History of the Dallas Cowboys
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This article details the history of the Dallas Cowboys American Football Club. The team joined the National Football League as a 1960 expansion team, and since then has become one of the most successful teams in the history of the NFL. The team has earned the most postseason appearances (28, which includes another league record of 54 postseason games, winning 32 of them), the most appearances in the NFC Championship Game (14), and the most Super Bowl appearances (8), two more than any other NFL team. The Cowboys also played in 2 NFL championship games before the NFL-AFL merger. The Cowboys became the first team in NFL history to win 3 Super Bowls in just 4 years (a feat that has been matched only once since, by the New England Patriots). They are also tied with the San Francisco 49ers and the Pittsburgh Steelers for having the most Super Bowl wins (5).
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[edit] 1960s
Originally, the formation of an NFL expansion team in Texas was met with strong opposition by Washington Redskins owner, George Preston Marshall. This was no surprise, because despite being located in the nation's capital, Marshall's Redskins had enjoyed a monopoly as the only NFL team to represent the Southern States of the US for several decades. This came as little surprise to would-be team owners, Clint Murchison, Jr. and Bedford Wynne, so to ensure the birth of their expansion team, the men bought the rights to the Redskins fight song, "Hail to the Redskins" and threatened to refuse to allow Marshall to play the song at games. Needing the song, which had become a staple for his "professional football team of Dixie", Marshall changed his mind, and the city of Dallas, Texas, was granted an NFL franchise on January 28, 1960. This early confrontation between the two franchises no doubt triggered what would become one of the more significant rivalries in the NFL, which continues even to this day.
The team was first known as the Dallas Steers, then the Dallas Rangers before settling on the nickname "Cowboys" for the 1960 season. The new Dallas owners, Murchison and Wynne, immediately hired Tex Schramm to be the general manager and Tom Landry to be the head coach. In the Cowboys' first season, they finished winless with a 0-11-1 record. The following year, the Cowboys made their first NFL draft selection, selecting Bob Lilly with the 13th pick in the draft. The year 1961 also saw the Cowboys' first victory, a 27-24 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on September 17.
During the 1960s, the Cowboys continued to improve their team. Quarterback Don Meredith and running back Don Perkins joined the team and by 1966, the Cowboys had their first winning season (10-3-1; which began a record-setting streak of 20 straight winning seasons, unmatched by any other NFL team) and their first playoff appearance. Although the playoff game was a 34-27 loss to the Green Bay Packers, it marked the start of a record-setting eight consecutive playoff appearances. (Beginning in 1983, the Cowboys would later match and extend that record, raising the bar to an NFL record 9 straight playoff appearances.) By the mid-60s, the Cowboys had become a powerful force in the NFL, sending eight players to the Pro Bowl including Cowboy legends: Bob Hayes, Chuck Howley, "Dandy" Don Meredith, Don Perkins, and future Pro Football Hall of Famers, Bob Lilly and Mel Renfro.
Similarly, the Cowboys were becoming an important part of the people of Dallas. The Cowboys competed for the affections of the people of Dallas with Lamar Hunt's Dallas Texans of the AFL. Although the Dallas Texans (in the AFL) had a far better record than the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, in 1963 the popularity of the Cowboys drove the Texans out of Dallas to Kansas City where they became the Kansas City Chiefs. By 1969, ground was being broken on a new stadium for the Cowboys to replace the Cotton Bowl. Texas Stadium in Irving, a Dallas County suburb, would be completed for the 1971 season.
Dallas' first appearance in the postseason was the 1966 NFL Championship Game after they won the Eastern Conference with a 10-3-1 regular season record, but they were defeated by the Green Bay Packers, 34-27. One year later, the Cowboys finished with a 9-5 record and had their first playoff victory: a 52-14 affair over the Cleveland Browns. They went on to face the Packers in the 1967 NFL Championship game, with the winner advancing to Super Bowl II. The game, which happened on December 31, 1967 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, turned out to be the coldest NFL game in history (about -13° F with a -40° wind chill). The Cowboys lost 21-17 on a one-yard quarterback sneak by Packers quarterback Bart Starr. The game would later come to be known as the "Ice Bowl".
[edit] 1970s
In the 1970s, the NFL underwent many changes as it absorbed the AFL and became a unified league, but the Cowboys also underwent many changes. Meredith and Perkins retired in 1969 and many new players were joining the organization, like Cliff Harris, Lee Roy Jordan, and Dan Reeves, plus Pro Football Hall of Famers Rayfield Wright, Mike Ditka, Herb Adderly and Roger Staubach. Led by quarterback Craig Morton, the Cowboys made it to their first Super Bowl, a mistake-filled Super Bowl V, where they lost 16-13 to the Baltimore Colts courtesy of a field goal by Colts' kicker Jim O'Brien with five seconds remaining in the contest.
The Cowboys moved from the Cotton Bowl to Texas Stadium in week six of the 1971 season, but Dallas stumbled out of the gate by going 4-3 in the first half of the season, including losses to the mediocre New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears. Landry named Staubach as the permanent starting quarterback to start the second half of the season, and Dallas was off and running. The Cowboys won their last seven regular season games before dispatching of the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs to return to the Super Bowl. In Super Bowl VI, behind an MVP performance from Staubach and 252 yards rushing, the Cowboys crushed the upstart Miami Dolphins, 24-3, to finally shake the moniker of "Next Year's Champions". That game remains the only Super Bowl where a team has held their opponent without a touchdown.
The Cowboys were now beginning to grow in popularity not just in Dallas, but nationwide. Their televised appearances on Thanksgiving Day games beginning in 1966 helped bring the Cowboys to a nationwide audience. Under Coach Landry, the so-called "Doomsday Defense" became a powerful and dominating force in the NFL and their offense was also exciting to watch.
The Cowboys faltered slightly in 1974, missing the playoffs for the first time in eight years. However, the Cowboys drafted well following the season, adding new legends like future Hall of Famer Randy White and Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson. The fresh influx of talent helped the Cowboys to Super Bowl X, where they lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-17. But the Cowboys would again taste Super Bowl victory, defeating the Denver Broncos 27-10 in Super Bowl XII. Bob Ryan, an NFL films editor, would dub the Cowboys "America's Team" following this season, a nickname that has earned derision from non-Cowboys fans but has stuck through both good times and bad.
The glory days of the Cowboys in the 1970s were coming to an end. They would reach one final Super Bowl, Super Bowl XIII, losing once again at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers, 35-31, despite a last-minute effort by Staubach which failed. Staubach retired following the 1979 season.
[edit] 1980s
Danny White became the Cowboys' starting quarterback in 1980 and continued as the starting quarterback through 1987. While the Cowboys would return to the playoffs 5 times and win 2 Division Championships, the team failed to claim a single Conference Championship in the 1980s, despite playing in the NFC championship game 3 consecutive years from 1980-1982, and would not return to the Super Bowl during that decade.
In the 1981 NFC Championship Game, the Cowboys lost to the San Francisco 49ers on a touchdown pass from Joe Montana to Dwight Clark in the final minute of play. Clark's famous leap in the end zone would come to be known as "The Catch" and represented a changing of the guard in the NFC from the dominant Cowboys teams of the 1970s to the dominant 49ers teams of the 1980s.
In 1984, H.R. "Bum" Bright purchased the Dallas Cowboys from Murchison, but following seasons that were getting progressively worse (1985: 10-6; 1986: 7-9; 1987: 7-8; 1988: 3-13), Bright sold the Cowboys to Jerry Jones on February 25, 1989. Jones promptly fired Tom Landry, the only coach the Cowboys had ever known, and replaced him with University of Miami head coach, Jimmy Johnson. With the first pick in the draft, the Cowboys selected UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman (yet another future Hall of Fame inductee) and traded away veteran running back Herschel Walker to the Minnesota Vikings for five veteran players and eight draft choices. The Cowboys finished the 1989 season with a 1-15 record, the worst record since the team's inception, but the foundations for the Cowboys' return to glory had been set.
[edit] 1990s
In 1990, the Cowboys drafted running back Emmitt Smith out of the University of Florida with the 17th overall pick in the first round, and the trifecta of quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irvin was now set. The Cowboys finished 7-9, but Smith was named NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year and Johnson was selected as Coach of the Year. By 1991, the Cowboys finished with an 11-5 record, making the playoffs for the first time in six years.
In 1992, the Cowboys finished with a 13-3 record (second best in the league) and finally avenged their 1981 NFC Championship Game loss to San Francisco by defeating the 49ers in the conference title game, 30-20, in a muddy Candlestick Park. The Cowboys went on to crush the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVII, 52-17, forcing a Super Bowl record 9 turnovers. Coach Johnson became the first coach to claim a National Championship in college football and a Super Bowl victory in professional football. The following season, the Cowboys finished with a 12-4 record, again defeating the 49ers in the NFC Championship, only this time at Texas Stadium, and again defeating the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVIII, 30-13. The Cowboys sent an NFL record 11 players to the Pro Bowl: Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Thomas Everett, Daryl Johnston, Russell Maryland, Nate Newton, Ken Norton Jr, Jay Novacek, Mark Stepnoski and Erik Williams.
However, Johnson and owner Jerry Jones had a falling out, so Johnson left the organization prior to the 1994 season. Jones hired former University of Oklahoma head coach Barry Switzer to be the team's new head coach. The Cowboys would finish 12-4, but failed to win a third consecutive Super Bowl in a loss to the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game, 38-28. In 1995, Jones lured All-Pro Cornerback Deion Sanders away from San Francisco and Dallas once again posted a 12-4 regular season record. The Cowboys won their fourth straight Division Championship (17th total) and advanced to their 8th NFC Championship title by defeating the Green Bay Packers at Texas Stadium, 38-27. The Cowboys eventually defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, 27-17 at Sun Devil Stadium, in Super Bowl XXX, getting revenge against the Steelers for the two four-point losses in Super Bowl X and Super Bowl XIII. Coach Switzer became the second, and only other coach, to claim a National Championship in college football and a Super Bowl victory in professional football.
However, the glory days of the Cowboys were again beginning to dim as free agency, age, and injuries began taking their toll. The Cowboys went 6-10 in 1997, with discipline and off-field problems becoming major distractions. As a result, Switzer resigned as head coach in January 1998 and former Steelers offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was hired to take his place. Gailey led the team to a 10-6 record in 1998, but was let go after an 8-8 playoff season in 1999, becoming the first Cowboys coach who did not win a Super Bowl.
[edit] 2000s
Defensive coordinator Dave Campo was promoted to head coach, but he could only post three consecutive 5-11 seasons, with his fate likely being sealed by an opening day loss in 2002 to the brand-new Houston Texans. Many fans and media were beginning to blame Jerry Jones for the team's ills, noting that he refused to hire a strong coach, preferring to hire coaches who did not want to be involved with personnel duties so that Jones himself could manage them.
However, Jones proved them wrong in 2003 by luring Bill Parcells out of retirement to coach the Cowboys. The Cowboys became the surprise team of the 2003 season, posting a 10-6 record and a playoff berth by leading the NFL in sacks, turnovers and having the best overall defense in the NFL. However, the 2004 season was one of turmoil. Injuries and persistent penalty problems hobbled the Cowboys, but a preseason quarterback controversy also caused trouble when starting quarterback Quincy Carter was suddenly released for alleged drug use in favor of 40-year-old veteran Vinny Testaverde, brought to the Cowboys from the New York Jets by his former coach, Parcells, in the off-season. The Cowboys started strong, with victories over the Cleveland Browns and Washington Redskins, but quickly fell off to a 3-5 record by midseason, finishing the season 6-10.
In November 2004, a vote was passed by the City of Arlington in Tarrant County to build a new stadium adjacent to the existing Ameriquest Field in Arlington. The team will begin playing at the new site in 2009 after thirty-eight years playing in the City of Irving, and forty-nine years in Dallas County.
The Cowboys improved their defense before the 2005-2006 season with the additions of first round draft picks Demarcus Ware and Marcus Spears. Parcells drafted these two in the hopes of jumpstarting the team's transition from the traditional 4-3 defense to his preferred 3-4 defense, which he believes favors the talents of the current lineup (speed and athleticism over power). Jerry Jones also added a number of savvy veteran players, acquiring nose tackle Jason Ferguson and cornerback Anthony Henry via free agency. On offense, the Cowboys felt the need to upgrade their passing game to complement their top 2004 draft pick, running back Julius Jones, acquiring both quarterback Drew Bledsoe and wide receiver Peerless Price via free agency. Bledsoe had a solid year and gave the Cowboys stability at the QB position, which had been lacking since Troy Aikman's retirement 4 years earlier. Price battled injuries and a lack of playing time, and Price was released at the end of the 2005 season. The Cowboys finished an up-and-down 2005 season with a 9-7 record, and in 3rd place in the NFC East.
[edit] 2006 season
Main Article: 2006 Dallas Cowboys season
The Cowboys entered the season with high hopes but got off to a mediocre 3-2 start before an important Monday Night Football game against division rivals, the New York Giants. The Cowboys suffered a tough 36-22 loss despite "a changing of guard" at the QB position from Drew Bledsoe to Tony Romo. With the next three games on the road, speculation grew that the Giants would run away with the division for a second straight year. Romo won his first game as a starter the following week against the Carolina Panthers with an outstanding 4th quarter comeback to win (35-14). The Cowboys' chance to challenge the Giants seemingly fizzled when they lost to the Washington Redskins at Fedex Field on a last second field goal (the "Hand of God" game) (The Cowboys have lost 3 of the past 4 games against the archrival Redskins).
However, the Giants entered a slump, and Tony Romo impressed the media as a quarterback, revitalizing the Cowboys with a 27-10 win over the Cardinals, a well-earned (21-14) victory over the previously unbeaten Colts, and a thorough routing of Tampa Bay (38-10) on Thanksgiving Day. During that home game, Romo solidified his position as QB and quieted any remaining skeptics by completing 22-of-29 passes for 306 yards and five touchdowns (tying a franchise record). Furthermore, the Cowboys took a two-game lead of the NFC East by beating the Giants in a Week 13 rematch. The success of the new quarterback surprised much of the nation and helped Romo receive much air-time on sports shows.
The Cowboys then self-destructed in the last four games of the season, losing to the Saints in a battle for second-best record in the league, to the Philadelphia Eagles in a game that would have earned them the division championship, and to the 2-13 Detroit Lions in a game where Tony Romo's four fumbles cast significant doubt on his ability to successfully lead his team in the playoffs. The Cowboys played a wild card matchup at Seattle to start the playoffs. Leading 20-13 with 6:42 left in the game with the ball at their own 1-yard line, Tony Romo threw a short pass to Terry Glenn where he fumbled it and it went out of bounds in the endzone resulting in a safety. The Seahawks got the ball back and Matt Hasselbeck threw a touchdown to Jerramy Stevens to take a 21-20 lead after missing the two point conversion. With 1:19 left in the game, the Cowboys had a chance win the game on a 19-yard field goal, but the hold was fumbled by Tony Romo, who continued to serve as field goal holder even after ascending to the starting quarterback's role (the backup quarterback is traditionally the holder on field goals). He picked up the loose ball and tried to run it to the 1-yard line for a first down, but was tackled at the 2. As the game came to a close, the Cowboys managed to get the ball back with two seconds left, but Romo's hail mary pass attempt to the endzone fell incomplete.
On January 22, at the conclusion of the Cowboys' season, head coach Bill Parcells retired. On February 8, after a replacement search that included Mike Singletary, Jason Garrett, Jim Caldwell, Ron Rivera and Norv Turner, San Diego defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was hired as the new head coach. Phillips has since hired Garrett, his son Wes Phillips, and former linebacker Dat Nguyen to his new list of assistant coaches. Jason Garrett was also named the Offensive Coordinator.[1]
[edit] 2007 season
During the 2007 offseason, the Cowboys signed offensive lineman Leonard Davis and quarterback Brad Johnson to back up Tony Romo and have also resigned center Andre Gurode and kicker Martin Gramatica. They have also released two players; quarterback Drew Bledsoe and tight end Ryan Hannam.
[edit] Notable moments
- The following is a selected list of memorable Cowboys games
December 31, 1967, NFC Championship Game "The Ice Bowl" vs. Green Bay Packers
- Green Bay wins on a late fourth quarter quarterback sneak by Bart Starr to defeat the Cowboys, 21-17 in brutally cold conditions. The official game-time temperature was -13 °F / -25 °C, with a wind chill around -48 °F / -44 °C. The bitter cold overwhelmed Lambeau's new turf heating system, leaving the playing surface hard as a rock and nearly as smooth as ice, hence the nickname, "The Ice Bowl".
January 17, 1971, Super Bowl V vs. Baltimore Colts
- Linebacker Chuck Howley is named Super Bowl MVP, despite the Cowboys losing to the Colts 16-13. It was the first time a defensive player was named Most Valuable Player, and the only time the MVP came from the losing team.
December 28, 1975, at Minnesota Vikings, NFC Divisional Playoff Game
- The term Hail Mary pass first came to national awareness with this game. With 24 seconds left in the game, Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, nicknamed "Captain Comeback", threw a desperate 50-yard winning touchdown pass to Drew Pearson to defeat the Vikings, 17-14. Staubach, a Catholic, said that he "closed his eyes and said a Hail Mary." The expression stuck.
January 3, 1983, at Minnesota Vikings
- Cowboys running back Tony Dorsett sets an NFL record for the longest run from scrimmage with a 99-yard touchdown. Oddly, the Cowboys only had 10 players on the field at the time. The Vikings however won the game 31-27.
January 31, 1993, vs. Buffalo Bills, Super Bowl XXVII
- With the Cowboys holding an insurmountable 52-17 lead late in the fourth quarter, Dallas defensive lineman Leon Lett picked up a Bills fumble and appeared to be headed for a 64-yard touchdown. As Lett started to showboat just before crossing the goal line, Buffalo receiver Don Beebe raced in and knocked the ball into the end zone. The ball then rolled out of bounds for a touchback. Had Lett scored, the Cowboys would have broken the record for most points scored in a Super Bowl (the San Francisco 49ers hold that record with 55 points in Super Bowl XXIV).
November 25, 1993, vs. Miami Dolphins
- On the day of the annual Thanksgiving Classic (the Detroit Lions also play every Thanksgiving), the city of Dallas would be hit with the 4th coldest weather in the town's history, causing the city $50 million worth of damage and two deaths in Dallas County.[2]
- Dallas County was ill-prepared for the sudden freeze, and Texas Stadium even more so. Originally designed to be a domed roof, the prototype was too costly, leaving a hole in the middle. Though patrons of the stadium were covered, the playing field was not. [3] Before the game, a mini-bulldozer had to scrape ice off the frozen AstroTurf. The temperature with 32 degrees; the wind chill in single digits, and ice and snow continued to pour into the stadium's roof. "It was so bad that we might as well have worn ice skates," said running back Emmitt Smith, who became the 4th all-time rusher that day, surpassing 5,000 yards despite a game-ending injury the week before. On the other side, Steve DeBerg, Miami's 3rd string quarterback, was sent into the starting lineup due to injuries to the first and second string quarterbacks.
- After a 77-yard touchdown run, Miami running back Keith Byars flopped down in the end zone and celebrated by making snow angels. Not to be outdone, speedy wide receiver and return man Kevin Williams returned a 64-yard punt and was able to slide the last ten yards into the end zone, with one arm in the air in a mock split, keeping his knee off the turf the entire time. The press dubbed it as the Statue of Liberty play.
- Trailing 14-13 with 15 seconds left in the game, Dolphins kicker Pete Stoyanovich attempted a 41-yard field goal. But the ball was tipped by defensive lineman Jimmie Jones and spun forward toward the Cowboys' end zone. Players from both teams stayed away from the ball, because a blocked field goal is usually ignored according to the rule book. But Lett tried to jump on the ball, and instead slid on the slick field, grazing the ball, and thus making it a live ball (i.e. a fumble). Jeff Dellenbach of the Dolphins recovered the ball at the 2-yard line, and Stoyanovich then kicked a 20-yard field goal as time expired, and Miami won 16-14.
January 2, 1994, at New York Giants
- In the final game of the regular season, running back Emmitt Smith rushed for 168 yards, including 41 of them in the game-winning overtime drive, despite suffering a severely 2nd degree separated shoulder in the first half of the game. After the 16-13 Cowboys victory, former Hall of Fame coach and sports broadcaster John Madden would visit Smith in the Cowboys' locker room – the only time Madden ever visited a player as a commentator.
November 18, 1996, vs. Green Bay Packers
- Kicker Chris Boniol scores seven field goals, tying the NFL record for most field goals in a single game. Seven years later on September 15, 2003, Dallas kicker Billy Cundiff would tie that record against the Giants. The two kickers they tied were Jim Bakken (St. Louis Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, September 24, 1967) and Rich Karlis (Minnesota Vikings vs. Los Angeles Rams, November 5, 1989). [4]
September 24, 2000, vs. San Francisco 49ers
- Best known as the "Star Incident", 49ers wide receiver Terrell Owens celebrated his two touchdowns against the Cowboys by running to the center of Texas Stadium. The first TD by holding his hands out to the heavens and the second by slamming the ball into the Cowboys star logo just before [5] Dallas safety George Teague caught up with Owens and blasted him off of the star, leading to a near midfield brawl by both teams and Teague's ejection from the game. In between Owens' two touchdowns, Emmitt Smith scored a TD of his own, ran and kneeled onto the star himself, slammed the ball down, and stared down the 49ers bench yelling "This is our house!!". This lead to the popular "Defend the Star" slogan used for Emmitt Smith's rush for the record in 2002. However, the 49ers won the game, 41-24. and the NFL fined Smith, Teague and Owens for their actions in the game. 49ers coach Steve Mariucci also suspended Owens for a week, docking him a week's pay.
- In a rematch on December 31, 2001 between the two teams that saw the Cowboys exact revenge on their most hated rival, Teague broke up a pass to Owens in the end zone, then flung Owens to the turf. The Cowboys won, 27-21.
September 19, 2005, vs. Washington Redskins
- Three former Cowboys were picked to be placed in the Ring of Honor in 2005 - running back Emmitt Smith (1990-2002), wide receiver Michael Irvin (1988-1999), and quarterback Troy Aikman (1989-2000). Known throughout the league as "The Triplets", they were the backbone of a team that would win three Super Bowls in 4 years. The trifecta became the first players from the Jerry Jones era to be placed into the Ring. "When you look at what each of these men did for those teams that became the best in the NFL," said Jones, "and how they complimented each other, it's fitting that Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith are going in the Ring of Honor together".
- Irvin, Smith and Aikman were honored during halftime, where the Cowboys enjoyed a comfortable lead over the Redskins in the 2005 season opener. It appeared that Dallas was going to get a shutout, leading 13-0 with 5:58 left in the game. But on a fourth-and-15 drive from the Dallas 39, quarterback Mark Brunell would throw to Santana Moss, who caught the ball in the end zone for a touchdown. Solid defense plus a penalty against Flozell Adams put the ball back in Washington's hands. Again, Brunell would find Moss - this time, for a 70-yard touchdown pass. Dallas got the ball back, but could not penetrate Washington's defense.
- Until that game, Washington had not won in Texas Stadium since 1995 and lost 14 of the last 15 meetups with Dallas; Parcells had not given up a 13-point lead in 58 games, while Washington had lost 25 consecutive games when they were behind in the 3rd quarter.
- The teams would meet again on December 18 at FedEx Field - this time, for a spot in the NFC East Wild Card game. In what was called "Washington's most one-sided victory in the 45-year history of the rivalry", the Redskins defeated the Cowboys, 35-7. Though the teams had the same record at the end of the game (8-6), Washington would get the go-ahead because they had beaten Dallas twice.
January 6, 2007 at Seattle Seahawks, NFC wild card playoff game, "The Bobble"
- Trailing 21-20 with time winding down in the final quarter, the Cowboys drove inside the Seahawks 2-yard line, and Martin Gramatica came on to the field to attempt a chip-shot 19-yard field goal that would give Dallas a 23-21 lead. But Tony Romo mishandled the snap from L.P. Ladouceur, what is now known as "The Bobble" and Seahawks cornerback Jordan Babineaux tackled Romo before he could pick up a first down, leaving the Cowboys with a one-point loss.
