Bobby Grier, whose career as a football coach and front office executive with three NFL teams spanned seven decades, has died, his family confirmed. He was 82.
Grier broke into the NFL in 1981 as an assistant coach with the New England Patriots and stayed with the franchise through the 2000 NFL draft, transitioning from the sideline to the front office in 1993, where he ultimately elevated to the top role of vice president of player personnel. He later worked as a personnel executive for the Houston Texans (2000-2016) and consultant for the Miami Dolphins (2017-2025).
Grier's sons Chris and Mike, serve as general manager of the NFL's Dolphins and NHL's San Jose Sharks, respectively.
"Bobby was the strong, silent type -- a leader who could always get the best of you. I had the good fortune of watching him as a coach and later as a personnel guy," said former Patriots linebacker and Pro Football Hall of Famer Andre Tippett, who also worked under Grier as a scout. "He inspired people to think bigger and do bigger things."
In Grier's final draft with the Patriots, the team selected quarterback Tom Brady in the sixth round.
"He'll never let me or anyone else know about it or talk about it, but just being around him and talking with my brother, I know that he's pretty proud of that draft class and Tom in particular," Mike Grier told ESPN in 2011.
"He did his homework, and for me personally, it's something every time Tom does something and plays the way he does, it puts a smile on my face the way things ended for my dad there in New England. But I think he did a pretty good job. I'm very proud of him for what he did there."
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Bobby Grier, father of general manager Chris Grier. Bobby was a longtime executive for the Patriots and Texans and a former consultant for the Dolphins.
— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) September 22, 2025
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Grier family. pic.twitter.com/5J699e11Jf
In 1996, Grier's role as Patriots top football executive came to the forefront when then-head coach Bill Parcells desired more authority in personnel, which ultimately led to Parcells' departure to the New York Jets. Grier's time in New England ended as the team brought in a new regime under head coach Bill Belichick and his top personnel executive, Scott Pioli.
When Grier was hired by the Texans as associate director of pro scouting in 2000, then-general manager Charley Casserly said: "Any time you have an opportunity to add someone to your organization with the experience and reputation that Bobby has, you do it. His vast background in the NFL as a scout, personnel executive and coach will be extremely valuable to us."
Texans GM Rick Smith once described Grier as "the wizard" and the team's defensive coordinator Wade Phillips acknowledged Grier's role in the team selecting J.J. Watt with the No. 11 pick in the 2011 draft.
Grier, who was born in Detroit, played running back at the University of Iowa from 1961 to1964. He began his football career as a high school coach in Michigan before breaking into the college ranks as a running backs coach at Eastern Michigan in 1974. He landed at Boston College as running backs coach in 1978, a move that would result in him calling New England home for two-plus decades and raising his sons in the Boston suburb of Holliston.