Len Pasquarelli
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Len Pasquarelli is an American sports writer and analyst with The Sports Xchange and a 25-year veteran of covering the National Football League (NFL). The Sports Xchange is a network of professional, accredited reporters and analysts who cover each team or sport full-time.
Prior to joining the Sports Xchange, he wrote for ESPN.com [1] starting in 2001 and was a frequent contributor to the other ESPN outlets, including SportsCenter, ESPNEWS, ESPN Radio and ESPN The Magazine. Before ESPN, Pasquarelli served as a senior writer for CBS SportsLine.com. He has also covered the NFL for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution from 1989 to 1999, the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel from 1985 to 1989, Pro Football Weekly from 1982 to 1985, and Pittsburgh Steelers Weekly from 1978 to 1982.
Pasquarelli is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and has twice won national awards as the Best NFL Reporter of the Year. He also has won several writing awards, including an Associated Press Deadline Sports Reporting Award in 1988.
Pasquarelli has been on the committee that selects inductees for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. During the annual selection meeting on February 2, 2008, he fell ill and was taken to an area hospital. The following day he had quintuple bypass surgery. [2] While in rehabilitation for the bypass surgery, he began to experience new symptoms which were later diagnosed as Guillain–Barré syndrome.
Pasquarelli is a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania native and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1972. He currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.
Pasquarelli's candid writing style has generated controversy at times, particularly his condemnation of the Washington Redskins franchise.[3] He has openly admitted his distaste for the Redskins organization, including former coach Joe Gibbs, to whom he referred derisively as "Ordinary Joe" during his second tenure.[4] Moreover, he has confessed to disliking Redskins owner Daniel Snyder. His speculation that former Redskins safety Sean Taylor was slain on account of his precarious lifestyle sparked additional resentment.[5]
In the 2006 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans were expected[by whom?] to take USC running back Reggie Bush. However, the night before the draft, the Texans announced their intentions to take Mario Williams, a defensive end from NC State. Pasquarelli claimed that Houston's selection of Williams ahead of Bush was one of the "biggest mistakes made in NFL Draft history".[citation needed]