Scott Laidlaw, a former Super Bowl champion with the Dallas Cowboys during the 1970s, passed away late last week at 72 years old, according to multiple reports.
The running back won a Super Bowl with Tom Landry’s Cowboys in 1978 and was an integral part of the team’s ball-control offense for four seasons in Dallas.
No cause of death was listed for Laidlaw, who was one of the Cowboys’ rookies who entered the league in 1975 as one of the “Dirty Dozen” when 12 players made the team.
That group would go on to help lead the Cowboys to three Super Bowl appearances in the 1970s, which included Hall of Famer Randy White, Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson, Bob Breunig, Pat Donovan and Herbert Scott, who were mainstays in Dallas for years to come.
Laidlaw was selected in the 14th round of the NFL draft out of Stanford, where he made the All-Pac Eight second team in 1974.
Laidlaw lined up as a running back and fullback for Dallas, accumulating 1,007 yards and nine rushing touchdowns over his six-year NFL career.
He was a solid receiving threat out of the backfield as well, adding 668 receiving yards and three touchdowns, most of which were in his first four seasons in Dallas.
Laidlaw played for the Giants in 1980 after being released by the Cowboys following the 1979 season.
Laidlaw sustained multiple hamstring and knee injuries and was eventually forced to retire.
While in Dallas, the Cowboys defeated the Broncos in the 1978 Super Bowl, as Dallas was led by Roger Staubach, who threw for 183 yards, while Tony Dorsett ran for 66 yards and a touchdown in the game.
“The Dirty Dozen” was honored by the Cowboys at a home game in 2025.
