ATLANTA — Tommy Nobis, the first player ever drafted by Atlanta in 1966 and a hard-hitting linebacker who went on to spent his entire 11-year career with the Falcons, has died after an extended illness. He was 74.
The team said Nobis passed away Wednesday at his suburban Atlanta home.
Nobis has been in poor health with physical and cognitive ailments that may have been related to his football career. He was among hundreds of ex-players who were part of a plan that reimburses them for expenses related to the treatment of dementia, Parkinson's, ALS or other neurological disorders.