Philadelphia Eagles legend Chuck Bednarik died Saturday morning following a brief illness. He was 89.

Bednarik, a Pro Football Hall of Famer and one of the last outstanding two-way NFL players, passed away at an assisted living facility in Richland, Pa., the team announced.

Bednarik played a franchise-record 14 seasons with the Eagles from 1949 to 1962 and was part of two NFL championship teams in 1949 and 1960.

Bednarik delivered a legendary performance in the 1960 NFL Championship Game, playing nearly every minute at both linebacker and center against the Green Bay Packers. With seconds remaining in the game and Packers running back Jim Taylor headed for the end zone, Bednarik made a game-saving tackle and bear-hugged him to the ground as time ran out, preserving a 17-13 Eagles victory.

The Eagles tweeted out a tribute to Bednarik, calling him “Forever an Eagle,” with the 1960 iconic photo of him towering over New York Giants running back Frank Gifford, who was knocked out on a devastating hit by the linebacker.

“With the passing of Chuck Bednarik, the Eagles and our fans have lost a legend,” Eagles chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie said in a statement. “Philadelphia fans grow up expecting toughness, all-out effort and a workmanlike attitude from this team and so much of that image has its roots in the way Chuck played the game.

“He was a Hall of Famer, a champion and an all-time Eagle. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones during this time.”

Bednarik garnered a team record eight Pro Bowl nominations, eight All-Pro nods and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967, his first year of eligibility.

—Quarterback Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks appears to be on the verge of a massive contract after playing in the Super Bowl twice in three seasons.

Seattle has been negotiating with Wilson, who made less than $700,000 last season but could be in line for a payday of $20 million a year.

The cap hit for 2015 could be only a few million — he’s still under contract in the final year of his rookie deal — but will vastly impact caps in future seasons.

According to ESPN.com, the Seahawks and their 26-year-old franchise quarterback are closing in on a contract extension. There has been speculation that the deal could be fully guaranteed, which would give Wilson financial security but possibly offer less overall money that nonguaranteed contracts contain.

—New Buffalo Bills coach Rex Ryan prefers the run game in his team’s revamped offense, saying “we’re going to run it 50 times if we can” next season.

With either Matt Cassel or EJ Manuel at quarterback, Ryan knows his best chance to winning may be on the ground.

“We prefer to ground and pound it, we’re going to run it 50 times if we can on you,” Ryan said on WGR 550-AM in Buffalo.

At the same time, Ryan admits it is difficult to win in the NFL without balance on offense.

“We’re not naive enough to think we’re going to be able to get away with that,” Ryan said of just running the ball. “We can spread you out and create some nightmares in coverage. If you want to stop our run by keeping all the big guys in there, then so be it, we’ll be able to hurt you in a lot of different ways outside.”

During free agency, the Bills traded for running back LeSean McCoy and Cassel, and signed wide receiver Percy Harvin, tight end Charles Clay and fullback Jerome Felton.

The Bills have a deep running back depth chart of McCoy, Fred Jackson, Anthony Dixon and Bryce Brown. The Bills also have talented young receivers in Sammy Watkins and Robert Woods, and the additions of Harvin and Clay in free agency should make an impact.

Ryan also said the quarterback competition is open. The candidates are Cassel, Manuel, Tyrod Taylor and Jeff Tuel.

—Free agent outside linebacker James Harrison is asking for help from social media as he decides between re-signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers or joining his former defensive coach, Dick LeBeau, with the Tennessee Titans.

Harrison, a five-time Pro Bowler, posted a video on Instagram that featured his two young sons. One son says he should return to the Steelers and the other one says he should sign with the Titans.

“The opinions of my support team are split, but for me, my love for the man who both started, and made my career what it is, is undeniable,” Harrison wrote on Instagram. “There are no words that I can find that would do justice for everything Dick LeBeau has done for me & my career and nothing can compare to that!

“I also have a great amount of love for Steelers Nation & the Steelers organization. I’m going to pray on this and let God guide me in the right direction.”

LeBeau parted ways with the Steelers in January after 11 seasons as the team’s defensive coordinator. Harrison played 10 of his 11 seasons for LeBeau in Pittsburgh. LeBeau joined head coach Ken Whisenhunt’s staff with the Titans in February as an assistant head coach/defense.

—Count LeSean McCoy among those confused by the moves of Philadelphia Eagles coach Chip Kelly last week.

Kelly traded McCoy to the Buffalo Bills and then — after being spurned by Frank Gore — signed two running backs to replace McCoy.

“I saw that they originally were trying to get Frank Gore, and he backed out,” McCoy said on The Rich Eisen Show on Friday. “So then, when they got DeMarco (Murray) and they got Ryan Mathews, I thought it was like a panic move.”

McCoy joined the chorus of Eagles fans who think Kelly is in over his head as a personnel manager in the NFL.

“I think this is something different for him kind of managing both,” McCoy said, “from being a coach to now kind of managing the team as far as the players that they get and they pay.”

—A plan for a $1.7 billion stadium for the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders in Carson, Calif., is expected to go to a public vote after a petition seeking to place it on the ballot was completed Saturday.

Supporters accumulated more than 14,000 signatures — about twice as many as they needed — in just eight days.

“The signature-gathering effort, which moved forward at an unusually rapid pace, revealed an extremely high level of support for the stadium project in Carson,” said Mark Fabiani, who leads the Chargers’ stadium effort.

The Chargers and Raiders announced in February that they are teaming up to propose a shared stadium in Carson, near Los Angeles. The teams continue to seek publicly funded stadiums in their current cities; but, as a backup plan, they are considering building a privately funded stadium in Carson.