RIP Frank Gifford
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NFL Hall of Famer Frank Gifford has passed away at the age of 84. His family announced the death in a statement released through NBC News on Sunday morning:
“It is with the deepest sadness that we announce the sudden passing of our beloved husband, father and friend, Frank Gifford. Frank died suddenly this beautiful Sunday morning of natural causes at his Connecticut home. We rejoice in the extraordinary life he was privileged to live, and we feel grateful and blessed to have been loved by such an amazing human being. We ask that our privacy be respected at this difficult time and we thank you for your prayers.”
A first-round draft pick in 1952, Gifford spent his entire career with the New York Giants and over the span of a 12-year career, he was named to the Pro Bowl 8 times and was also named an AP All-Pro 6 times while playing at 3 different positions – wide receiver, running back, and defensive back.
The New York Giants went to 6 NFL championships during that time, winning 1 title in 1956, the same year Gifford was named league MVP. His 5,434 receiving yards stood as the Giants’ all-time receiving record for almost 40 years before Amani Toomer set a new mark in 2003.
Canton beckoned, and Gifford was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977.
Following his retirement as a player, Gifford went into broadcasting, and in 1971, he replaced Keith Jackson as the Monday Night Football play-by-play announcer, joining Howard Cosell and Don Meredith in the ABC booth.
Gifford spent a total of 26 years in this position, and his duties also expanded to include ABC coverage of the Olympic Games and golf, and was a regular host of ABC’s Wide World of Sports.
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The trio became synonymous with network tv coverage of the NFL, and it is not a stretch to make the argument that they played no small part in making Monday Night Football the cultural icon that it became.
“I hate to use the words ‘American institution,’ but there’s no other way to put it, really. There’s nothing else like it.”
In a statement released by the NFL, Commissioner Roger Goodell had the following to say:
“Frank Gifford was an icon of the game, both as a Hall of Fame player for the Giants and Hall of Fame broadcaster for CBS and ABC. [His] talent and charisma on the field and on the air were important elements in the growth and popularity of the modern NFL.”
Reaction from around the league and sports media
Gifford is survived by three children from his first marriage, and his wife Kathie Lee and their son and daughter.