Five Football Players that Died from Cancer

The sport of football has lost several standouts to the ravages of cancer, players that were both in their primes and some just a few years after they had retired, many at ages that were way too young. The roster of great football players that have lost battles with cancer includes the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy , a pair of Chicago Bears' running backs- one retired and the other in the middle of his career, a feared defensive linemen who later confessed to using steroids, and a key member of the Dallas Cowboys' "Doomsday Defense."

Ernie Davis was one of the most highly sought-after recruits in the country at a time when many colleges still refused to offer football scholarships to blacks. Davis chose Syracuse University over schools like UCLA and Notre Dame and then proceeded to lead them to their lone national title in 1959, as a sophomore. The clinching win came over Texas in the Cotton Bowl, a game in which Davis scored on an 87 yard reception and was named MVP of the contest. However, the Syracuse squad boycotted the awards banquet when they learned that Davis could accept the trophy but then had to leave the hotel it was held in because he was black. Davis won the Heisman in 1961 after rushing for 823 yards in ten games; he met President John F. Kennedy in New York where he shook his hand. Davis was drafted by the Redskins and quickly traded to the Browns, but he never played a single down of pro football. He was diagnosed with leukemia, a form of blood cancer, and would die at the age of 23 in 1963.

Walter Payton was a fabulous running back who holds most of the Chicago Bears' team records for the position. He went to college at Jackson State in Mississippi and was drafted by the Bears in 1975. Payton had a modest rookie season and then broke out, becoming the best running back in the game for many years. He set a then single-game mark of 275 yards rushing against the Vikings in 1977 and finished his career as the all-time leading ground gainer, a record since eclipsed by Emmett Smith. Payton ran for at least 100 yards in a contest 77 times and ran for over 1,000 yards ten times in his thirteen campaigns, including 1,852 in 1977. Payton played in 186 games in a row at one point and was beloved by his teammates and fans of not only the Bears but all of football. He passed away in 1999 at just 45 years old after suffering from a liver aliment that led to a cancerous tumor on his liver. It is reported that the noble Payton passed up a chance to move up the organ donor list because of his celebrity, knowing that if he did it would cost someone else their life.

Brian Piccolo was a running back who attended Wake Forest University but went undrafted in the 1965 pro football draft. Undeterred, he tried out for the Bears as a free-agent and was added to the taxi squad, meaning he could practice with the club but not play in games. The next year he made the roster but was used almost exclusively on special teams covering kicks, but he worked hard and finally became good enough to back up Gale Sayers at running back. Piccolo and Sayers became good friends, a friendship that would be made into a TV movie based on Sayers autobiography "I Am Third." "Brian's Song" was and still is one of the greatest sports films ever made, as it tells the poignant tale of how Piccolo died of embryonal cell carcinoma, a cancer that killed him at the age of 26 in 1970. The movie starred James Caan as Piccolo and Billy Dee Williams as Sayers, and although it took several liberties with some of the facts, its haunting theme song, "The Hands of Time", and the emotional nature of the subject matter still brings grown men to tears. "The Hands of Time" is played by the Florida high school that Brian Piccolo attended in Fort Lauderdale after every football game even today.

Lyle Alzado played football at obscure Yankton College in South Dakota, but NFL scouts found him anyways. He was drafted by the Broncos in the fourth round in 1971 and became the starting right defensive end when an injury to the incumbent got him into the line-up. Alzado made several all-rookie teams for his play that year and he became a fierce pass rusher, noted for his intense and intimidating style. Alzado was moved to defensive tackle in 1975 and was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Year in 1977, helping the Broncos to their first Super Bowl, a 27-10 loss to the Cowboys. Alzado would later play for both the Browns and Raiders, staying in the NFL for a dozen seasons before retiring in 1985, having been credited with 112 sacks. One of the first athletes to admit steroid use, Lyle Alzado died of a cancerous brain tumor in 1992 at 43 years old; his illness he always asserted was due to his using steroids.

Harvey Martin was another defensive end who attended a college out of the limelight, East Texas State University, but he too managed to get drafted by the NFL. The Cowboys chose him in 1973 in Round Three and he went on to become the Dallas all-time sack leader with 113 in his career and 20 in a single season. Martin played in four Pro Bowls and was co-MVP of Super Bowl XII with teammate Randy White. Martin was able to overcome a drug problem after his retirement but could not win his fight with deadly pancreatic cancer, succumbing to it on Christmas Eve, 2001 at 51 years old.