Rayfield Wright’s first start at tackle for the Cowboys was in a 1969 game against the Rams. His first NFL starting assignment was to block Deacon Jones.
Earlier in the week, a reporter asked Wright how he was going to do this. “After all, Deacon Jones is big and fast and..,” the reporter babbled.
Rayfield just quietly said, “I’m big and I’m fast, too.”
Yes. Big. And fast. And strong. And smart. And wonderful. And reliable. And the best teammate anybody or any team ever had.
And the epitome of pretty much everything I love about athletics, and football, and being part of a team.
And my hero.
Oh, let me finish the above vignette. Yes, the 9-0 Rams beat the 8-1 Cowboys 24-23. But Rayfield handled Deacon Jones. Years later, that was later confirmed to me by…Deacon Jones.
Wright handled everything with an uncommon grace and dignity.
He wasn’t just The Big Cat. He was Top Cat.
How a man’s teammates feel about him is often all I need to know. Wright was revered.
Thirteen seasons. Six Pro Bowls. Three first-team All-Pro selections. Eight NFC Championship games. Five Super Bowls. Two rings.
Rayfield Wright never played on a losing team with the Cowboys. Ever.
Wright’s career spanned my growth from a naïve, gung-ho teenager to a naïve, gung-ho adult. My feelings about him changed over that span only in the sense that they got deeper.
Rayfield was such a source of comfort for Cowboy fans. However worried you were about an upcoming game, the one thing you were never worried about was Rayfield. Rayfield was going to do his job and win his battle. That was a constant.
Wright was a beautiful athlete, blessed with quickness and balance, developed earlier in his days as a basketball player who could have played in the NBA and had planned to.
Once he chose football, he was a tight end before he was a tackle. Before he became THE tackle.
I keep going back to the word “balanced.” Rayfield was balanced in everything he did, and with everyone he dealt with.
Yes, I cried last night. Hell, yes, I did.
He wasn’t just The Big Cat. He was Top Cat.