Pro Football Hall Of Famer Frank Gifford Dies At 84

NEW YORK (CBSLA.com/AP) — Pro Football Hall of Famer Frank Gifford has died. He was 84.

In a statement released by NBC News on Sunday, his family said Gifford died suddenly at his Connecticut home of natural causes that morning.

A versatile star on both offense and defense in an era when NFL players were starting to specialize, Gifford went on to a successful second career as a broadcaster on "Monday Night Football."

Gifford was the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 1956 when he led the New York Giants to a league championship.

His family says in the statement: "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."

Gifford got his football career off to a start in Southern California, becoming a star at USC in 1949, and he went on to spend his entire professional career with the New York Giants.

KCAL9 sports director Jim Hill remembered Gifford on Sunday.

"He was always a giver, and he gave me some very good advice," Hill said. "Frank said 'Jimmy, don't let us down', and it really struck me that here's Frank Gifford who said ' Don't let us down', and I've been trying ever since not to let him down. For a lot of us, he'll always be in our heart, because he means so much to us and the things that he said will last a lifetime."

Gifford is survived by his wife, television personality Kathie Lee Gifford.

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