Hall of Fame center Ringo dies at 75

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Jim Ringo, a Hall of Fame center who played 15 seasons for the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles, died Monday morning after a short illness. He was two days shy of his 76th birthday.

The Packers drafted Ringo out of Syracuse in the seventh round in 1953. He played for Green Bay until 1963, then was traded to Philadelphia by Packers coach Vince Lombardi after he brought an agent with him to Lombardi's office to negotiate a new contract.

Ringo went on to play for the Eagles from 1964-67. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1981.

Ringo was voted to 10 Pro Bowls and was chosen for the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 1960s. He started in a then-record 182 consecutive games from 1954-67.

"As Vince Lombardi once observed, Jim epitomized the toughness and determination needed to not only play the center position but to become one of the game's most dominant offensive linemen of his era," said Steve Perry, president/executive director of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. "On behalf of all of us at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, I extend my heartfelt condolences to Jim's family."