Dimitroff

[HMFFL]

Some of the most important moments happened 15 years ago, when almost nobody knew of Thomas Dimitroff. When he would trudge in from his job painting football fields for the Cleveland Browns, slump into a chair across from Scott Pioli, and wonder aloud, what the hell am I doing?

Pioli chuckles at the thought of those lunchtime meetings, when he was a scout working up through the ranks for the Browns, and Dimitroff was far, far removed from his current perch as the celebrated 42-year-old architect of the Atlanta Falcons. Long before Pioli would carve out his own esteemed reputation as an executive with the New England Patriots, and long before Dimitroff would vault from that franchise to become general manager and central redeemer of the 9-5 Falcons.

“Thomas would come in and there were times where he’d just be covered in paint. He’d have it in his hair and he’d stink from sweat,” Pioli said. “We would be talking and I’m like ‘Thomas, get a shower.’ ”

It was the time in Dimitroff’s life when, as Pioli put it, “He was just waiting and hoping for the break.”

This is a common yarn for personnel men, who all collect tales of woe while crossing the NFL’s scouting tundra. But even amongst the most hardened talent evaluators, Dimitroff’s path was as unique as it was scattered – from the Canadian Football League in Saskatchewan, to the dying moments of the World League of American Football, to a little-known corporate football league in Japan.

It’s a winding path that lends itself to one of the best stories in the NFL this season

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[mattlanta]

That's a good article. Tom Dimitroff was easily the biggest acquisition last offseason. Without him, I don't think we would have drafted Matt Ryan. Some people wanted Parcells, but if we did get the Tuna, he would of more likely drafted a defensive player in Glenn Dorsey instead of Matty Ice considering he's not that big of a fan in drafting QBs in the first round. I realize it's only just one offseason, but Dimitroff constructed a near perfect NFL draft and free agency. I expect more from him this offseason. I'm curious and excited to see how he will address many of our holes. Hopefully, he won't disappoint.