Influential NFL Owner Art Modell Dies At 87 :::: NFL


Art Modell

Former NFL franchise owner Art Modell, who owned the Cleveland Browns and then Baltimore Ravens, passed away early Thursday (September 6). He was 87 years old.
ESPN.com says his two sons, David and John Modell, were at their father's side when he "died peacefully of natural causes."
"'Poppy' was a special man who was loved by his sons, his daughter-in-law Michel, and his six grandchildren," David Modell said. "Moreover, he was adored by the entire Baltimore community for his kindness and generosity. And, he loved Baltimore."
Sports aficionados called Ar one of the most influential owners in the history of the league, thanks to his contributions that have helped shape the NFL into what it is today.

During his four decades as an NFL owner, Modell helped negotiate the league's lucrative contracts with television networks, served as president of the NFL from 1967 to 1969, and chaired the negotiations for the first the collective bargaining agreement with the players in 1968. He was also the driving force behind the 1970 contract between the NFL and ABC to televise games on Monday night.
"I believe very strongly that Art Modell is one of the most important figures in the history of the modern NFL," former NBC-TV president Dick Ebersol said. "He and Pete Rozelle developed the magic formula that married the potential of television to the game."
Despite all he had done for the NFL, his reputation was "forever tainted," writes ESPN.com, when he moved the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore in 1996, changed the name to the Ravens and left its history there for a future team.
The move haunted him the rest of his life, and some say its the reason he was never inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
"I have a great legacy, tarnished somewhat by the move," he said in 1999. "The politicians and the bureaucrats saw fit to cover their own rear ends by blaming it on me."


 

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