Chris Spielman

{{Short description|American football player, coach, and executive (born 1965)}}

{{Infobox NFL biography

| name = Chris Spielman

| image = Chris Spielman - 2023 NHSFHOF Inductee (cropped).jpg

| caption = Spielman in 2023

| current_team = Detroit Lions

| position = Special assistant to the owner and CEO

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1965|10|11|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Canton, Ohio, U.S.

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 0

| weight_lb = 247

| high_school = Massillon Washington
(Massillon, Ohio)

| college = Ohio State (1984–1987)

| draftyear = 1988

| draftround = 2

| draftpick = 29

| pastteams =

Detroit Lions ({{NFL Year|1988|1995}})
Buffalo Bills ({{NFL Year|1996|1997}})
Cleveland Browns ({{NFL Year|1999}})*

| pastcoaching =

Columbus Destroyers ({{AFL Year|2005}})
Head coach

| pastexecutive =

Detroit Lions ({{nfly|2020}}–present)
Special assistant to the owner and CEO

| highlights =

First-team All-Pro (1991)
2× Second-team All-Pro (1992, 1994)
4× Pro Bowl (1989–1991, 1994)
NFL solo tackles co-leader (1994)
PFWA All-Rookie Team (1988)
Pride of the Lions
Detroit Lions 75th Anniversary Team
Detroit Lions All-Time Team
Unanimous All-American (1987)
Consensus All-American (1986)
First-team All-American (1985)
Lombardi Award (1987)
Chic Harley Award (1987)
3× First-team All-Big Ten (1985, 1986, 1987)

| statlabel1 = Tackles

| statvalue1 = 1,363

| statlabel3 = Forced fumbles

| statvalue3 = 13

| statlabel2 = Sacks

| statvalue2 = 10.5

| statlabel4 = Interceptions

| statvalue4 = 6

| pfr = SpieCh00

| CollegeHOF = 2244

}}

Charles Christopher Spielman (born October 11, 1965) is an American former professional football player who is a special assistant to the owner and CEO for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played linebacker for the Ohio State Buckeyes, twice earning All-American honors. He played professional football for the Detroit Lions in the NFL, where he was a three-time All-Pro. He also played for the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns, and coached for the Arena Football League (AFL)'s Columbus Destroyers. He was a broadcaster for Fox Sports and ESPN from 1999 to 2020.

Football career

In 1984, Spielman graduated from Washington High School in Massillon, Ohio, where he was awarded the Dial Award for the national high-school scholar-athlete of the year in 1983. He was the first high school athlete to have his picture on a box of Wheaties. For college, Spielman initially wanted to attend the University of Michigan, but his father, a lifelong fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes (Michigan's arch-rival), strongly opposed the idea. Spielman recounted the story in the HBO Documentary "Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry":

My dad said, "Okay, where are you going to go?" I said, "Dad, I want to go to Michigan." And he said, "You traitor. I'll tell you where you're going. You're going right down 71 South and you're going to play for the Ohio State Buckeyes... Better not go there [Michigan]. Don't ever come home if you do."{{Cite web |date=2007-11-13 |title=Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1127700/ |publisher=HBO}}

Spielman was a three-time All-American at Ohio State,{{cite news|title=NEA 1985 All-America football team|newspaper=Lead (SD) Daily Call|date=December 6, 1985|page=7|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/5310372/nea_1985_allamerica_football_team/}} intercepted 11 passes, and won the Lombardi Award as the best college football lineman or linebacker. He was the Ohio State football team MVP his senior year and won the Touchdown Club of Columbus's Chic Harley Award. He graduated from Ohio State with a degree in recreation education.

{{NFL predraft

| height ft = 6

| height in = 0

| weight = 234

| dash = 4.90

| ten split = 1.71

| twenty split = 2.87

| shuttle = 4.13

| cone drill =

| vertical = 32.5

| broad ft = 9

| broad in = 1

| bench = 23

| arm span =

| hand span = 9 1/4

| wonderlic =

| note = All values from NFL Combine{{Cite web |url=https://nflcombineresults.com/playerpage.php?i=26177 |title=Chris Spielman, Combine Results, ILB - Ohio State |website=nflcombineresults.com |access-date=July 29, 2022}}

}}

In the 1988 NFL draft, Spielman was drafted in the second round with the 29th overall pick by the Detroit Lions.{{Cite web |title=1988 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1988/draft.htm |access-date=2023-09-24 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}} Spielman played eight seasons with the Lions (1988–95), where he was a defensive stalwart during the team's run to four playoff appearances, two NFC Central titles, and a berth in the 1991 NFC Championship Game. He captained the Lions' defense that was one of the best statistically in the NFL in the mid-1990s.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}} Spielman is the franchise's all-time leader in career tackles with 1,138{{Cite web |title=Chris Spielman Stats |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SpieCh00.htm}} (since the team began recording tackles statistically in 1973.) He also recorded 10 sacks, four interceptions, 30 pass defenses, 13 forced fumbles and 17 fumble recoveries during his Lions' career. He was the first Lion to lead the team in tackles seven consecutive seasons since 1973, including the team's highest single-season tally 195 tackles in 1994.{{Cite web |title=Timeline « Chris Spielman |url=http://chrisspielman.com/about-chris/timeline/ |access-date=June 24, 2018 |archive-date=September 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919050719/http://chrisspielman.com/about-chris/timeline/ |url-status=dead }}

Spielman represented the Lions in four Pro Bowls (1990–92, 1995) and was named the team's defensive MVP in 1993 and 1994. He played for the Buffalo Bills in 1996 and 1997. His 1997 season was limited because of a neck injury that required spinal surgery.

He chose to miss the 1998 season to assist his wife battling cancer.

He returned to the NFL in the 1999 season, with the Cleveland Browns. He retired before the regular season began, after suffering another neck injury. Spielman is also notable for being one of the players notable NFL Draft "guru" Mel Kiper, Jr. has "missed" on, Kiper admitting in a 2001 post that he had underrated the linebacker.[https://www.espn.com/melkiper/s/2001/0417/1174424.html Mel Kiper's comments re "missing out" on Spielman] In April 2009 Spielman was elected into the College Football Hall of Fame. His induction came in July 2010. In 2012, he appeared in an episode of the NFL Network show A Football Life. The episode celebrated his prowess on the field as well as his dedication to his family.{{Cite web |date=2012-10-12 |title=NFL Network's A Football Life Explores Life, Legacy of Steve McNair Oct. 17 |url=http://www.titansonline.com/news/article-1/NFL-Networks-A-Football-Life-Explores-Life-Legacy-of-Steve-McNair-Oct-17/4e26d98d-f795-4283-8a4a-06de48da5d90 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018094542/http://www.titansonline.com/news/article-1/NFL-Networks-A-Football-Life-Explores-Life-Legacy-of-Steve-McNair-Oct-17/4e26d98d-f795-4283-8a4a-06de48da5d90 |archive-date=2012-10-18 |access-date=2012-11-01 |publisher=titansonline.com}}

On October 21, 2021, the Detroit Lions announced they were inducting Spielman into their "Pride of the Lions" club, which honors the greatest players in their history.{{Cite web |date=2021-10-21 |title=Lions to add Chris Spielman to Pride of the Lions |url=https://www.detroitlions.com/news/lions-to-add-chris-spielman-to-pride-of-the-lions |access-date=2021-10-23 |publisher=detroitlions.com}}

Broadcasting career

File:Chris Spielman Thom Brennaman in Fox NFL booth 2018.jpeg during the 2018 NFL season.]]

Spielman's broadcasting career started in 1999, as an NFL studio-show analyst for Fox Sports Net.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}} After two years with FSN, Spielman joined ESPN in 2001.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}} He served primarily as a color analyst for college football broadcasts, as well as studio analyst for college football. Spielman is also a contributor to the Columbus-based FM radio station 97.1 The Fan, an ESPN Radio affiliate. He previously hosted the show Spielman on Sports. Spielman used to appear every Tuesday afternoon on AM 1270 WXYT, a sports-talk radio station out of Detroit. Spielman has served as a color analyst for the Detroit Lions during the NFL preseason. In 2006, Spielman hosted a reality series on ESPNU called Summer House.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

File:Chris Spielman Kuwait.jpg

In 2016, Fox Sports announced that Spielman had joined Fox NFL coverage as a game analyst alongside veteran play-by-play announcer Dick Stockton and sideline reporter Kristina Pink. On select weeks, he also teamed up with Thom Brennaman and Charles Davis in a three-man booth.{{Cite web |date=9 August 2016 |title=FOX Sports Announces NFL Broadcast Teams for Super Bowl Season |url=http://www.foxsports.com/presspass/latestnews/2016/08/09/fox-sports-announces-nfl-broadcast-teams-for-super-bowl-season |access-date=2016-08-10 |website=www.foxsports.com}}{{Cite web |date=2016-05-18 |title=Former Ohio State star Chris Spielman joining Fox as college football, NFL analyst |url=http://buckeyextra.dispatch.com/content/stories/2016/05/18/0517-spielman-tv.html |access-date=August 25, 2016 |archive-date=August 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160825161949/http://buckeyextra.dispatch.com/content/stories/2016/05/18/0517-spielman-tv.html |url-status=dead }}

Coaching career

After the 2000 season, Spielman interviewed for the vacant Ohio State head coaching position previously held by John Cooper; however, the job eventually went to Jim Tressel.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}} In 2005, Spielman coached the Columbus Destroyers of the Arena Football League to a 2–14 record.[http://www.arenafan.com/teams/Columbus_Destroyers-103/history/2005/ Arena Fan - Celebrating the History of the Arena Football League]

Executive career

Spielman was hired by the Detroit Lions as special assistant to chairman and president & CEO on December 15, 2020.{{Cite web |date=2020-12-15 |title=C. Spielman returns to Lions as special assistant |url=https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/30526597/detroit-lions-hire-chris-spielman-special-assistant |access-date=2020-12-15 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}

NFL career statistics

class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"

! colspan="2"| Legend

style="background:#cfecec; width:3em;"|

| Led the league

Bold

| Career high

=Regular season=

rowspan="2"\| Year ! rowspan="2"\| Team ! colspan="2"\| Games ! colspan="4"\| Tackles ! colspan="3"\| Interceptions ! colspan="2"\| Fumbles
class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: center;"
GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	Int	Yds	TD	FF	FR
1988	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 153 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 0.0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 1 \|\| 1
1989	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 125 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 5.0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 1 \|\| 2
1990	DET \| 12 \|\| 12 \|\| 108 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 2.0 \|\| 1 \|\| 12 \|\| 0 \|\| 1 \|\| 2
1991	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 126 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 1.0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 3 \|\| 3
1992	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 146 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 1.0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 1
1993	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 148 \|\| – \|\| – \|\| 0.5 \|\| 2 \|\| -2 \|\| 0 \|\| 1 \|\| 2
1994	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| style="background:#cfecec;"\|195 \|\| style="background:#cfecec;"\|124 \|\| 71 \|\| 0.0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 3 \|\| 3
1995	DET \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 137 \|\| 90 \|\| 47 \|\| 1.0 \|\| 1 \|\| 4 \|\| 0 \|\| 2 \|\| 3
1996	BUF \| 16 \|\| 16 \|\| 157 \|\| 111 \|\| 46 \|\| 0.0 \|\| 1 \|\| 14 \|\| 0 \|\| 1 \|\| 2
1997	BUF \| 8 \|\| 8 \|\| 68 \|\| 50 \|\| 18 \|\| 0.0 \|\| 1 \|\| 8 \|\| 0 \|\| 0 \|\| 0
colspan="2"\| [https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/S/SpieCh00.htm Career] \|\| 148 \|\| 148 \|\| 1,363 \|\| 375 \|\| 182 \|\| 10.5 \|\| 6 \|\| 36 \|\| 0 \|\| 13 \|\| 19

Personal life

Spielman and his first wife Stefanie had four children. Stefanie survived four bouts with breast cancer, during which both she and her husband were active in raising funds for breast cancer research. While undergoing treatment, she lost her hair, prompting Spielman to shave his head in a show of solidarity.[http://chrisspielman.com/bio.html Official webpage for Chris Spielman] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017213152/http://chrisspielman.com/bio.html |date=October 17, 2006 }} Stefanie died on November 19, 2009, after the disease returned for the fifth time.[http://www.newarkadvocate.com/article/20091119/UPDATES01/91119023/1002/NEWS01 Notice of Stefanie Spielman's death] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091125115358/http://www.newarkadvocate.com/article/20091119/UPDATES01/91119023/1002/NEWS01 |date=November 25, 2009 }}

In 2013, Spielman married Carrie Yocom, and adopted her two daughters.{{Cite web |title=About Chris « Chris Spielman |url=https://chrisspielman.com/about-chris/ |access-date=2020-12-20 |website=chrisspielman.com}} The family resides in Upper Arlington, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio.{{citation needed|date=October 2018}}

His elder brother is Rick Spielman, former general manager of the Minnesota Vikings.{{Cite web |title=Staff Members |url=https://www.vikings.com/team/front-office-roster/rick-spielman |access-date=25 October 2019 |website=Vikings.com}} His son Noah played football for Wheaton College,[https://athletics.wheaton.edu/sports/football/roster/noah-spielman/6217 Noah Spielman Bio - Wheaton Football] while his nephew J.D. currently plays football for TCU. His daughter Macy will be playing basketball in 2021-22 for Ashland University.