Dan Reeves, a former Dallas Cowboys halfback who, as a coach, guided teams to four Super Bowls (although he lost them all), died on Saturday at his home in Atlanta. He was 77.
The cause was complications of dementia, according to a family statement.
Reeves played and coached with the Dallas Cowboys during a stellar period when they won two Super Bowls, one when he was a player and one when he was an offense coordinator, working for Coach Tom Landry. After several seasons as an assistant to Landry, he was hired as the Broncos’ head coach in 1981, replacing Red Miller.
Over 12 seasons in Denver, his teams had a record of 110-73-1 and were among the best in the American Football Conference. Led by quarterback John Elway, they lost the Super Bowl in 1987, 1988 and 1990 by wide margins to the New York Giants, Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers.
Reeves sometimes clashed with Elway over the Broncos’ offensive scheme and disagreed with the team’s owner, Pat Bowlen, over control of the team.