Legendary NFL exec Tim Rooney dies at 84 after battle with cancer
Rooney, the nephew of Pittsburgh Steelers founder Art Rooney Sr, passed away while surrounded by his family. He is survived by wife Mary Ann, their two children and six grandchildren.
The Pittsburgh native joined his uncle's franchise as a scout in 1972 before going on to become their director of pro scouting.
As reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he was credited with drafting Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Lambert after escorting then-coach Chuck Noll to watch Lambert at Kent State.
After leaving the Steelers in 1979 to join the Detroit Lions, Rooney was hired by the New York Giants as director of pro personnel in 1985. He remained in that role until his retirement in 1999 before later returning in a part-time position.
Over the course of his legendary career as an NFL exec, he was part of six Super Bowl-winning teams.
'He was a great guy,' Hall of Fame head coach Bill Parcells told the Post-Gazette. 'When you're a head coach, you need someone to tell you the truth. Tim was our pro personnel guy, and that was his job.
'We had daily interaction every day talking about the roster. We had a lot of talks and became close. That enhanced our relationship. He understood me, and I understood him.'
Rooney's younger brother, Tom, expressed his sadness at the news in an emotional post on Facebook.
'Lost my brother Tim today,' Tom wrote. 'Big brother took me to my first Pirates game, golfing and hosted my high school graduation party.
'He had a rough last several years and was ready to go! He also lamented the loss of many close friends. He's with them now.
'Rest in peace, Timmy!'
Giants president John Mara said in a statement: 'Tim was an invaluable member of our player personnel department for 14 seasons as our director of pro personnel. He was an accomplished evaluator. More importantly, he was a great person and colleague.
'Our thoughts are with Tim's wife Mary Ann and children and grandchildren and friends, of which there are many.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano 3 LIVE RESULTS: Epic trilogy ends in huge controversy AGAIN with majority decision win
KATIE TAYLOR beat Amanda Serrano YET AGAIN as their epic trilogy came to an end with a controversial split decision. In yet another brilliant fight between Taylor and Serrano, the fight was extremely close with both women leaving it all on the canvas. In front of a packed and raucous Madison Square Garden, Taylor made it 3-0 in their rivalry with a split decision which saw one judge score it a draw. The two stars earned an incredible £6.6MILLION ($9m) each for headlining an incredible all-women's card that saw SEVENTEEN world titles up for grabs. 11th Jul 2025, 23:07 By Connor Greaves The stage is set Taylor and Serrano will meet where it all began back in April 2022, Madison Square Garden. Another fight like the first would be a fitting end to a historic trilogy. By Connor Greaves Cameron eyeing Taylor vs Serrano winner English boxer Chantelle Cameron will be looking to set up a meeting with the winner of tonight's main event should she beat the experienced Jessica Camara. Cameron has already achieved something that Serrano has not in defeating Taylor. The 34-year-old stunned the world of boxing when she beat the Bray Bomber by majority decision in May 2023. The pair had a rematch, which Taylor won, but a decisive trilogy bout could be in the making should they both have their arms raised tonight. Speaking about a potential trilogy fight with Taylor, Cameron said: 'I'm told I will fight the winner of Katie versus Amanda, because I'm the WBC interim champion. 'I don't say I'm confident of getting a third fight with Katie though because the trilogy fight with her should have happened a long time ago. I've fought her in Dublin twice and she told me after the second one in the ring that the trilogy fight will happen. 'I thought it was signed and sealed, I agreed the date and venue, and I was actually taking less money for it than the first two fights. But then I got told she wanted an easier fight next and was fighting her mandatory instead of me. 'She didn't want to fight me again and has she changed her mind? Probably not.' 11th Jul 2025, 22:50 By Connor Greaves Tonight's card in FULL Fans are most looking forward to Taylor and Serrano's thrilling trilogy fight. But before that, boxing lovers will be able to watch Alycia Baumgardner's world title defence against Jennifer Miranda in the co-main event. And Savannah Marshall is set to dance in the ring with Shadasia Green. Here is the running order for the greatest female fight card in history with the boxing already underway in New York: Main card: Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano; undisputed women's junior welterweight championship Alycia Baumgardner vs Jennifer Miranda; WBO, WBC & WBA super-featherweight titles Savannah Marshall vs Shadasia Green; IBF & WBO super-middleweight titles Ellie Scotney vs Yamileth Mercado; IBF, WBO & WBC super-bantamweight titles Prelims: 11th Jul 2025, 22:49 By Connor Greaves Good evening and welcome to SunSport's live blog of Taylor vs Serrano 3! Tonight, Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano put an end to the greatest rivalry in the history of women's boxing. The two meet for Taylor's four junior welterweight titles as the pair headline a stacked card at New York's Madison Square Garden. The Bray Bomber has a 2-0 record against Serrano, with the first coming at MSG in 2022, where Taylor narrowly secured a split decision win in one of the best fights in women's boxing history. The sequel was the Co-main event to Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson last November, in which Taylor secured a controversial win by way of unanimous decision. Now the pair's trilogy bout tops a star-studded bill with an incredible 17 world titles on the line throughout the night! SunSport will bring you coverage from a historic night in New York.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Chelsea's Levi Colwill lauds ‘scary good' team-mate Cole Palmer
Levi Colwill believes the branding of Cole Palmer as 'scary good' suits his Chelsea team-mate perfectly. Palmer's face has been displayed on billboards with that slogan around New York this week as part of an advertising campaign for Nike ahead of Sunday's Club World Cup final. It underlines the 23-year-old's rapid rise since he quit his role as squad player at Manchester City to move to Stamford Bridge almost two years ago. 'It's amazing, seeing him everywhere around New York,' said defender Colwill ahead of this weekend's showpiece clash with Paris St Germain at the MetLife Stadium. 'It's surreal and I'm happy for him.' Asked if he feels Palmer is actually 'scary good', Colwill said: 'To say the least! He's an amazing player. That billboard suits him perfectly well.' Palmer, however, is known as a modest individual and appears to have taken the attention in his stride. Colwill said: 'I think he's seen them but you know Cole – he's not really blown away by much and I think that's what keeps him going.' Colwill insists Chelsea are certainly not scared heading into a match in which they are the clear underdogs. PSG have swept all before them in recent months. Having already won three domestic trophies, including a league and cup double, Luis Enrique's side produced a stunning performance to thrash Inter Milan 5-0 in the Champions League final in May. As if that was not enough, they offered a reminder of their formidable power in a 4-0 rout of Real Madrid in the semi-finals on Wednesday. Colwill said: 'They are an amazing team, but we are not Inter or Real Madrid. We're going to bring something different. We're different players and we're confident in ourselves to win the game. 'It's one game of football. I believe in us and I think we can beat anyone so we're going to take that confidence going into the game. 'We haven't just come here to be in the final, we want to win the competition.' Chelsea have already tasted some success this term having won the Europa Conference League. Colwill said: 'That helps a lot. This will be our second final of the season and it shows how far we've come. We really do believe in ourselves. 'If everyone thinks we're going to lose then we've got nothing to lose. We're going to go out there, play our football, be confident and hopefully surprise everyone.'
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Willy Adames, Giants hand Dodgers 7th straight setback
July 12 - Willy Adames drove in three runs with a triple and a home run, Dominic Smith added a solo homer and the host San Francisco Giants continued the Los Angeles Dodgers' misery with an 8-7 victory in the opener of a three-game series Friday night. Jung Hoo Lee also had three RBIs and Matt Chapman scored twice for the Giants, who have won seven of nine while trimming the Dodgers' lead in the National League West from nine games to four. Shohei Ohtani launched a home run into the San Francisco Bay, his 32nd of the season, and Michael Conforto also homered for the Dodgers, who lost their seventh straight. After the teams traded one-run leads in the early going on the strength of homers by Ohtani and Adames, his 12th, the Giants appeared to break the game open with a five-run fifth. Smith triggered the uprising with a leadoff homer, his second, before Adames had the big hit, a two-out, two-run triple. Dodgers starter Dustin May (5-6) was pulled immediately prior to Adames' hit, charged with seven runs on five hits and four walks in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out four. Staked to an 8-2 lead, Giants All-Star Logan Webb (9-6) couldn't get out of the sixth inning, during which the Dodgers clawed back into the game with four runs. Teoscar Hernandez had a two-run double before Conforto belted his eighth homer, a two-run shot, ending Webb's night. The right-hander allowed six runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings, with one walk and six strikeouts. The Dodgers got within 8-7 in the seventh on an RBI single by Will Smith, but Tyler Rogers threw a scoreless eighth before closer Camilo Doval pitched out of a two-on, one-out jam in the ninth by getting Will Smith to ground into a game-ending double play for his 15th save. Lee finished with three hits, while Patrick Bailey joined Adames with two in the Giants' highest scoring home game since a 9-5 win over the Boston Red Sox on June 22. Hyeseong Kim collected a double and two singles, Mookie Betts had two hits and scored twice, and Will Smith also had two hits for the Dodgers, whose seven-game losing streak is their longest since an 11-gamer in September of 2017. --Field Level Media
