Howard Wayne Kindig, Jr. (born June 22, 1941) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

who played ten seasons in the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...

and the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

, mainly with the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

. Kindig started his NFL career as a defensive end with the San Diego Chargers in 1965. After 3 seasons with San Diego he moved to the Bills, where he played defensive end, offensive tackle and

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

. Kindig decided to retire after the 1971 season with the Bills, but the Miami Dolphins traded for his rights in exchange for

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

Frank Cornish and a conditional draft pick. Kindig was able to make the Dolphins 1972 team after

Jim Langer James John Langer (May 16, 1948 – August 29, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various ...

beat out Miami's 1971 starting center Bob DeMarco for the 1972 starting center position and DeMarco did not want to serve as the backup, opening a spot for Kindig. Kindig was the

long snapper In American football, the long snapper (or deep snapper) is a center on special teams whose duty is to snap the football over a longer distance, typically around 15 yards during punts, and 7–8 yards during field goals and extra point att ...

for the undefeated

1972 Miami Dolphins The 1972 Miami Dolphins season was the franchise's seventh season and third in the National Football League (NFL). The team was led by third-year head coach Don Shula and achieved the only perfect season in NFL history. They also led the league ...

, which completed a 17-0 season by defeating the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

in Super Bowl VII. After the Super Bowl, Redskin coach

George Allen George Allen may refer to: Politics and law * George E. Allen (1896–1973), American political operative and one-time head coach of the Cumberland University football team * George Allen (Australian politician) (1800–1877), Mayor of Sydney and ...

claimed that one of the key plays in Miami's victory was a penalty Kindig drew on Washington

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

Harold McLinton, when McLinton attempted to steal the ball from Kindig when he was long snapping on a punt, and the penalty allowed Miami to retain possession of the ball. Kindig broke his thumb during the 1973 preseason and missed the entire season, in which Miami won a 2nd consecutive Super Bowl. Kindig was traded by Miami to the Redskins before the 1974 season in exchange for a draft pick, but was cut by the Redskins before the 1974 season began. He started the 1974 season with the

Jacksonville Sharks The Jacksonville Sharks are a professional indoor football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, playing their home games at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Beginning in 2017, the Sharks began play as charter members of the National Arena Leag ...

of the

World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest t ...

after signing a contract that was supppsed to pay him $75,000 per year for three years. He signed with the NFL

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

after the Sharks stopped paying its players and disbanded in the middle of the 1974 season. He returned to the WFL with the

Jacksonville Express The Jacksonville Express were a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida which competed in the World Football League (WFL) in 1975. They were preceded in 1974 by the WFL's Jacksonville Sharks, though the two teams had s ...

for the 1975 season but was released before the end of the season.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kindig, Howard 1941 births Living people People from Mexico, Missouri Players of American football from Missouri American football centers American football defensive ends American football offensive tackles San Diego Chargers players Buffalo Bills players Miami Dolphins players New York Jets players Cal State Los Angeles Diablos football players American Football League players Jacksonville Sharks (WFL) players Jacksonville Express players

See also

References