Remembering Ralph Neely: Cowboys Great Passes Away

Neely, a legend both in the NFL with the Cowboys and in college with the Oklahoma Sooners, died this week. He was 78.

FRISCO - On a legendary Dallas Cowboys team overflowing with stars, somebody had to do the dirty work.

And in the case of Ralph Neely, he did the dirty work and became a star as well.

Neely, a legend both in the NFL with the Cowboys and in college with the Oklahoma Sooners, died this week. He was 78.

In 13 seasons with the Cowboys, Neely was selected to two Pro Bowls, was a four-time All-Pro and was named to the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 1960s. He played right tackle during his first five seasons, then played left tackle during his final eight, protecting the blind side of aforementioned stars like QB Roger Staubach.

Neely played at OU from 1962-64 and was consensus All-America in 1964 before being involved in a tug of war between the NFL and the AFL.

The Little Rock native was both a second-round pick of the Baltimore Colts in the NFL and the Houston Oilers in the AFL in 1965. Controversy surrounding his signing (the Colts traded him to Dallas) fueled the rivalry between the two leagues and eventually forced a settlement that included the more established Cowboys playing Houston in an annual "Governor's Cup'' game.

Neely was a stalwart on a Dallas offensive line that won Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XII. He was part of the 1971 Super Bowl team, too, but missed it due to injury. Neely, ranked by SI Sooners as the No. 1 offensive lineman all-time among former Sooners. retired following the Cowboys’ Super Bowl victory over Denver at the end of the 1976 season.

He was close friends with fellow Cowboys all-timer Dan Reeves, who passed away this week at 77.

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