Charles Tillman is one of the most beloved Chicago Bears of all time, and during his 13-year NFL career, he was one of the most dominant defensive backs to play the game.
But when he retired — after a brief stint at Fox Sports — he found a different calling. The son of a distinguished military officer, Tillman was drawn to public service. So he joined the FBI, working from the bureau’s offices in Chicago.
While serving in the FBI, Tillman was involved in such noble, high-profile work as helping to detain the Fourth of July shooter in Highland Park in 2022. Recently, Tillman’s mood toward the job changed.
During an appearance on The Pivot podcast, Tillman stated that he disagreed with the actions of the Trump administration and the role the FBI was being forced to play in carrying out the president’s bidding. In particular, Tillman explained that he was not OK with carrying out Trump’s aggressive immigration policy.
So he left the bureau and returned to football, cohosting a local Bears podcast and another show for NFL Media.
“The FBI was great to me. I did awesome. I worked with an amazing group of individuals. I think some of the things that they’re doing now, I personally didn’t agree with,” Tillman explained. “I didn’t agree with how the administration came in and tried to make individuals do things … it just didn’t sit right.”
As a local agent for the FBI, Tillman and his colleagues were ordered to carry out raids and detain suspected undocumented immigrants around Chicago. At face value, Tillman understood his duty.
Once he saw the targets, however, he grew frustrated.
“Everybody was told, you’re going to go after the most dangerous criminals, but what you see on TV and what actually was happening was people weren’t going after that,” Tillman said. “And personally, that didn’t sit right with me. That didn’t sit right with my conscience.”
While Tillman insisted that he did not have any “bitter taste” in his mouth over leaving the FBI and moving into a more traditional career path for a retired NFL star, he explained that he wants to be proud of the work he does. And under the current FBI regime, Tillman was upset by what he was being asked to do.
And he believes he was not the only one.
“At the end of the day, I want to be on the right side of history when it’s all said and done,” Tillman added.
“Do I think there are individuals in the organization, do they like doing some of the stuff that they’re doing? Absolutely not. I think they hate it. I was in a different position because of my previous career. I made enough money to where I could just walk away and say, ‘You know what, guys? I’m OK. I think I’m good. My first eight years, I’ve been solid. We were doing some good things. Some of the stuff that you’re doing now, I don’t necessarily agree with.’ And that’s not in Chicago, that comes from Washington.”
Today, Tillman cohosts the NFL Players Second Acts podcast for NFL Media and iHeartMedia. In Chicago, he cohosts the Bears Den podcast for Marquee Sports Network. He is also up for the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year as he looks for his own third act.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.