| No. 3 | |
| Placekicker | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: August 18, 1970 | |
| Place of birth: Houma, Louisiana | |
| Career information | |
| College: Louisiana-Lafayette | |
| Undrafted in 1994 | |
| No regular season or postseason appearances | |
| Career history | |
* Dallas Cowboys ( 1994)*
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
* All-Pro selection (1997)
| |
| Field goals | 84 |
| Field goal attempts | 105 |
| Field goal % | 80.0 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
| Stats at pro-football-reference.com | |
Richard Anthony "Richie" Cunningham (born August 18, 1970) is a former American football placekicker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers, and Jacksonville Jaguars. He played college football at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
Early years[]
Cunningham attended Terrebonne High School and went on to play football at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where he was the kickoff specialist since his freshman year and became the team's placekicker until his junior year.
He finished his college career after making 14 out 22 field goal attempts, making 31 out 32 extra points attempts and 70 total points.
Professional career[]
Dallas Cowboys (first stint)[]
Cunningham was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys in 1994, but was released at the end of training camp after being beaten out by Chris Boniol.
Green Bay Packers[]
He signed with the Green Bay Packers in 1996 and although he had an excellent preseason, including a game-winning field goal against the Baltimore Ravens, the team decided to keep Chris Jacke.
Dallas Cowboys (second stint)[]
In 1997 he finally made a team and became an All-Pro kicker in his first NFL season. He was 34 for 37 on his field goal attempts, leading the NFL in field goals made, setting the club record and ranking second for a rookie in league history.[1] He was also second in the NFL in field goal percentage and points scored (also a team record). He was 24 for 24 on extra points.
In 1998, he tied a franchise record with a 54-yard field goal and made 29 of his 35 field goal attempts, which at the time ranked third in club history. The Cowboys released him 12 games into the 1999 season, after he slumped to 12 for 22 in his field goal attempts.[2]
Carolina Panthers[]
Cunningham finished the 1999 season playing in three games for the Carolina Panthers, replacing injured kicker John Kasay. On Dec 18 against the San Francisco 49ers, he kicked a franchise-record-tying 5 extra points. He appeared in four more games for the Panthers in 2000.
Cincinnati Bengals[]
He signed in 2001 with the Cincinnati Bengals, but couldn't make the team over Neil Rackers.
Jacksonville Jaguars[]
Cunningham last season was in 2002, appearing in one game for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He finished with 84 for 105 field goal attempts, which at the time, his 80 percent rate was tied for 27th all-time in a career.[3]
Personal life[]
He also received some notoriety during his NFL career for sharing the same name of the Happy Days television character played by Ron Howard.
Cunningham currently works for a pharmaceutical company. He is divorced from Kristin Cunningham and has three kids.
References[]
- ↑ "34) Will A RB Make A Notable Impression In The Passing Game?". http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/2013/06/17/34-will-rb-make-notable-impression-passing-game. Retrieved February 19, 2017.
- ↑ "Murray returns to Dallas, comes out of retirement". http://onlineathens.com/stories/121099/spo_1210990043.shtml#.WLw_PGczXIU. Retrieved February 19, 2017.
- ↑ "NFL Field Goal % Career Leaders". https://www.pro-football-reference.com/leaders/fg_perc_career.htm. Retrieved February 19, 2017.