Pettis Norman, a decent finish on the soccer subject and a civil rights advocate off of it, has died. He was 86.
Norman performed for the Dallas Cowboys (1962-70) and San Diego Chargers (1971-73). He was a member of the primary Cowboys' crew to play within the Tremendous Bowl — Tremendous Bowl V in 1971, a 16-13 loss to the Baltimore Colts.
Norman caught 124 passes with the Cowboys, together with 14 touchdowns, and averaged 13.5 yards per reception. Solely three tight ends in crew historical past have averaged greater than 13.0 yards per catch with not less than 100 profession receptions.
We mourn the passing of former tight finish and civil rights advocate Pettis Norman. Identified for his selfless management, dedication to neighborhood, and dedication to creating equal alternative, we had been extremely proud and grateful to share his exceptional story lately. For extra on… pic.twitter.com/brks4HoLq5
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) July 8, 2025
Throughout his first seven seasons within the NFL, he served within the Texas Military Nationwide Guard. And he was on the forefront of civil rights points within the Sixties, each within the locker room and within the better Dallas space.
“We mourn the passing of former tight finish and civil rights advocate Pettis Norman,” the Cowboys stated Monday. “Identified for his selfless management, dedication to neighborhood, and dedication to creating equal alternative, we had been extremely proud and grateful to share his exceptional story lately.”
A part of the story the Cowboys shared was Norman's effort in serving to to interrupt down racial limitations on the crew. He was one of many gamers who went to go coach Tom Landry to persuade him to cease assigning resort rooms for highway video games by race, the crew stated.
“I attempted to do no matter I might do [to] assist change the sorts of issues that society had operated beneath for such a very long time,” Norman stated, per the crew web site.
Norman later turned the primary Black official at a financial institution in Dallas. In 1993, he additionally based the Dallas Collectively Discussion board with an goal of accelerating minority hiring and boosting contracts awarded to corporations owned by girls and minorities.
Norman performed in 162 video games (122 begins) between the 2 franchises, making 183 receptions for two,492 yards with 15 TDs.
