Artifacts located in the Chiefs Hall of Honor or stored in the team's offices inside the caves of SubTropolis represent powerful tools that bring the team's and the American Football League's history to life. They forge an emotional connection that crosses time and space, bringing fans closer to the past in a way that words alone often cannot do. Over the coming year, look as we identify a team artifact and tell you its story.
Film study of games and upcoming opponents represents a significant part of the NFL culture. Yet, few children who visit the Chiefs Hall of Honor recognize coach Hank Stram's film projector when they see it.
To no surprise, film shown on a projector is no longer used by teams, and has been replaced by digital, which can be available at an instant's notice. Film shot of games and practice had to be sent out to be developed and could lead to lengthy processing.
In the early days of the NFL, staff would routinely head out after each game to have the footage developed, then cut-up for the various position coaches to show to their players as soon as possible.
I can still recall the whirring sound of a projector running back and forth as I passed by the rooms of coaches as they led studies of what challenges the next game's opponent would offer their charges.
NFL Films officially abandoned 16 mm film for games in 2014, transitioning to digital cameras to speed up their workflow. The company still uses its archives of over 100 million feet of film for documentaries and historical productions.
Individual NFL teams use high-definition digital video for coaches that is easy to capture, then indexed by software and reviewed on tablets (the large 3-ringed binders prepared for players holding pages of plays have disappeared) and on computer screens.
