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Avellini shared the backfield and the 1975
draft class with Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Walter
Payton. The Bears selected Jackson State's Payton fourth overall
while Maryland's Avellini was the 135th pick, coming in the
sixth round.
The starter in 1976 after four starts as a rookie, Avellini
played with the Bears until he was released in the 1984 season.
He threw for 7,111 yards, 33 touchdowns and 69 interceptions in
73 games as the team went 23-27 in his 50 starts.
His best season was in 1977, when the Bears started 3-5 but
earned a wild-card berth by winning their final six games.
Avellini passed for career bests of 2,004 yards and 11
touchdowns that season as the Bears finished 9-5, tying
Minnesota in the NFC Central. The Vikings won the division,
while the Bears got the wild card and lost 37-7 to the Dallas
Cowboys in the playoffs.
"Bob was one-of-a-kind; a fierce and tough competitor," the
Bears said in a statement. "He's perhaps best remembered for
leading the Bears on an improbable run in 1977 to our first
postseason appearance in 14 years. He will be missed."
After his release from Chicago, where he disagreed with head
coach Mike Ditka in the later stage of his career, he briefly
was with the New York Jets and spent the 1986 preseason with the
Dallas Cowboys before retiring.
--Field Level Media [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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