Former Patriots head coach Rust dies

Former New England Patriots head coach Rod Rust died Tuesday morning at the age of 90, the team announced Wednesday. Rust served as the Patriots' defensive coordinator from 1983-87, helping the club advance to Super Bowl XX in 1985 before falling to the Chicago Bears. He returned to the franchise in 1990 to serve as the head coach, replacing Raymond Berry. His tenure was short-lived as the team limped to a 1-15 mark. The Patriots said they were "deeply saddened to learn" of Rust's passing. Rust had stints as a position coach with the Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers as well as a defensive coordinator with the Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Giants and Patriots. Rust also coached college football teams for 14 years -- including serving as a mentor to future Hall of Famer "Mean" Joe Greene at North Texas -- and in the Canadian Football League for an additional seven years. "Very sad to hear the news of the passing of coach Rust.. He was a great football mind to be around. RIP coach," former Patriots pass rusher Andre Tippett posted on Twitter. Tippett recorded 65.5 sacks to go along with two touchdowns under Rust's watch from 1983-87. During the 1990 season when Rust was the head coach, Tippett played in all 13 games for New England and totaled 3.5 sacks and two fumble recoveries. Rust's last coaching stint came in 2005 with the CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers as their defensive coordinator.