[1] He played running back for five seasons for the Chicago Cardinals.
During World War II, Rankin served in the United States Military.
His name is located on the World War II Honor Roll, which shows NFL players who also fought in the war, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
[2] During the war, however, Rankin also played for "Card-Pitt" a team that was a temporary merger of the Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers.
This biographical article relating to an American football running back born in the 1910s is a stub.