Bill Tobin dies at age 83

[HisRoyalSweetness]

Bill Tobin, longtime NFL executive, dies at age 83

Longtime NFL general manager and scout, Bill Tobin, has died, the Bengals announced on Friday. He was 83.

Tobin spent 27 years as an executive with the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions. He rounded out his successful career as an area scout for the Cincinnati Bengals the past two decades, working alongside his son, Duke Tobin, the team's director of player personnel since 1999.
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Bill Tobin was instrumental in building the Bears' famed 1985 team that went 18-1 en route to winning Super Bowl XX before landing the franchise's director of player personnel role in 1987. His first draft pick under that title was quarterback Jim Harbaugh, the current head of coach of the Los Angeles Chargers. Bill Tobin was at the helm in Chicago until 1992, overseeing a Bears team that made four playoff appearances in that span.

From 1994-1996, Tobin served as the Colts' GM and built a team that made an unlikely run to the AFC Championship Game in 1995. He selected Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk and Marvin Harrison during that stint, but his first-round selection of Trev Alberts during the 1994 NFL Draft brought a memorable moment that perhaps changed the viewing experience of the draft forever.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper instantly criticized Tobin's selection of Alberts, and in a follow-up interview with the late Chris Mortensen on the broadcast, Tobin famously asked, "Who in the hell is Mel Kiper anyway?"
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During his 11 seasons as a GM/director of player personnel, Tobin selected 10 Pro Bowlers and two Hall of Fame players in addition to his time with the Bears in the 1980s. Tobin also had a hand in identifying notable players during his time in Cincinnati, recommending the selection of longtime defensive tackle Geno Atkins and cross-checking the Bengals' recent selections of QB Joe Burrow and wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase.
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Full article: https://www.nfl.com/news/bill-tobin-lon ... -at-age-83

[HisRoyalSweetness]

Former Bears executive Bill Tobin dies at age 83

Bill Tobin, an 18-year Bears executive who served as the team’s de facto general manager from 1986-92, has died at 83, the Bengals announced Friday.

Tobin worked for the Bears from 1975-1993, during which the franchise won one Super Bowl and made the playoffs nine times. A former Missouri running back, Tobin became the Bears’ pro scouting director in 1975 and was named player personnel director nine years later.

With Tobin as vice president of personnel — the de facto GM spot — the Bears finished first in their division three times. They made the playoffs four times, winning one game in both 1988 and 1990.

During his 18 years with the franchise, the Bears drafted five Pro Football Hall of Famers —running back Walter Payton, defensive linemen Dan Hampton and Richard Dent, linebacker Mike Singletary and offensive lineman Jimbo Covert — and signed a sixth. Defensive lineman Steve McMichael, who will be inducted into the Hall in August, was a free-agent addition in 1980. In 1983, Tobin pushed for the Bears to draft Dent out of Tennessee State — and they did in Round 8.

“Bill was relentless in pursuing a single goal: making the Bears better,” Bears chairman George McCaskey said in a statement released by the team. “He had a keen eye for talent and he passionately advocated for players he believed in. He helped build the greatest team in NFL history — the ’85 Bears — and for that we are forever grateful.”
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Full article: https://chicago.suntimes.com/bears/2024 ... -executive

[thunderspirit]

[Johnny Bollocks]

Was he any relation to Vince Tobin (DC who took over the reigns when Buddy Ryan left)?

[HisRoyalSweetness]

Yes, they were brothers.

[Bearfacts]

[Grizzled]

Pushed for Dent to be drafted. During his entire Bears career, they drafted 5 HOFers: Walter, Hampton, Dent, Singletary, and Covert. They also signed McMichael as a FA. A golden era for the team. RIP.

[wulfy]

Mel was right on Trev Albert, btw.

[Yogi da Bear]

Mel was right on Trev Albert, btw.

Kinda. I could be wrong, but as I remember it, Kiper was all over him for not taking Trent Dilfer. Albert was out of the league in three years because of injuries, while Dilfer became the suckiest QB to ever win a Super Bowl (with a team other than the one who drafted him). His second year, he had 4 TDs and 18 picks. The next year, he had 12 TDs and 19 picks. He won the Super Bowl in the only year he played for the Ravens, throwing for 1500 yards, 12 TDs and 11 picks. For his career, he had 113 TDs and 129 picks and a 56% completion percentage. Certainly nothing to write home about. Hard to say how good Albert would have been without the injuries.

[Bearfacts]

Pushed for Dent to be drafted. During his entire Bears career, they drafted 5 HOFers: Walter, Hampton, Dent, Singletary, and Covert. They also signed McMichael as a FA. A golden era for the team. RIP.

I'm truly hoping we see another era like that under Poles and Cunningham.

[Grizzled]

Pushed for Dent to be drafted. During his entire Bears career, they drafted 5 HOFers: Walter, Hampton, Dent, Singletary, and Covert. They also signed McMichael as a FA. A golden era for the team. RIP.

I'm truly hoping we see another era like that under Poles and Cunningham.

From '84 through '91, the team's record was 87-37 with a SB win and NFC Central every year but '89 and '91. '89 was a down year, 6-10 but every other saw double digit wins.Tobin wasn't there for all of it but I could enjoy an era like that again.