Former New Orleans Saints tight end and 13-year NFL veteran Richard Caster died on Friday, Feb. 2, as first reported by the Mississippi Clarion Ledger.
The 6-foot-5, 228-pound tight end and wide receiver played from the 1970 to 1982 season, recording 322 receptions for 5515 yards and 45 touchdowns. Caster was also named to three Pro Bowls in 1972, 1974 and 1975 all while he was a member of the New York Jets where he spent the first eight seasons of his career after being drafted in the second round, 46th overall, out of Jackson State University.
The tight end joined the Saints in the second to last season of his career, playing with the team through their first four games in the 1981 season, grabbing seven receptions for 108 yards.
Caster also had stints with the Houston Oilers and the Washington football team.
"I'm most proud of being able to play as long as I did, getting 13 years in the league during a period where the career average was a heck of a lot less than 13. When I came in I think it was somewhere around two, two and a half years," Caster told NewYorkJets.com back in 2018. "I was real proud of my ability to still have some talent where I was able to be traded and signed late in my career to bring some value to some teams."
Caster died in his sleep after battling illness at the age of 75, family representative Kenny Zore told The Associated Press.
He is survived by his wife Susan, sons Richard J. Caster, Max Caster and Sean Caster, daughters Shannon Myla and Alona Nicole and five grandchildren.
