Vikings legend Jim Marshall, a member of the Purple People Eaters defensive line that struck fear into the hearts of opposing quarterbacks in the 1960s and 1970s, died on Tuesday following a lengthy hospitalization. He was 87.

Though he was born in Kentucky, and went to high school and college in Ohio, Marshall made a home in the Minnesota thanks in large part to his career with the Vikings.

As much as some of Marshall’s stats speak for themselves, his toughness was undoubtedly his calling card every time he stepped on the field. There weren’t many people on the planet that embodied what it meant to play for the Vikings quite like the man known affectionately as “Captain Jim” by his peers.

After being drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 1960, Marshall came to the Vikings via trade ahead of their inaugural season in 1961. He went on to play for the Vikings in every game that followed until he decided to hang the cleats up for good in 1979.

At the time of his retirement, Marshall held the NFL record for most consecutive games played by a position player (282), which was later broken by Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre (299), fittingly, when he was a member of the Vikings.

Though sacks didn’t become an official stat until 1982, Marshall finished his career with 130½ sacks, according to Pro Football Reference. The only player for the Vikings with more is fellow Vikings great Carl Eller, who finished his career with 133½ sacks, according to Pro Football Reference.

Together, Marshall and Eller bookended the Purple People Eaters, which also featured fellow Vikings great Alan Page, and was among the NFL’s most feared defensive lines of all time.

As impressive as Marshall was on the field, however, he was equally as impressive off the field. The leadership qualities that Marshall brought to the table were undeniable. Eventually, that led to him being named a captain by iconic Vikings head coach Bud Grant.

Not only did Marshall proudly serve in that role for 14 seasons, he went on to shape what it means to be a captain for the Vikings.

“Maybe we’ve taken it for granted that Jim Marshall plays hurt,” Grant said after Marshall announced his retirement. “But durability is the most important ability you have. You can’t achieve greatness without durability, and that is personified in Jim Marshall. He has been hurt. But he doesn’t break. He bends. He heals. He has a high pain threshold. Jim not only plays hurt, he plays as well when he’s hurt as when he isn’t. That’s what’s important.”

That was hammered home last season when the Vikings unveiled the “Jim Marshall Vikings Captains Legacy Wall” at TCO Performance Center. It’s strategically positioned in the hallway so current players see it every time before they walk into the locker room.

Marshall remains the NFL career record-holder, now tied with Jason Taylor, for opponent fumbles recovered with 29. One of those infamously came on Oct. 25, 1964, at San Francisco when, after the Vikings forced 49ers running back Billy Kilmer to cough up the ball, Marshall scooped it up and scampered 66 yards into the end zone — the wrong way.

After he tossed the ball in the air and turned toward the touchdown celebration with his teammates he was expecting, Marshall stopped in his tracks and put his hands on his hips in disbelief upon realizing he’d cost his team a safety. The Vikings went on to win 27-22.

“It took a lot of guts for me to go back on that field, because I took football very seriously and I had made the biggest mistake that you could probably make,” Marshall once said in an interview with NFL Films for a segment on the NFL’s worst plays.

Marshall took the gaffe in stride, a graciousness made easier by his stature on the team and within the league. Long a favorite of Grant, Marshall played through the 1979 season, his final game coming two weeks before his 42nd birthday.

Though he was never inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Marshall will live forever as a member of the Vikings Ring of Honor.

After Marshall was left out of the Hall of Fame in 2002, Page told the Pioneer Press, “I just don’t get it.”

“You don’t play 282 games in the NFL, you don’t survive that long, if you’re not playing at a high level,” Page added. “The people who played that longevity, none of them are defensive linemen. As a defensive lineman, you get banged around every play, and to play at the level that allows you to play, that strikes me that should be enough right there (for the Hall of Fame).”

In a statement released on Tuesday following the announcement of his death, the Wilf family mourned the loss of Marshall while praising him for everything he meant to the Vikings during his life.

“No player in Vikings history lived the ideals of toughness, camaraderie, and passion more than the all-time iron man,” the Wilf family said in the statement. “A cornerstone of the franchise from the beginning, Captain Jim’s unmatched durability and quiet leadership earned the respect of teammates and opponents.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report