National Football League

Dolphins great Mandich dies at age 62

Published Apr. 26, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Miami Dolphins great Jim Mandich died Tuesday night at the age of 62 after a 14-month battle with bile duct cancer, The Miami Herald reported.

Mandich, a tight end who played in the famed 1972 undefeated Dolphins team, was an All-American at Michigan before being drafted by Miami at No. 29 in the 1970 NFL draft. He played with the Dolphins for eight seasons and finished his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1978.

He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

Mandich, who helped the Dolphins repeat as Super Bowl champions in the 1973 season, went on to become a popular sportscaster in South Florida, hosting a talk show and also serving as a Dolphins radio analyst.

"Jim wasn't a big player. He wasn't an imposing guy physically," CBS announcer Dan Dierdorf said. "But he was such a relentless competitor. He was a guy who just radiated confidence.

"Jim was a supremely intelligent guy. He was brash, confident, larger than life. He was one of the great college players of all time. He was the life of the party. He was captain of the team, and the guy we all followed around. We always addressed him as Captain Mandich."

He is survived by his wife Bonnie and three sons, Mark, Michael and Nick.