Former Lions DB David dies at 79

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) -Jim David, a six-time Pro Bowl defensive back who won three NFL championships with the Detroit Lions, died Sunday at his home after a long illness, the team said. He was 79.

Chosen in the 22nd round of the 1952 NFL draft, David was a starter at left cornerback during seven of his eight seasons. The Lions won NFL championships in 1952, '53 and '57, with David as a starter. He was selected to the Pro Bowl after each of his last six seasons, while playing in a backfield that featured Hall of Famers Jack Christiansen and Yale Lary.

He ranks fifth on the Lions' career interceptions list with 36, and David's six Pro Bowl trips are good for eighth on the team's all-time list.

"When you talk about great players from that era, you always talk about Jimmy," Lions owner and chairman William Clay Ford said in a statement. "He was the epitome of a team player. Jimmy would do anything for his teammates and anything to help the Lions win."

David went into coaching after retiring and returned to Detroit in 1967 as defensive coordinator after stints with the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco. He left coaching after the 1972 season.

Funeral arrangements were incomplete Sunday.