Defensive great Reggie White dies at 43

Johnson is the head of Christian Athletes United for Spiritual Empowerment, a ministry that White helped found. He said White had gone to see the movie Fat Albert on Christmas night with family and friends.

White and his wife had a son and a daughter: Jeremy, a freshman at Elon University, and Jecolia, a junior in high school.

After an All-America senior season at Tennessee, White began his pro career with the USFL's Memphis Showboats in 1984. He joined the Eagles, who held his NFL rights, after the USFL folded in 1985. For eight years, he was as an integral piece in Philadelphia's "Gang Green Defense."

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie called White "one of the greatest men ever to play the game of football" and said his "legacy on and off the football field will never be forgotten."

White played a key role in free agency -- he was one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit that led to the current system.

"He meant as much to us off the field as much as on it," said Gene Upshaw, executive director of the NFL Players Association. "He had his name on the lawsuit and he didn't get one penny. That's just the type of guy he was. His character, his integrity was everything any NFL player should aspire to be."

White signed as a free agent with Green Bay in 1993 for $17 million over four years. His signing, along with a trade for Favre, helped make the Packers champions again.

"That's what changed the football fortunes of this franchise. It was huge," Packers president Bob Harlan said Sunday. "He sent a message to the rest of the NFL that Green Bay was a great place to play."

The Packers made consecutive Super Bowl appearances, including a win over New England in 1997, when White set a Super Bowl record with three sacks.

"He was just a wonderful player, first of all," said Seattle coach Mike Holmgren, who coached White in Green Bay. "Then, as a person, he was just the best. ... I'm a better person for having been around Reggie White."

White worked tirelessly in the offseason with inner-city youths. But his image was tarnished when he gave a speech in which he denounced homosexuality and used ethnic stereotypes. White later apologized.

White was 39 when he finished his NFL career with Carolina -- his third retirement. He retired for one day before the 1998 season, but then said God had told him he needed to play again, and he returned to the Packers.

White retired again after the 1998 season and took a year off from football. After the Packers allowed him out of his contract, he returned to play for the Panthers and recorded a career-low 5½ sacks and had only 27 tackles.

Wayne Russell, a manager at A.L. Jinwright Funeral Service in Charlotte, said funeral arrangements were still incomplete early Monday.