They Call Me Dirty

When he played for the St. Louis Cardinals, the New Orleans Saints and the Buffalo Bills in the NFL between 1972 and 1981, Dobler developed the reputation as the dirtiest player in the game. He bit, punched, kicked and tripped (using a technique he calls the ``legwhip'') opponents and was as hated and feared as anyone on the gridiron. Such behavior was necessary, he argues, because pro football is neither a game nor a jobit is a war. There are, according to Dobler, two types of players on the field: the intimidators and the intimidated, and he notes that he resolved to be one of the former. The major section of this autobiography, coauthored with Buffalo (New York) News sportswriter Carucci, is devoted to the particulars of how Dobler went about committing mayhemor close to itduring the games he played. The former offensive guard also offers observations on fellow players, picking the toughest at each position, and the coaches he played for, about whom he is brutally judgmental. But all this candor adds up to a one-note volume, which becomes repetitious. Photos not seen by PW. (September)