Huff, HOF linebacker, dies

Sam Huff, the hard-hitting Hall of Fame linebacker who helped the New York Giants reach six NFL title games from the mid-1950s to the early 1960s and later became a popular player and announcer in Washington, died Saturday. He was 87. Huff family lawyer Deborah Matthews told The Associated Press that Huff died Saturday of natural causes in Winchester, Va. Huff always will be remembered as the furious middle linebacker in a 4-3 scheme developed for him by fellow Hall of Famer Tom

Landry, his defensive coordinator with New York and later the architect of the Dallas Cowboys’ rise to power. Raised in West Virginia in coal mining country, Huff became a two-time All-Pro in a career that spanned 1956-69. His major regret was winning only one of the title games in which he played, the championship in his rookie season when the Giants crushed the Chicago Bears 47-7 at Yankee Stadium.