Pat Tillman, Who Left NFL for Army, Killed in Action April 23 (Bloomberg) -- Pat Tillman, the former National Football League safety who left the Arizona Cardinals to join the Army after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, was killed in action in Afghanistan, the NFL said.
Tillman, 27, told the Cardinals after returning from his honeymoon in May 2002 that he was joining the Army with his brother in the hopes of becoming a Ranger. Kevin Tillman gave up a minor league baseball career in the Cleveland Indians organization.
``I am heartbroken today by the news of Pat Tillman's death,'' Arizona Senator John McCain, a Republican, said in a statement. ``The tragic loss of this extraordinary young man will seem a heavy blow to our nation's morale, as it is surely a grievous injury to his loved ones.''
The brothers completed basic and advanced infantry training in October 2002 and graduated from the Ranger Indoctrination Program in December 2002. They joined the 75th Ranger Regiment in Fort Benning, Georgia, and served in the Middle East during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
U.S. Central Command declined immediate comment and didn't immediately return a telephone message from Bloomberg News seeking comment.
The 5-foot-11, 200-pound Tillman, who was a seventh-round draft pick from Arizona State in 1998, played in every game during his first three NFL seasons. He made 153 tackles in his last season, the third-highest total in the league.
The Cardinals offered him a $3.6 million multiyear contract before he left the NFL. In 2000, he turned down a five-year, $9 million contract offer from the St. Louis Rams to stay in Arizona.
The Rangers are a unit in the Army's special operations division, trained to attack in large groups and leave immediately after their mission is completed. About two-thirds of soldiers who enter the training program drop out.
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