AFP - Merlin Olsen, a gridiron Hall of Famer who became a popular actor and broadcaster in the wake of his National Football League career, has died at the age of 69.

Utah State, where Olsen attended university, said he died outside of Los Angeles early Thursday after battling cancer. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer of the lung lining, last year.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell issued a statement lauding Olsen as an "extraordinary person, friend and football player."

"He cared deeply about people, especially those that shared the game of football with him," Goodell said of the player who was a member of the Los Angeles Rams' "Fearsome Foursome."

"Merlin was a larger-than-life person, literally and figuratively, and leaves an enormously positive legacy."

After earning All-American honors at Utah State, Olsen was a first-round draft pick of the Rams in 1962.

The giant from northern Utah joined Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier on the Rams' storied "Fearsome Foursome" defensive line.

Olsen was rookie of the year for the Rams in 1962 and is still the Rams' all-time leader in career tackles with 915.

He was voted NFC defensive lineman of the year in 1973 and the NFL Most Valuable Player in 1974, and was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982.

After football, Olsen turned to acting, with a role on the popular US television series "Little House on the Prairie". He also starred in his own series, "Father Murphy," from 1981 to 1983.