career receiving yards during the off-season but was surpassed in Game 1 by Don Maynard. His last NFL game was the 1968 NFL Championship Game against the Baltimore Colts. On March 15, 1969, he announced his retirement from pro football. Legacy McDonald was selected for six Pro Bowls, led the league in touchdown receptions twice (1958, 1961), and led the league in receiving yards once (1961). McDonald was the last non-kicker to play in the NFL without a facemask. He finished his career with 495 receptions for 8,410 yards and 84 touchdowns, the second-highest total of touchdown receptions in NFL history at the time. He also rushed for 22 yards and gained 1,459 yards and a touchdown returning punts and kickoffs on special teams, giving him 9,891 career all-purpose yards. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1998. Personal life and death Following the Eagles NFL Championship victory, McDonald wrote a biography: They Pay Me to Catch Footballs, published by Chilton in 1962. He also dabbled in art. He owned Tommy McDonald Enterprises, a studio that did portrait paintings and plaques, mainly of athletes. He did not paint the portraits himself, but had two painters who created them, although he signed them as being by McDonald (Enterprises). A portrait of Joe DiMaggio sold at auction for $4,000. He became great friends with Pro Football Hall of Fame writer, Ray Didinger, who was a huge fan of Tommy's during his time with the Eagles. As a child, Didinger would spend time with Tommy at Eagles training camp in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Didinger helped get Tommy into the Hall of Fame, and then went on to present Tommy into the Hall of Fame. Didinger also wrote a 75-minute play, "Tommy and Me" which tells the tale of Ray and Tommy. He died on September 24, 2018, at the age of 84. "Tommy McDonald lived life like he played the game of football," Pro Football Hall of Fame president and CEO C. David Baker said in a statement. "He was charismatic, passionate and had fun. He was such a character. Heaven is a happier place today. References External links 1934 births 2018 deaths Players of American football from Albuquerque, New Mexico American football halfbacks American football wide receivers Oklahoma Sooners football players All-American college football players College Football Hall of Fame inductees Maxwell Award winners Philadelphia Eagles players Dallas Cowboys