Former Dallas Cowboys Star Has Reportedly Died

John Niland, the hard-nosed offensive guard who anchored the Dallas Cowboys line during the franchise’s rise to championship status, died Saturday at his home in McKinney. He was 82.

Niland’s family shared the news in a Facebook post.

“On August 15, 2026 at 7:20am, John Niland of Amityville, New York passed away in his home in McKinney, Texas with his family.”

No cause of death was given. The family also noted that his brain will be donated to the Boston University CTE Center for research.

For Cowboys fans who remember the Tom Landry era, Niland stood out as one of the steady forces on an offensive line that helped turn a young franchise into a perennial contender. Selected fifth overall in the 1966 NFL Draft out of Iowa, he became the first offensive lineman in team history taken in the first round.

Dallas put him primarily at left guard, where his combination of strength and quickness on pulls made him a key piece of the running game.

As a rookie, Niland started in the 1966 NFL Championship Game. He started again the next year in the bitter cold of the Ice Bowl against Green Bay. Both contests ended in Packers victories, but those early playoff appearances set the stage for better days ahead.

Niland stuck with the Cowboys through nine seasons and became a fixture on teams that finally broke through.

From 1968 through 1973 he earned six straight Pro Bowl nods and three All-Pro selections. Those honors came during the stretch when Dallas claimed a pair of NFC titles and captured Super Bowl VI, the franchise’s first Super Bowl championship. In that 24-3 win over Miami on Jan. 16, 1972, Niland helped protect Roger Staubach and clear lanes for the ground attack that defined Landry’s balanced offense.

Niland remained with Dallas through the 1974 season before a September 1975 trade sent him to Philadelphia for a third-round draft pick. He started 13 games for the Eagles that year. A knee injury the following training camp ended his playing days. He finished his NFL career with 138 games played and 124 starts.

Before the pros, Niland had already built a strong reputation. At Amityville Memorial High School on Long Island he starred as an All-State fullback. Iowa recruited him on a scholarship, and after beginning at fullback he shifted to the offensive line.

He earned second-team All-America honors in 1964 and first-team recognition in 1965. The Hawkeyes later placed him on their all-time team and inducted him into the athletics hall of fame in 2006. He also entered the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.

Cowboys supporters still talk about the toughness Niland brought to the trenches. He battled week after week in an era when offensive linemen rarely received the spotlight, yet his consistency helped set a standard for the position in Dallas. The teams he played on reached the championship level that fans had waited years to see.

Niland is survived by his wife, Shaughn, and daughters Jordan and Haven. The family expressed gratitude in their announcement for the support he received over the years from friends and fans who followed his career.

In the history of the Cowboys, Niland ranks among the offensive linemen who helped establish the identity of those early championship clubs. His contributions on the field during the late 1960s and early 1970s remain part of the franchise’s foundation story.