Historical clue formulations

• Smack, as flies — 2026-08-18
• Slap (at) — 2026-02-05
• Pop flies? — 2025-07-26
• Hit with a smack — 2025-05-18
• Sacrifice a fly? — 2025-01-08
• Give a thwack — 2024-07-23
• Beat the buzzer? — 2023-09-23
• Whack, as a fly — 2023-09-19
• Flatten, as a fly — 2023-03-27
• Whack — 2023-02-19
• Give a "Whap!" — 2020-12-30
• Big bat — 2020-11-22
• De-bug? — 2020-11-01
• Clock — 2019-10-05
• Whack — 2019-09-22
• Big smack — 2019-08-25
• Hit hard — 2019-08-18
• Pop a fly? — 2018-12-10
• Pop flies? — 2018-11-27
• Letters on some bulletproof vests — 2018-02-10
• Big hit — 2017-04-14
• ___ team (police unit) — 2016-10-04
• Whack — 2016-06-23
• Whack with a newspaper, perhaps — 2015-12-02
• Attempt to debug? — 2015-11-22
• Try to beat the buzzer? — 2015-07-24
• Hit hard — 2015-03-15
• Whack — 2014-09-24
• Sultan of ___ (nickname for 15-Across) — 2014-06-16
• Hit with a rolled-up newspaper, maybe — 2013-07-15
• Performer of high-risk operations — 2013-05-25
• Police jacket letters — 2012-10-31
• Hit, as a fly — 2012-06-11
• Whack, as a fly — 2012-04-16
• Sacrifice fly? — 2010-12-31
• Smack hard — 2010-04-20
• Clock — 2010-04-09
• Sultan of ___ (Babe Ruth) — 2010-03-30
• Hit hard — 2009-03-08
• Team letters — 2008-03-20
• Go for, as a fly — 2007-05-21
• Go after, as flies — 2006-03-20
• Hit hard — 2005-12-16
• Swing that rips the leather off the ball — 2005-11-07
• Big baseball hit — 2005-07-11
• ___ team (police group) — 2005-05-23
• Try to hit, as a housefly — 2005-05-09
• Big blow — 2005-01-26
• Belt — 2005-01-02
• Hostage crisis group — 2004-12-26