Art DeCarlo

Arthur Anthony DeCarlo, Jr. (March 23, 1931 – December 28, 2013) was an American professional football defensive back and end in the National Football League (NFL). He played a total of six seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Redskins, and Baltimore Colts.

A former collegian at the University of Georgia, DeCarlo was originally drafted in the sixth round of the 1953 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears.

DeCarlo would win two World Championships in 1958 and 1959 as a member of the Colts. He retired after the 1960 season.

Following his death from complications of heart surgery in 2013, DeCarlo's family made his brain available as part of a pioneering study of the prevalence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in former professional football players. DeCarlo's brain was found to be positive for the degenerative disease.

Biography

Early life

Art DeCarlo was born March 23, 1931, in Youngstown, Ohio. His father, Antonio DeCarlo, was a contractor.

His parents died when he was still a minor and he was raised by an older brother, working in a steel mill the summer after he graduated from high school.

DeCarlo graduated from Georgia in 1952. He was recognized as the Most Valuable Defensive Player in the 1952 Blue-Gray College All-Star game.

DeCarlo was immediately shipped off to the Pittsburgh Steelers ahead of the 1953 NFL season. He had an extremely productive rookie year as a Pittsburgh defensive back, picking off 5 passes, which generated 83 yards in interception returns.

His career was interrupted when he was drafted into the US Army, causing him to miss the entirety of the 1954 and 1955 NFL seasons. In October he was signed by head coach Weeb Ewbank and the Colts to fill a hole in the roster resulting from a facial injury to defensive back Carl Taseff and his subsequent relegation to the injured reserve list. He intercepted one ball during the year.

Powered by a pass-driven offense led by Hall of Fame quarterback Johnny Unitas, the Colts would win the first of two back-to-back World Championships in 1958, beating the New York Giants in a contest remembered in legend as "the greatest game ever played."

The Colts would win the World Championship again in 1959, again emerging victorious over Y. A. Tittle, Frank Gifford, and the New York Giants — this time by a more convincing 31–16 score.

In 1960, DeCarlo continued to play special teams and filled in as a reserve at tight end behind Colts starter Jim Mutscheller. DeCarlo started 3 games and saw action in 9, He was able to battle back to take some defensive reps on August 24 but was unable to go in the next preseason game. He was not successful attempting to play through the damage in his next effort, however, with his knee buckling at practice on August 29, forcing what would be career-ending surgery.

Later life

After retiring from the NFL DeCarlo tried his hand at coaching football, accepting a head coaching position for the Harrisburg Capitols, a semi-pro team in the Atlantic Coast Professional Football League (ACPFL). He was one of at least 345 NFL players diagnosed after death with this disease, which is caused by repeated blows to the head.

Teammate Jim Mutscheller recalled at the time of his death: "He was a pass receiver and a defensive back and he played both positions very well. He was a good friend of mine and of Art Donovan, too. He and our families spent a lot of time together."