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After years of resisting growth, the NFL added the Dallas Cowboys as an expansion franchise in 1960. Owner Clint Murchison hired general manager Texas E. "Tex" Schramm and head coach Tom Landry to grown the franchise. The early years were tough for the Cowboys, but by the mid-1960s they had become a viable team capable of challenging for the league title. They lost the NFL championship game in 1966 and 1967 as Landry's team fell short against Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys came of age in the '67 title game. That game was played in Green Bay with a temperature of minus-13 degrees F. It was the coldest temperature that any game has ever been played. Remarkably, it was a sensational game and the Cowboys had a 17-14 lead until the game's final play. Packer QB Bart Starr scored the game-winning touchdown as he followed guard Jerry Kramer into the endzone after Kramer had blocked huge Cowboy defensive tackle Jethro Pugh.
The Cowboys became a dominant team that reached the playoffs nearly every season. Dallas made it to the Super Bowl following the 1970 season but they lost the game to the Baltimore Colts. They would not be denied the following year as the Cowboys trounced the Miami Dolphins 24-3 behind the accurate passing of Roger Staubach and a sensational defensive effort.
The Cowboys won Super Bowl XII following tghe 1977 season when they punished the Denver Broncos 27-10. Staubach once again had a solid game under center and he was joined by rookie running back Tony Dorsett, who torched Denver with his speed.
The Cowboys started to lose their luster in the 1980s and the franchise when through a couple of ownership changes. However, the biggest change occurred when Bum Bright sold the team to Jerry Jones in 1989 and the new owner's first move was to replace Landry with University of Miami coach Jimmy Johnson. While the move immediately turned off Cowboys fans and players who were loyal to the old coach, it turned out to be the right move. Johnson rebuilt the Cowboys and they won two Super Bowl titles under his leadership. They added another under Barry Switzer and they remain one of the most exciting teams in the NFL> - The Cowboys earned the nickname of "America's Team" during the 1970s. They were a postseason contender nearly every year and they were often the choice to be on national television. Fans around the country were drawn to Staubach, Dorsett, Drew Pearson, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Randy White and Chuck Howley. Many of their players had a bigger than life persona and that won them a lot of fans. As they grew in stature, they were also disliked and resented by many fans. They built up great rivalries with the Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants. They played and lost two memorable Super Bowls against the Pittsburgh Steelers that transfixed the nation in the 1970s and they became even bigger once Jones bought the team.
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The Cowboys built Texas Stadium in 1972 and the unique design -- it had a hole in the roof -- made it one of the most unmistakable sports venues in the nation. The hit TV show "Dallas" used images of Texas Stadium in its opening which made the team even more popular.
The Cowboys had fallen on hard times when Jones bought them, but Johnson was able to rebuild them quickly when he traded superstar running back Hershel Walker and four draft picks to the Vikings for five players and eight draft picks. Johnson used those picks to bring athletic, tough and fast players to Dallas. He built his offense around quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin. The Cowboys peaked with back-to-back Super Bowl wins over the Bills following the 1992 and 1993 seasons. They would add a fifth Super Bowl title when they beat the Steelers following the 1996 season. -
During the late 1990s, the Cowboys developed a reputation for hard-core partying and seemed more interested in having good times off the field than they did winning on it. The culture changed when Jones and Johnson parted ways after the owner had been insulted by the coach at an offseason league meeting. Jones brought in Switzer, a long-time Johnson nemesis to take over the head coaching duties. Switizer had been a successful head coach at Oklahoma but had a reputation for turning the other cheek when his players showed a lack of discipline. That reputation followed him to Dallas and his players had no fear of their new coach and took advantage of him.
Jones would begin a bit of a coaching merry-go-round and the team returned to discipline when Jones hired Bill Parcells in 2003. Parcells built a tough, disciplined team, but the Cowboys had no postseason success under his direction. He retired from coaching and was replaced by Wade Phillips, who lacks Parcells' toughness and strength. - Like the Yankees, the Cowboys are building a new stadium that is scheduled to open in 2009. It will be a state-of-the-art stadium that should keep the team on top of the pro football world for decades to come. Will the team remain one of the top teams on the field? That will depend on their ability to compete in the postseason. They have only won one postseason game since defeating Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XXX and that lack of success has caused quite a bit of impatience on the part of Jones and his team's fans.
