Tom Matte Trucks the BFT

As if being a former Pro-Bowler and a former Super Bowl champion wasn’t enough, former Baltimore Colts running back Tom Matte is also an Eagle Scout and an inductee into the Boy Scouts of America’s Hall of Fame. He joined the BFT on Wednesday to discuss his NFL career and his work within the sport after his playing days.

Right away Matte was jokingly asked which was more difficult: winning a Super Bowl or becoming an Eagle Scout. Matte responded that while he worked hard to become an Eagle Scout, winning a Super Bowl was, “a little tougher.”

Matte played his entire NFL career from 1961-1972 with the Baltimore Colts, which afforded him the opportunity to play with NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas. When asked about the Hall of Famer, Matte said that he believes Unitas was the greatest quarterback of all time. He went on to state that he felt Unitas was ahead of his time, evidenced by his advanced ability to read defenses.

“He [also] had a great touch on the ball,” Matte said of Unitas. “And boy, you better catch [the ball], because you didn’t want to come back to the huddle if you dropped it.”

Another player that Matte had the privilege to play with was former linebacker Mike Curtis, who was known around the league and in the media by his nickname “Mad Dog.” Matte revealed that he was actually the one to give Curtis the nickname during a team dinner New Orleans when the Colts were in town for a preseason game.

“I said [to the waiter], ‘Now be careful when you go over there – the guy over there is nicknamed Mad Dog Curtis’,” Matte explained. “Mike got so upset with because I started calling him ‘Mad Dog Curtis,’ and then everybody [on the team] picked up on it and the press picked up on it [as well].”

Now long-since retired from running between the tackles on the gridiron, Matte has now shifted his involvement in the sport towards the NFL Legends Keepr Cards, a new type of player trading card that plugs into a computer via USB to give the card owner an even further in-depth look into the game. Matte said that one card would feature “about 45-50 minutes of content,” including statistics and game footage archived by NFL Films. Matte also pointed out that a portion of the proceeds would go towards the NFL Player Care Foundation, a charity designed to aid former players and their families. The first series of ten cards was released last year, and according to Matte 32 new cards will be released this year. For more information on, visit KeeprMedia.com.

To listen to the entire interview, click below: