The Dallas Cowboys, now also referred to as ‘America’s Team,’ was founded in 1960. It was the first successful NFL expansion team since the collapse of the All-America Football Conference 10 years prior. As majority owner of the new team, Clint Murchison Jr. hired former Los Angeles Rams general manager Tex Schramm as president and general manager, head coach Tom Landry and player personnel director Gil Brandt as his first order of business.
A Winless First Season
At the Cotton Bowl, a few miles east of Downtown Dallas, the Cowboys played their home games beginning in 1960. As part of their first three seasons in the American Football League, they shared this stadium with the Dallas Texans (now the Kansas City Chiefs), who joined the league in the same year. With an aging roster, the 1960 Cowboys finished their inaugural season 0-11-1.
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On the Rise
With the 13th pick in the draft, the Cowboys selected TCU Horned Frogs defensive tackle Bob Lilly in their first college draft. The 1961 season also saw the Cowboys pick up their first victory in franchise history, a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first game of the season. Only a year before saw the Cowboys play the Steelers in their very first regular season game. The Cowboys finished their second campaign with an overall 4-9-1 record.
Becoming Champions
In 1966, the Dallas Cowboys finished atop the Eastern Conference with their first winning season holding a 10-30-1 record. The Cowboys sent eight players to the Pro Bowl, including future Hall of Fame stars Hayes, Lilly and Renfro as well as Howley, Meredith and Perkins. In their first ever NFL Championship Game in 1966, the Cowboys faced off against the Green Bay Packers with the prospect of their first trip to the Super Bowl if they won. They were however defeated by Green Bay 34-27 by stopping the Cowboys on a goal line stand with 28 seconds remaining.
Despite the loss, the Cowboys went on to set a new NFL record for eight consecutive post-season appearances. Dallas later broke their own record with nine consecutive appearances in the playoffs between 1975 and 1983; this record was then broken by the New England Patriots between the 2009 and 2019 seasons.
Super Bowl VI
During week 6 of the 1971 season, the Cowboys moved from the Cotton Bowl to Texas Stadium. Dallas then won their last seven regular season games (finishing 11-3) before defeating the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs to return to the Super Bowl after the loss the year prior. The Dallas Cowboys crushed the strong starting Miami Dolphins, 24–3, to finally bury the "Next Year's Champions" stigma.
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The Cowboys then made it to the Super Bowl three more times between 1975 and 1978. In two highly competitive games, they lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowls X and XIII but defeated the Denver Broncos 27-10 in Super Bowl XII.
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America’s Team
The Cowboys franchise of the 1970’s and early 80’s were epitomised as ‘America’s Team’ after winning two Super Bowl’s under head coach Tom Landy and dominating their regular seasons.
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The team was led by future Pro Football Hall of Fame members including quarterback Roger Staubach, tackle Rayfield Wright, defensive tackles Bob Lilly and Randy White, defensive back Mel Renfro and running back Tony Dorsett. This was the team of the 70’s. America’s Team.
The Arrival of Troy Aikman and Jerry Jones
The Cowboys suffered their first losing season in two decades in 1986 and plummeted to 3-13 in 1988. H. R. Bright, who had purchased the Cowboys from Murchison in 1984, sold the team to Jerry Jones in 1989.
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Former University of Miami coach Jimmy Johnson was named coach by Jones to replace Landry, who was the only coach the Cowboys had ever known. He finished his career with 270 victories, third most by any coach in NFL history.
After 16 games, Johnson’s first team only won once. However, the annual NFL drafts presented an opportunity for some daring trades to be made and discerning selections. This included Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Emmit Smith in successive drafts from 1988 to 1990. The Cowboys quickly returned to Championship status in the fourth season of the Jerry Jones regime with the Super Bowl XXVII title. This was then followed up with a second straight world title in Super Bowl XXVIII.
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College coach Barry Switzer replaced Johnson in March 1994 as the Cowboys third head coach. The Cowboys winning streak continued under Switzer - the "Team of the Nineties" won their third Super Bowl, Super Bowl XXX, in four years with a 27-17 victory over the Steelers. In 1998, Chan Gailey replaced Switzer as the Cowboys' head coach followed two years later by Dave Campo and then Wade Phillips in 2007. Jason Garrett was named only the eighth head coach in Cowboys history in 2011.
