Cliff Branch Finally On HOF Doorstep

After 32 years of waiting, Cliff Branch was selected by the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s senior committee Tuesday afternoon as its nominee for inclusion in the 2022 Hall of Fame class of inductees. If there’s one Hall of Famer who wasn’t surprised it was Branch’s long-time nemesis, former Pittsburgh Steelers’ cornerback Mel Blount.

“Cliff Branch was the real deal,” Blount said of Branch recently. “He was a threat every time he stepped on the field. You look at what he did and you look at the people in the Hall of Fame and I will tell you this: I’m in the Hall of Fame because of Cliff Branch.

“This is why: in 1974, we were in the AFC Championship Game in Oakland and it was one of the worst games of my career. It was made that way because of Cliff Branch. He scored against me and had nearly 200 yards receiving against me. Cliff embarrassed me so badly that Chuck Noll said something to defensive coordinator Bud Carson and Bud took me out of the game.”

That day Branch had nine receptions for 186 yards and a touchdown while averaging 20.67 yards per catch in the fifth of what would become 22 playoff game appearances. By the time Branch’s career was over, he would retire with the most playoff receiving yardage in history, 1,289. That record would later be eclipsed by Jerry Rice but 36 years after Branch retired in 1985 those playoff numbers still rank fourth all-time behind Rice (2,245), Julian Edelman (1,442) and Michael Irvin (1,315). That is production at the most critical of moments.

Branch was a speed receiver who was more than just fast. He was Olympic Games fast. A world-class sprinter at the University of Colorado, Branch came into the NFL with suspect hands and only minimal understanding of how to run routes. It took him two years to hone those skills but when he did he had a breakout season in 1974 with 1,092 receiving yards and a phenomenal 13 touchdowns while averaging 18.2 yards per catch.

Two years later, Branch had 46 receptions and converted them into 1,111 yards, an AVERAGE of 24.2 yards per catch. That was the second of three straight first-team All-Pro seasons and the third of four straight Pro Bowl selections.

Branch led the NFL in receiving touchdowns in both 1974 and 1976 while establishing himself as one of the most feared deep threats in football. In those days the Raiders loved the vertical passing game not only because of Branch’s home run hitting ability but also because his speed forced teams to play a safety over the top, opening up the under belly of opposing defenses for future Hall of Famers Fred Biletnikoff and Dave Casper.

Branch was not only someone defenses had to account for on every play but also the key that unlocked the rest of the Raiders’ passing game because of the attention that had to be paid to him.

“In effect, the smallest man on the field was a key to our passing and running attack,” said Casper who, like Biletnikoff and Marcus Allen, credits Branch’s presence as a major contributing factor to himself being a Hall of Famer.

Allen certainly has made clear he feels the same way. When Branch failed to be named to the Hall as part of last year’s Centennial Class of inductees, Allen was outspoken about what he believed was a grave injustice that may finally be rectified when the full Hall of Fame Selection Committee votes on the entire 2022 slate of finalists in January. In his mind, Cliff Branch was more than a game breaker. He was a game changer.

“Clearly a guy who changed the game,’’ Allen insisted. “Changed coverages. Changed the way defense is played. Certainly opened up things for everybody else. Could have been the MVP when they beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl when he scored those two touchdowns.

“It was not only in the regular season, it was in the postseason. It was everything. There’s some people that just change the game. Like Bob Hayes changed the game, Cliff was one of those guys. Without Cliff Branch there’s no Freddy, there’s no Marcus (Allen), there’s no Todd Christensen, you know what I mean?”

Branch started on all three Raiders Super Bowl winning teams, producing 14 receptions for 181 yards and three scores in those games. He would also start 14 games in 1984, a year after the Raiders final Super Bowl victory, before retiring after playing in only four games in 1985. When he was finally finished terrorizing defensive backs like Mel Blount, Branch had compiled 501 career receptions for 8,685 yards and 67 touchdowns, an average of 17.3 yards per catch. While those numbers may pale in comparison to today’s pass-happy, hands-off-the-receivers game, they were certainly Hall of Fame worthy for a guy playing at a time when teams averaged 12.8 completions per game and 37.4 runs, as they did in 1977.

Now he stands one final vote from football immortality. He may have taken the slow route to Canton but if he did it’s the only time Cliff Branch ever did anything slowly when it came to the game of football.