Hall-of-Fame back "Bullet Bill" Dudley, the #1 pick in the 1942 NFL Draft and a member of the Steelers' 75th anniversary team, passed away early Friday morning at the age of 88 in his home town of Lynchburg, Virginia.

Dudley was drafted first overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers and signed a $5,000 contract with the team. Despite the "Bullet" nickname, Dudley wasn't known as an exceptionally fast runner. At 5' 10" and 182 pounds, his running style was unorthodox, but it was also effective. In the first game of his career, he scored a touchdown on a 55-yard run. In his second, he scored on a kickoff return. Dudley led the league in rushing his rookie season with 696 yards, helping the Steelers finish with a winning record for the first time in franchise history.

Bill Dudley missed two full NFL seasons and most of a third serving his country in the Army Air Corp during World War II. But he picked up right where he left off in 1946, winning the league's rushing title a second time. "Bullet Bill" did more than just run the ball, though. He passed, blocked, kicked, and defended. It's hard to find a statistical category in which he did not contribute— and excel. In addition to rushing yards, Dudley led the league in punt returns, interceptions made, and lateral passes attempted. He was the NFL's Most Valuable Player in 1946.

Bill Dudley career scoring
Scoring Play	No.
Extra Point	121
Field Goal	33
Rushing TD	18
Receiving TD	18
Punt Return TD	3
INT Return TD	2
Kickoff Return TD	1
Fumble Return TD	1
TD scored on Lateral (category no longer exists)	1
*Also threw 6 touchdown passes. Stats : Pro Football Reference.com

A number of clashes between Dudley and Steelers head coach Jock Sutherland led to the all-pro back leaving Pittsburgh after the 1946 season, but Sutherland recognized Dudley's ability. He told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "Sure, go right ahead and print that I consider Bill Dudley one of the greatest backs I have ever coached."

Dudley went on to play three seasons for the Detroit Lions and three for the Washington Redskins before retiring after the 1953 season. Over the course of his career, he scored a total of 484 points in nine different ways.

In 1966, Bill Dudley was enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. "I feel humble, very humble, to be considered to be a member as well as to be as considered a part of Pro Football," he said, "because it’s great today, it was great years ago when it was first started here in Canton, and it’ll be greater tomorrow."