Perhaps nobody in pro football has had a bigger impact on Bucs general manager Jason Licht than Tom Heckert, Jr., who died Aug. 3 at age 51 after a long battle with amyloidosis. Heckert spent four years as the Broncos pro personnel director, helping them to a Super Bowl 50 victory.

Heckert, Jr., also served as general manager of the Eagles from 2006-09 and GM of the Cleveland Browns from 2010-12.

Licht's first job was as an intern with the Dolphins in 1995 under Heckert, Jr., who was the pro scouting director for Don Shula. With the Eagles, Licht would later become the assistant director and later vice president of player personnel for Heckert, Jr.

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Their families were close, so much so that Heckert, Jr., was in Licht's wedding. Here's Licht's remembrance of Tom Heckert, Jr.:

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Tom Heckert, Jr. was just a great man. I struck gold with my first job. In '95, Tom Braatz, who was then the college scouting director at Miami after being general manager at Green Bay and Atlanta, "found me," at Nebraska. He recommended me to Tom, Sr., who was the top lieutenant to coach Don Shula in personnel.

He hired me on the spot after the interview and we walked down to Tommy's office. He said, "This is your new scouting intern." Back then, we didn't have a large department. It was just Tommy and me doing the pro scouting.

My first day on the job was in May. Players had day off. Heckert took me golfing across the street from facility where the player's hotel was and there was an old public golf course. It's actually where Caddy Shack was filmed.

Before we went, he invited our grounds crew and maintenance guys because they were hilarious guys who liked to bust everyone's chops. That was just the type of guy he was.

We really hit it off by the time we hit the third green at "Bushwood."

Tommy was beyond generous. He always picked up tab. He lent me money when I was cutting my teeth so I could afford to actually live on an intern's salary, about $500 per month. And he made me promise that I would take my time to pay it back.

He rarely spoke in draft meetings. He wanted his scouts to have their moments to plead their cases. He trusted his employees and I carry that philosophy to this day.

He took the heat, but gave out the praise. When he did speak, he made incredible points. It was obvious he did his homework as well. He was a great evaluator and taught me and everyone a lot. He was quicker to peg a player than anyone I knew.

He also had this rare ability to make fun of himself and was one of very few people who could make fun of others without upsetting egos. He found humor in every situation, no matter how stressful it was.

His kids called me Uncle Jason. His ex-wife, who was still his best friend, called me her little brother. He was in my wedding. We were very close. John Spytek, our director of player personnel with the Bucs, was equally as tight with Tom during their time in Denver. We hired John as a scouting intern in Philly and he was his college scouting director in Cleveland.

Once Tom trusted you, he was beyond loyal.

One other thing. Tom always sent a baby gift to his staff whenever somebody had a child. And he was always the first to do it. That was his signature. He'd have a gift delivered before the kids were brought home from the hospital.

Two days after his passing, a scout in Denver whose wife just delivered, received a package in the mail. It was from Tom.

That was a surreal moment hearing that. Even in his darkest days he was thinking of others.

His immediate family had a small memorial at his Lake house for Tom. We all knew this would probably be the case. He really didn't like being the center of attention or having people feeling sorry for him. He would be proud looking down on us if we got together and simply busted his and each other's chops. He was that kind of guy.

There is an old dive called the Whistle Stop in Indianapolis where they hold the NFL scouting combine. They have no food, just pickled eggs and popcorn. There probably hasn't been any changes to it since it was built in God knows when But it was Heckert's favorite spot during combine because he wasn't the type that wanted to be seen. He loved getting his gang together and we would play liar's poker with dollar bills using serial numbers. The winner would get about $30 but would have to pick up the tab.

When we go to Indy next February, we're all going to go there and remember Tom.

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Contact Rick Stroud at rstroud@tampabay.com. Follow @NFLStroud