The “Quiet, Loving” Duane Thomas Passes 

He was calm and confident but didn’t talk to teammates or coaches. His silence was so heavy he was nicknamed “The Sphinx”.  “Everyone kept expecting him to mess -up, but he never did,” said Hall of Fame quarterback Don Merideth. “When you looked at him in the huddle he had piercing eyes. Of all the years I spent in the league no one had more concentration or focus than he did.” 

Earl Heath 

Contributing Sports Writer

Former Dallas Cowboy All-Pro running back Duane Thomas passed recently. According to his daughter Jamila Pamoja-Thomas, the cause was a pulmonary embolism. The former NFL and college standout was 77. 

Thomas was one of the most athletic players in the NFL he was blessed with speed, strength, and agility. In October of 1971, Thomas scored the first touchdown in the then newly built Texas Stadium playing against the Patriots.  

He was calm and confident but didn’t talk to teammates or coaches. His silence was so heavy he was nicknamed “The Sphinx”.  “Everyone kept expecting him to mess -up, but he never did,” said Hall of Fame quarterback Don Merideth. “When you looked at him in the huddle he had piercing eyes. Of all the years I spent in the league no one had more concentration or focus than he did.” 

The Cowboys had not yet won a Super Bowl or been nicknamed “America’s Team” They then drafted the elusive Thomas from West Texas State University as the 23rd pick in the first round of the N.F.L. draft in 1970. He was named the NFL Rookie of the Year. 

“I’m so excited, I can’t think,” Thomas, a Dallas native, told The Associated Press after he learned of his draft selection. 

He caught a touchdown in the Cowboys’ 16-13 loss to the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl V His teammates were silent and bummed after that loss, Thomas reaction was different and surprising for a rookie. 

“There is something noble in defeat,” he told reporters. “You cannot find victory unless you first understand defeat.” 

That same season, Thomas had led the league in rushing with 803 rushing yards touchdowns (11), and total touchdowns (13) when the teams only played 14 games. In playoff wins over Detroit and San Francisco, Thomas rushed for 135 and 143 yards, becoming the first rookie with two 100-yard rushing games in the playoffs.   

After the season, Thomas wanted his contract restructured.  It was years before free agency and that proposal was rejected by the Cowboys. He was traded to New England. He refused to report to the Patriots, and the trade was voided by then-Commissioner Pete Rozelle. 

He returned to Dallas for the following season and was a big reason the Cowboys again made it to the Super Bowl VI. This time he outdueled his former college teammate Mercury Morris. He scored a touchdown in the Cowboys’ 24–3 win against the Miami Dolphins famous “No name defense” He ran for 95 yards on 19 carries and scored a TD.  

Behind the scenes, he was reportedly voted the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player by an overwhelming margin. Thomas, however, had boycotted the media throughout the season and Larry Klein, editor of Sport magazine which presented the award, did not know how Thomas would act at a banquet that would take place later in the week in New York. With this in mind, Klein announced quarterback Roger Staubach as the MVP. 

Though he became known for his surly attitude off the field, Thomas’ daughter, Zalika Thomas described her father as a “talker” who was “so eloquent.” She said that he was also a painter who loved jazz and 1970s R&B music, particularly artists such as the Commodores, Marvin Gaye, and Earth, Wind & Fire. 

“My dad was a very loving dad, and he was very strategic,” added Thomas. “I’m a lot like my dad. Growing up he always said that about me. I totally got it as I started mentoring in life. He’s very strategic and analytical and very compassionate.” 

After retirement, Thomas would work in construction and with other small businesses.  “I like being up high (on top of buildings and bridges),“ he once told me. That appeared to be a thrill to him especially when getting paid. 

With the help of the late Earl Abdullah, he had a stint in radio including a talk show on weekends at KJLH in Los Angeles. 

“My dad was a very loving dad, and he was very strategic,” stated his daughter. “I’m a lot like my dad. Growing up, he always said that about me. I totally got it as I started mentoring in life. He’s very strategic and analytical and very compassionate.” 

At the time West Texas State (today known as West Texas A & M) was a good program that had a large number of players go on to play in the NFL the same year as Thomas. They included Rocky Thompson, Ralph Anderson, Raymond Brown, Mercury Morris, Dave Szymakowski, and Jesse Powell.   

Thomas was a business major and a good student. Off the field, he was the kindest, most free-hearted individual that you could be around. ” said former teammate and close friend Hardy Williams. “He would  

 Thomas’ former teammate Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson likewise showed a tribute in a Facebook Post “The Great Duane Thomas passed away yesterday,” Henderson wrote. “He was a great Cowboy. On his comeback, he was one of my roommates in Thousand Oaks. Lots of laughs and moments. 

“Duane would give you the shirt off his back, said former teammate Hardy Williams who played at Los Angeles City College before joining the team at West Texas. “You would love to have a son like Duane Thomas.” 

Thomas and the Williams family developed a bond while at West Texas and it continued for years after.    

While in college “Thomas was very popular around campus”. Said Jimmy Williams –Hardy’s brother. “He was smart very intelligent was an all-around good person that students looked up to.”  

Duane Julius Thomas Sunrise June 21, 1947 –Sunset August 4, 2024