Richie Cunningham (American football)

Richard Anthony "Richie" Cunningham (born August 18, 1970 in Houma, Louisiana) is a former All-Pro National Football League placekicker who played for the Dallas Cowboys, the Carolina Panthers, and the Jacksonville Jaguars during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He attended Terrebonne High School and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.

Cunningham was an All-Pro kicker with the Cowboys in 1997, his first NFL season. In that season, he was 34 for 37 on his field goal attempts. He led the NFL in field goals made, and was second in field goal percentage and points scored. He was also 24 for 24 on extra points.

He also played with the Cowboys during the 1998 season, making 29 of his 35 field goal attempts. The Cowboys released him 12 games into the 1999 season, after he slumped to 12 for 22 in his field goal attempts. He finished the 1999 season playing in three games for the Carolina Panthers, replacing injured kicker John Kasay. He appeared in four more games for the Panthers in 2000, and then finished his NFL career in 2002, appearing in one game for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Cunningham was 84 for 105 in career NFL field goal attempts. His 80 percent rate put him at 27th all-time for field goals after the 2008 season. 

He also received some notoriety during his NFL career for sharing the same name of the Happy Days television character played by Ron Howard.