Chuck Bednarik Charles Philip Bednarik ( born May 1 , 1925 ) is a former professional American football player , known as one of the most devastating tacklers in the history of football and the last two - way player in the National Football League . A Slovak American from the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania , he is perhaps best remembered for a tackle on the New York Giants ' Frank Gifford , then a star running back , that knocked Gifford out of professional football for a year and a half , and shortened Gifford ' s playing career . Bednarik played for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1949 through 1962 and , upon retirement , was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967 ( his first year of eligibility ) . Bednarik currently resides in Coopersburg , Pennsylvania , in the Lehigh Valley . His great - nephew , Adam Bednarik , was the starting quarterback at West Virginia University , before suffering an injury in 2005 that opened the door for fellow freshman Pat White , who never relinquished the starting position . Early life , military service and college career . His parents emigrated in 1920 from Široké , a village in eastern Slovakia , for work , settling in Bethlehem , Pennsylvania , and working for Bethlehem Steel . Their son Charles was born in 1925 . He attended school at SS . Cyril & Methodius in Bethlehem , which was a Slovak parochial school with Slovak the language of instruction . Bednarik began playing football in Bethlehem . He played for Bethlehem ' s Liberty High School . Following his graduation from high school , he entered the United States Army Air Forces and served as a B - 24 waist - gunner with the Eighth Air Force . Bednarik flew on 30 combat missions over Germany , for which he was awarded the Air Medal and four Oak Leaf Clusters , the European Theater Operations Medal and four Battle Stars . Bednarik subsequently attended the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia , where he was a 60 - minute man , excelling as both center and linebacker , as well as occasional punter . He was a three - time All - America n , and was elected a member of the College Football Hall of Fame , as were two of his teammates on the 1947 squad — tackle George Savitsky and tailback Tony Minisi — and his coach , George Munger . At Penn , he also was third in Heisman Trophy voting in 1948 and won the Maxwell Award that year . Pro Football career . Bednarik was the first player drafted in the 1949 NFL Draft , by the Philadelphia Eagles , starring on both offense ( as a center ) and defense ( as a linebacker ) . He was a member of the Eagles ' NFL Championship teams in 1949 and 1960 . In the 1960 NFL Championship Game , Bednarik , the last Eagle between Green Bay ' s Jim Taylor and the end zone , tackled Taylor on the final play of the game at the Eagles ' eight yard line , and remained atop Taylor as the final seconds ticked off the clock , ensuring the Packers could not run another play and preserving a 17 - 13 Eagles victory . A tough and highly effective tackler , Bednarik is perhaps best known for knocking Frank Gifford of the New York Giants out of football for over 18 months , with one of the most famous tackles in NFL history , in 1960 . Bednarik had a famous quarrel with Chuck Noll , who once , as a player for the Cleveland Browns , smashed him in the face during a fourth - down punting play . Bednarik proved extremely durable , missing just three games in his 14 seasons . He was named All - Pro eight times , and was the last of the NFL ' s " Sixty - Minute Men , " players who played both offense and defense on a regular basis . Bednarik ' s nickname , " Concrete Charlie , " originated from his off - season career as a concrete salesman for the Warner Company , not ( contrary to popular belief ) from his reputation as a ferocious tackler . Nonetheless , sportswriter Hugh Brown of " The Bulletin " in Philadelphia , credited with bestowing the nickname , remarked that Bednarik " is as hard as the concrete he sells . " Bednarik served as an analyst on the HBO program " Inside The NFL " for its inaugural season in 1977 - 78 . In 1999 , he was ranked number 54 on " The Sporting News " ' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players . This made him the highest - ranking player to have spent his entire career with the Eagles , the highest - ranking offensive center and the eighth - ranked linebacker in all of professional football . In 2010 , Bednarik was ranked number 35 on the NFL Network ' s " The Top 100 : NFL ' s Greatest Players " . Ranked one spot ahead of Bednarik at # 34 was Deion Sanders , a player for whom Bednarik has held open contempt in regards to being a two - way player . Bednarik was not the highest placed Eagle on the NFL Network ' s list . That distinction was held by Reggie White at number 7 . Opinions on current NFL players . Bednarik has been an outspoken , even bitter critic of today ' s NFL players for playing on only one side of the ball , calling them " pussyfoots " , noting that they " suck air after five plays " and that they " couldn ' t tackle my wife Emma " . He even criticized Troy Brown of the New England Patriots and Deion Sanders of the Dallas Cowboys , two players who also have played both offense and defense , because their positions as a wide receiver and cornerback didn ' t require as much contact as the center and linebacker positions that Bednarik played . Relationship with the Eagles . Bednarik ' s former Eagles number , 60 , has been retired by the Eagles in honor of his achievements with the team and is one of only eight numbers retired in the history of the franchise . When the Eagles established their Honor Roll in 1987 , Bednarik was one of the first class of inductees . He attended reunions for the 25th anniversary of the 1960 NFL Championship team in 1985 and the 40th anniversary of the 1948 - 49 NFL Championship team in 1988 ( though he had not played for the 1948 team ) , held in pregame ceremonies at Veterans Stadium . Bednarik quarreled with current Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie in 1996 . Lurie refused to buy 100 copies of Bednarik ' s new book for $ 15 each for the entire team , as that was against NFL rules , and that grudge carried over into the Eagles ' most recent Super Bowl appearance in 2005 , when he openly rooted against his former team . He has been a consistent critic of several league issues , including his pension , today ' s salaries , and one - way players . During Eagles training camp in the summer of 2006 , Bednarik and the Eagles reconciled , seemingly ending the feud between Bednarik and Lurie . However , at the same time , Bednarik made disparaging remarks regarding Reggie White , an Eagle fan favorite , leading to a somewhat lukewarm reception of the reconciliation by Eagles ' fans . However , in the August 4 edition of Allentown ' s " Morning Call " newspaper , it was reported that Bednarik apologized , stating he had been confused , and meant to make the statement about former Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens . Health . On March 26 , 2011 , Bednarik was reportedly taken to St . Luke ' s Hospital in Bethlehem . Hospital spokesmen stated that he was " in serious condition " , but did not give any further details . However , the next day it was announced that he was doing fine and had no pre - existing medical conditions . His son - in - law stated that he had passed out from shortness of breath and low blood pressure , but did not suffer a heart attack or anything related and was expected to make a full recovery .