Remembering Cowboys legend and Hall of Famer Rayfield Wright

Yesterday, the Dallas Cowboys sadly lost an important member of the Ring of Honor. Hall of Famer and two-time Super Bowl champion Rayfield Wright passed away on Thursday at 76 years old. The right tackle played his entire 13-year career with Dallas from 1967 to 1979. The former Cowboy is one of the best players to wear the uniform and arguably the best offensive lineman to do so. His wife, Di, informed the football Hall of Fame that her husband had a severe stroke that caused him to be hospitalized for several days.

According to the Hall of Fame, Wright was so athletic and talented that he almost ended up in the NBA before the Cowboys persuaded him to pursue professional football as a tight end. He was being recruited by the Cincinnati Royals (now the Sacramento Kings) in his junior year but decided to try and attend training camp for the Cowboys.

Despite his love for basketball, he admitted that the opportunity to play for Dallas was something he “couldn’t ignore.” He claimed he would have played in the NBA had he not made the Cowboys team. In the end, he made the roster and never looked back. In 1969, starting right tackle Ralph Neely suffered an injury that forced head coach Tom Landry to have Wright fill in at tackle. He did so well in the new position that he was named that starting right tackle the following season.

While he was a dominant force on the offensive line, HoF president Jim Porter noted that Wright was known for his calm and kind nature off the field. As a tribute to the man who was enshrined in 2006, the institution is flying its Hall of Fame flag at half staff until Wright’s services are over.

The Big Cat, as he was known, was a six-time Pro Bowler, three first-team All-Pro, and earned a spot on the NFL’s 1970s All-Decade Team. The Cowboys won their first Super Bowl in 1971 (the first year of his six consecutive Pro Bowl nods) with a lot of help from a man whose nickname was given to him because of how nimble he was given his size. Dallas GM Jerry Jones made a statement late Thursday evening about Wright, which is below.

Jerry Jones and former Cowboys remember NFL legend and Hall of Famer Rayfield Wright after he passes away at 76 years old.

Wright was diagnosed with early dementia in 2012. He dealt with seizures for many years after his NFL retirement. Sadly, the former Cowboy himself believed these health issues were the effects of continuous blows to the head during his career. He experienced headaches, dizziness, and forgetfulness, and even said he couldn’t count the number of concussions he occurred in the NFL in a 2014 interview with the New York Times.

Despite his suffering (which he hid for a long time), Wright was clearly well-liked by many who knew him and played with him. Jones admired the fact that he “was a champion on and off the field” who “remained an important part of the Cowboys family long after his playing days ended.”

Legendary Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach also had incredibly kind words to say about his right tackle:

"“He was absolutely the best,” Staubach told the Associated Press. “Rayfield was a big, strong guy that was able to transfer his size and strength from tight end to tackle. He also had such quick feet that he was able to deal with some of the faster defensive ends and even the linebacker blitzes. If he got beat, I don’t remember it.”"

Emmitt Smith shared his thoughts about the former Cowboy as well.

The Landry Hat family is saddened to hear this news, and our thoughts and prayers go out to Wright’s family.