CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns legend Bill Glass has passed away at the age of 86, the team confirmed on Monday.
Glass' cause of death has yet to be announced.
"We are saddened by the passing of Bill Glass, one of the all-time greats to play on defense in our franchise’s history," the Browns wrote on their official Twitter account.
A native of Texarkana, Texas, Glass arrived in Cleveland in 1962 following a one-year stint with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Canadian Football League and four seasons with the Detroit Lions (1958-1961), who had selected him with the No. 12 overall pick in the 1957 NFL Draft. In seven seasons with the Browns, the defensive end amassed four Pro Bowl selections and helped lead Cleveland to the 1964 NFL Championship.
While such statistics from his era are considered unofficial, research has estimated that Glass totaled 77.5 sacks in 94 games with the Browns, including 16.5 in 1965 -- both of which would still stand as franchise records if officially recognized.
A two-way star and unanimous All-American selection at Baylor, Glass was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1985. In 2007, he was selected to the Cleveland Browns Legends program.
After retiring from football following the 1968 season, Glass founded Bill Glass Ministries. Now known as "Bill Glass Behind the Walls," the Dallas-based ministry "is known for its high-energy Day of Champions and Weekend of Champions events conducted inside prisons across the country," according to its website.