Happy 85th birthday to Riley Mattson! Mattson played tackle for five seasons in the NFL: four with the Washington Redskins and one with the Chicago Bears. The New Orleans Saints acquired him from the Bears in the 1967 NFL Expansion Draft, but he opted to retire instead. (He did appear on a card for the Saints, though.)
Pictured here is Mattson’s rookie card, a 1963 Topps. Like all of the Redskins cards in the 1963 Topps set, it one of the tough short prints. To see how the Redskins and several other teams were short printed, see the Gallery’s 1963 Topps virtual uncut sheet page.
Mattson appears on a few other cards in the Gallery, as well–an impressive showing for an offensive lineman.
