Blood clot led to death of former punter Max Runager

Former Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers punter Max Runager died from a blood clot stemming from a recent injury, autopsy results reportedly show.

Orangeburg County Chief Deputy Coroner Sean Fogle told The Times and Democrat that Runager's injury -- a fractured fibula, according to Max's father, Geb -- occurred at the Runager family home in May when Max tried to get up from a chair using a walker. He fell from his parents' roof in December and suffered a cracked vertebrae, which he apparently refused to have treated.

"He said he was NFL tough," his father told The Times and Democrat, adding that his son refused to talk about injuries. The paper reported that Runager was found dead Friday in his car in a parking lot in South Carolina.

Runager, 61, spent five seasons with the Eagles and was part of the 1980 team that appeared in Super Bowl XV. He was also the punter on the 49ers' 1984 Super Bowl-winning team. The Niners went 15-1 his first season and beat Miami for the title. Runager played four seasons for San Francisco and came back for one game in 1988. He also played four seasons for Cleveland.

Runager finished his career with 661 career punts and a 40.2 yards-per-punt average.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.