Old School Heroes of the NFL: Danny Fortmann

It really is astonishing how one reaction can lead to another and in this case led to Danny Fortmann being inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1965. Thats exactly what happen though back in 1936 when the NFL decided to hold their first ever draft. As teams were not prepared each coach only had a couple handfuls of players on their lists with a nine round draft. As the final pick came to be Chicago Bears head coach George Halas did not have any name left that he recognized so he just said, "I like that name. I'll take him!" after seeing Danny Fortmann's name.

So at the age of just only 20 Fortmann became the youngest player to start in the NFL. In today's game 6'0" tall and 210 is not even close to an offensive lineman in the league and even in 1936 coach Halas had his doubts after getting a good look at the future Hall of Famer. From 36' to 1943 Danny Fortmann became one of the best blockers in the league paired up with #1 pick for the Bears in 1936 Joe Stydahar who spent the next eight years side by side helping Chicago win 5 division titles over that span including 3 NFL championships. The one in 1943 came blocking for the big bruising Hall of Fame running back Bronko Nagurski in Fortmann's final season.

While is NFL accomplishments spoke for themselves it was his off the field journey that made him the man he became. After already enrolling in medical school prior to the 36' draft, Fortmann pursued a his career as a doctor while playing for the Bears for eight seasons. After his retirement he then became the Los Angeles Rams team physician that lasted from 1947-1963. The same year he was inducted into the Hall of Fame (1965) he also became the chief of staff at the St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, California.

One of Fortmann's prized possession of the glory days was a coin that he kept from the 1940 NFL Championship game they played against the Washington Redskins who they had lost against earlier in the season 7-3 on several questionable calls. In the weeks leading up to the championship Redskins owner George Marshall called the Bears "cry babies" which prompted Bears coach George Halas to bring up the remarks repeatedly until the rematch during the NFL Championship. Fortmann won the coin toss and chose to receive in which the worst loss in Championship history occurred when the Bears routed the Redskins 73-0. Just goes to show that even 68 years ago taunting the other team was never a good idea. One memory Fortmann never forgot and thanks to the Pro Football Hall of Fame we'll never forget him.