Bobby Thomason
 Thomason on a 1953 Bowman football card | |||||||||
| No. 47, 32, 28, 11 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | March 26, 1928 Albertville, Alabama, U.S. | ||||||||
| Died: | November 5, 2013 (aged 85) Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 196 lb (89 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Leeds (Leeds, Alabama) | ||||||||
| College: | VMI | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1949: 1st round, 7th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Robert Lee Thomason (March 26, 1928 – November 5, 2013) was an American football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) from 1949 to 1957, primarily for the Philadelphia Eagles. He was selected to three Pro Bowls. He also played college football at the Virginia Military Institute
Early years
[edit]Thomason was born in 1928 at Albertville, Alabama. He attended Leeds High School in Alabama.[1] He then played college football at Virginia Military Institute (VMI) from 1945 to 1948. In 1948, he completed 95 of 117 passes (81.2%) for 1,242 yards and 14 touchdowns. He was selected by the Associated Press as the Virginia "athlete of the year" for 1948.[2] He also received first-team honors from the United Press on the 1948 All-Southern Conference football team.[3]
Professional football
[edit]Thomason was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the first round, seventh overall pick, of the 1949 NFL draft. He appeared in six games for the Rams, all as a backup to Bob Waterfield, in 1949.[1] In 1950 season, he jumped to the American Football League, playing for the Richmond Rebels.[4][5] In July 1951, the Rams traded their rights to Thomason to the Green Bay Packers.[6] Thomason appeared in 11 games, one as a starter, for the Packers in 1951. He returned to the Rams at the end of the 1951 season, but was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles in January 1952.[7] He played for the Eagles from 1952 to 1957.[1]
From 1951 to 1956, he was one of the leading passers in the NFL. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1953, 1954, and 1956. In 1951, he completed 125 of 221 passes for 1,306 yards and 11 touchdowns and led the league with a 56.6% completion percentage. In both 1951 and 1952, he had the lowest interception percentage in the NFL. In 1953, he completed 162 of 304 passes (53.3%), led the NFL with 21 touchdown passes, and ranked second in the league with 2,462 passing yards (205.2 yards per game).[1] On November 8, 1953, he set an Eagles single-game record with 437 passing yards and four touchdowns in a victory over the New York Giants.[8] In 1955, he ranked second in the NFL with a 122 passer rating.[1]
NFL career statistics
[edit]| Legend | |
|---|---|
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | ||
| 1949 | RAM | 6 | 0 | 0-0 | 6 | 12 | 50.0 | 50 | 4.2 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 26.4 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1951 | GNB | 11 | 1 | 0-1 | 125 | 221 | 56.6 | 1,306 | 5.9 | 75 | 11 | 9 | 73.5 | 5 | -5 | -1.0 | 10 | 0 |
| 1952 | PHI | 12 | 9 | 5-4 | 95 | 212 | 44.8 | 1,334 | 6.3 | 44 | 8 | 9 | 60.5 | 17 | 88 | 5.2 | 23 | 0 |
| 1953 | PHI | 12 | 8 | 6-2 | 162 | 304 | 53.3 | 2,462 | 8.1 | 62 | 21 | 20 | 75.8 | 9 | 23 | 2.6 | 20 | 1 |
| 1954 | PHI | 10 | 4 | 2-2 | 83 | 170 | 48.8 | 1,242 | 7.3 | 63 | 10 | 13 | 61.0 | 10 | 45 | 4.5 | 19 | 0 |
| 1955 | PHI | 10 | 4 | 1-2-1 | 88 | 171 | 51.5 | 1,337 | 7.8 | - | 10 | 7 | 80.0 | 17 | 29 | 1.7 | 20 | 0 |
| 1956 | PHI | 12 | 10 | 3-6-1 | 82 | 164 | 50.0 | 1,119 | 6.8 | 52 | 4 | 21 | 40.7 | 21 | 48 | 2.3 | 19 | 2 |
| 1957 | PHI | 12 | 8 | 1-7 | 46 | 92 | 50.0 | 630 | 6.8 | 67 | 4 | 10 | 47.2 | 15 | 62 | 4.1 | 19 | 3 |
| Career | 85 | 44 | 18-24-2 | 687 | 1,346 | 51.0 | 9,480 | 7.0 | 75 | 68 | 90 | 62.9 | 94 | 290 | 3.1 | 23 | 6 | |
Family and later years
[edit]Thomason married Jean Pierce in 1951. They had one daughter. In 2013, Thomason died of heart failure at the age of 85 in Charlotte, North Carolina.[9]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e "Bobby Thomason". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 5, 2025.
- ^ "Bobby Thomason Named 'Athlete Of Year' In Virginia". The Albertville Herald. December 17, 1948. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "All-Southern Eleven". The Greensboro Record. November 17, 1948. p. 8B – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bobby Thomason". Pro Football Archives. Retrieved February 6, 2025.
- ^ "Bobby Thomason, Former VMI Passing Star, Signs With Rebels". Richmond Times-Dispatch. August 22, 1950. p. 19.
- ^ "Ram back sent to Packers". The Star-Ledger. July 19, 1951. p. 12 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Eagles Trade Meyers For Bobby Thompson". Norfolk Virginian-Pilot. January 18, 1952. p. 35 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Zach Berman (November 10, 2013). "Bobby Thomason, 85, former Birds QB, dies". The Philadelphia Inquirer – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Daniel E. Slotnick (November 9, 2013). "Bobby Thomason, Pro Bowl Quarterback, Dies at 85". The New York Times.
- 1928 births
- 2013 deaths
- People from Albertville, Alabama
- American football quarterbacks
- Los Angeles Rams players
- Green Bay Packers players
- Philadelphia Eagles players
- Players of American football from Alabama
- Eastern Conference Pro Bowl players
- VMI Keydets football players
- American Association (American football) players