AJC REMEMBERS HALL OF FAMERS AL KALINE, BOBBY MITCHELL DIE

WASHINGTON — Bobby Mitchell, the speedy Hall of Famer who became the Washington Redskins’ first black player, has died. He was 84.

Mitchell split his career with the Cleveland Browns and Redskins and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1983. Mitchell’s family said he died Sunday afternoon but didn’t provide any other details.

“The game lost a true legend,” Pro Football Hall of Fame President & CEO David Baker said in a statement. “Bobby was an incredible player, a talented executive and a real gentleman.”

When Mitchell joined the Redskins in 1962, they became the last NFL team to integrate. After playing his first four seasons in Cleveland, he spent seven more with Washington and retired with the second-most combined offensive yards. Mitchell then became a Redskins scout and later served as assistant general manager.

“His passion for the game of football was unmatched by anyone I have ever met,” Redskins owner Daniel Snyder said. “Not only was he one of the most influential individuals in franchise history, but he was also one of the greatest men I have ever known.”

Retired NFL running back Brian Mitchell, who has no relation to Bobby but became friends with him, said he learned from the Hall of Famer, “Tough times don’t remain, tough people do, and you don’t let what you go through change who you are unless it’s for the better.”

“I’m sure there was people saying stuff to him and doing things that (ticked) him off, but he wasn’t bitter,” Brian Mitchell said. “When you look at him when he was working for the Redskins early on, many people felt Bobby should’ve been the general manager of the Washington Redskins. He didn’t get bitter. He kept doing the things he can do.”

Bobby Mitchell said during a 2015 episode of Showtime’s “60 Minutes Sports” that he understood pretty quickly upon signing in Washington “there was no one in this town used to having a black star.” Friend and fellow Hall of Famer Jim Brown took it one step further. “Bobby was an individual that was thrown into the arena of being a victim for no reason,” Brown said. “He had to suffer for being black more than any person I know that played football at the time I played. With that kind of ability, if he were white, everybody on this earth would know who he was.”

Mitchell played halfback for the Browns from 1958-61 and moved to flanker with the Redskins, leading the NFL in receiving yards in 1962 and 1963. He was a three-time All-NFL selection, played in four Pro Bowls, and his 7,954 all-purpose yards were the second-most in league history when he retired in 1968.

After retiring, Mitchell became active in the community and held an annual golf tournament raising funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Mitchell grew up in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and starred in track and football at the University of Illinois.

AP 1983 Bobby Mitchell, with his Pro Football Hall of Fame bust, joined the Redskins in 1962 as they became the last NFL team to integrate. He led the league in receiving yards in 1962-63 and was a three-time All-NFL selection.