Mel Tom
American football player (1941–2006)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Melvyn Maile Tom (August 4, 1941 – April 27, 2006) was an American professional football defensive lineman who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears.[1]
Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Kailua, Hawaii, U.S.
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| No. 58, 99, 89 | |||||||||
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| Position | Defensive end | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | August 4, 1941 Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | April 27, 2006 (aged 64) Kailua, Hawaii, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 249 lb (113 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Maryknoll (Honolulu) | ||||||||
| College | |||||||||
| NFL draft | 1966: 6th round, 89th overall pick | ||||||||
| AFL draft | 1966: Red Shirt 9th round, 80th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Early life
Professional career
Philadelphia Eagles
Tom was drafted by the Eagles in the sixth round of the 1966 NFL Draft as a "futures pick".[4] Tom signed with the Eagles in 1967.[5] He finished his rookie season with five sacks.[6] He was named to the UPI NFL All-Rookie Team.[7]
During the 1968 season, Tom committed a roughing the punter penalty in the final two minutes of a 7-6 Eagles loss to the Giants.[8] He finished the season with 5.5 sacks.[6] He was voted as team MVP by his teammates.[2]
Heading into the 1969 season, Eagles General Manager Pete Retzlaff deemed the Eagles defensive line to be the team's strong point, with Tom being among the players Retzlaff highlighted.[9] Tom finished the season with four sacks and a safety.[6]
Heading into the 1970 season, Tom was described by the New York Times as one of the Eagles "few first-rate players."[10] Tom finished the season with a career-high 7.5 sacks and a fumble recovered.[6]
In 1971, Tom was fined $1,000 for a block that knocked Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach unconscious.[11][12] After being fined, Tom claimed that "It's more or less an unwritten rule in this league that you're not supposed to hit the quarterback hard."[12] NFL executive director Jim Kensil refuted the existence of that 'unwritten rule'.[12] Later that season, when Ed Khayat was hired as head coach he instituted a no facial hair policy.[13] Tom, who had a mustache, proposed only shaving off half of his mustache, a request which was refused.[13] After the season, Tom was listed as an honorable mention to the UPI National Football Conference Team.[14] Tom ended the year with 4.5 sacks and a fumble recovered.[6]
In 1972, Tom was named the Eagles team MVP.[15] He finished the season with 6 sacks.[6] After the season, Tom requested to be traded, desiring to instead play for a west coast team.[15] However, he was persuaded by Eagles coach Mike McCormack to remain in Philadelphia for another season, with the promise that they would try to trade him the following season.[15]
Heading into the 1973 season, Tom was listed by the New York Times as one of the Eagles best players.[16] During training camp, Tom was fined for being three hours late to practice.[17] Before the season began, he publicly mulled reviving his trade request and even retirement.[15] Four games into the season, Tom refused to play another game for the Eagles.[18] After an argument with defensive line coach Jerry Wampfler, Tom told Wampfler to "Trade me, fire me, or fight me."[18] He was traded to the Chicago Bears shortly afterwards for an undisclosed 1974 draft pick.[19][20] Despite only playing four games for the Eagles that season, he still was second on the team in sacks.[6]
Tom's tenure with the was marred by the Eagles' poor regular season record, which according to sportswriter Paul Giordano, cost Tom several all-pro team appearances.[21]
Chicago Bears
A month after being traded to the Bears, Tom drew a delay of game penalty after kicking the ball away in an attempt to prevent a Chiefs field goal attempt.[22] Tom ended the season with seven sacks and two fumbles recovered.[6]
Prior to the 1974 season, Tom announced his retirement.[23] However, Tom ended up playing in 1974, and had 32 solo tackles (51 total), four sacks, and one fumble recovered.[24]
In 1975, Tom was placed on waivers after the Bears signed Dan Neal.[25]
NFL career statistics
| Legend | |
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| Bold | Career high |