Former NFL linebacker attacked

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY/AP) - A former linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers said he suffered a concussion when he was attacked by a group of teens in Chesapeake on Sunday.

71-year-old Ed Beard saw several kids who appeared to be beating up one child, according to Chesapeake police spokesperson Kelly O'Sullivan.

"All of a sudden, the whole group jumps on this one guy," Beard said. "They got him down on the ground, just pounding on him with their fists."

The group was involved in a fight at an elementary school baseball field.

Beard stopped to help the child, and the group turned on him. O'Sullivan said there were about 15-20 young men that surrounded Beard.

"I thought that I could talk to these guys, get a little sense to them and maybe get this bad situation under control," Beard explained.

The incident occurred at the corner of Freeman and Varsity, which runs parallel to Portlock Elementary School.

Beard said he was knocked unconscious. He also suffered a black eye and cuts and bruises.

"Ed Beard is the toughest man I've ever met in my life," Chesapeake Undersheriff Jim O'Sullivan said. "If it would have been when he was 18 years old, it would not have been a fair fight."

Beard starred at Oscar F. Smith High School and played linebacker and on special teams from 1965 to 1972 for the San Francisco 49ers. The football stadium at his high school now bears his name.

Beard was active with the Chesapeake Sheriff's Office in talking about bullying and working with at-risk kids.

Chesapeake police do not have any suspects. A spokesman for the elementary school says there are surveillance cameras in the area of the attack. The spokesman does not know if those cameras captured the event on tape.