NFL executive Bill Granholm recalled that it was Hirsch's ability to make the overhead or over-the-shoulder catch that set him apart: "He would run down the field with his chin high in the air -- with his head all the way back. Under a long pass, he didn't look left or right as they do today -- he looked up and back at the ball as it came to him over his head. . . . e put his head between the ball and the defensive back. That's how he caught so many bombs."