Tom Waddle
Encyclopedia
Gregory Thomas Waddle is a former American football
wide receiver
in the NFL. Waddle is currently a co host of "Waddle and Silvy" on ESPN 1000, as well as co-hosting "The Final Word" on WFLD
FOX Chicago. He also appears on Pro Football Weekly
and NFL Network
. He spent his entire six year career with the Chicago Bears
. He attended Boston College
.
, Ohio. He aspired to be a professional baseball player but with the likes of fellow Moeller schoolmates Ken Griffey Jr and Barry Larkin
, Waddle turned to football.
. During his first years with Bears, he struggled to make an impact as a wide receiver. Due to his size and speed, he fell to the lower ranks of the team’s depth chart. Waddle, however, possessed great ball handling abilities. In 1991, Waddle caught a game-winning touchdown by diving for the football. In one of his best games in 1991, Waddle caught 102 yards on eight receptions, establishing himself as one of the Bears’ most solid playmakers. Later in the season, he caught nine passes for 104 yards.
In 1992, Waddle earned a starting position, and became a fan favorite. He had several productive performances with quarterback, Jim Harbaugh
, including a performance against the Atlanta Falcons
where he outran Deion Sanders
for a touchdown. In 1993, he was Bears’ leading receiver in both receptions and yards amassed. His career with the Bears’ began to fallout in 1994, when Dave Wannstedt
demoted Waddle to third string wide receiver. The following year, Waddle left the Bears after failing to negotiate a proper contract. In 1995 he went to Bengals free agent mini-camp, but chose to retire after experiencing knee problems.
Fans remember Waddle from his rigorous work ethic and effort. Even after sustaining big hits and injuries from bigger players, Waddle was eager to bounce back and play during the following week. His contract and career transactions also tell an interesting story, as the Bears released and resigned him four times. Even after leaving the football scene, Waddle was still a well known and respected figure.
doing pre and post game analysis for Bears games. During this time, he also began to work as a weekend and fill-in sports anchor as well doing feature segments that were mostly comedic in nature. Later he began co-hosting shows such as Chicago Bears Gameday Live, Fox Kickoff Sunday and The Final Word on Sunday nights, all of which he is still involved with as of September 2010.
WGN-AM: In 1997, Tom began co-hosting Sports Central with David Kaplan
weeknights from 7–9 discussing not just football, but all sports. This partnership ended in 2007 with his move to WMVP ESPN Radio 1000.
While at WGN he was also one of the trio of former Chicago Bears
called "The Three Bears" with Glen Kozlowski
and Dan Hampton
.
WMVP-AM: Paired with Marc Silverman, his new show initially aired in the same 7–9 pm spot as Sports Central. After 2 months in this timeslot, they were moved to the weekday morning slot 9 am to 12 noon formerly occupied by Steve Rosenbloom and Sean Salisbury
. The show was eventually expanded to four hours and to include twice weekly in-studio one hour segments with WLS-TV
sports anchor Mark Giangreco
. During football season, "Waddle and Silvy" broadcast live for one hour every Thursday from one of Mike Ditka
's two Chicago-area restaurants with the retired coach as a co-host and analyst.
NFL Network
: In 2007, he began working at the NFL network in Los Angeles
as gameday analyst paired with retired offensive lineman Jamie Dukes
. In the 2010 season, he contributeed as an analyst on NFL GameDay Scoreboard and NFL Total Access
.
Other Media: In addition to his duties at WFLD, WMVP, and the NFL Network, Tom appears weekly during the football season on Pro Football Weekly. Also during the season he writes a weekly column for the Northwest Herald of McHenry County, IL.
He is also seen an analyst for Sprint Exclusive Entertainment, providing content on all sports for cell phones.
On several occasions in 2008 and 2009, he appeared as a fill-in host, alongside Mike Greenberg, on Mike and Mike in the Morning
on ESPN Radio
. He and radio partner Marc Silverman have also hosted The Scott Van Pelt Show.
He has also done color commentating during CSN Chicago broadcasts of NIU Huskies Football and for a limited number of Chicago Rush games aired on the NFL Network.
with his wife, Cara and 4 daughters. Tom's wife Cara is the daughter of former Boston Patriots receiver
and AFL
Hall of Famer Gino Cappelletti
.
In 2010, Waddle competed in the Illinois Open
at Hawthorn Woods Country Club in Hawthorn Woods. After one round, he was tied for 146th after shooting a 17-over 86. He was cut after the second round after shooting another 86, finishing in a tie for 148th.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
in the NFL. Waddle is currently a co host of "Waddle and Silvy" on ESPN 1000, as well as co-hosting "The Final Word" on WFLD
WFLD
WFLD, virtual channel 32 , is the Fox owned-and-operated television station, based in Chicago, Illinois; through its parent company News Corporation, the station is owned in a duopoly with area MyNetworkTV affiliate WPWR-TV...
FOX Chicago. He also appears on Pro Football Weekly
Pro Football Weekly
Pro Football Weekly is an American sports magazine, founded in 1967, that covers the National Football League...
and NFL Network
NFL Network
NFL Network is an American television specialty channel owned and operated by the National Football League . It was launched November 4, 2003, only eight months after the league's 32 team owners voted unanimously to approve its formation...
. He spent his entire six year career with the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
. He attended Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
.
High school
Waddle went to high school at Archbishop Moeller High School in Sycamore TownshipSycamore Township, Hamilton County, Ohio
Sycamore Township is one of the twelve townships of Hamilton County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 19,675 people in the township.-Geography:...
, Ohio. He aspired to be a professional baseball player but with the likes of fellow Moeller schoolmates Ken Griffey Jr and Barry Larkin
Barry Larkin
Barry Louis Larkin is a retired Major League Baseball player. Larkin played shortstop for the Cincinnati Reds from 1986 to 2004 and was one of the pivotal players on the 1990 Reds' World Series championship team...
, Waddle turned to football.
Professional career
The Bears signed Waddle as an undrafted free agent from Boston CollegeBoston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
. During his first years with Bears, he struggled to make an impact as a wide receiver. Due to his size and speed, he fell to the lower ranks of the team’s depth chart. Waddle, however, possessed great ball handling abilities. In 1991, Waddle caught a game-winning touchdown by diving for the football. In one of his best games in 1991, Waddle caught 102 yards on eight receptions, establishing himself as one of the Bears’ most solid playmakers. Later in the season, he caught nine passes for 104 yards.
In 1992, Waddle earned a starting position, and became a fan favorite. He had several productive performances with quarterback, Jim Harbaugh
Jim Harbaugh
James Joseph "Jim" Harbaugh is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. Harbaugh agreed to a five-year deal with the San Francisco 49ers on January 7, 2011. Previously, he was the head coach at...
, including a performance against the Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are a member of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
where he outran Deion Sanders
Deion Sanders
Deion Luwynn Sanders , nicknamed "Prime Time" and "Neon Deion", is a former National Football League cornerback and Major League Baseball outfielder who currently works as an NFL Network analyst...
for a touchdown. In 1993, he was Bears’ leading receiver in both receptions and yards amassed. His career with the Bears’ began to fallout in 1994, when Dave Wannstedt
Dave Wannstedt
Dave Wannstedt is current Assistant Head Coach/Inside Linebackers Coach for the Buffalo Bills in the National Football League. He was most recently head coach of the University of Pittsburgh football team, a position he held for six seasons. Wannstedt is also the former head coach of the Miami...
demoted Waddle to third string wide receiver. The following year, Waddle left the Bears after failing to negotiate a proper contract. In 1995 he went to Bengals free agent mini-camp, but chose to retire after experiencing knee problems.
Fans remember Waddle from his rigorous work ethic and effort. Even after sustaining big hits and injuries from bigger players, Waddle was eager to bounce back and play during the following week. His contract and career transactions also tell an interesting story, as the Bears released and resigned him four times. Even after leaving the football scene, Waddle was still a well known and respected figure.
Post-football career
WFLD-TV: Following his retirement, he began working at the Fox Chicago affiliate WFLDWFLD
WFLD, virtual channel 32 , is the Fox owned-and-operated television station, based in Chicago, Illinois; through its parent company News Corporation, the station is owned in a duopoly with area MyNetworkTV affiliate WPWR-TV...
doing pre and post game analysis for Bears games. During this time, he also began to work as a weekend and fill-in sports anchor as well doing feature segments that were mostly comedic in nature. Later he began co-hosting shows such as Chicago Bears Gameday Live, Fox Kickoff Sunday and The Final Word on Sunday nights, all of which he is still involved with as of September 2010.
WGN-AM: In 1997, Tom began co-hosting Sports Central with David Kaplan
David Kaplan (radio)
David Kaplan is an American columnist, radio and television personality who hosted the radio program Sports Central on WGN Radio in Chicago. He is also the host of Chicago Tribune Live: a daily sports roundtable discussion show on Comcast SportsNet in Chicago...
weeknights from 7–9 discussing not just football, but all sports. This partnership ended in 2007 with his move to WMVP ESPN Radio 1000.
While at WGN he was also one of the trio of former Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
called "The Three Bears" with Glen Kozlowski
Glen Kozlowski
Glen Kozlowski is a former professional American football player who played wide receiver for six seasons for the Chicago Bears.-College:...
and Dan Hampton
Dan Hampton
Daniel Oliver Hampton also known as "Danimal" is a retired Hall of Fame American football defensive tackle who played twelve seasons for the Chicago Bears from 1979 to 1990 in the National Football League. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002...
.
WMVP-AM: Paired with Marc Silverman, his new show initially aired in the same 7–9 pm spot as Sports Central. After 2 months in this timeslot, they were moved to the weekday morning slot 9 am to 12 noon formerly occupied by Steve Rosenbloom and Sean Salisbury
Sean Salisbury
Richard Sean Salisbury is an American football analyst, former NFL and CFL quarterback, and actor.-Early life:Salisbury attended Orange Glen High School in Escondido, California...
. The show was eventually expanded to four hours and to include twice weekly in-studio one hour segments with WLS-TV
WLS-TV
WLS-TV, virtual channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The station operates their full power digital operations on UHF channel 44, with their digital fill-in translator on VHF channel...
sports anchor Mark Giangreco
Mark Giangreco
Mark Giangreco is the sports director and lead sports anchor for WLS-TV in Chicago, Illinois. Giangreco currently anchors the sports segment on ABC7 during the 5pm and 10pm newscasts. -Education and career:...
. During football season, "Waddle and Silvy" broadcast live for one hour every Thursday from one of Mike Ditka
Mike Ditka
Michael Keller Ditka, Jr. is a former American football NFL player, television commentator, and coach. Ditka coached the Chicago Bears for 11 years and New Orleans Saints for three years. Ditka and Tom Flores are the only two people to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach, and a head...
's two Chicago-area restaurants with the retired coach as a co-host and analyst.
NFL Network
NFL Network
NFL Network is an American television specialty channel owned and operated by the National Football League . It was launched November 4, 2003, only eight months after the league's 32 team owners voted unanimously to approve its formation...
: In 2007, he began working at the NFL network in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
as gameday analyst paired with retired offensive lineman Jamie Dukes
Jamie Dukes
Jamie Donnell Dukes is a former offensive lineman who played 10 seasons for the Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, and Arizona Cardinals, of the National Football League. He played college football at Florida State...
. In the 2010 season, he contributeed as an analyst on NFL GameDay Scoreboard and NFL Total Access
NFL Total Access
NFL Total Access is a television news program on the NFL Network.The network treats it as the league's "show of record" and bills it as the only year-round show dedicated to the National Football League, despite the ESPN show NFL Live running year round as well.NFL Total Access is primarily hosted...
.
Other Media: In addition to his duties at WFLD, WMVP, and the NFL Network, Tom appears weekly during the football season on Pro Football Weekly. Also during the season he writes a weekly column for the Northwest Herald of McHenry County, IL.
He is also seen an analyst for Sprint Exclusive Entertainment, providing content on all sports for cell phones.
On several occasions in 2008 and 2009, he appeared as a fill-in host, alongside Mike Greenberg, on Mike and Mike in the Morning
Mike and Mike in the Morning
Mike and Mike in the Morning is an American sports-talk radio show hosted by Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg on ESPN Radio and simulcast on television, normally on ESPN2. If ESPN is broadcasting a live sporting event during the show's timeslot, Sportscenter will air on ESPN2, and the show's...
on ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio is an American sports radio network. It was launched on January 1, 1992 under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN." ESPN Radio is located at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut...
. He and radio partner Marc Silverman have also hosted The Scott Van Pelt Show.
He has also done color commentating during CSN Chicago broadcasts of NIU Huskies Football and for a limited number of Chicago Rush games aired on the NFL Network.
Personal life
Tom lives in Lake ForestLake Forest, Illinois
Lake Forest is an affluent city located in Lake County, Illinois, United States. The city is south of Waukegan along the shore of Lake Michigan, and is a part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the North Shore. Lake Forest was founded around Lake Forest College and was laid out as a town in...
with his wife, Cara and 4 daughters. Tom's wife Cara is the daughter of former Boston Patriots receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
and AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
Hall of Famer Gino Cappelletti
Gino Cappelletti
Gino Cappelletti is a former American collegiate and Professional Football player. He played at the University of Minnesota, and was a star in the American Football League for the Boston Patriots...
.
In 2010, Waddle competed in the Illinois Open
Illinois Open Championship
The Illinois Open Championship is a golf tournament that is administered by the Illinois PGA . The "state championship of golf" is a 54-hole championship over three days to determine the finest player in the state of Illinois. The tournament is open to professionals and amateurs with a handicap of...
at Hawthorn Woods Country Club in Hawthorn Woods. After one round, he was tied for 146th after shooting a 17-over 86. He was cut after the second round after shooting another 86, finishing in a tie for 148th.