Roman Gabriel, who played 11 of his 16 years in pro football with the Rams, was the first Filipino American to play in the NFL.
Considering that he was the No. 1 overall draft pick in one league and No. 2 in the other, the prize in a bidding war marked by intrigue and skullduggery, it took Roman Gabriel a long time to establish himself as a pro football quarterback.
Once he did, however, he went about cementing his place as one of the best of his day and a near-mythical figure in Rams’ lore. He stands tall in the company of such former Rams quarterbacks as Bob Waterfield and Norm Van Brocklin in Los Angeles and Kurt Warner in St. Louis.
And he did stand tall. Green Bay coaching legend Vince Lombardi once described him as “a big telephone pole.” At 6 feet 5 and 235 pounds, he was one of the first of pro football’s big quarterbacks. He also was the first Filipino American to play in the National Football League. Strong of arm — he could throw the football 70 yards — he staked his claim to fame by passing in an era when many coaches relied on a grind-it-out running game and saw the downfield pass as an option of last resort.
Forever royalty in the eyes of Rams fans, Gabriel died Saturday morning at age 83 of natural causes, his son Roman Gabriel III announced on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Though it’s been nearly 50 years since he last played, Gabriel still holds the Rams’ records for touchdown passes, 154; passes thrown, 3,313, and victories by a starting quarterback, 74. He also ranks high among signal callers for the Philadelphia Eagles, with whom he spent the last five seasons of his NFL career, after 11 with the Rams.
“We mourn the loss of Rams legend and football pioneer, Roman Gabriel,” the Rams said on their X account. “We extend our condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time.”
Coming out of North Carolina State, where he had been a two-sport star and could well have lettered in a third, Gabriel was as hot a prospect as ever came down the pike. The Oakland Raiders of the fledgling American Football League, still trying to make a name for itself, had first choice in the AFL draft and chose Gabriel. The Rams, with the second pick in the far more established NFL, chose him, too.
The Rams were offering $15,000 a year and a $5,000 signing bonus; the Raiders $12,500 with a $2,500 bonus. When it appeared that Gabriel would sign with the Rams, the Raiders turned his AFL rights over to the Dallas Texans, then owned by oil billionaire and league co-founder Lamar Hunt.
Hunt, desperately wanting Gabriel for his league, was prepared to offer him $100,000, far more than any football player was making at the time. The Rams, though, with general manager Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch handling negotiations, had spirited Gabriel off to a hotel suite in Raleigh, N.C. Somehow, Hunt learned of the subterfuge and called Gabriel at the hotel to make the offer. Gabriel was in another room when the phone rang. Hirsch picked it up and — pretending to be Gabriel — turned Hunt down, saying he was going to play for the Rams.
