punt return in a career at 12.78 yards. McAfee’s coach at Duke, Wallace Wade, called him “a one-man offense, and practically unstoppable.” Red Grange, a star of earlier Bears teams, called McAfee "the most dangerous man with the football in the game." Green Bay Coach Earl "Curly" Lambeau called McAfee "the most talented back the Packers ever faced." John F. Kieran, the sports columnist for The New York Times, wrote in 1940: “the debate around Chicago has been as to whether McAfee is just as good as Jim Thorpe ever was, or better.” George Halas, the Bears’ longtime owner and coach, once said, “the highest compliment you can pay any ball carrier is just compare him with McAfee.” McAfee himself described his running strategy differently. At 6’, 178 pounds, he was small even for his era. During his initial training camp with the Bears, he was impressed by the size of the so-called Monsters of the Midway. "I never saw so many big men in my life," McAfee said at the time. "I remember clearly, on one of the first scrimmage plays, that a rookie halfback was knocked cold trying to bring down Bill Osmanski. That play served as a valuable lesson for me. Whenever I ran with the ball, I had that picture in my mind of [him] there on the ground, cold as a stone. I would run as fast as I could if there was any daylight." Honors During his college football career, McAfee was named first-team All-American, helped the Duke Blue Devils to two Southern Conference championships, and was a member of the Iron Dukes, which narrowly lost the 1939 Rose Bowl to Southern Cal. While starring as running back, defensive back, kicker, punter, and kick returner for the mighty Chicago Bears of the 1940s, McAfee was named All Pro, set the all-time career punt return mark, and contributed to the Bears' NFL championships in 1940, 1941, and 1946. McAfee's jersey #5 was retired by Chicago in 1955. He entered the College Football Hall of Fame in 1961, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1966, the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1967, and the Duke Sports Hall of Fame in 1975, where he was a charter member. McAfee was also named to the NFL's 1940s All-Decade Team and the All-Time Two Way Team. Later life and death After his retirement as a player