On May 9, 2026, condolences poured in for Craig Morton as the legendary QB passed away at the MarinHealth Medical Center in Greenbrae, California. As the football world mourned the Dallas Cowboys’ trailblazer, the official cause of death has now emerged. 

According to the report from The California Post, a spokesperson for the Marin County Vital Statistics Office revealed that Morton succumbed to acute respiratory failure due to severe sepsis due to a urinary tract infection. 

His wife, Kym Galloway, recently revealed that on May 5, the couple planned to visit a friend, Bill Medley, in Las Vegas and watch him perform with The Righteous Brothers. However, just when they got ready, Morton began to shake in distress. Galloway immediately called the paramedics. Later at the hospital, the medics diagnosed it as sepsis. 

It was a urinary tract infection that went systemic (urosepsis) and started affecting his lungs. That led to respiratory edema (fluid in the lungs) and ultimately caused his death. 

“It came suddenly,” Morton’s wife revealed. “He was shaking and in distress. I called the paramedics, and they took him to the hospital. It was sepsis again. He had powered through and managed to recover from it before. But then he had a pulmonary edema in his lungs and they just made the determination he wasn’t able to survive.’’ 

But it wasn’t the first time he suffered from sepsis. With 17 active years in the NFL, Morton got hit more than 1,000 times and received 405 sacks. And that led to some serious back issues. Talking to The Denver Gazette, he revealed that he was hospitalized twice in recent years. And for two months, he had to deal with sepsis. 

Beyond the official medical diagnosis, Morton was battling excruciating physical pain at the end of his life. But a revelation from Galloway pointed at his resilient mindset even in painful hours. 

Craig Morton was a resilient Cowboy till the end

Battling sepsis isn’t easy at all. Patients have to endure tremors, fever, and complications depending on the area of infection. For Morton, compromised lungs made breathing without help (ventilator or bipap) impossible. Such issues break the mind along with the body. But Morton showed resilience despite the horrors of sepsis. 

“He was tired of his back; he was really in a lot of pain with his back,” Galloway revealed. And he just said, ‘I give up.’ I’m ready to go. I don’t want to do this anymore. I’ve had an amazing life. And I’m just tired. And then … he said, “I’ve never said I give (up), in my life.” 

That final, poignant quote from Galloway resonates deeply with American NFL fans who watched him dominate in the 1970s. It’s especially the 1977 season with the Denver Broncos that highlights Morton’s resilient spirit. 

During that historic playoff run, the QB literally spent a week in the hospital with a severe hip injury just before the AFC Championship Game. His hip pointer kept hemorrhaging and filled his leg with blood. Meanwhile, the doctors kept trying to drain the fluid but failed. He shouldn’t have been able to walk properly. But Morton took a different decision. 

He somehow still suited up, defying medical logic to lead the Broncos to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance. He cemented his legacy by becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to start a Super Bowl for two different franchises. 

Craig Morton will always be remembered as a player who gave absolutely everything he had to the game of football. His legendary toughness will never be forgotten.