Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

I know the term was first known as the red dog, but at some point I think around 1970 it was renamed the blitz. Was it always known as the red dog before that? Who is credited with coining the terms red dog and blitz with respect to football?

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know the term was first known as the red dog, but at some point I think around 1970 it was renamed the blitz. Was it always known as the red dog before that? Who is credited with coining the terms red dog and blitz with respect to football?

The late 50's New York Giants defense used the term "red dog." They are supposed to have coined it.

SixtiesFan wrote:

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know the term was first known as the red dog, but at some point I think around 1970 it was renamed the blitz. Was it always known as the red dog before that? Who is credited with coining the terms red dog and blitz with respect to football?

The late 50's New York Giants defense used the term "red dog." They are supposed to have coined it.

It was actually the late '40s, when the Giants had an LB named Don Ettinger, whose nickname was "Red Dog."

Rupert Patrick wrote:I know the term was first known as the red dog, but at some point I think around 1970 it was renamed the blitz. Was it always known as the red dog before that? Who is credited with coining the terms red dog and blitz with respect to football?

A red dog was a 6-man rush in the days of the 5-man defensive line, so it was just one LB going after the QB. The term "blitz" originally meant a 7-man rush, i.e. 2 LBs rushing the QB, so it must have originated soon after the red dog.

Also a Red Dog refers specifically to a linebacker rushing (in addition to the normal scheme).

A Blitz can be any player (e.g. a Safety Blitz) in addition to the normal scheme.

I did a search in Newspapers.com, and the first time I found a reference to the term "Blitz" in military terms was in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on 8/21/39. In all previous findings of the word Blitz, it was a last name of a person. After WWII it soon became a part of the amalgamated English language.

Rupert Patrick wrote:I did a search in Newspapers.com, and the first time I found a reference to the term "Blitz" in military terms was in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on 8/21/39. In all previous findings of the word Blitz, it was a last name of a person. After WWII it soon became a part of the amalgamated English language.

Of course, the military use was a shortening of the German "blitzkrieg," meaning "lightning war," which was the combination of a preliminary bombing raid followed by an armored and motorized attack. The longer form was used in English at least as early as 1935.