Former Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Bennie Cunningham reportedly passed away Monday morning at the age of 63, according to Matt Connolly of The State. Cunningham had reportedly been battling cancer since January.
Cunningham, who played his college football at Clemson, was selected by the Steelers in the first-round of the 1976 NFL Draft. In his 10 seasons with the Steelers, Cunningham caught 202 passes for 2,879 yards and 20 touchdowns. He was part of two Super Bowl champion teams as a member of the Steelers. In the post season games that he played in, Cunningham caught 19 passes for 219 yards and 2 touchdowns.
In 2007, Cunningham was named to the Steelers’ 75th Anniversary Team.
“Really good player. Nice guy. Would be a beast against current NFL defenses,” longtime Pittsburgh sports reporter John Steigerwald tweeted about Cunningham on Monday.
Below is what David Fink wrote in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about Cunningham being drafted by the Steelers in the first-round.
· Fri, Apr 9, 1976 – Page 13 · Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) · Newspapers.com
