The Dallas Cowboys

There is arguably no franchise in the National Football League more commonly known than the Dallas Cowboys. America’s Team, as many would say. The trademark star logo has been known and recognized by sports fans around the world for years. The Dallas Cowboys have a ton of history and also a bunch of success. Dallas came to the National Football League as an expansion team back in 1960. Let’s find out about some of the franchise history and their successes on the field as well:

If you follow the National Football League at all, you know about AT+T Stadium, the home of the Cowboys. But, before the team played at AT+T Stadium, they had two locations they called home before. From the time the franchise started in 1960 until the 1971 season, the Cowboys played at the Cotton Bowl. Then, from 1971 until the 2008 season, Texas Stadium was the location for Dallas Cowboys home games. Now, since 2009, the Cowboys are at AT+T Stadium.

AT+T Stadium, located in Arlington, Texas, is a retractable roof stadium commonly known as “Jerry World” for long-time owner Jerry Jones or “The Death Star.” The stadium has a capacity of 80,000 fans for football games but can hold up to 105,000 for various events. Ground broke for the $1.3B project in 2005, and the first game was in 2009. The first live event was a George Strait and Reb McEntire concert, while the first sporting event was Costa Rice against Guadeloupe in a Gold Cup event. The Cowboys played their first preseason game in August against the Titans.

The Stadium hosts the Big 12 Championship in football every year, along with other bowl games and potential College Football Playoff games. Super Bowl XLV was held there, with the Packers topping the Steelers. Other events such as soccer, Wrestlemania, and basketball are held there as well.

The franchise originally started as the Dallas Steers, then moved to the Dallas Rangers. The organization later announced they would be the Cowboys to make sure they did not get confused with the Dallas Rangers of the American Association. There is no real story behind the Cowboys other than the fact that being in Texas and Dallas had a nice catchy ring to it. Tex Schramm, the first General Manager of the team, is credited for the name.

The Dallas Cowboys come into the 2023 season with 550 franchise wins. Dallas has 36 postseason wins as well. Head Coach Tom Landry went 250-162-6 in his career. The Cowboys hold the record for most consecutive winning seasons. They did that for 20 seasons from 1966-1985. Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, and Emmitt Smith are all in the history book and known as some of the best players in all of the league.

The Dallas Cowboys have won five Super Bowl titles. The first one was in 1971 at Super Bowl VI. This game was held in New Orleans, and Tom Landry and his Dallas defense was outstanding. The Cowboys allowed just a field goal to the Dolphins and came away with a 24-3 win. Roger Staubach was the MVP, but the defense was the story. This was the coldest Super Bowl ever played, at 39 degrees.

The next one was Super Bowl XII. The defense was the story again, and this one also was in New Orleans. The Cowboys held Denver to just 10 points in the third quarter. This time Harvey Martin and Randy White on the defense were the MVPs. This was the first time that a defensive lineman was named Super Bowl MVP.

The Cowboys had to wait until Super Bowl XXVIII, which was at the end of the 1992 season. The Cowboys scored 52 points and smacked Marv Levy and the Buffalo Bills. This was the first title for Jimmy Johnson as the head coach of the Cowboys. Troy Aikman was named the MVP in front of nearly 99,400 fans in Pasadena.

The second of back-to-back titles came the very next season as the Cowboys, this time, scored 24 second-half points to come from behind to beat the Bills. Buffalo led 13-6 at halftime before the Emmitt Smith show. Smith was named the Super Bowl with 132 yards and 2 touchdowns while catching 4 passes for 26 years.

Finally, the most recent Cowboys title, in 1995. Super Bowl XXX was the final of the dominance that saw three tiles in four seasons. Barry Switzer was the head coach this time. Played in Tempe, Arizona; the Cowboys scored in every quarter but saw Larry Brown win the Super Bowl MVP. The cornerback had two second-half interceptions.

Outside of the Super Bowl titles, the Cowboys have 10 conference championships. The Cowboys won the NFL Eastern in 1966 and 1997 and then won the NFC in 1970, 1971, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1992, 1993, and 1995.

Dallas has won their division 24 times in team history. The Cowboys won the NFL Capitol three times, and then since moving to the NFC East in 1970, have 21 divisional titles.

Finally, the Cowboys have reached the postseason 35 times. Dallas had a great stretch from 1967-1985, where they missed the postseason just twice. Dallas was also impressive from 1991-1999, as they made it every season except for 1997.

With a long history and with a history of success – the Dallas Cowboys quarterback history is pretty historic. Current quarterback Dak Prescott is currently 4th on the list for most starts in franchise history.

Troy Aikman is first on the list, with 165 games started. In those games, he won a franchise-best 94 games. Second, Tony Romo with 156 starts. He won 61% of his games, with 78 wins. Third is Roger Staubach, with 114 starts and 85 wins. That’s the best winning percentage in franchise history.

Danny White is currently behind Prescott for 5th, while Don Meredith, Craig Morton, and Quincy Carter round out the Top 8.

Romo has the most career touchdown passes with 248. Prescott is now second on the list, passing Aikman, who finished with 165. Aikman also leads the franchise in interceptions with 141, while Romo has the most yards with 34,183.

When it comes to postseason success, starting from beginning in the late 1960’s Don Meredith finished with a 1-3 record. Craig Morton was next, as he went 3-3 in his career. Roger Staubach is the second-most successful postseason quarterback in franchise history. From 1971 – 1979, he won 11 games, losing just 6 in the postseason.

Danny White had a nice run with Dallas from 1980-1985, reaching the postseason in five seasons. He won five games and lost five over that time. Steve Beuerlein got in the record book in 1991 with a playoff win and a loss. Then came the Troy Aikmann era. From 1992-1999 Aikman won 11 postseason games, losing just 4.

Since Aikman, it’s been a bit of a struggle. Quincy Carter went 0-1 in 2003, Tony Romo went 2-4 in his career, and heading into 2023, Dak Prescott is also 2-4.

The Dallas Cowboys have a long list of Pro Football Hall of Famers. And while many of them are known as Dallas Cowboys, they also had many that spent a small portion of time with them as well. The first two Dallas Cowboys inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame were Forrest Gregg and Lance Alworth. They went in, both in the late 1970s. Both spent just a couple of seasons with the team. Other guys like that include Mike Ditka, Tommy McDonald, Zach Thomas, Jackie Smith, and even Terrell Owens.

Some popular Dallas Cowboys in the Pro Football Hall of Fame include running back Tony Dorsett. Dorsett spent his 1977 – 1987 seasons with the Cowboys and was later inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994.

Quarterback Troy Aikman spent 1989-2000 with the Cowboys. It took until 2006 for the signal caller to get inducted into the Hall of Fame. Mitchel Irvin was around the same time; 1988-1999, and he got inducted a year later; 2007.

Deion Sanders is a household name for the Cowboys. He was inducted in 2011 after playing with the Cowboys from 1995-1999. Another household name is Emmitt Smith. The running back was there from 1990-2002 and was inducted in 2010.

Some other names in the Hall of Fame; Roger Staubach, DeMarcus Wade, Randy White, Rayfield Wright, Mel Renfro, Drew Pearson, Chuck Hawley, and Charles Haley.

Finally, the Cowboys have 6 guys that were coaches and contributors in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Bill Parcells was there from 2003-2006 as a coach and went into the Hall of Fame in 2013, but was not considered a Cowboy. The guys include Gil Brandt in 2019, Jimmy Johnson in 2020, Jerry Jones in 2017, Tom Landry in 2013, and Tex Schramm in 1991.

The Dallas Cowboys became the first sports team to be valued at $4B. According to Forbes, the Cowboys were the most valuable sports team in the world. That was in 2015. Later, in 2018, the Cowboys became the first franchise to be valued at $5M. The Cowboys made Forbes’s list of most valued NFL teams for the 12th straight year.

The Cowboys have a mascot whose name is Rowdy.