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Former Dallas Cowboys center John Fitzgerald, a two-time Super Bowl champion, has died at age 77.
The Cowboys’ team website announced that he died Tuesday morning. No cause of death was given.
The Cowboys selected Fitzgerald in the fourth round out of Boston College after he played on both sides of the ball. He played both offensive guard and defensive tackle in college and was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1982.
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John Fitzgerald of the Dallas Cowboys stands on the field after Super Bowl X against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Miami, Florida on January 18, 1976. (Heinz Kluetmeier/Sports Illustrated)
When he was a rookie, the Cowboys originally drafted Fitzgerald as a defensive tackle, and he spent his rookie season on the cab team. In 1971, he switched to offense and was the backup guard on the team’s Super Bowl-winning squad.
In 1972, the team moved him to center, where he became the starter, and remained there until he retired. From 1973-80, Fitzgerald was the centerpiece of a Cowboys offense that finished in the top 10 in total yards in each of those eight seasons.
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Dallas Cowboys offensive linemen Rayfield Wright, Blaine Nye, John Fitzgerald and John Niland jog to the line during a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Chicago on September 16, 1973. (Diamond Images/Getty Images)
Fitzgerald was also the focal point of head coach Tom Landry’s reintroduction of the shotgun offense, having no trouble snapping the ball to Roger Staubach from long range. After the shotgun offense was added, the Cowboys made the Super Bowl in three of four seasons, including a 27-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII.
The Cowboys, in Fitzgerald’s 12 seasons under center, experienced considerable success, reaching the playoffs 11 times, making nine NFC Championship games and five Super Bowl appearances, winning two.
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Offensive linemen Rayfield Wright and John Fitzgerald of the Dallas Cowboys block defensive linemen Steve Furness and LC Greenwood of the Pittsburgh Steelers during Super Bowl X at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Fla. January 18, 1976. The Steelers won 21-17 to claim the Super Bowl title. (Kidwiler Collection/Diamond Images)
Fitzgerald retired in 1982 after being placed on injured reserve prior to the 1981 season with a knee injury.
