Former New York Giants running back Randy Minniear dead at 79

The sports world lost one of the greats this week, which seems to happen at a much faster pace these days.

According to the New York Post, former New York Giants running back Randy Minniear, who played in the league in the late 1960s, has died at age 79.

Minniear's cause of death was not available at the time of this writing.

The Post noted:

After playing fullback at Purdue, he was selected by the Giants in the 20th round of the 1966 NFL Draft and would first play in 1967, when Earl Morrall was the quarterback.

Former Giants running back Randy Minniear dead at 79 https://t.co/eVUfX4DvqF pic.twitter.com/WfXOBwBvc4

— New York Post (@nypost) August 21, 2023

Minniear once expressed his pride in playing under Morrall during a podcast with "Thursday Night Tailgate" in 2021.

"They rate him as the greatest backup quarterback of all time," Minnear said.

He added a little self-deprecating humor, "And that’s one of the things they say about me. I was the greatest benchwarmer of all time. I will tell you this, while I was down there on the end of the bench by the water bucket not one was stolen in five years."

Minniear also recalled his days playing under the great Fran Tarkenton.

"He’d almost kill you running pass patterns because you’d have to change your pass pattern and run from one side of the field to the other while he was back there scrambling all over the place. But he could throw, smart, hard-worker and he just had a flair about him that I just loved," the former Giants running back said.

Minniear might act humble, showcasing his good character at the time, but he racked up impressive stats in his role, including notching four touchdowns in 19 games with the Giants.

He would ultimately leave the game in 1970, finishing up his career on the field with the Cleveland Browns.

The New York Post added that in his 2021 interview, Minniear remembered his love of playing in Yankee stadium.

"Absolutely incredible. I got a thrill, even though I was there for four years, every time I walked from our locker room we shared with the Yankees and I walked down that wooden ramp into the dugout and you look around and think, ‘Oh my gosh,'” he said, adding, “I don’t think there’s anything like the old Yankee Stadium. It was the thrill of a lifetime to play in that.”

He went on to work on Wall Street for roughly four decades before moving back to Indiana and finishing out his days as high school baseball and football coach.