Tony Siragusa obit

Tony Siragusa, former NFL star and TV personality, dead at 55

 

He was not on the list.

Longtime NFL player and personality Tony Siragusa has died at 55.

Siragusa died in his sleep, according to Pro Football Network.

Known affectionately as “Goose,” Siragusa spent 12 years in the NFL with the Colts and Ravens, winning Super Bowl XXXV with Baltimore in 2001. He then spent over a decade as the sideline analyst for Fox NFL Sunday.

He was part of the late ’90s Ravens Super Bowl championship team, anchoring the tackle position for an all-time defense that also included Ray Lewis, Rod Woodson and Chris McAlister. The Ravens defeated the Giants 34-7 in the Super Bowl.

It was the second tragic loss of the day for the Ravens family. Earlier Wednesday, the team announced that linebacker Jaylon Ferguson had passed away at 26.

“It’s a sad day to be a Raven I must say,” former running back Jamal Lewis told TMZ.

In a 2012 interview with Howard Stern, Siragusa mentioned that his father died of a heart attack when he was 48, and passed away in his presence. He also said that heart disease runs in his family.

“If I die tomorrow, I told my wife, just put a smile on my face. Put a little [Frank] Sinatra on,” he said in that interview.

He as a defensive tackle for 12 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and the Baltimore Ravens in the National Football League (NFL). After his football career, he worked as a sideline analyst for NFL games broadcast on the Fox Network from 2003 to 2015. He also hosted various shows on television, such as the home renovation program Man Caves on the DIY Network.

Siragusa attended David Brearley High School in Kenilworth, New Jersey. In high school, he played football and was also a member of the wrestling team. He was the New Jersey state wrestling champion with a 97–1 career record.[citation needed] In football, he played defensive line, punted, and place kicked. He had a 39-yard punting average and was 15-of-18 on extra point attempts.

Siragusa attended the University of Pittsburgh and played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers. He was a starting defensive tackle in his sophomore and junior seasons (1986 and 1987) under head coach Mike Gottfried.

Siragusa was an undrafted free agent in 1990 and was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as a defensive tackle. He used to play nose tackle to draw the double teams when the Indianapolis Colts were in a 3-4 defense or 4-3 defense. As a rookie, he appeared in 13 games, started six games, and recorded one sack, 36 total tackles, and one fumble recovery. In the 1991 season, he appeared in 13 games, started six, and recorded two sacks, one fumble recovery, and 46 combined tackles. In the 1992 season, he appeared in all 16 games, started 12, and recorded three sacks and 65 combined tackles. In the 1993 season, he appeared in and started 14 games and recorded 1.5 sacks and 76 combined tackles. In the 1994 season, he appeared in and started all 16 games and recorded five sacks, 88 combined tackles, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. In the 1995 season, he appeared in and started 14 games and recorded two sacks, 49 total tackles, and one forced fumble.

Siragusa was a key part of the Colts team that narrowly lost the 1995 AFC Championship Game; after the season, he was unhappy that Colts coach Ted Marchibroda was given a no-raise, no-extension contract offer that he rejected before leaving the team. Siragusa was open about his dislike for new coach Lindy Infante and the team's Vice President of Football Operations Bill Tobin.

In 1997, Siragusa signed with the Baltimore Ravens. In the 1997 season, he appeared in 14 games, started 13, and recorded one fumble recovery and 27 total tackles. In the 1998 season, he appeared in and started 15 games, and recorded one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, and 41 total tackles. In the 1999 season, he appeared in and started 14 games, and recorded two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, 3.5 sacks, and 36 total tackles. He was a part of the 2000 Baltimore Ravens defense that allowed the fewest total points in NFL history for a 16-game season. In the 2000 season, he appeared in and started 15 games, and recorded one fumble recovery and 27 total tackles. Siragusa was fined $10,000 for an illegal hit on Oakland Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon in the 2000 AFC title game, injuring Gannon’s shoulder. He helped lead the Ravens to their first Super Bowl in franchise history in Super Bowl XXXV where they beat the New York Giants, 34–7. Siragusa retired following the 2001 season, where he had two sacks and 28 total tackles. He finished his career with 562 tackles (416 solo), 22 sacks, five forced fumbles, nine fumble recoveries for 12 yards, and 28 pass deflections in 170 career games.

Siragusa was a sideline reporter and analyst during NFL games on Fox until his firing following the 2015 NFL season. Siragusa usually appeared with Kenny Albert (before Albert, Dick Stockton and Curt Menefee) and Daryl Johnston. In 2015, he was paired with Thom Brennaman and Charles Davis. He appeared as Soprano family associate Frankie Cortese in the TV series The Sopranos. He partnered up with Michael Romanelli and opened a restaurant chain called Tiff's. The original name of the franchise was Tiffany's, but after a lawsuit by Tiffany & Co., the luxury jeweler, the name was shortened. He hosted Man Caves on the DIY network. He also hosted a documentary program called Megamachines on the Discovery Channel.

Siragusa also played a Russian mobster in the 2002 movie 25th Hour.

Out of a concern for men with prostate cancer, in 2013 Siragusa began appearing in an ad campaign for Depend for Men, saying, "I decided to go and shoot the commercial and bring a little bit of lightness to [the problem] where guys can talk about it and after I did the commercial you wouldn't believe the response.