Todd Bell
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
Reynoldsburg, Ohio, U.S.
| No. 25, 52, 49 | |||||||||
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| Positions | Safety, linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | November 28, 1958 Dayton, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died | March 16, 2005 (aged 46) Reynoldsburg, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 207 lb (94 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Middletown (Middletown, Ohio) | ||||||||
| College | Ohio State (1977–1980) | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 1981: 4th round, 95th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Todd Anthony Bell (November 28, 1958 – March 16, 2005) was an American professional football player who was a safety for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) during the early 1980s. He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
After graduating from Middletown High School, in Middletown, Ohio, Bell was given a scholarship to play for Ohio State University. He was a four-year starter at defensive back, playing as a roverback, a hybrid of the strong safety and linebacker positions. His biggest moment at Ohio State was a game-winning touchdown in his junior year against rival Michigan on November 17, 1979. After Ohio State linebacker Jim Laughlin blocked a punt by Michigan's Brian Virgil, Bell scooped up the football and ran it in 18 yards for a final score of 18–15. Winning the game sent Ohio State to the 1980 Rose Bowl and gave them a chance at the national championship.
Professional career
Bell was selected in the fourth round of the 1981 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears. He played with the Bears from 1981 to 1984, earning a Pro Bowl nomination in his fourth year. Bell was known on the team for his hits on opposing team players, and for his off-the-field reputation as a prankster. Bell sat out the entire 1985 season due to a contract dispute with the team – and missed being part of one of the most dominating Super Bowl teams of all time. His replacement, Dave Duerson, also went on to be selected for the Pro Bowl that year.
Bell returned in 1986, but a hamstring injury and the contract dispute still lingered over his tenure with the Bears, and he signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Eagles in the off-season in 1988. The Eagles converted him from strong safety to linebacker,[1] and he played two years with the Eagles before he broke his leg in a 27–13 loss to the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football on October 2, 1989, which prematurely ended his career.
