Athlete. Omaha Westside Class of 1957. The youngest sibling of Nebraska’s most famous athletic family, Pat Fischer was a great high school athlete, gaining football all-state honors in 1956. At Nebraska, his big plays sometimes were the highlights of the season, especially a punt return which beat Penn State, 7-6.
Fischer made his athletic mark in the National Football League, playing 17 years and starting a then record 212 straight games, playing cornerback for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1961 to 1967, and the Wash
ington Redskins from 1968 to 1977.
Fischer joined the NFL as the 17th-round draft choice of St. Louis in the 1961 NFL Draft. He then signed with Washington as a free agent in 1968. He was a 1969 Pro Bowler. Fischer then helped lead the Redskins to Super Bowl VII in 1972. He finished his 17-year career with 56 interceptions, and ranked seventh all-time in Redskins career interceptions with 27 and fourth all-time with 412 career interception return yards. At the time of his retirement Pat Fischer had played in 213 NFL games, then a record for a cornerback. During his NFL career, Pat Fischer was well known to opposing teams as a vicious hitter and a tremendous competitor, despite the reputation as an affable person off the field.
In the late 1980’s, NFL Films named Fischer as the Redskins All-Time Netrulizer sponsored by Tums. After retiring from the Redskins, Fischer worked as a stockbroker and owned a successful real estate business.
