Despite the punishment football took on his body, Niland said he would do it all over again, believing he could have played another five years if his body had held up. The Cowboys legend, who helped deliver the franchise’s first Super Bowl title, died Saturday at his home in McKinney, Texas. He was 82. His family confirmed his death.

“John Niland, one of the more decorated Dallas Cowboys offensive linemen in franchise history, died in McKinney on Saturday morning. He was a six-time Pro Bowler and a three-time first-team All-Pro,” SportsDay Cowboys posted on X.

John Niland grew up an orphan in Amityville, Long Island, with little money and few expectations of ever attending college. His foster mother was 50 when she adopted him, and he was her only child. Football changed his path. After emerging as a standout in high school, scholarship offers suddenly gave him an opportunity his family could never have afforded.

That changed when scholarship offers began coming in. Niland turned down Syracuse and Notre Dame and chose Iowa, where he became an All-American. In 1966, the Cowboys selected him fifth overall, making him the first offensive lineman in franchise history taken in the first round.

Get The Huddle Newsletter. The day's biggest NFL stories — rivalries, matchups, expert analysis, power rankings, and insider draft news.

Niland started just four games as a rookie, then became a fixture in 1967. He started 111 of 124 games over nine seasons in Dallas and earned first-team All-Pro honors three times. He finished his career with Philadelphia in 1975 and entered Iowa’s Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006.

His daughter Haven remembers him as more than just a football player.

“He was the best dad,” said Niland’s daughter, Haven. “He was so wonderful. I mean, he was really bigger than life. He taught me so many amazing things. I was talking to my sister [Saturday]. He taught me nothing is that serious. The things that really matter are family and your faith and just being kind to other people. I think that’s really exemplified.”

The years after football took a heavy toll. Niland battled dementia and mouth cancer and underwent knee and shoulder replacements. His family plans to donate his brain to Boston University’s CTE Center, while Haven credited her mother, Shaughn, for supporting him through his declining health.

Even with his health declining, Haven said her father never stopped showing up for the people around him.

“He was in a house full of girls, so he was outnumbered,” she said. “He was completely outnumbered, but we were up early Saturday mornings. He loved to clean out the garage. He loved to organize stuff. And so everybody had a job all the time, and he provided everything we could ever want. It was the team mentality. We were the Nilands. I’m married now, but I’m still a Niland. So I’m very proud to represent and keep hearing the name.”

He’s survived by his wife, Shaughn, and daughters Haven and Jordan. Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.

If there’s one memory that stood out above the rest for Niland, it was the day he helped protect Roger Staubach in Super Bowl VI, when Dallas beat Miami 24 to 3 on January 16, 1972.

John Niland, in His Own Words

Speaking to Michelle Hill in a 2018 interview for Pro Players Business Network, Niland was direct about what football had done to his body. “You sacrifice your entire body,” he said. “It’s not a matter of if you get hurt, you’re going to get hurt.” He added that he had both knees and both shoulders replaced, along with other operations, and admitted, “I can’t remember things but I can walk and talk; I can’t run across my bedroom… I have no stability in my legs anymore.”

Niland’s later years were marked by serious health problems. He dealt with dementia, battled mouth cancer, underwent replacements on both knees and both shoulders, and developed a staph infection in his spine after shoulder surgery.

For Niland, the love of football never disappeared, even as the physical consequences of playing it became harder to ignore.

“I would, but I would make some changes,” Niland said. “When you’re, young you think you’re indestructible and nobody can hurt you.” He recalled suffering serious leg injuries in practice and said those setbacks shortened his career, adding that he could have played “another five years if my body could have held up.”

Niland was asked whether money or love of football drove his career. “I played for the love of the game,” he said, calling the opportunity to play professionally “a pleasure.” Looking back at Dallas’ rise, Niland added, “We had a bunch of players come in on my year and just play their hearts out. We finally won the Super Bowl. You can’t, you can’t ask for anything more

Niland arrived in Dallas in 1966, just as the Cowboys were beginning to emerge as a contender. Over the next several years, the franchise went from an up-and-coming team to a perennial playoff force, culminating in its first Super Bowl championship after the 1971 season. At the center of that transformation was the coach who set the standard for the organization.

Behind Dallas’ rise was Tom Landry, the first head coach in Cowboys history and the man who helped turn the franchise into an NFL powerhouse. He coached Dallas from 1960 to 1988, leading the team to five Super Bowl appearances and two championships, including its first title in Super Bowl VI. Known for his disciplined, detail-oriented approach and innovative schemes, Landry earned Niland’s respect. In a 2018 interview, Niland called him “a very strong leader, extreme family man, and extremely successful at coaching.”

Niland leaves behind a lasting place in Cowboys history as a key piece of the team that delivered the franchise’s first Super Bowl title. He died at 82, remembered as one of Dallas’ defining offensive linemen.