| No. 14, 18, 17, 11 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1942-07-18)July 18, 1942 (age 83) Lebanon, Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||
| Weight | 197 lb (89 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Lebanon (Lebanon, Pennsylvania) | ||||||||
| College | Maryland | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1964: 7th round, 87th overall pick | ||||||||
| AFL draft | 1964: 20th round, 155th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Richard Earl Shiner (born July 18, 1942) is an American former professionalfootball player who was aquarterback for 11 seasons in theNational Football League (NFL) from 1964 to 1974 for theWashington Redskins,Cleveland Browns,Pittsburgh Steelers,New York Giants,Atlanta Falcons, andNew England Patriots. He playedcollege football for theMaryland Terrapins.
He playedcollege football at theUniversity of Maryland, College Park. In his first collegiate start, Shiner led theTerrapins to the school's first victory againstPenn State in the37-game series.[1]
Shiner was selected in the seventh round of the1964 NFL draft by theWashington Redskins. Shiner was also selected in the 20th round of the1964 AFL draft by theNew York Jets.
Shiner played sparingly in his first four seasons in the NFL. From 1964 to 1966 with the Redskins, he backed up future Hall of Fame quarterbackSonny Jurgensen and started only one game, in 1965. Moving to theCleveland Browns for 1967, Shiner was a backup to former All-ProFrank Ryan, and again saw few chances to play, starting no games and attempting only nine passes all season.[2]
Shiner's big break came on May 14, 1968, when the Browns traded Shiner, a draft choice to be named later and defensive tackle Frank Parker to thePittsburgh Steelers for another quarterback,Bill Nelsen, and safetyJim Bradshaw, with both quarterbacks getting more playing chances with their new teams.[3] Shiner took over as the starting quarterback for the Steelers in week 4 fromKent Nix, in a game in Cleveland against the Browns, facing Nelsen. Shiner started the rest of the season. He went on to start nine games for the 1969 Steelers (the first season in whichChuck Noll served as Steelers head coach), including their Opening Day win over the Detroit Lions. That first win was the only one of the season, with the Steelers going 1–13 on the year, with a defense that gave up the most points in the NFL—an average of nearly 29 points per game. Fittingly, the final play of the 1969 season saw Shiner sacked by theNew Orleans Saints'Doug Atkins on the final play of Atkins' Hall of Fame career.[4][5][6]
After Pittsburgh took future Hall of Fame quarterbackTerry Bradshaw with the first pick of the 1970 draft, Shiner was traded to theNew York Giants in April, 1970 for running backJohn "Frenchy" Fuqua and linebackerHenry Davis.[7] and backed up yet another Hall of Fame quarterback,Fran Tarkenton . After one season with the Giants, he moved on to theAtlanta Falcons.
On September 16, 1973, while playing for the Falcons in a game against theNew Orleans Saints, Shiner became thefirst person to post a perfect passer rating, during what was the first season in which the statistic was officially kept. However, multiple other quarterbacks are recognized retroactively to have accomplished this feat prior to the1973 season.[citation needed] Shiner completed 13 of 15 pass attempts for 227 yards and 3 touchdowns, with no interceptions in a 62-7 destruction of Atlanta's archrival. The next week in being shut out against theRams, Shiner would go on to post a lowest possible 0.0 QB rating (unofficially, as he only attempted nine passes).[8] He ended up in New England midway through the season where once again, Shiner's role was to be the backup to a prominent quarterback—this timeJim Plunkett. He appeared in one game completing two of four passes as the Patriots blew out Houston 32-0 in week 11.
Shiner's career came to a close with one game for the 1974New England Patriots. He was sent into his only appearance in the 1974 regular season with the Patriots holding a 35–3 lead against theBaltimore Colts. After leading the Patriots on an 80-yard touchdown drive, Shiner took himself out of the game to give third-string quarterbackNeil Graff a chance to play in Graff's first NFL regular-season contest. In an interview four decades later, Shiner said, "I wanted Neil Graff to get experience. Neil was a good kid, and I knew my time in the NFL was coming to an end."[9]
After retiring from the NFL, Shiner worked in the beer distribution and copier businesses. After retiring, he has been the backfield coach for the football team atBishop McDevitt High School inHarrisburg, Pennsylvania[10] and has also been an assistant coach at Hershey High School inHershey, Pennsylvania.[11]In 2007, Shiner was named a member of theAtlantic Coast Conference Football Legends Class. He also is a member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Hall of Fame, Maryland M Club Hall of Fame, andLebanon (PA) High School Hall of Fame.