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Ernie Accorsi
Ernest William Accorsi Jr. (born October 29, 1941) is an American former professional football executive. He served as the general manager of three teams in the National Football League (NFL): the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and New York Giants.
A 1963 graduate of Wake Forest University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and membership in Theta Chi. Accorsi served in the U.S. Army before getting his start in sports as a reporter for The Charlotte News. He later wrote for The Baltimore Sun and The Philadelphia Inquirer before moving to the athletic departments at Saint Joseph's University and then Penn State. He served as Penn State's Assistant Sports Publicity Director in the late 1960s.
Accorsi began his NFL career in 1970 with the Baltimore Colts as its director of public relations, and worked on then-NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle's staff in the league office from 1975 before rejoining the Colts two years later as an assistant general manager.
Accorsi was promoted to general manager of the Colts in 1982. The Colts finished 0–8–1 in the strike-shortened 1982 season, thereby earning the right to select Stanford University quarterback John Elway with the first overall pick. Elway, however, refused to play for Baltimore, and using leverage as a draftee of the New York Yankees baseball club, forced a trade to the Denver Broncos. However, it was not Accorsi, but the team owner Bob Irsay who made the trade. “If another team wanted to draft [Elway], it would have had to fork over three first-round draft picks in exchange. That was Accorsi's price. When no other team met it, the Colts drafted him. Elway said the Colts had wasted a draft choice. He would play baseball. 'I covered minor league baseball when I was a sports-writer,' Accorsi said. "Elway wasn't going to give up a chance at the Hall of Fame to play in Greensboro, North Carolina, which is exactly where he would have been sent. If we'd been patient we could have signed him." Instead, Irsay traded him within a week, without consulting either Accorsi or [then head coach Frank] Kush. Denver gave up its own No. 1 pick in 1983 (offensive lineman Chris Hinton), its first pick in the 1984 draft and quarterback Mark Herrmann.
The team finished 7–9 in 1983, but that would be their last season in Baltimore. Accorsi resigned as GM after the 1983 season, just before the team's move to Indianapolis.
In 1985, Accorsi was hired by then Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell to serve as the team's new general manager and executive vice president of football operations, serving for seven seasons. Accorsi was responsible for the acquisition of quarterback Bernie Kosar in the 1985 supplemental draft. During his tenure, the Browns made five playoff appearances and got to the AFC Championship Game three times, but lost each time to Elway's Broncos. Accorsi resigned in 1992.
Accorsi joined the Giants in 1994 and served as an assistant to the general manager, legendary George Young, until he succeeded Young in 1998.
The Giants made one Super Bowl appearance under Accorsi in Super Bowl XXXV, which they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 34–7. They won two NFC East division titles (2000 and 2005) while making the playoffs four times (2000, 2002, 2005, and 2006).
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Ernie Accorsi
Ernest William Accorsi Jr. (born October 29, 1941) is an American former professional football executive. He served as the general manager of three teams in the National Football League (NFL): the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and New York Giants.
A 1963 graduate of Wake Forest University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and membership in Theta Chi. Accorsi served in the U.S. Army before getting his start in sports as a reporter for The Charlotte News. He later wrote for The Baltimore Sun and The Philadelphia Inquirer before moving to the athletic departments at Saint Joseph's University and then Penn State. He served as Penn State's Assistant Sports Publicity Director in the late 1960s.
Accorsi began his NFL career in 1970 with the Baltimore Colts as its director of public relations, and worked on then-NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle's staff in the league office from 1975 before rejoining the Colts two years later as an assistant general manager.
Accorsi was promoted to general manager of the Colts in 1982. The Colts finished 0–8–1 in the strike-shortened 1982 season, thereby earning the right to select Stanford University quarterback John Elway with the first overall pick. Elway, however, refused to play for Baltimore, and using leverage as a draftee of the New York Yankees baseball club, forced a trade to the Denver Broncos. However, it was not Accorsi, but the team owner Bob Irsay who made the trade. “If another team wanted to draft [Elway], it would have had to fork over three first-round draft picks in exchange. That was Accorsi's price. When no other team met it, the Colts drafted him. Elway said the Colts had wasted a draft choice. He would play baseball. 'I covered minor league baseball when I was a sports-writer,' Accorsi said. "Elway wasn't going to give up a chance at the Hall of Fame to play in Greensboro, North Carolina, which is exactly where he would have been sent. If we'd been patient we could have signed him." Instead, Irsay traded him within a week, without consulting either Accorsi or [then head coach Frank] Kush. Denver gave up its own No. 1 pick in 1983 (offensive lineman Chris Hinton), its first pick in the 1984 draft and quarterback Mark Herrmann.
The team finished 7–9 in 1983, but that would be their last season in Baltimore. Accorsi resigned as GM after the 1983 season, just before the team's move to Indianapolis.
In 1985, Accorsi was hired by then Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell to serve as the team's new general manager and executive vice president of football operations, serving for seven seasons. Accorsi was responsible for the acquisition of quarterback Bernie Kosar in the 1985 supplemental draft. During his tenure, the Browns made five playoff appearances and got to the AFC Championship Game three times, but lost each time to Elway's Broncos. Accorsi resigned in 1992.
Accorsi joined the Giants in 1994 and served as an assistant to the general manager, legendary George Young, until he succeeded Young in 1998.
The Giants made one Super Bowl appearance under Accorsi in Super Bowl XXXV, which they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 34–7. They won two NFC East division titles (2000 and 2005) while making the playoffs four times (2000, 2002, 2005, and 2006).