The NFL player list of state supreme court justices will be reduced next month when Judge Alan Page reaches the mandatory age of 70 and he leaves the Minnesota bench after 22 distinguished years.
However, Judge Robert R. Thomas (you may remember him better as Bears kicker Bob Thomas) continues as a well-respected justice on the Illinois State Supreme Court.
Judge Thomas enjoyed a successful 12-year (and four-team) NFL career from 1975-86. While with the Bears, he practiced during the day and attended law school at night.
He transitioned from player, to lawyer, to circuit court judge in 1988 and has been serving in one court or another for nearly 30 years. The Notre Dame grad (don’t hold it against him!) was sworn in as State Supreme Court Justice in 2000.
“I think it has helped in my current position that I was an athlete because I had my moment in the sun,” Thomas says. “I think it allowed for more humility and added to my demeanor. I probably will be remembered more for what I did on the field than in the courtroom. However, every day I remind myself that there are faces behind the cases I now hear and these cases mean everything to those individuals.”
Finally, Judge Thomas understands that players sometimes have a hard time adjusting after leaving the NFL, but he leaves an optimistic reminder.
“I think athletes already have a head start because we are used to hard work and achieving excellence. All of us can use these same traits of perseverance and hard work in whatever profession we get into after playing.”
Thousands of you former players are doing just that and succeeding in your current jobs. Don’t listen to the outside critics who say life ends when you leave the NFL locker room.