Michael Lombardi (American football)

Michael "Mike" Lombardi is the current General Manager for the Cleveland Browns. He is a former analyst for the NFL Network and sportswriter at NFL.com. Lombardi also previously served as an NFL executive with the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns, St. Louis Rams, Philadelphia Eagles, and Oakland Raiders.

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Bio
What started out as a lark for longtime NFL personnel man Michael Lombardi later turned into a career change when he became a pro football television analyst.

Lombardi could have never imagined when he was contacted by CBS Sports in 1998 that months later he would be on the set of the popular NFL Today with the show's other hosts. Producer Eric Mann wanted inside scoops from a trusted NFL source for his hosts to use during the weekly pre-game show aired on Sundays during football season.

Lombardi had worked in the front office for teams including the San Francisco 49ers, Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles. He had just left the Eagles when the phone rang.

"CBS called and said they wanted up-to-the-minute information on the NFL," Lombardi said. "It sounded like fun, and it wasn't like I was being asked to actually appear on TV. My work was all supposed to be done behind the scenes."

Lombardi sat in on production meetings each week and provided football insights. After a month, Mann became frustrated by being unable to get all of Lombardi's information into the telecast. He asked Lombardi to audition for his own segment, which he passed with flying colors.

"This was a new thing for me," Lombardi said. "It also became a harbinger of things to come by foreshadowing the American public's seemingly bottomless desire for NFL news."

Two months later, Lombardi was asked to move up and join the hosts at the broadcast desk after one of the show's anchors departed.

"Three months earlier I was between football jobs," Lombardi said. "Now I was appearing on national television every week sitting next to Jim Nantz, Marcus Allen and Brent Jones."

Lombardi returned to football soon thereafter when legendary Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis sought him out to become a senior personnel executive for his team. Charlie Casserly, a former NFL general manager, took over Lombardi's spot on NFL Today, where he remains to this day.

"I was 39 when I went to work for the Raiders, and I had reached the point where I was often among those being considered for general manager vacancies around the league, which was one of my goals."

After eight rough-and-tumble years working for the maverick Davis, highlights of which included the Raiders making a Super Bowl appearance in 2003, Lombardi was looking for a new challenge.

"While I valued my time with and loved the Raiders, it was time for me to go. All I've missed out on since then is seven consecutive losing seasons, so I guess it was the right decision for me."

The NFL Network was familiar with Lombardi's television work, and in March 2008 they invited him to be a part of their annual "Path to the Draft" programs. Later that year, Lombardi began weekly appearances that included being one of the "insiders" used in their Insider segments.

From the draft to player free agency and through the NFL season, Lombardi looks forward to providing his unique insights as part of the revolving cast of reporters and analysts used by NFL Network to report on professional football 365 days a year.

"I feel like I'm still in football while working on TV," Lombardi said. "This is just a different aspect where I can hopefully help NFL fans to understand that what goes on in the team's front offices are often as important as the strategies deployed on the field of play."

Lombardi also founded the highly respected pro football website NationalFootballPost.com. He amicably departed from the site in 2010 when he was asked to join NFL.com, contributing three columns per week (much as he had been doing at NationalFootballPost.com and before that at Sports Illustrated's SI.com).

In 2008, Lombardi was asked to join the cast of Inside the NFL, which is telecast on Showtime weekly during the season and won a Sports Emmy for Outstanding (Weekly) Studio Show in 2009. A staple of NFL Films for 32 years, Lombardi provides his brand of analysis alongside host James Brown and former NFL greats Chris Collinsworth, Phil Simms and Warren Sapp.

Lombardi was born in Somers Point, N.J., on June 19, 1959, and grew up in nearby Ocean City where his dad was, and still is, the town barber.

Always a lover of sports, young Mike played football, baseball and basketball when not following the exploits of his favorite teams: the Packers, Redskins, Phillies, Braves and 76ers.

"I became infatuated with football as 9-year-old for a very good reason," Lombardi said. "Imagine my surprise when I turned on the television to find that I shared my last name with one of the most famous people in the game, Vince Lombardi. I am no relation, but he remains as an inspiration to this day."

Lombardi had a life-changing event when he discovered the Strat-O-Matic baseball board game. Invented in 1961 and still popular today, the game allows participants to be the managers of their teams in a statistics-driven game that was a precursor to today's wildly successful fantasy leagues.

"After my friends and I discovered Strat-O-Matic, nothing was ever the same," Lombardi said. "That began a deeper love in me of not only sports but for the statistics and behind-the-scenes factors that go into fielding the best team. It cultivated a passion for the business of sports.

"We played that game from after school to bed and all summer long. At one point, I think my mother thought we had gone off the deep end, and maybe we did. The only time we left the game was to go down to the beach for a swim."

Lombardi attended high school at the noted Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pa., where he played football and baseball.

"A guy that coached me at Valley Forge was an alumnus of Hofstra University|Hofstra University]], and he contacted the football coaches who invited me to join their team," Lombardi said.

A defensive lineman and long-snapper, Lombardi's love of football was so great that he would drive to football coaching clinics on weekends. He met many coaches by doing this. One in particular, Pasadena City College head coach Harvey Hyde, took a liking to him.

"Harvey was very nice to me," Lombardi said. "He would invite me to lunch and talk football with me."

Lombardi later read in The New York Times that Hyde had become head football coach at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

"I called to congratulate him, and he offered me a job as an unpaid assistant," Lombardi said. "That was the second no-money job offer I had at that time. One was from Illinois State. Being a kid, naturally I picked Vegas."

Lombardi quickly realized he was being given a great opportunity to participate in something he loved.

"Harvey was a good person and a great character," Lombardi said. "He was like a football father figure for me. I was fresh out of college in 1981 and soaking it all in.

"About a year later, he offered me a paid position for $9,000 per year to do the same job I was doing for free: recruiting and learning how to become a football guy."

Pro scouts would visit the Las Vegas campus from time to time to evaluate talent, and Lombardi was often called upon to host them. One of the scouts he met was Tony Razzano from the San Francisco 49ers. Six months later, Razzano advised Lombardi the 49ers had an opening for an in-house recruiting assistant.

"To think that I could work for the 49ers was beyond my wildest dreams," Lombardi recalled. "They had won the Super Bowl in 1981. Next thing I knew, I was interviewing in front of Bill Walsh."

Not only did Walsh offer him the job, but in Lombardi's first season with the team, 1984, the 49ers went 15-1, returned to the Super Bowl and defeated the Dan Marino-led Miami Dolphins.

"It was everything to me to be able to learn football from Bill Walsh," Lombardi said. "It changed my DNA and thinking patterns. His perceptions were tremendous. Everything I know about football stems from him. He taught me how to see the game from a coach's viewpoint as opposed to solely from a traditional scout perspective, which he always insisted was an important distinction to make."

First a scouting assistant and later a college scout, Lombardi was with the 49ers in 1985 when Jerry Rice was drafted. In 1986, the 49ers put together one of the best team draft classes in NFL history when they chose Charles Hailey, Tom Rathman, Tim McKyer, John Taylor, Larry Roberts, Steve Wallace and Kevin Fagen.

The following year, Lombardi was offered a promotion to join Marty Schottenheimer and the Cleveland Browns as pro personnel director. Lombardi cherished Bill Walsh and the 49ers organization, but he accepted the offer as it would afford him the opportunity to gain a broader spectrum of knowledge by handling contract negotiations, salary cap issues and player development.

In 1992, Lombardi's responsibilities increased when he was promoted to director of player personnel under head coach Bill Belichick.

"Working with Bill Belichick was like working with Bill Walsh, part two," Lombardi said. "You could see the minute he arrived in 1991 that he was going to be a successful head coach."

Unfortunately for Belichick and Lombardi, the Browns moved to Baltimore in 1996 and most of the coaching staff was let go. Lombardi did consulting work for the St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, which led to him being hired by the Eagles in 1997 as director of pro personnel.

Lombardi is now a popular choice of fans to return to the 49ers in a General Manager capacity. The team has done very poorly recently and hiring Lombardi would help the team return to their roots in hiring a product of the Bill Walsh era. It's really a no-brainer decision for the 49ers, which is why they will likely not hire him. www.twitter.com/lombardi4Niners

Television football analysis

 * 2008 - Inside the NFL: Joins this NFL Films staple of 32 years that airs on Showtime (TV network) weekly during the NFL season, which wins a Emmy for Outstanding (Weekly) Studio Show in 2009. Provides insider NFL analysis alongside host James Brown and former NFL greats Chris Collinsworth, Phil Simms and Warren Sapp.


 * 2008 – NFL Network: Invited to be a part of their annual Path to the Draft programs. Became a regular on the nightly Total Access show and contributed to Insider segments. Also contributed on game days with studio analysis or on-field reporting from individual games.


 * 1998 – NFL Today: Hired by CBS Sports to provide background information to hosts of the nationally broadcast NFL Today pre-game show. Within a month, he is asked to host his own segment. After a host departs mid-season, Lombardi joins Jim Nantz, Marcus Allen and Brent Jones at the broadcast desk.

Sportswriting

 * 2010 – NFL.com: Joined the NFL’s Website, contributing three columns per week.


 * 2008–2010 – NationalFootballPost.com: Founded NationalFootballPost.com in 2008. Served as Editor-In-Chief before amicably departing to join NFL.com.


 * 2008 – Sports Illustrated: Joined SI.com as a freelance writer after being recommended by SI Senior Writer Peter King. Quickly moved from one column per week to two columns per week before amicably departing to found NationalFootballPost.com.

Football

 * 1999 to 2007 – Oakland Raiders: Hired by owner Al Davis to become Senior Personnel Executive working closely with the owner on all football matters. Liaison with head coach and owner; responsible for pro and college player evaluations; and handled veteran contracts.


 * 1998 – Philadelphia Eagles: Promoted to Director of Pro Personnel after serving as a consultant to team owner Jeffrey Lurie in 1997. Managed the professional personnel department and advised owner and chief financial officer on all player contracts and salary cap issues.


 * 1996 – St. Louis Rams: Prepared advisory reports for ownership during head coach search.


 * 1987 to 1996 – Cleveland Browns: Joined team as Pro Personnel Director in 1987. Promoted to Director of Player Personnel in 1992 where he worked under head coach Bill Belichick and was responsible for all college and pro personnel decisions; managed salary cap and player personnel issues; oversaw staff of 13 college and pro scouts; handled all player contracts and advised head coach on all football matters. Lombardi played an integral role in the release of beloved quarterback Bernie Kosar during his time in Cleveland.


 * 1984 to 1987 – San Francisco 49ers: Hired as Area Scout where he was responsible for the west region from Texas to California. Reported to head coach Bill Walsh and assistant coaches in all matters of college scouting and supplied information for use during the NFL draft.


 * 1981 to 1984 – University of Nevada, Las Vegas: Hired as Recruiting Coordinator by Runnin’ Rebels head coach Harvey Hyde.

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 * 1977 to 1981 – Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y.: Defensive lineman and long-snapper.

Personal life
Lombardi grew up in Ocean City, New Jersey and played both baseball and football at Valley Forge Military Academy.

Lombardi and wife Millie have two children.

He is the owner of a Lagotto Romagnolo dog.

He is not related to Green Bay Packers coaching legend Vince Lombardi.

Television football analysis

 * 2008 - Inside the NFL: Joins this NFL Films staple of 32 years that airs on Showtime weekly during the NFL season, which wins a Emmy for Outstanding (Weekly) Studio Show in 2009. Provides insider NFL analysis alongside host James Brown and former NFL players Chris Collinsworth, Phil Simms and Warren Sapp.


 * 2008 – NFL Network: Invited to be a part of their annual Path to the Draft programs. Became a regular on the nightly Total Access show and contributed to Insider segments. Also contributed on game days with studio analysis or on-field reporting from individual games.


 * 1998 – NFL Today: Hired by CBS Sports to provide background information to hosts of the nationally broadcast NFL Today pre-game show. Within a month, he is asked to host his own segment. After George Seifert departs mid-season, Lombardi joins Jim Nantz, Marcus Allen and Brent Jones at the broadcast desk.

Sportswriting

 * 2010 – NFL.com: Joined the NFL’s Website, contributing three columns per week.


 * 2008–2010 – NationalFootballPost.com: Founded NationalFootballPost.com in 2008. Served as Editor-In-Chief before amicably departing to join NFL.com.


 * 2008 – Sports Illustrated: Joined SI.com as a freelance writer after being recommended by SI Senior Writer Peter King. Quickly moved from one column per week to two columns per week before amicably departing to found NationalFootballPost.com.

Football

 * 2013 - Cleveland Browns: Hired as General Manager and VP of Player Personnel.


 * 1998 to 2007 – Oakland Raiders: Hired by owner Al Davis to become Senior Personnel Executive working closely with the owner on all football matters. Liaison with head coach and owner; responsible for pro and college player evaluations; and handled veteran contracts.


 * 1998 – Philadelphia Eagles: Promoted to Director of Pro Personnel after serving as a consultant to team owner Jeffrey Lurie in 1997. Managed the professional personnel department and advised owner and chief financial officer on all player contracts and salary cap issues.


 * 1996 – St. Louis Rams: Prepared advisory reports for ownership during head coach search.


 * 1987 to 1996 – Cleveland Browns: Joined team as Pro Personnel Director in 1987. Promoted to Director of Player Personnel in 1992 where he worked under head coach Bill Belichick and was responsible for all college and pro personnel decisions; managed salary cap and player personnel issues; oversaw staff of 13 college and pro scouts; handled all player contracts and advised head coach on all football matters.


 * 1984 to 1987 – San Francisco 49ers: Hired as a scout,reported to head coach Bill Walsh and assistant coaches in all matters of college scouting and supplied information for use during the NFL draft.


 * 1981 to 1984 – University of Nevada, Las Vegas: Hired as Recruiting Coordinator by Runnin’ Rebels head coach Harvey Hyde.


 * 1977 to 1981 – Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y.: Defensive lineman and long-snapper.