All-Pro, All Cowboy

The NFL draft is just around the corner and everyone is scrambling to put together their 2011 NFL mock draft. Of course, then the men making the decisions—men like Jerry Jones and Al Davis, for instance—proceed to make a mockery of the mock drafts.

Every Dallas Cowboys fan has to be a bit tied up in knots when draft time rolls around because that fan knows the man in charge is as inept in the judging of NFL talent as he is incoherent when attempting to make an impromptu speech. The post-Jimmy Johnson era of Jerry Jones drafting has not been pretty, which has led to the slow erosion of the team’s talent base and the longterm absence of playoff success.

Not to worry, though. Maybe the next great Dallas Cowboy won’t come through the draft at all. Maybe, just maybe he will fall through the cracks instead. Maybe he will be that great player that all of the genius talent evaluators overlooked, misjudged, or just plain missed. It isn’t an impossibility. It has happened before…more than once.

That said, I give you a brief team history review and present for your consideration, the all-time top ten undrafted Dallas Cowboys. Feel free to discuss and debate amongst yourselves. Better yet, leave a comment.

(Drumroll, please.)

Number Ten: Dan Reeves, Halfback (Class of 1965)– I may be putting Dan Reeves too low on this list, based on the fact that after a productive career as a player he went on to serve as an assistant coach on Tom Landry’s staff, participating in five Super Bowls. He then participated in four more Super Bowls as a head coach. (Yes, if you are counting, that is nine total Super Bowls.)

As a player, Reeves was solid, but not spectacular. He was named to the Sporting News All-Conference team in 1966. That same year, the Associated Press named him second-team All-NFL. Perhaps his most memorable play was a halfback pass he threw for a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers in the 1967 Ice Bowl game.

Number Nine: Miles Austin, Wide Receiver (Class of 2006)– It is hard to believe that, in this information age, a talent like Miles Austin could slip through seven rounds of drafting unnoticed by 32 teams. Austin is big and fast and the reason Jerry Jones felt confident in cutting Terrell Owens loose.

In 2009, Austin had a breakout year that captured the imagination of fans across the NFL. He only started nine games, but caught 81 passes for 1320 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2009 and again in 2010.

Number Eight: Mark Tuinei, Offensive Tackle (Class of 1983)– This undrafted free agent forged a 15-year career with the Dallas Cowboys. He was named to two Pro Bowls. And, in the early ’90s, he was a member of an offensive line that some feel is the greatest of all time. That line protected hall of fame quarterback Troy Aikman and blew open holes for the NFL’s all-time leading rusher and hall of famer, Emmitt Smith.

Mark Tuinei started in 15 playoff games during his stellar career.

Tragically, in 1999, at the age of 39, Tuinei died of a drug overdose.

Number Seven: Bill Bates, Safety (Class of 1983)– 1983 was a good year for the Dallas Cowboys finding overlooked or ignored talent. Bill Bates, like Mark Tuinei, made the ’83 Cowboys squad as an undrafted free agent and then stuck around for 15 years.

Bates was known as a hard-working, hard-hitting, smart football player. What he lacked in speed and raw talent, he made up for with heart and determination. In 1984, the NFL added a Pro Bowl spot for a special teams player because of Bates’ impact on that part of the game. The ’84 Pro Bowl would be Bates’ only appearance, but he would continue to impact his team and would be a part of three Super Bowl championships.

Number Six: Nate Newton, Guard (Class of 1986)– Listed at 6’3, 318 (add at least 50 pounds to that, I would think), Nate Newton was one giant oversight in the 1986 draft. All this guy did was put together a 14-year career, become the face of the fiercest offensive line of his era, earn six trips to the Pro Bowl and make two All-Pro teams. Oh, and he won three Super Bowl rings for good measure.

‘Big Newt’ was one of the most colorful, quotable characters on one of the most colorful teams in NFL history. He was a character, for sure. He was also a player.

Number Five: Tony Romo, Quarterback (Class of 2004)– In 2006, at halftime of the sixth game of the season, against the New York Giants, coach Bill Parcells made a change at quarterback. He pulled an ineffective Drew Bledsoe in favor of little-known undrafted free agent Tony Romo. Romo was in his third year with the team and was on almost no one’s radar. No one’s but Parcells’ and his staff.

Romo took over in that game and never looked back. He became the Cowboys’ regular starter. In four plus years he has spent under center, Romo has been named to three Pro Bowls. He has thrown for more than 4,000 yards twice. He has tossed 118 touchdowns against 62 interceptions.

Tony Romo is a lightning rod among Cowboys fans because, to date, he has but one playoff win. In Dallas, with names like Staubach and Aikman to live up to, one playoff win won’t cut it. Should Romo ever guide the Cowboys to another Lombardi trophy, he will shoot to the top of this list, or very near it.

Number Four: Everson Walls, Cornerback (Class of 1981)– Everyone knew this guy was too slow to play cornerback in the NFL. So, why did Tom Landry keep him on the 1981 squad? The slow-footed defensive back would be toast.

Not exactly. Not only did Walls make the ’81 Cowboys team. He started. And, he led the NFL with 11 interceptions. He kept his job with the Cowboys all through the 1980s, earning four Pro Bowl trips.

Number Three: Cornell Green, Cornerback (Class of 1962)– Cornell Green was a two-time All-American at Utah State University— in basketball! It was the genius of Gil Brandt and his way-ahead-of-the-times scouting that led to Green becoming a cornerback in the NFL.

Green played cornerback and safety for the Cowboys from 1962 to 1974. He recorded 34 interceptions and returned two for touchdowns. Cornell Green went to four Pro Bowls as a cornerback and one as a safety. After the switch to safety, Green’s Cowboys went to their first two Super Bowls, winning one of them.

Number Two: Drew Pearson, Wide Receiver (Class of 1973)– The original 88 was Mister Clutch. He was Roger Staubach’s go-to guy for years. Adept at route-running, deceptively fast, and a master at catching the sideline pass while doing the tight-rope thing with his toes to make the catch in bounds, Drew was a highlight reel in a helmet.

Drew Pearson caught the famed Hail Mary pass against the Minnesota Vikings. That was but one of many clutch grabs he made to help his team win big games. Three times he was named to the Pro Bowl and was selected first-team All-Pro each of those times. The NFL named Pearson to the All-Decade team for the 1970s.

Still, Drew Pearson has never been inducted into the Cowboys Ring of Honor, which is both a travesty and evidence that Jerry Jones sometimes lacks good judgment or a sense of team history, take your pick.

In fact, Pearson belongs in the Hall of Fame, as does our selection for the greatest all-time undrafted Dallas Cowboy…

Number One: Cliff Harris, Safety (Class of 1970)– So far, Cliff Harris is the only one in our group of elite nobodies to be inducted into the Cowboys Ring of Honor. Known as a bone-crushing hitter, Harris was given the nickname “Captain Crash.” He and his backfield mate Charlie Waters formed the almost-undisputed best safety tandem in the NFL throughout the 1970s, and they are among the greatest twosome in NFL history.

Cliff Harris played ten years, from 1970–’79. He made six Pro Bowls and was a three-time All-Pro. Harris is in the Ring of Honor and was a Hall of Fame finalist in 2004. The fact that he has not been named to the NFL Hall of Fame is beyond ludicrous, as he rates among the greatest ever at his position…and he was a major component in a team that went to five Super Bowls in a decade.

But he wasn’t a Steeler. He was a Cowboy. So, go ahead and turn those media bias conspiracy theories loose. I am right there with you.

But I digress. The point here is that Cliff Harris is at the top of a list of elite football players that were overlooked on draft day, but left their imprint on the National Football League anyway.

Long live the overlooked, the over-achievers, the underdogs. And God bless those who discover the diamonds in the rough.

Emmitt Smith once famously said about his team, “We had some diamonds, but we had a lotta cow poo poo around it, and the diamonds was mixed in with the poo poo…it just all look like poo poo.” (The Grammar is Mr. Smith’s alone.)

If that was true of the late ’90s Cowboys, it was doubly true of the 2010 version of America’s (Former) Team. At the end of the most disappointing year in the 51-year history of the Dallas Cowboys, it can be challenging to find ten players whose contributions merit mention on a list of “top performers.”

Somehow, this 6–10 disaster of a team managed to put five of its players in the Pro Bowl, all of them as starters. Each of those guys makes this list. That leaves us with the task of digging in the cow poo-poo for five more diamonds.

From Number One to Number Ten, I give you the 2010 Top Ten Dallas Cowboys:

Number One: Jason Witten, Tight End

On a team with a rich history of tight ends with names like Billy Joe DuPree and Jay Novacek, Jason Witten is establishing himself as the best to ever play the position in Big D. The eight year veteran has just been named to his seventh Pro Bowl.

This year, Witten became just the third tight end in NFL history to record multiple 90-catch, 1,000-yard seasons. The other two? Todd Christensen and Tony Gonzalez. 2010 was the third time Jason has gone over 1,000 yards in receiving.

He also caught nine touchdown passes this year, the most in his career.

Number Two: DeMarcus Ware, Outside Linebacker

On a defense that sank like the Titanic 99 years before, DeMarcus Ware once again proved his mettle. The six year veteran was named to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl. He should be named first-team All-Pro for the fourth year in a row, as well.

For the second time in three years, Ware led the NFL in sacks, recording 15.5. He had three sacks in the season finale to go along with a fumble recovery for a touchdown.

On the season, Ware recorded 56 tackles and ten assists. He was easily the best defensive player on the team.

Number Three: Jon Kitna, Quarterback

When Tony Romo went down in week six, the 39 year old Kitna was pressed into action. While he was short of spectacular, he was steady. He provided solid play and much-needed leadership to a team that had recorded just one win before he took the helm.

Kitna completed 209 of 318 passes for 2,365 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also secured four victories for the Cowboys before going down to injury, including wins over the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants, both on the road.

Jon Kitna was the rudder Jason Garrett needed to right the rudderless ship inherited from Wade Phillips.

Number Four: Dez Bryant, Wide Receiver

Dez Bryant only played in just over 11 games before going down with a leg injury. In that time, however, he established himself as the alpha receiver, scooting Miles Austin, the 2009 surprise hero, aside.

Dez brought fire and passion to the field, the kind not seen around these parts since Michael Irvin hung up his helmet. He also produced, catching 45 passes for 561 yards and six touchdowns.

Dez Bryant was the acrobat under Jerry Jones’ billion-dollar big top.

Number Five: Mat McBryar, Punter

For just the second time in his stellar seven-year career, Mat McBriar has been named to the Pro Bowl. The Australian has been the picture of consistency since arriving in Dallas in 2003 as an undrafted rookie free agent. He might have as easily been to four or five Pro Bowls by now.

In 2010, McBriar posted a 47.9 yard-per-punt average. He led the NFL in net punting average with 42.1 yards. This meant opponents, more often than not, had to march the length of the field to score.

Unfortunately, that marching the length of the field thing was hardly a bother against the porous Dallas defense.

Number Six: Bryan McCann, Returner/Defensive Back

Bryan McCann began the year on the practice squad. When injuries opened the door for him to get on the active squad, he made the most of it.

While McCann’s overall production for the year was not eye-popping, he did provide the most thrilling moments of the season. In back-to-back games, he returned an interception 101 yards for a touchdown and a punt 97 yards, also for a touchdown. McCann’s heroics contributed to the only two-game winning streak the Cowboys had all year…and got the Jason Garrett era off to a smashing start.

Number Seven: Jay Ratliff, Nose Guard

At 6’4″, 293 pounds, Jay Ratliff is a runt.

Well, as nose guards go, he is a runt. He is also a whirling dervish, hard to block, hard to contain. Fortunately for his opponents, he is accompanied on the defensive line by a handful of stiffs, so opposing offensive coordinators can double- and even triple-team Ratliff.

In a year when the Cowboys’ defense was gashed again and again on the ground and burned like toast week after week through the air, Ratliff’s compatriots thought enough of his play to put him in the Pro Bowl.

Jay Ratliff only recorded 23 tackles, eight assists, and 3.5 sacks in 2010. He also forced one fumble and recovered two.

This will be his third straight Pro Bowl appearance.

Number Eight: Doug Free, Left Tackle

Coming into the season, the left tackle position was a source of concern with the departure of Flozell Adams. As it turned out, Doug Free was more than capable of anchoring the position. On a line that often failed to open running lanes or provide protection, Doug Free allowed no sacks in the first 5.5 games of the season.

Once Romo went down, the less elusive Kitna stepped in and Free did give up a few sacks. Still, he played a fairly solid left tackle against some big challenges, including pass rushers named Julius Pepper and Mario Williams.

Number Nine: Andre Gurode, Center

Andre Gurode is sometimes on his own program, snapping the ball whenever the mood besets him, firing it over the head of quarterback, or failing to get it to his hands when the QB is under center.

All of that notwithstanding, Gurode has the respect of the league. He has been named a starter in the 2011 Pro Bowl. This will be his fifth consecutive appearance in the game that showcases the best in the NFL.

Nothing about Gurode’s performance in 2010 really stands out much, but this is not a difficult cut, this 2010 Top Performers List.

Number Ten: Stephen McGee

Further evidence of just what kind of year this has been, my tenth top performer is the third-string quarterback, who played in but two games, and started only one.

Stephen McGee was not brilliant. He only completed 22 of 44 passes for two touchdowns. However, he did not throw any interceptions.

More importantly, he played well in crunch time.

Against the Arizona Cardinals, he led his team on a late fourth quarter scoring drive that should have sealed victory for his team. He threw a 37-yard touchdown pass to put the Cowboys ahead 26–24 with under two minutes remaining. Unfortunately David Buehler missed the extra point and the Dallas defense failed to stop the Cardinals, giving up the winning field goal as time expired.

In the final game of the season, McGee lead another late fourth-quarter drive, capping it with a touchdown pass to Jason Witten. This time, he got the win, 14–13, thanks to a DeMarcus Ware sack of Kevin Kolb on the Eagles’ last drive.

Offensive MVP: Jason Witten

No offensive player did more to help his team succeed in this failure of a season than tight end Jason Witten. In addition to the stats I spouted earlier, Witten was the favorite target of all three of his quarterbacks when the chips were down.

Third and long? Jason Witten.

Red Zone? Jason Witten.

Defensive MVP: DeMarcus Ware

The final game of the season said it all. Ware recorded three sacks, including the one that essentially ended any hope the Eagles had of winning the game. He also scooped up a fumble and returned it for a touchdown.

Mr. Ware is the modern-day version of Bob Lilly. Simply put, he IS Mr. Cowboy.

I love a good quote. Who doesn’t? When you quote someone else, not only do you get to borrow from the genius or insight of another, you can do so without culpability.

If anyone takes issue with it, just say, “Hey, I didn’t say it. I was just repeating what so and so said.”

I also love sports and I love the fact that some of the most memorable American quotes have been the product of our obsession with the games of our American pastime and the men who play them.

Not everyone is obsessed with the games men play with their balls…

Is it a reasonable thing, I ask you, for a grown man to run about and hit a ball?  Poker’s the only game fit for a grown man.  Then, your hand is against every man’s, and every man’s is against yours.  Teamwork?  Who ever made a fortune by teamwork?  There’s only one way to make a fortune, and that’s to down the fellow who’s up against you.  ~W. Somerset Maugham

I do like teamwork. I think it is a beautiful thing—especially in the great game of American football. I especially love teamwork when it involves my team—America’s team— the Dallas Cowboys.

“Football incorporates the two worst elements of American society: violence punctuated by committee meetings.”

~ George Will, author, commentator, humorist

The game of American football – especially at the professional level – lends itself to copious and memorable quotes, like the one above.

The Dallas Cowboys organization has been home to great leaders, singular players, and colorful characters throughout its noble history. Many of them have, with their words, weaved a colorful and rich tapestry, a verbal masterpiece draped on the walls of our memories.

Meredith: Always Quotable

If you are old enough to have been there, and if you can quiet your spirit enough, you can almost hear the even, measured words of  Tom Landry, uttered in that south Texas drawl, words of wisdom, words to play – and to live – by. You can hear the even more twangy Texas twang of the witty Walt Garrison deadpanning about his coach. You can hear the almost musical quality of Meredith’s smooth delivery of yet another masterful bon mot.

It is not easy to sift through these treasures and find the ten most memorable, or ten most representative quotes of the franchise’s history. I doubt I have succeeded in doing so. I am sure you will correct me…and add your own sweet memory to this tapestry.

Number Ten: “That was the triumph of an uncluttered mind.” ~ Blaine Nye on Clint Longley’s Thanksgiving Day performance

Number Nine: “If ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ were candy and nuts, wouldn’t it be a merry Christmas?” ~ Don Meredith

Number Eight: “He couldn’t spell ‘cat’ if you spotted him the ‘c’ and the ‘a.’” ~ Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson on Terry Bradshaw

Number Seven: “There are no traffic jams along the extra mile.” ~ Roger Staubach

Number Six: “Leadership is getting someone to do what they don’t want to do, to achieve what they want to achieve.” ~ Tom Landry

Number Five: “He’s a perfectionist. If he was married to Raquel Welch, he’d expect her to cook.” ~ Don Meredith on Coach Landry

Number Four: “If the Super Bowl is the Ultimate Game, why are they playing it again next year?” ~ Duane Thomas

Number Three: “If it was third down, and you needed four yards, if you’d get the ball to Walt Garrison, he’d get ya five. And if was third down and ya needed 20 yards, if you’d get the ball to Walt Garrison, by God, he’d get you five.” ~ Don Meredith on Walt Garrison

Number Two: “Nope. But I have only been here nine years.” ~ Walt Garrison, when asked if he had ever seen Tom Landry smile.

Number One: “Texas Stadium has a hole in its roof so God can watch his favorite team play.” ~ D.D. Lewis

Like I said, it was quite difficult to narrow them down to just ten. These are my ten. It is entirely possible that the reader remembers ten others that were just as memorable, witty, or astounding. If so, feel free to reply and add your own list…or at least your own favorite quote.

As for me, I will let the most quotable Cowboy of them all get the final word…

“Turn out the lights: the party‘s over.”

Let’s preface this list with an important qualifying statement: the only moments up for consideration are on-the-field occurrences. In other words, this is a list of the ten most devastating plays in team history. Consequently, we won’t be mentioning moments many may consider catastrophic, like the day Landry was fired or the day Jimmy Johnson walked away or the day Switzer was hired. Nor will we talk about the “white house” or the Michael Irvin trial. We may long debate the impact of such happenings on the team. But that is a different discussion.

In selecting the plays included in this list, several factors were considered:

• Was it a catastrophic moment for the team?
• Do Cowboys fans still remember it?
• Does it still hurt?

Number Ten: Cards Make History with Blocked Punt. On October 12, 2008, The Dallas Cowboys would suffer a tough overtime loss to the Arizona Cardinals. The catastrophic moment came in overtime, when, after the Cowboys offense failed to do anything with the opening drive, Mat McBriar was called on to punt the ball away. But the Cardinals’ Sean Morey broke through to block the punt and teammate Monty Biesel scooped up the ball and scored the winning touchdown. The Cowboys would spiral into an 8-8 finish while the Cards would finally break through with a successful postseason and their first-ever Super Bowl appearance. Oh, and McBriar was lost for the season.

Number Nine: Rookie Kicks Cowboys in the Super Bowl Groin. The Cowboys had finally done it. After years of falling just short and being called “bridesmaids” or dubbed “next year’s champs,” they made the Super Bowl. Their opponent was the John Unitas-led Baltimore Colts. Super Bowl V was a mess. The teams combined for eleven turnovers. Some called it the “Blunder Bowl,” or the “Stupor Bowl.” Still, Dallas had a 13-6 lead at the end of three quarters. The Colts, however, would tie the score in the fourth. Then, with five seconds left in the game, rookie kicker Jim O’Brien trotted onto the field and promptly kicked a 32-yard field goal to win the game. Next year’s champs would have to wait…again.

Desecration

Number Eight: T.O. Desecrates the Star. It would have been impossible to imagine on September 24, 2000 that Terrell Owens would some day be dancing into the end zone, scoring TDs with the Cowboys’ star on his helmet. In the ultimate show of disrespect for a franchise and its fans, the lightening rod (some say Nimrod) receiver scored a TD for the 49ers and then dashed to the star at the fifty yard line to rub his success – and their failure – in the nose of the Dallas Cowboys and their longsuffering fans. Owens scored twice that day and made the same trip to the star each time. The second time, safety George Teague knocked him off the star. It was a bad start to a decade that has mostly been unkind to the Cowboys.

Number Seven: “No, Danny! No!” The Cowboys were looking good going into the final weeks of the 1983 season. Then, they ran into the hated Redskins. The ‘Skins held the ‘Boys to a franchise-low 33 yards rushing. Washington had a thin 14-10 lead in the third quarter. Dallas had the ball, fourth and one, at their own 48. Landry instructed quarterback Danny White to use a hard count to try and draw the defense offsides. White, however, changed the play at the line of scrimmage, calling for a Ron Springs run up the middle. Springs lost two yards and the Cowboys lost the game. Cameras caught an animated Tom Landry on the sideline yelling, “No! No, Danny! No!” It was as close as the stoic coach ever came to losing his cool during a game. Moreover, after a decade (the 70s) of five Super Bowl appearances and two wins, the Cowboys would begin a slow spiral through the 80s.

Number Six: The Play-Maker will Play No More Forever. October, 1999. Michael Irvin’s career-ending inury was a catastrophic moment for himself and the Cowboys. It served notice that the Triplets were done. Their marvelous run as the mighty triumverate of football acumen came to an unceremonious end when the polarizing, flamboyant, spiritual leader of the team of the 90′s landed awkwardly on his head after hauling in his last-ever pass from Troy Aikman. To make matters worse, it happened in the worst possible place: Philadelphia. The classless morons making up a significant part of the crowd that day once again proved themselves to be America’s lowest form of sports fan: the kind that cheers the failure of others even more loudly than the success of their own team. (Losers are that way.) CNNSI.com reported the incident this way:

By cheering Dallas Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin as he lay motionless on the turf Sunday with a neck injury, the fans brought the city’s reputation for boorishness to new lows. It disgusted even those who thought they had seen it all in the “City of Brotherly Love.”

“Unspeakable, even for us,” proclaimed a headline in the Philadelphia Daily News.

Number Five: A Disgraceful End to A Glorious Run. It was the final game ever to be played in Texas Stadium, where so many glories of the past had transpired, where so many great Cowboys players had left their indelible mark. The final game was not against a division rival…or any other bitter rival, like maybe the 49ers or Steelers. It was the Ravens. No history there. Well, now there is. The Baltimore Birds made history. First, halfback Willis Mcgahee tied a Texas Stadium record with a 77-yard touchdown run against the Dallas D (the one Wade Phillips had taken over and “improved” in recent weeks). Then, his teammate, Le’Ron McLain broke the record with an 82 yard run. The Dallas defenders looked like matadors on that play.  I know: this is two plays…but they happened so closely together and constituted a single insult. The light that had shined so gloriously through the hole in the stadium’s roof into the North Texas night for 28 years was unceremoniously doused. If Jerry Jones had walked down to the field and fired the excuse-making, underachieving, overmatched, good ole boy head coach right there on the spot, who could have blamed him? But Jerry needs a man who will surrender enough of his manhood for the owner to retain absolute control. Wade Phillips – the world’s doughiest puppet – is his man. (Pardon the veering and venting. It still smarts.)

Number Four: Romo Fumbles Away Playoff Victory. January 6, 2007, Seattle, Washington. First, let us be clear: Romo the quarterback played well enough to defeat the Seattle Seahawks on their own turf and earn a long-awaited and much-needed playoff victory for his franchise. Romo the kickholder did not. I place as much blame on the shoulders of the world’s biggest Tuna as I do on Romo. Why on earth do you need the starting quarterback, the man who has poured everything he has onto the field of battle, to hold the ball for your kicker? Do you also want him distributing Gatorade during timeouts? Maybe he could work a hot dog stand. At any rate, Romo bobbles the hold. The Cowboys fail to score. The Seahawks make sure they don’t get another shot. The playoff drought continues.

Ouch!

Number Three: The Catch. January 10, 1982, San Francisco. It was a prayer, uttered by a desperation-heaving Joe Montana and answered by a right-place-at-the-right-moment Dwight Clark. With Ed “Too Tall” Jones closing in and looming over Montana’s field of vision, the man who would become arguably the game’s greatest clutch quarterback launched his fabled assault on  NFL post-season lore. The Catch, as the play that sealed the NFC championship victory for the Forty-Niners would come to be known, marked the end of one dynasty and the birth of another. The torch was reluctantly passed.

Frigid

Number Two: Ice, Ice, Baby. December 31, 1967, Lambeau Field, Green Bay. The Ice Bowl is one of the most famous games in NFL history. Game time temperature was -13 degrees Farenheit. The wind chill was -48°. The great game came down to a Packers’ third and goal at the Cowboys’ one yard line. Players could be seen stomping at the ground with their cleats, trying to get traction. The Cowboys clung tenaciously to a tenuous 17-14 lead. They expected a pass. A completion would win the game and an incompletion would stop the clock for one last try. Instead, Quarterback Bart Starr ran a QB sneak right at defensive tackle Jethro Pugh and behind guard Jerry Kramer. Starr scored and the Pack won its third consecutive NFL championship, while the Cowboys were foiled and frustrated once again.

Agony

Number One: Jackie Smith. January 21, 1979, Super Bowl XIII. If you are a Cowboys fan 40 years old or older, it is doubtful that any former player’s name brings more gut-wrenching agony than that of Jackie Smith. Smith was a superb tight end who spent his entire career laboring away on a so-so Cardinals’ team. He was thirty-eight when the Cowboys signed him. With Dallas trailing 21-14, Smith dropped a sure-fire touchdown pass in the end zone. The ball just bounced off his chest. The Cowboys settled for a field goal, making Smith’s play a four-point debacle. The Cowboys ultimately lost by those four points, 35-31. If they had won, it would have meant that they and the Steelers each had three Super Bowl victories in the 70′s, with the Cowboys making five appearances to the Steelers’ four. Instead, the Steelers were proclaimed the team of the decade and the Cowboys’ remarkable achievement of appearing in half of the decade’s Super Bowls was relegated to a “nice” accomplishment.

Every team has its share of disappointments, and the Cowboys are no different. No team wins them all. This is the beauty of competition. The games, the plays, the victories, the defeats…they live on inside us. They fuel our heated debates. They fire our imaginations. They fill us with joy…or pain. They remind us of the human condition. They whet our appetite for more.

In this third installment of the SilverandBlueBlood Top Ten Top Ten, I turn my attention to the top ten plays in team history. In selecting the plays, I considered several factors:

1. How memorable was it?
2. What impact did it have on a game, a championship, or a career?
3. Was it extraordinary?

As you might imagine, a franchise of this caliber, with nearly fifty years of history, has provided more than its share of memorable plays and water-shed moments. I have dutifully sorted through every play in team history (anyone who believes that stand on your head) to compile my list of top ten plays in Dallas Cowboys’ history.

Romoriffic

Number 10: Greatest four-yard run in Team History. On September 30, 2007, Tony Romo chases down a snap that sails way over his head versus the Rams. He scoops up the ball, avoids chasing defenders, and gains four yards and a first down on what should have been a 30-yard loss.

Number 9: Larry Allen, the sprinter? On Monday Night Football versus the New Orleans Saints in 1994, Aikman throws a pass that is tipped into the arms of Saints’ linebacker Darion Conner. Conner streaks down the sideline on what appears inevitably to become a seventy-one yard touchdown interception return. Instead the 315-pound offensive lineman caught him at the sixteen yard line, and a legend was born.

Number 8: Emmitt gets the record. By 2002, the glory was fading. The team of the 90′s was floundering. Smith, however, had one more milestone – the biggest of his career – to pass. On October 27th, in a 17-14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Smith broke through in the fourth quarter with an eleven-yard gain. With that run, he surpassed Walter Payton, becoming the NFL’s all-time leading rusher.

Number 7: Butch Johnson’s circus catch in Super Bowl XII. Dallas dominated Denver and it was the defense that shined that day. But the number three receiver on the roster, Butch Johnson laid out in the end zone to haul in a spectacular 50-yard touchdown pass from Staubach.

Number 6: Meredith to Hayes. Cowboys 31, Redskins 30. November 13th, 1966, Don Meredith hooked up with the receiver who at one time had been recognized as the fastest man in the world, Bob Hayes, for a 95-yard touchdown pass. Hayes had 246 receiving yards that day, a Cowboys record that has yet to be seriously threatened.

Number 5: Aikman to Harper: A Dynasty is Born. With a tenuous four-point lead in the 1992 NFC championship game and just 4:14 left in the game, everyone expected Jimmy Johnson to give the Niners a heavy dose of Emmitt. What he gave them was a 15-yard Alvin harper slant that went for seventy-one yards, putting the Cowboy on the opponent’s nine-yard line and setting up the game-sealing score.

Number 4: Clint Longley, the Mad Bomber. On Thanksgiving Day, 1974, rookie QB Clint Longley came off the bench to replace an injured Staubach. He rallied the Cowboys from a 23-3 third-quarter deficit to a 24-23 victory. His 50-yard TD pass to Drew Pearson in the final seconds remains one of the most memorable plays in Cowboys lore. Offensive Guard Blaine Nye called Longley’s unbelievable performance “the triumph of an uncluttered mind.”

Number 3: Bob Lilly’s Super Sack. In Super Bowl VI, the incredibly tenacious and gifted defensive tackle known as Mr. Cowboy chased the weaving and bobbing Miami quarterback, Bob Griese, finally corralling him for a 29-yard loss. It was the signature moment in the Cowboys’ breakthrough game. For the first time in team history, they were Super Bowl champions…and no longer the bridesmaid.

Number 2: Tony Dorsett 99-yard scamper. On January 3rd, 1983, before a Monday Night Football national audience, Tony Dorsett broke off a 99-1/2 yard run from scrimmage. It remains the longest run from scrimmage in NFL history, and is a record that may someday be tied, but can never be broken. “Dandy” Don Meredith’s commentary during the run is classic. To further the legend, due to a sideline mixup, the Cowboys only had ten men on the field for the play.

Number 1: The Hail Mary. Oddly enough, the top two plays in team history came against the same team. No play in team history is more famous than the Hail Mary pass from Roger Staubach to Drew Pearson with just 24 seconds left in the 1975 wildcard playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings. On the verge of losing the game, Staubach heaved a last-second bomb, which Pearson caught by trapping it with one hand on his hip. He danced into the end zone to seal the 17-14 victory.