Robert Ross Lurtsema (born March 29, 1942) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

for the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

, New York Giants and Seattle Seahawks. He played in two Super Bowls with the Vikings. Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Lurtsema attended Ottawa Hills High School and initially went to

Michigan Tech Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Upper Peninsula of Michiga ...

in 1962 on a basketball scholarship, but started playing football and lettered in the sport as a Huskie in the 1962 season. Lurtsema transferred to

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. Bliss for the training of teachers ...

to continue his collegiate career, lettering in football as a Bronco in 1965. Undrafted after graduating, Lurtsema played for the 1966 Harrisburg Capitals of the

Atlantic Coast Football League The Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL) was a professional american football minor league that operated from 1962 to 1973. Until 1969, many of its franchises had working agreements with NFL and AFL teams to serve as farm clubs. The league paid ...

, which was a taxi squad affiliated with the Baltimore Colts. Don Shula, Colts coach, had drafted

Bubba Smith Charles Aaron Smith (February 28, 1945 – August 3, 2011), commonly known as Bubba Smith, was an American football defensive end and actor. He first came into prominence at Michigan State University, where he twice earned All-American hon ...

in 1967, blocking an opportunity for Lurtsema. Shula arranged a trade to the New York Giants. Lurtsema said of Shula, "I owe everything to Shula. He basically set up my whole career. I can’t say enough good things about him.” Lurtsema played with the New York Giants for 1967, making the all-rookie team in 1967 and the Sporting News All-Star team in 1968. He became a regular starter for the Giants through the 1971 season, changing positions in 1970 from defensive tackle to defensive end, but the Giants waived him at the end of the 1971 season. The

signed Lurtsema in 1972. In the third game of the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

1972 NFL season, the Dolphins appeared to be on the way to losing a game against the Vikings. Lurtsema was flagged for roughing the passer in a pivotal play in the game, and for the Dolphins' season, as they ended up undefeated. Lurtsema played regularly for the Vikings and back up the famed

Purple People Eaters Purple People Eaters were the defensive line of the Minnesota Vikings from the late 1960s to the late 1970s. The term is a reference to Purple People Eater, a popular song from 1958, the efficiency of the defense, and the color of their uniforms. T ...

defensive line, but he rarely started, earning the affectionate nickname "Benchwarmer Bob." Lurtsema played for the Vikings in

Super Bowl VIII Super Bowl VIII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Minnesota Vikings and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Miami Dolphins to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for ...

in 1974 and

Super Bowl IX Super Bowl IX was an American football game played between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Minnesota Vikings to decide the National Football League (NFL) cha ...

in 1975, both losing causes. The Vikings traded Lurtsema to the Seattle Seahawks, an expansion team in their first season in 1976 in a deal for wide receiver

Ahmad Rashad Ahmad Rashad (born Robert Earl Moore; November 19, 1949) is an American sportscaster and former professional football player. He was the fourth overall selection of the 1972 NFL Draft, taken by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was known as Bobby Moo ...

. Lurtsema played two seasons in Seattle, starting regularly at defensive end. He retired after the 1977 NFL season with 82 career starts. After retirement, Lurtsema often appeared as "Benchwarmer Bob" in

TCF Bank TCF Bank was the wholly owned banking subsidiary of TCF Financial Corporation, a bank holding company headquartered in Detroit. As of August 10, 2020, TCF Bank had approximately 475 branches in Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, Colorado, Wisconsin, ...

(TCF Savings and Loan) television commercials.
Lurtsema - TCF Commercials
Lurtsema pitched for the

Minnesota Norsemen The Minnesota Norsemen were a professional softball team that played in the American Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL) during the 1978 and 1979 seasons. The team had played as the Minnesota Goofy's in the 1977 season, changing names for 1978. ...

professional softball team during their 1979 season in the American Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL). He also owned Benchwarmer Bob's Sports Cafe, which had two locations in the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in sta ...

. In 2013 Lurtsema signed on to support the lawsuit brought against the NFL in regard to concussions in the sport. He advocated for the funds to be used for players impacted by injuries and for research into brain injuries. Lurtsema and his wife Aloise are retired and live in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

References

External links

Career Statistics at NFL.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lurtsema, Bob 1942 births Living people American football defensive linemen New York Giants players Minnesota Vikings players Seattle Seahawks players Western Michigan Broncos football players Michigan Tech Huskies football players Players of American football from Grand Rapids, Michigan