones that I would think of.

Looking at your career, I think that confidence must be important too.

Pete Rozelle: You have to believe in something that you're trying to sell, or it doesn't come across very well, so you have to be confident of positions after you've researched them. If you're going to take that position, you have to have confidence in that support.

Don't you also have to be somewhat fearless about making an unpopular decision?

Pete Rozelle: You can't make decisions based upon whether it will be popular or not. You have to make decisions based on whether they're right.

That's hard for kids to do.

Pete Rozelle: Sure. For some adults too.

What do you think were the most difficult challenges in your career? It seems like a very smooth road. Were there any tough times?

Pete Rozelle: Not really on a major basis. We lost the court case when the Raiders moved, so now you have more or less free agency on the part of franchises. They move from city to city. I thought that was a loss. But I tend to discount extreme praise or extreme criticism. You just have to do what you think is right.

Is it tough to balance professional success -- a career that involves tremendous commitment and time -- and a personal life?

Pete Rozelle: It's difficult. You really have to do it as best you can. Because your family is important too. You can't be so totally absorbed that you are not involved in their activities as well. So, I tried to divorce the two as best I could.

It seems like your wife and family are very important to you.

Pete Rozelle: Yes. I try to keep them out of the limelight as best I can. And they've done so, pretty much. I think it's healthy.

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