A lot of the information on this blog entry comes from wikipedia.org and nfl.com. I also got a lot of my information from ESPN.com. This blog shouldn't be considered original work. For this blog I've done a lot of compiling of other's work. Thanks to all those whose hard work I'm using for this blog. I've added a few original thoughts. The fury, sarcasm and negative opinions are all my own.
I spent a few hours reviewing Dallas Cowboys history from 1988 to now. I discovered some interesting facts. In the 1988 NFL Draft, the Cowboys drafted Michael Irvin, the first of the Triplets. Dallas also drafted Ken Norton Jr. and Chad Hennings. Dallas drafted three players who would help build the Cowboys into their mid-90's dynasty. (I like typing that over and over because it has been so long since the Cowboys were relevant.) For the most part the Cowboys built their mid-90's dynasty through the draft, rather than free agency.
Following the Cowboys 3-13 season they were sold to Jerry Jones. After Jones bought the Cowboys, he fired Tom Landry and hired college roommate Jimmy Johnson. It's one thing for a team to be bad, be out manned and lose most of their games. Clearly that describes the 1988 Cowboys. (Unfortunately recent Cowboys teams have had plenty of talent, but have been out coached and out smarted by other GMs.) A couple of bad years are okay as the Cowboys were building a foundation for future success. The Cowboys previously had a few hard years and it was time to make a change. Jones was crucified for firing Landry and for how poorly he did it. But I have to tip my hat to him for making a gutsy and correct call.
Looking back now at how bad most of Jones decisions have been, it's surprising that Jones and the Cowboys were able to be so successful. Thankfully Johnson insisted he have full control of football decisions when he joined the Cowboys. Jones caught lighting in a bottle by hiring Johnson and staying the hell out of his way. Thanks to Jones deep pockets and Johnson's shrewd drafting and coaching the Cowboys were on the rise.
In the 1989 NFL Draft, Johnson's first draft, the Cowboys had a great draft. With the first overall pick Dallas picked Troy Aikman, he was the second of the so-called Triplets. The Cowboys also drafted Daryl "Moose" Johnston, Mark Stepnoski and Tony Tolbert. All of those players were key contributors as the Cowboys rose from the ashes. To show that Johnson was human, he also drafted Steve Walsh in the supplemental draft. Walsh was 23-1 as starting quarterback playing for Johnson at the University of Miami. Johnson, in a very Jonesian overreach, drafted Walsh. He never lived up to his draft status. The Cowboys lost a 1990 first round draft pick for taking Walsh in the supplemental draft.
If Jones was in charge of the 1989 draft I could see him picking fat boy and offensive lineman Tony Mandarich from Michigan State. I see Jones reading the article about Mandarich in Sports Illustrated and based on that article deciding to draft Mandarich. Of course I could be completely wrong, but I'm just glad Jones had little to do with the personnel decisions then.
Also four games into that season, probably right before the NFL trade deadline, the Cowboys made one of the greatest trades in the history of the NFL. This is from the wikipedia.org page "Herschel Walker trade". This was Jimmy Johnson's idea while on a morning jog. (Jerry Jones has got so senile that he's convinced himself that he was the brains behind the Cowboy's three Super Bowls. It's actually kind of sad he shares the same condition as OJ Simpson.)
Minnesota Vikings received
- RB Herschel Walker
- Dallas's 3rd round pick - 1990 (54) (Mike Jones)
- San Diego's 5th round pick - 1990 (116) (Reggie Thornton)
- Dallas's 10th round pick - 1990 (249) (Pat Newman)
- Dallas's 3rd round pick - 1991 (68) (Jake Reed)
- Dallas Cowboys received
- LB Jesse Solomon
- LB David Howard
- CB Issiac Holt
- RB Darrin Nelson (traded to San Diego after he refused to report to Dallas)
- DE Alex Stewart
- Minnesota's 1st round pick in 1990 (21) (traded this pick along with pick (81) for pick (17) from Pittsburgh to draft Emmitt Smith)
- Minnesota's 2nd round pick in 1990 (47) (Alexander Wright)
- Minnesota's 6th round pick in 1990 (158) (traded to New Orleans, who drafted James Williams)
- Minnesota's 1st round pick in 1991 (conditional) - (12) (Alvin Harper)
- Minnesota's 2nd round pick in 1991 (conditional) - (38) (Dixon Edwards)
- Minnesota's 2nd round pick in 1992 (conditional) - (37) (Darren Woodson)
- Minnesota's 3rd round pick in 1992 (conditional) - (71) (traded to New England, who drafted Kevin Turner)
- Minnesota's 1st round pick in 1993 (conditional) - (13) (traded to Philadelphia Eagles, and then to the Houston Oilers, who drafted Brad Hopkins)[1]
With the overall #1 pick from the Cowboys, the Colts picked strong armed Jeff George. While Smith went on to a Hall-of-Fame career, George didn't even go to a Pro Bowl.
Under the wise drafting and coaching of Johnson the 1990 Cowboys improved to 7-9 in his second season as coach. Remarkably after a late push in November, the Cowboys were briefly in playoff contention. Unfortunately Aikman separated his shoulder and his back-ups weren't up to the task and the Cowboys missed the playoffs. (I'd so much rather cheer for a young and upcoming team like that, rather than they hyped up vastly overrated 2012 Cowboys. I put most of the blame on the GM and his puppet coach. I think that's why they say the same things.)
The 1991 NFL draft was another great draft for the Cowboys. They picked up several more productive players that continued to push the Cowboys to the top. Again thanks to the Walker trade the Cowboys received draft picks. They then traded those draft picks for 1991 #1 overall draft pick. They used that pick to draft Russell Maryland. Maryland was another one of Johnson's players at the University of Miami. He wasn't the greatest player ever, but was a solid contributer to the Cowboys 3 Super Bowl victories. He reached his only Pro Bowl in 1993.
Also in the first round the Cowboys drafted Alvin Harper, giving Irvin someone who could take the pressure off him. In the second round the Cowboys also added Dixon Edwards. The drafting genius of Johnson and their scouting department continued to find excellent late round draft picks. The 7th round brought Dallas one of their biggest head cases, Leon Lett. But he was also a very good player for a few years. I remember him for two plays and both were bonehead plays, including one in the Super Bowl. In the 12th round Dallas drafted Larry Brown. This was back when Dallas drafted players that could take them to the Super Bowl. Brown later was Super Bowl XXX's MVP.
Bolstered by the mix of all their great of old and new players Dallas improved to 11-5 in 1991. After not being in the playoffs since 1985, the Cowboys were back. They won a wild card game, beating the Bears 17-13. They were blasted in the divisional round by the Lions 38-6.
The 1992 key acquisition was Charles Haley, he came over from the arch rival 49ers in free agency. Their draft wasn't as strong as it had been in the past. However Dallas still got some great players. The best player they drafted that season was the very tough Darren Woodson. Both he and Robert Jones, drafted in the first round, made the Pro Bowl. The Cowboys also added Clayton Holmes in the third round.
Just a bit of trivia, that wasn't a great draft. Four of the first six players drafted never made a Pro Bowl. Their names are barely remembered by anyone now. And in the second round the New York Giants selected Phillippi Sparks. That's only interesting to me because later his daughter, Jordin, went on to win "American Idol". That was back when "American Idol" was watchable.
In 1992 the Cowboys realized all their potential, completing the path they started in 1989 with the arrival of their great head coach. They finished 13-3, first in the NFC East and won the Super Bowl. That season they appeared in their first of 4 straight NFC Championship Games. How amazing is that? The current Cowboys team can't even keep a head coach for 4 years. That 1992 team had the Triplets operating together at a high level. But they also had a ferocious defense, indeed they had the #1 defense in the NFL.
Dallas won the Super Bowl that season 52-17. That tough Dallas defense forced 9 turnovers and they even scored two touchdowns. It was so good to be a Cowboys fan in the early 90's. The Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls in 4 years, winning the 1993, 1994 and 1996 Super Bowls. The Cowboys were so good then that they even won a Super Bowl with Barry Switzer as their coach.
Following the Cowboys second straight Super Bowl title, Jerry Jones ego got in the way. Johnson was getting too much credit for the Cowboys success, which is something that Jones didn't like. In 2012 he still doesn't like it either. (I can't remember what NFL Draft it was. The Cowboys had agreed to let someone come in and film the Cowboys Draft room. Jones instructed people to refer to him when the cameras were on. Even if he didn't deserve the credit, he still wanted it. ) It was about this time that Idiot Jerry made his comment about 500 coaches that could win the Super Bowl with this team. He partially did prove his point when bumbling Barry won a Super Bowl.
In March of 1994 Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson had a joint press conference where Johnson announced he was resigning as head coach of the Cowboys. With his resigning there went his drive, his coaching ability and his drafting acumen. And all the Boys were left with were the deep pockets of Jones. Without Johnson's abilities the 1994 NFL Draft wasn't a highlight for the Cowboys.
In the first round the Cowboys drafted Shante Carver, who was on okay player for a few years. The Cowboys could have had future pro-bowlers Tre' Johnson, Kevin Mawae or superstar wide receiver Isaac Bruce. In the second round the Cowboys did make one of their best picks ever when they drafted offensive lineman and stud Larry Allen. However Ken Norton Jr. did defect to the 49ers.
The 1994 season was Barry Switzer's first of four seasons "coaching" the Cowboys. He was a personal friend of Jones and came to the Cowboys under a cloud of suspicion following his time as coach of the Oklahoma Sooners. In spite of Switzer the Cowboys still had enough talent to challenge in the NFL. Dallas went 12-4 and were first place in the NFC East. They won in the divisional playoffs over the Eagles, but lost in the NFC Conference Championship to Norton Jr. and the 49ers 38-28. (Remember when the Cowboys could score 28 points in a game?)
In the 1995 NFL Draft, the Cowboys had one of their worst drafts ever. This was the second draft without Johnson, the man truly responsible for the Cowboys success. In a NFL Draft of Jonesian hubris the Cowboys implemented a terrible strategy for the draft. The Cowboys didn't have a first round draft pick. It was the so-called back up draft. They drafted players based on their future contributions as back ups. They ended up with virtually no great players. The best player Dallas picked was wide receiver Eric Bjornson. The Cowboys bypassed future Pro Bowlers tight end Ken Dilger and cornerback Bobby Taylor in the second round. Although later in the second round the Cowboys drafted tight end Kendall Watkins. Watkins only lasted one season with Dallas, they should have drafted Dilger.
Although in September Jerry's money and his love of flash was able to persuade Neon Deion Sanders to join Dallas. This was the beginning of the salary cap. The Cowboys lost wide receiver Alvin Harper, lineman Mark Stepnoski and defensive players James Washington and long time stalwart Jim Jeffcoat. Starting cornerback Kevin Smith was injured in the first game and didn't return that season.
The 1995 season culminated with Dallas winning their third Super Bowl in 4 years. Again this team was so good that they won the Super Bowl with Switzer. Dallas finished 12-4 and was 1st place in the NFC East. They beat the Eagles 30-11 in the divisional playoffs. The Cowboys advanced to their fourth straight NFC Championship. It's also the last time the Cowboys reached the NFC Championship Game. They beat the Packers 38-27. They then won their last Super Bowl of this incredibly productive era. They beat the Steelers 27-17.
Johnson's solid foundation that he left behind gave the Cowboys a couple of years to coast. However Jerry Jones became the full time GM and his horrific drafting lead to the rot of the Cowboys.
In the 1996 draft the Cowboys didn't have a first round pick, a pick they traded to the Redskins. In the second round they drafted the serviceable Kavika Pittman and Randall Godfrey. 1996 was also the year of return for Hershel Walker. His trade to the Vikings in 1989 had stocked the Cowboys with many extra draft picks that helped propel them to those Super Bowl victories. The Cowboys also signed George Teague before that year's training camp.
Using hindsight as a guide it's clear now that 1996 was the beginning of a long downhill trend. It's a slide that the Cowboys haven't completely come out of. Dallas was the defending Super Bowl champions and Barry Switzer was in his third season as Cowboys head coach. The Cowboys finished 10-6 and somehow still won the NFC East. They even won a playoff game, beating the Vikings 40-15. In a sign of what was to come, Dallas didn't win their next playoff win until 2009. Following their playoff win over Minnestota, they then lost in the divisional round to the Panthers.
It seems it was also in this 1996-1997 timeframe that the Cowboys had at least some talent. Following 3 Super Bowls in 4 years, this appears to be a time that the Cowboys started resting on their laurels a bit. Instead of making shrewd moves, there seems to be some laziness that also helped the Cowboys starting to go downhill..
Injuries started playing a key to the Cowboys decline following Dallas's amazing Super Bowl run. With many poor draft picks, the Cowboys didn't have enough capable back ups. Charles Haley missed most of that season to injury, while Jay Novacek missed the whole season. Neither player would ever reach their former greatness again. Aikman and Johnston were also having injury issues of their own at this time.
Following 1996, this is how the next few seasons shook out.
1997: Head Coach Barry Switzer, 6-10 record, 4th NFC East, didn't make playoffs.
1998: Head Coach Chan Gailey (yes the same person that's on the hot seat in Buffalo now).
Surprisingly they finished 10-6 in that season. They even won the NFL East, but lost in the Wild Card round of the playoffs to the Cardinals.
1999: Head Coach Chan Gailey, 8-8, Second in the NFC East. Somehow they made the playoffs and lost to the Vikings 27-10.
Then 2000-2002 it was a new head coach Dave Campo. In that three year span the Cowboys went 15-33. Idiot Jerry hired his third straight bad head coach, hiring bad coaches has been a characteristic of Jones. Michael Irvin and Troy Aikman were no longer playing, leaving Emmitt Smith as the last of the Triplets. To replace Aikman the Cowboys signed Tony Banks from the Super Bowl champions Ravens. Also in that same year's draft Idiot Jerry hand picked Georgia's Quincy Carter. Many people considered that a reach for two reasons. One Carter had an inconsistent career at Georgia and he had a low draft rating by several other teams.
However in Jones need to over reach for players and those players turning out to not be very good, Jones still drafted Quincy Carter. (Dez Bryant is another player he over reached for.) In Carter's three seasons for the Cowboys, he had some very Romoesque stats. He threw for 29 touchdowns and 36 interceptions. Carter also fumbled the ball several times, losing some of them. Overall his quarterback rating was about 67%. In 2003 Carter had 3,302 yards and 19 touchdowns. But he also had a combined 31 interceptions and fumbles, losing 3 of 10 fumbles. Wow that was a painful time to be a Cowboys fan.
For the next 4 years, 2003 to 2006, Bill Parcells was the Cowboys head coach. He instilled a discipline in the Cowboys that has been in short supply since he left. However the Cowboys didn't have the same success that Parcells had elsewhere. The Cowboys were only 34-30 in Parcell's 4 years, which looks positively glowing compared to Campo's and Gailey's records.
In 2006 Dallas had a record of 9-7, but lost 3 of their final 4 games. One of those losses was a really bad loss to the 2-13 Lions at home. Those are two trends that continue to haunt the Cowboys, late season fades and not having much of a home field advantage. 2006 was Tony Romo's first visit to the playoffs. On a Cowboys field goal attempt Romo fumbled the snap near the end of the game. He picked up the ball but was tackled before he could score a game winning touchdown. That set the tone for his 1-3 career playoff record.
In 2007 Bill Parcells moved on from the Cowboys. That's the same year that Jones made two of his worst hires ever, which is saying something. He hired another terrible head coach in Phillips and hired Jason Garret as his offensive coordinator. Since then Garrett has been very offensive in many of his decisions and play calls. I'm not sure how but somehow the Cowboys finished that season 13-3 and won the NFC East. The Cowboys had the first round playoff bye and home field advantage through the NFC Conference Championship.
So of course in the two week break, Romo decided to take Jessica Simpson to Mexico. That's a sign of his lack of football mentality. The Cowboys went on to lose to the Giants 21-17. That was the 11th straight year they hadn't won a playoff game. Their first round playoff loss also tied a NFL record of 6 straight playoff game losses. (It's stats like that that makes me laugh when Jones says how successful the team has been because of him.)
In 2008 Phillips entered his second season as Cowboys head coach. The Cowboys finished 9-7 and 3rd place in the NFC East. Again they didn't make the playoffs after another late season collapse. In the 2009 draft the Cowboys had no first round pick because of their trade for ex Lions wide receiver Roy Williams. This is one of the main pieces of evidence in the case against Jones as GM. The Williams trade was one of the biggest debacles of Jones dictatorship. The Cowboys drafted 12 players in that draft. None of their draftees ever became a starter and most of them were gone by 2010. In 2009 the Cowboys went 11-5 and won the NFC East. They also finally won a playoff game, their first playoff win since 1996. Of course in their next playoff game they were manhandled by the Vikings.
I can't remember if that was the season that Idiot Jones signed Phillips to a two year contract extension, the same person who now had all of one playoff victory.
In 2010 the Cowboys started out their season 1-7 and Jones finally fired Wade Phillips. Sarcasm alert: Phillips finished with an amazing 21-19 record. Instead of doing a complete redo, Jones compounded his mistakes. For some reason he thought it would be a good idea to promote his ineffective offensive coordinator to head coach.
2011 is the year that Garrett was head coach for his first full season. The Cowboys started out 8-6 and were in line to make the playoffs. But they did what they usually do in big games, they lost. They finished the season 8-8, 3rd place in the NFC East and again didn't make the playoffs. They only have made the playoffs once in the last 4 seasons.
Garrett's current record is perfect for the mediocrity of the Cowboys, he's 16-16. After Dallas lost to Atlanta his record dropped to .500. Next up 3-5 Dallas plays 3-5 Philadelphia in Philadelphia. To me it seems that Dallas should win this game. However I wonder how the Cowboys will find a way to lose this game.
This will be the 4th of 5 years that the Cowboys won't make the playoffs. In the offseason will Idiot Jerry make any changes? Doubtful as Jones has a perverse sense of loyalty to his boys. That's to his boys, not to his 'Boys. Jones will keep the same ineffective head coach unless the Cowboys completely collapse. And definitely Jones will keep the same GM, although this GM has failed spectacularly the last several years.
Now the Cowboys have players like Dez Bryant. He's such a head case that he has to receive special permission to be able to go to celebrate his birthday. He also has babysitters/ bodyguards to protect him from himself. (The Cowboys did the same thing with Pacman Jones, who ended up getting in a fight with one of his bodyguards.) The Cowboys thought that Bryant might miss the Falcons game due to an injury. Of course he was well enough to go to a club and celebrate his birthday. Bryant did end up playing against the Falcons. He was targeted 4 times but only caught one pass for 15 yards.
Following the Cowboys loss to the Falcons, Dallas fell to 3-5. They stayed on the road and played the Eagles, a team that no one realized how bad they were going to be. The Cowboys struggled against Philadelphia before winning 38-23. While the score looks good, it wasn't a blowout because of the Cowboys offense. The final three scores were two defensive touchdowns scored against a rookie qb, Nick Foles, playing his first significant game time. That same rookie was playing behind an offensive line where four of their projected starters missed the game due to injury. Also the Cowboys returned a punt for a touchdown. The Dallas offense only scored two touchdowns the entire game.
Following yesterday's 31-6 loss to the Redskins, the Eagles have now lost 6 straight games. They've dropped to 3-7 on the season and Andy Reid will be fired at the end of the season. Be grateful Eagles fans for one thing. I know it sucks to cheer for a losing team, but be glad that the Eagles will be blown up at the end of the season. Then you can start over and maybe have a much better team going forward. The Cowboys will have the same terrible GM and probably head coach next season and be mired in mediocrity for another year. Of course the Cowboys will label that "progress".
Yesterday the Cowboys struggled to a loss against the woeful 2-8 Browns. The Browns are so bad they couldn't even beat the Cowboys. Dallas' offensive line was pathetic, although Jones praised that same offensive line. Jones continues to show how little he knows about football. Cleveland should have won this game, but the breaks went against them. Dallas was able to pull out the victory with a overtime field goal. Coach Jason Garrett's terrible time management skills and play calling cost the Cowboys as they always seem to do. For the second straight game the Cowboys offense only scored 2 touchdowns.
On Thanksgiving day Dallas will be playing against the explosive Redskins and their stud rookie RG3. The Redskins will play better than either Cleveland or Philadelphia, Washington's offense will score more.
Against Washington the Cowboys made a rather impressive comeback but still came up short, they fall to 5-6 on the season. One of Garrett's weaknesses raised it's ugly head today again. Garrett called 62 pass plays, 62! Dallas only gained 35 yards on the ground, only rushing the ball 11 times. It makes things a lot easier for the opponent when they know most plays are going to be passes. By comparison yesterday Washington had 28 passes and 30 rushes. A much more balanced attack, which makes the offense that much more effective. Of course the Redskins have a much better rushing game as well.
I find myself cheering against the Cowboys now. The worst thing that could happen to this Cowboys team is to finish 9-7 and qualify for the playoffs. Thankfully with Dallas losing to the Redskins, 9-7 is probably out of reach. Dallas should improve to 6-6 on December 2nd when they play the even worse than they are Eagles. Then it looks highly likely that the Cowboys will lose their final 4 games, finishing the season 6-10. If Dallas finishes with that record, even Idiot Jerry wouldn't be able to call that progress. Garrett's record would be 19-21, even worse than Phillips final 3 years. If Sean Payton is available, Jones needs to go out and get him.
Ladies and gentlemen your 2012 Dallas Cowboys! What a terrible time to be a Cowboys fan. Jerry Jones you suck!
The Cowboys used to shoot for Super Bowl victories and anything less was unacceptable. Now just making the playoffs seems to be the goal and they can't even do that.
On November 6th, 2012 Geriatric Jerry stated on a Dallas radio show that he's always going to be the Cowboys GM. This is from Calvin Watkins article about Jones announcement:
"We are not structured that way," Jones told KRLD-FM on Tuesday morning. "We didn't structure it that way with my ownership. There's no way that I would be involved here and not be the final decision-maker on something as important as players, and that is a key area. That's never been anybody's misunderstanding. It's been a debated thing, but it's just not going to happen."
The Cowboys have won just two playoff games since their last Super Bowl appearance, in the 1995 season when they beat Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XXX, and haven't drafted well on a consistent basis. Only five players remain from the 2009 and 2010 drafts combined.
The Cowboys are 125-125 since 1997. (Updated through 11/23/12.)
This was the final straw for many Cowboys fans, the Cowboys bandwagon just got a lot lighter. The consensus on ESPN message boards is roughly 95% of fans are against Jones delusional decision. Yes I realize Jones doesn't care what the fans think, he just wants our money. On those message boards people were making jokes about assassinating Jones. Many comments were similar to this: "This is great news for all Cowboys fans!- said by no one ever!" I saw some version of that comment several times.
As eloquently as Stephen A. Smith puts it: it's not good enough for Jerry Jones to win, he has to win his way. Although the last 15 years of mediocrity shows that his way doesn't work.
Jones delusional decision to "always" be the Cowboys GM has been a freeing effect on me. I've loved this Cowboys team since I can remember. I've stuck by them through the many good times and the increasingly bad times. The thought that I would actually jump from the Cowboys ship someday was inconceivable just a few years ago. But in spite of this mediocre team that has his finger prints all over it, . I'm not jumping from the Cowboys because they are bad, I'm jumping because of their irrational owner/ GM. I just can't support that level of egomania.
I'm cheering for the 49ers and Bucs now, although the Cowboys still have their hooks in me in a small way. It seems I can't throw away 35 years of Cowboys fandom, no matter the idiot who's in charge.
As eloquently as Stephen A. Smith puts it: it's not good enough for Jerry Jones to win, he has to win his way. Although the last 15 years of mediocrity shows that his way doesn't work.
Jones delusional decision to "always" be the Cowboys GM has been a freeing effect on me. I've loved this Cowboys team since I can remember. I've stuck by them through the many good times and the increasingly bad times. The thought that I would actually jump from the Cowboys ship someday was inconceivable just a few years ago. But in spite of this mediocre team that has his finger prints all over it, . I'm not jumping from the Cowboys because they are bad, I'm jumping because of their irrational owner/ GM. I just can't support that level of egomania.
I'm cheering for the 49ers and Bucs now, although the Cowboys still have their hooks in me in a small way. It seems I can't throw away 35 years of Cowboys fandom, no matter the idiot who's in charge.
This blog is a work in progress. I'll continue to flesh it out over the next couple of months.
themusicaddict
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