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Duane Thomas, part of Cowboys' first Super Bowl win, dies at 77

DALLAS -- Duane Thomas, a running back for the Dallas Cowboys when they finally broke through and won a Super Bowl to cap the 1971 season, has died. He was 77.

The team said Thomas died Sunday but had no other details.

Thomas was with the Cowboys in 1970-71, a pair of tumultuous seasons plagued by a contract dispute that once led him to call coach Tom Landry "plastic man."

He was the first player to score a touchdown at Texas Stadium in 1971, when he led the Cowboys with 11 rushing touchdowns.

Thomas was born and raised in Dallas before playing college football at West Texas State in the Texas Panhandle.