Former Dallas Cowboys receiver John “Golden” Richards died Friday of congestive heart failure. He was 73.
Richards had been in declining health in recent years, undergoing four surgeries after breaking a hip in a fall in 2022, his brother Doug told the Deseret News. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2011.
“He has left us and gone to a better place,” Doug Richards told the Deseret News. “He fought pretty good there to the end, until it was his time.”
A star at BYU, Golden Richards was a second-round pick of the Cowboys in 1973, spending five-plus seasons in Dallas. He saved his biggest moments for the postseason, catching a touchdown pass that helped seal the Cowboys’ Super Bowl XII victory over the Denver Broncos. He also scored for Dallas in the 1975 and 1977 NFC title games.
Richards finished his career playing for the Chicago Bears in 1978-79 and the Broncos in 1980.
He is survived by two adult sons, Goldie Jr. and Jordan, and a 2-year-old grandson, Jett.