Wyllie has served as Vice President of Communications with Houston Texans since the team’s inception in 2000 and brings more than 17 years of NFL PR experience with six different teams to Washington.“We’re thrilled to get someone of this caliber,” said Redskins owner Dan Snyder. “As the digital media world evolves, it is critical to have someone like Tony who understands new media. He is the consummate professional and understands the media’s needs and requirements as well as the fan’s passion for information.”
Wyllie, 42, was responsible for shaping and molding the image of the Houston Texans in the public and the community. He served as the liaison between the local and national media and the Texans’ front office, coaches and players. Wyllie generated publicity for the club while serving as the team spokesman.
“I’m excited to join the Redskins organization and would like to thank Dan Snyder for the opportunity,” said Wyllie. “I look forward to hitting the ground running.”
The Brooklyn native began his NFL career as a game day intern with the Houston Oilers in 1991 before working as a summer intern with the San Diego Chargers PR department in 1992. He spent 1993 as an intern in the PR department with the Dallas Cowboys, earning a Super Bowl ring before heading west to Los Angeles to work with the Rams as the assistant director of public relations. Wyllie moved with the team to St. Louis in 1995 and became the youngest PR director in the NFL three years later when the Tennessee Oilers hired him in 1998. He picked up an AFC championship ring with the Titans in 1999 before joining the Texans staff in the summer of 2000.
Wyllie and his staff have earned the Pete Rozelle award, which is presented annually by Pro Football Writers of America to the best NFL public relations staff, four times. The Rams’ PR department won the award in 1997, the Titans in 2000, and the Texans in 2004 and 2007. He is the only executive in the NFL to win it with three different teams.
He was chosen by the NFL to work the 1996 and 1997 NFC Championship games, the 1999 Pro Bowl in Hawaii, and eight Super Bowls. He participated in the NFL’s management program at Stanford University in 2004, and the first NFL Football Operations Personnel Symposium in 2007. He also served as a sub-committee chairman on Houston’s Super Bowl XXXVIII host committee
Wyllie worked three years in the sports information department of Texas Southern University, where he received his degree in journalism. In 2004, Wyllie received TSU’s “Distinguished Alumnus” award. He also earned an MBA from the Jones School of Business at Rice University.
In Houston, Wyllie served on numerous Boards of Directors including the Ensemble Theatre in Houston, the March of Dimes, and the Management Leadership for Tomorrow-Houston, John P. McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science, the Houston Texans YMCA and the Touchdown Club of Houston.
He and his wife Natasha are parents of son James Anthony and daughter Toni Simone.
Earlier in the week PR Officer Karl Swanson resigned (citing family reasons). Swanson had been with the Redskins since Dan Snyder purchased the team in 1999.
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Next Up: Redskins to host second voluntary mini-camp this weekend. The camp is not open to the public.
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