Super Bowl champion, former Steelers linebacker Andy Russell dies at 82

Andy Russell, the seven-time Pro Bowl linebacker who won two Super Bowl rings with the Pittsburgh Steelers, has died.

Russell, a 16^th-round draft pick who played 12 seasons with the Steelers, was 82.

A source confirmed Russell’s death to TribLive. A cause of death was not immediately known. News partner WTAE reported Russell passed away Thursday night.

One of the few players whose tenure bridged the-then languishing Steelers of 1960s with the dynasty the franchise built during the 70’s under Chuck Noll, Russell was honored as a first-team AP NFL All Pro in 1975 and three other times was second-team All Pro. He was a member of the Steelers’ all-time team and part of the inaugural class of the organization’s Hall of Honor.

Born in Detroit and having played in college at Missouri, Russell became an immediate starter for the Steelers despite his low draft stock. After his rookie 1963 season, Russell fulfilled military obligations as part of his ROTC status at Missouri. He returned to the Steelers in 1966 and played through 1976, participating in Super Bowl victories after the 1974 and ’75 seasons.

Over his career and including the postseason according to pro-football-reference.com, the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Russell had 19 interceptions, one interception returned for a touchdown, 11 fumble recoveries and (unofficially) 41 sacks. He had a 93-yard fumble return for a touchdown to close out the scoring of the Steelers’ opening victory for the 1975 season’s playoffs.

Voted the Steelers team MVP in 1971, Russell appeared in 168 consecutive games with the team. That’s the fourth-longest streak in franchise history.

Hall of Fame Steelers linebacker Jack Ham wrote the following passage to accompany Russell’s page recognizing his place among the Steelers’ Hall of Honor: “Today, most players back into the Pro Bowl by playing mediocre football on good teams. Andy played great football on a worse-than-mediocre team. Why? Because Andy was always the consummate professional. His personal pride and drive for excellence allowed him to stand out on even the worst of football teams. It would have been easy for him to give up or be sucked into the mediocrity that he saw all around him, but he refused to do so. That attitude was clear to me from my first day of training camp to Andy’s last game with the Steelers.”

Russell’s charitable work went through his foundation, which staged a celebrity golf tournament in Pittsburgh for many years. Money was raised for the Children’s Hospital Free Care Fund and other programs at UPMC, such as the Children’s Neurosurgery Project, the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, the Hillman Cancer Center and the Center for Sports Medicine. Russell was named Big Brothers and Sisters Man of the Year in 1989.

Funeral arrangements have not been announced.