Football’s darkest of days

As mourners filed past the coffin of the slain John F Kennedy in the US capital, 140 miles away the Washington Redskins kicked off against the Philadelphia Eagles.

The date was November 24, 1963, and it was less than 48 hours since President Kennedy had been shot in Dallas, sending a shocked nation into mourning.

The players would rather have been anywhere else as the game began at Franklin Field, but against the advice — even pleas — of most of the club owners, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle had ruled the weekend’s full slate of games should go ahead.