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Watch: Remembering the time Bill Tobin called out Mel Kiper at the NFL Draft
Longtime NFL executive Bill Tobin died on Friday at the age of 83. While he had an extensive career in football as both a player and executive, his most lasting impact on the league might have been an encounter at the 1994 NFL Draft that helped swing the event into the monster that it is today.
Tobin was running the Indianapolis Colts in 1994 and had two picks at the top of the first, round which he used to select San Diego State RB Marshall Faulk and Nebraska LB Trev Alberts. Those picks irked NFL draft expert Mel Kiper, who went on to rip Tobin and the Colts for not selecting Fresno State QB Trent Dilfer.
The Colts had signed veteran quarterback Jim Harbaugh earlier that offseason.
What followed was one of the greatest moments in draft history, as Tobin unleashed on Kiper during a live interview with Chris Mortensen, all while a stunned Kiper watched on in disbelief.
Very sad news: Legendary #NFL GM Bill Tobin has passed away.
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) April 19, 2024
He was 83-years old and the proud father of #Bengals facto GM Duke Tobin.
One of the GREAT MOMENTS IN HIS CAREER was his rant on draft night:
“WHO THE HELL IS MEL KIPER ANYWAY”
pic.twitter.com/Yr6DxaHZCU
The money line there that still stands out to this day was obviously, "Who the hell is Mel Kiper, anyway?"
That was not the full extent of Tobin's criticism of Kiper, either. In a later news conference he expanded on his comments, saying that every personnel person in the NFL had his side while ranting for several minutes about Kiper's work.
In the end, Faulk went on to be one of the best players of his era and even though Alberts was a bust, the Colts made the 1995 AFC Championship game in large part due to the play of Faulk and Harbaugh.
Dilfer went on to be a journeymen in the NFL and never matched Kiper's pre-draft hype.
It was at that moment the NFL Draft became a must-see event every year (with Kiper playing a huge role in its popularity).
Tobin worked as an executive for decades with several NFL franchises, including stops as general manager in Indianapolis and with the Chicago Bears.
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