Baltimore Colts legend Gino Marchetti dead at 93
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Baltimore Colts legend Gino Marchetti has died, the team announced Tuesday. He was 93.
The Hall of Fame defensive end died Monday of pneumonia, the Baltimore Sun reported. The Baltimore Ravens released a statement regarding the Pro Football Hall of Famer’s passing. His wife, Joan Marchetti, told the media outlet: “I kissed him and he knew me and smiled.”
“That was Gino’s way of saying goodbye.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“A giant of a man with a giant heart who helped many in need, Gino Marchetti is at or near the top of the greats in Baltimore athletic and football history,” the team said in a statement. “Beloved in Baltimore, this Pro Football Hall of Famer loved our community and the fans who were so special to him. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Joan, and the Marchetti family. We appreciate the kindness and respect Gino showed the Ravens over the last 23 years.”
Baltimore Colts legend and Hall of Fame defensive end Gino Marchetti has died, the team announced in a statement. (Getty Images)
Marchetti, who was born in 1926 in West Virginia, was selected to 11 straight Pro Bowls and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1972, according to Pro Football Hall of Fame.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Baltimore Sun reported Marchetti “often played hurt.” He suffered a broken leg in the team’s famous win in the 1958 NFL Championship Game dubbed “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” according to Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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Marchetti joined the Army in 1944 and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He also opened a restaurant called “Gino’s” that was sold later to the Marriott Corporation.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Marchetti was drafted in 1952 by the Dallas Texans and played his last game in 1966 when he was 40.
He is survived by his wife, children, stepdaughter, 16 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.