2012 Dallas Cowboys season

2012 Dallas Cowboys season
Head coach	Jason Garrett
General manager	Jerry Jones
Owner	Jerry Jones
Home field	Cowboys Stadium
Results
Record	8–8
Division place	3rd NFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	Jason Witten TE, DeMarcus Ware LB, Anthony Spencer LB
Uniform
Timeline
Previous season Next season < 2011 2013

The 2012 Dallas Cowboys season was the franchise's 53rd season National Football League, the fourth playing their home games at Cowboys Stadium and the second full season under head coach Jason Garrett. The Cowboys matched their win total from 2011, but missed the playoffs for a third consecutive season after losing their final game for the second straight season, this time to the Washington Redskins.

2012 draft class

Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	6	Morris Claiborne	CB	LSU
3	81	Tyrone Crawford	DE	Boise State
4	113	Kyle Wilber	LB	Wake Forest
	135[a]	Matt Johnson	S	Eastern Washington
5	152	Danny Coale	WR	Virginia Tech
6	186	James Hanna	TE	Oklahoma
7	222	Caleb McSurdy	LB	Montana

Notes

^{^[a]} Compensatory selection.

Staff

colspan="7" style="background: #c5ced6; color:#0D254C; border: 2px solid #001942" text-align: center;" | 2012 Dallas Cowboys staff
	Front office Owner/President/General Manager – Jerry Jones COO/Executive Vice President/Director of Player Personnel – Stephen Jones Assistant Director of Player Personnel – Tom Ciskowski Director of Football Administration – Todd Williams Assistant Director of Pro Scouting – Judd Garrett Head coaches Head Coach – Jason Garrett Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line – Bill Callahan Quarterbacks – Wade Wilson Running Backs – Skip Peete Assistant Head Coach/Wide Receivers – Jimmy Robinson Tight Ends – John Garrett Assistant Offensive Line – Wes Phillips Offensive Quality Control/Wide Receivers – Keith O'Quinn			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Rob Ryan Defensive Line – Brian Baker Linebackers – Matt Eberflus Secondary – Jerome Henderson Assistant Secondary – Joe Baker Defensive Assistant/Defensive Line – Leon Lett Defensive Quality Control/Linebackers – Ben Bloom Special teams coaches Special Teams Coordinator – Joe DeCamillis Assistant Special Teams/Kickers – Chris Boniol Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Mike Woicik Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Walt Williams Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Brett Bech

Rosters

Opening preseason roster

Dallas Cowboys 2012 opening preseason roster
Quarterbacks 11 Rudy Carpenter  7 Stephen McGee 18 Kyle Orton  9 Tony Romo Running Backs 45 Shaun Chapas FB 25 Lance Dunbar 28 Felix Jones 29 DeMarco Murray 49 Jamize Olawale RB/FB 34 Phillip Tanner 47 Lawrence Vickers FB 35 Ed Wesley Wide Receivers 19 Miles Austin 14 Cole Beasley 16 Tim Benford 88 Dez Bryant 13 Saalim Hakim 17 Dwayne Harris 15 Andre Holmes 87 Donavon Kemp 85 Kevin Ogletree 86 Raymond Radway Tight Ends 84 James Hanna 83 John Nalbone 89 John Phillips FB 80 Andrew Szczerba 82 Jason Witten		Offensive Linemen 75 Jeff Adams T 64 Levy Adcock T 62 David Arkin G 67 Phil Costa C 68 Doug Free T 63 Harland Gunn G 65 Ronald Leary G 71 Nate Livings G 74 Pat McQuistan T 61 Bill Nagy G 76 Tyrone Novikoff T/G 78 Jermey Parnell T 77 Tyron Smith T Defensive Linemen 79 Ben Bass DE 92 Josh Brent NT 72 Rob Callaway NT 99 Kenyon Coleman DE 70 Tyrone Crawford DE 98 Clifton Geathers DE 97 Jason Hatcher DE 95 Sean Lissemore DE/NT 90 Jay Ratliff NT 96 Marcus Spears DE		Linebackers 55 Alex Albright OLB/ILB 59 Baraka Atkins OLB/DE 57 Victor Butler OLB/DE 54 Bruce Carter ILB 52 Dan Connor ILB 48 Isaiah Greenhouse ILB/FB 53 Adrian Hamilton OLB/DE 50 Sean Lee ILB 58 Orie Lemon ILB 56 Caleb McSurdy ILB 93 Anthony Spencer OLB/DE 94 DeMarcus Ware OLB/DE 46 Aston Whiteside ILB/OLB 51 Kyle Wilber OLB Defensive Backs 31 Mario Butler CB 39 Brandon Carr CB 42 Barry Church SS 24 Morris Claiborne CB 37 Matt Johnson SS/FS 30 Isaac Madison CB 40 Danny McCray FS 26 Akwasi Owusu-Ansah CB/FS 23 Brodney Pool SS 32 Orlando Scandrick CB 43 Gerald Sensabaugh FS 36 Mana Silva SS 41 Lionel Smith CB 33 Justin Taplin-Ross FS/CB 38 Eddie Whitley FS 20 Teddy Williams CB/WR 27 C. J. Wilson CB Special Teams  4 Delbert Alvarado P  5 Dan Bailey K 44 Charley Hughlett LS  6 Chris Jones P 91 L. P. Ladouceur LS		Reserve Lists 73 Mackenzy Bernadeau G/C (Active/PUP) 81 Danny Coale WR (Active/PUP) 21 Mike Jenkins CB (Active/PUP) 60 Kevin Kowalski C/G (Active/PUP) 90 Active, 0 Inactive

Week one roster

Dallas Cowboys 2012 week one roster
Quarterbacks 18 Kyle Orton  9 Tony Romo Running Backs 28 Felix Jones 29 DeMarco Murray 34 Phillip Tanner 47 Lawrence Vickers FB Wide Receivers 19 Miles Austin 11 Cole Beasley 88 Dez Bryant 17 Dwayne Harris 15 Andre Holmes 85 Kevin Ogletree Tight Ends 87 Colin Cochart 84 James Hanna 89 John Phillips FB 82 Jason Witten		Offensive Linemen 62 David Arkin G 73 Mackenzy Bernadeau G/C 63 Ryan Cook C 67 Phil Costa C 76 Derrick Dockery G 68 Doug Free T 71 Nate Livings G 78 Jermey Parnell T 77 Tyron Smith T Defensive Linemen 92 Josh Brent NT 99 Kenyon Coleman DE 70 Tyrone Crawford DE 97 Jason Hatcher DE 95 Sean Lissemore DE/NT 90 Jay Ratliff NT 96 Marcus Spears DE		Linebackers 55 Alex Albright OLB/ILB 57 Victor Butler OLB/DE 54 Bruce Carter ILB 52 Dan Connor ILB 50 Sean Lee ILB 93 Anthony Spencer OLB/DE 94 DeMarcus Ware OLB/DE 51 Kyle Wilber OLB Defensive Backs 31 Mario Butler CB 39 Brandon Carr CB 42 Barry Church SS 24 Morris Claiborne CB 21 Mike Jenkins CB 37 Matt Johnson SS/FS 40 Danny McCray FS 32 Orlando Scandrick CB 43 Gerald Sensabaugh FS 36 Mana Silva SS Special Teams  5 Dan Bailey K  6 Chris Jones P 91 L. P. Ladouceur LS		Reserve Lists -- Donavon Kemp WR (IR) 60 Kevin Kowalski C/G (PUP) 56 Caleb McSurdy ILB (IR) Practice Squad 79 Ben Bass DE 16 Tim Benford WR 72 Rob Callaway NT 81 Danny Coale WR 25 Lance Dunbar RB 65 Ronald Leary G 58 Orie Lemon ILB 49 Jamize Olawale RB/FB 53 Active, 3 Inactive, 8 PS

Final roster

colspan="10" style="background: #c5ced6; color:#0D254C; border: 2px solid #001942" text-align: center;" | 2012 Dallas Cowboys final roster
	Quarterbacks 18 Kyle Orton  9 Tony Romo Running backs 25 Lance Dunbar KR 28 Felix Jones 29 DeMarco Murray 34 Phillip Tanner 47 Lawrence Vickers FB Wide receivers 19 Miles Austin 11 Cole Beasley 88 Dez Bryant 17 Dwayne Harris PR 85 Kevin Ogletree Tight ends 84 James Hanna 89 John Phillips FB 82 Jason Witten		Offensive linemen 62 David Arkin G/C 73 Mackenzy Bernadeau G 63 Ryan Cook C/G 76 Derrick Dockery G 68 Doug Free T 60 Kevin Kowalski C/G 65 Ronald Leary G 71 Nate Livings G 78 Jermey Parnell T 77 Tyron Smith T 75 Darrion Weems T Defensive linemen 72 Rob Callaway NT 70 Tyrone Crawford DE 97 Jason Hatcher DE 95 Sean Lissemore DE/NT 90 Jay Ratliff NT 66 Brian Schaefering NT 96 Marcus Spears DE		Linebackers 55 Alex Albright OLB/ILB 57 Victor Butler OLB/DE 52 Dan Connor ILB 98 Brady Poppinga ILB 59 Ernie Sims ILB 93 Anthony Spencer OLB/DE 94 DeMarcus Ware OLB/DE 51 Kyle Wilber OLB Defensive backs 39 Brandon Carr CB 24 Morris Claiborne CB 20 Michael Coe CB 27 Eric Frampton SS 21 Mike Jenkins CB 40 Danny McCray FS 30 Sterling Moore CB 26 Charlie Peprah FS 43 Gerald Sensabaugh FS/SS Special teams  5 Dan Bailey K 91 L. P. Ladouceur LS  2 Brian Moorman P		Reserve lists 79 Ben Bass DE (IR) 92 Josh Brent NT (NF-Inj.) 54 Bruce Carter ILB (IR) 42 Barry Church SS (IR) 99 Kenyon Coleman DE (IR) 67 Phil Costa C (IR) 37 Matt Johnson FS (IR-DFR)  6 Chris Jones P (IR) -- Donavon Kemp WR (IR) 50 Sean Lee ILB (IR) 58 Orie Lemon ILB (IR) 56 Caleb McSurdy ILB (IR) 32 Orlando Scandrick CB (IR) Practice squad 23 Vince Agnew CB 16 Tim Benford WR 81 Danny Coale WR (Injured) 15 Andre Holmes WR 64 Ikponmwosa Igbinosun DE/NT 31 Micah Pellerin CB 48 Brashton Satele ILB 87 Andre Smith TE 61 Monte Taylor OLB/DE Rookies in italics 53 Active, 13 Inactive, 9 Practice squad

Schedule

Preseason

The preseason schedule was announced on April 4, 2012. The Cowboys had their lowest preseason, regular or playoff scoring game in franchise history (3–0 vs. Oakland Raiders).

Week	Date	Kickoff	Opponent	Results		Game site	TV	NFL.com recap
				Final score	Team record
1	August 13	7:00 p.m. CDT	at Oakland Raiders	W 3–0	1–0	O.co Coliseum	ESPN/KTVT	Recap
2	August 18	8:00 p.m. CDT	at San Diego Chargers	L 20–28	1–1	Qualcomm Stadium	NFLN/KTVT	Recap
3	August 25	7:00 p.m. CDT	St. Louis Rams	W 20–19	2–1	Cowboys Stadium	KXTX	Recap
4	August 29	7:30 p.m. CDT	Miami Dolphins	W 30–13	3–1	Cowboys Stadium	KTXA	Recap

Regular season

Week	Date	Kickoff	Opponent	Results		Game site	TV	NFL.com recap
				Final score	Team record
1	September 5	7:30 p.m. CDT	at New York Giants	W 24–17	1–0	MetLife Stadium	NBC	Recap
2	September 16	3:05 p.m. CDT	at Seattle Seahawks	L 7–27	1–1	CenturyLink Field	Fox	Recap
3	September 23	12:00 p.m. CDT	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 16–10	2–1	Cowboys Stadium	Fox	Recap
4	October 1	7:30 p.m. CDT	Chicago Bears	L 18–34	2–2	Cowboys Stadium	ESPN[a]	Recap
5	Bye
6	October 14	12:00 p.m. CDT	at Baltimore Ravens	L 29–31	2–3	M&T Bank Stadium	Fox	Recap
7	October 21	12:00 p.m. CDT	at Carolina Panthers	W 19–14	3–3	Bank of America Stadium	Fox	Recap
8	October 28	3:25 p.m. CDT	New York Giants	L 24–29	3–4	Cowboys Stadium	Fox	Recap
9	November 4	7:20 p.m. CST	at Atlanta Falcons	L 13–19	3–5	Georgia Dome	NBC	Recap
10	November 11	3:25 p.m. CST	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 38–23	4–5	Lincoln Financial Field	Fox	Recap
11	November 18	12:00 p.m. CST	Cleveland Browns	W 23–20 (OT)	5–5	Cowboys Stadium	CBS	Recap
12	November 22	3:25 p.m. CST	Washington Redskins	L 31–38	5–6	Cowboys Stadium	Fox	Recap
13	December 2	7:20 p.m. CST	Philadelphia Eagles	W 38–33	6-6	Cowboys Stadium	NBC	Recap
14	December 9	12:00 p.m. CST	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 20–19	7–6	Paul Brown Stadium	Fox	Recap
15	December 16	3:25 p.m. CST	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 27–24 (OT)	8–6	Cowboys Stadium	CBS	Recap
16	December 23	12:00 p.m. CST	New Orleans Saints	L 31–34 (OT)	8–7	Cowboys Stadium	Fox	Recap
17	December 30	7:20 p.m. CST	at Washington Redskins	L 18–28	8–8	FedEx Field	NBC[a]	Recap

LEGEND

Bold indicates division games.

^{^[a]} Simulcast locally on KTXA.

Game summaries

Week 1: at New York Giants

The Cowboys opened its 2012 campaign at MetLife Stadium in the Annual Kickoff Game against their NFC East foe, the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants. After a scoreless first quarter, the Giants picked up the season's first points as kicker Lawrence Tynes kicked a 22-yard field goal in the second quarter. Dallas would close out the half with quarterback Tony Romo finding wide receiver Kevin Ogletree on a 10-yard touchdown pass.

In the third quarter, the Cowboys added onto its lead Romo hooked up with Ogletree again with a 40-yard touchdown pass. New York answered with a 10-yard run from running back Ahmad Bradshaw, yet Dallas responded in kind with a 33-yard field goal from kicker Dan Bailey. The Cowboys pulled away for good in the fourth quarter with Romo connecting with wide receiver Miles Austin on a 34-yard touchdown pass. The Giants closed out the game with quarterback Eli Manning completing a 9-yard touchdown pass to former Dallas tight end Martellus Bennett.

With the win, the Cowboys began the season at 1–0.

Week 2: at Seattle Seahawks

With the huge loss, the Cowboys fell to 1–1.

Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Hoping to rebound from their tough road loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the Cowboys returned to Arlington to host their home opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team that they had blown out a year before. This game, however, was a close one throughout. In the first quarter, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo tossed an interception to Aqib Talib, which set up for a 1-yard touchdown pass from Tampa Bay quarterback Josh Freeman to tight end Luke Stocker for Tampa Bay to take the first lead. Dallas would immediately respond after a Sean Lee interception set up Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray for an 11-yard touchdown run to tie the game. Shortly before the half, kicker Dan Bailey booted a 32-yard field goal for Dallas to take the lead, 10–7. After a scoreless third quarter, Dallas pulled away with Dan Bailey knocking in a pair of field goals, one from 26 yards and another from 22 yards to make the game 16–7. Tampa Bay attempted a furious rally to take the game back after a 28-yard field goal by Connor Barth, but Dallas would recover the following onside kick and effectively took a knee to end the game.

With the victory, Dallas improved their season to 2–1.

Week 4: vs. Chicago Bears

With the loss, the Cowboys enter their bye week with 2–2. Dallas quarterback Tony Romo had a horrifically forgettable game, tossing 5 interceptions, including 2 that were run back for touchdowns by the ferocious Bears defense.

Week 6: at Baltimore Ravens

With the loss, the Cowboys fell into 2–3 and dropped to 0–4 all-time against the Ravens. Horrible clock management by head coach Jason Garrett on the final drive left Dallas' kicker with a 50+ yard field goal attempt that he pushed wide as time expired.

Week 7: at Carolina Panthers

With the win, the Cowboys go to 3–3

Week 8: vs. New York Giants

With the loss, the Cowboys fell to 3–4 on the season and 0–4 at Cowboys Stadium against the Giants. A late go-ahead touchdown catch by Dez Bryant was overturned on review as it showed that as Bryant's hand came down to brace his landing, barely a tip of one finger came down on the end line, thus ruling him out of bounds.

Week 9: at Atlanta Falcons

During this game, Jason Witten's 7 receptions brought him to a franchise record of 754, surpassing Michael Irvin's previous record of 750.^[1]

With the loss, the Cowboys fell to 3–5.

Week 10: at Philadelphia Eagles

With the win, the Cowboys improved to 4–5.

Week 11: vs. Cleveland Browns

After being down 13–0 against the Browns in the first half, the Cowboys outscored the Browns 20–7 to send the game into overtime. The Cowboys kicked the game-winning field goal and improved to 5–5 on the season and 2nd place in the NFC East.

Week 12: vs. Washington Redskins

Thanksgiving Day game

With the loss to their long-time rival the Washington Redskins during a Thanksgiving Day showdown, the Cowboys dropped to 5–6 on the season and 6–1 against the Redskins on Thanksgiving. Along with the loss, the Cowboys also lost 2 key defensive players for an extended period of time. Cornerback Orlando Scandrick broke his left hand, but the team was still hopeful that he would be able to return before the end of the season. But of the three injuries suffered during the game, Bruce Carter's was probably the most devastating. Carter dislocated his left elbow during the game and was out for the rest of the season after having surgery. At that point, the Cowboys had lost 4 starters on defense due to injuries, and were on their 3rd and 4th string middle linebackers after losing both Carter and Sean Lee for the season. Also the Cowboys lost starting receiver Miles Austin to a hip strain caused by linebacker London Fletcher in the back of the end zone. Although he did not return to the game, he was cleared to play for the Cowboys' week 13 game.

Week 13: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Week 14: at Cincinnati Bengals

Week 15: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 16: vs. New Orleans Saints

The loss dropped Dallas to 8–7 and mathematically eliminated them from gaining a wild card spot. However, if they were to beat the Washington Redskins in week 17, Dallas would win the NFC East.

Week 17: at Washington Redskins

With the loss, Dallas ended the season with an 8–8 record, and missed the playoffs for the third straight season. The Cowboys loss marks their third season finale loss in the last five seasons where they faced a win-or-go-home situation for the playoffs. All those season finale games came against NFC East opponents. In 2008, they lost 44–6 to the Philadelphia Eagles failing to clinch a wild card spot. In 2011, they lost 31–14 to the New York Giants failing to win the NFC East title. The loss also brought their record in Week 17 games to 2–11 since 2000.

Season recap

The Cowboys started the season on September 5, playing a Wednesday game for the first time in franchise history.

Against the Philadelphia Eagles on November 11 during the fourth quarter, the Cowboys became the second team in NFL history to score touchdowns via interception, fumble return and punt return in the same quarter. The first one was the San Francisco 49ers in 1966.

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(4) Washington Redskins	10	6	0	.625	5–1	8–4	436	388	W7
New York Giants	9	7	0	.563	3–3	8–4	429	344	W1
Dallas Cowboys	8	8	0	.500	3–3	5–7	376	400	L2
Philadelphia Eagles	4	12	0	.250	1–5	2–10	280	444	L3

Footnotes

^{^[a]} The Week 17 game was originally going to be aired on Fox which, due to playoff implications, competed with NBC for the slot.^[2] The game was ultimately moved to NBC.^[3]

References

External links

• Official website
• Team Column

Dallas Cowboys Founded in 1960 Based in Arlington, Texas Headquartered in Valley Ranch, Irving, Texas The Franchise Franchise History Coaches Players Seasons Expansion Draft Draft History Quarterbacks First-round draft picks Stadiums Cotton Bowl Texas Stadium AT&T Stadium Culture NFL on Thanksgiving Day America's Team Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Doomsday Defense Crazy Ray Rowdy Jerry Jones Black Sunday King of the Hill Lore Tom Landry Tex Schramm Captain Comeback Ice Bowl Hail Mary The Catch Herschel Walker trade Bounty Bowl series 4–3 defense Rivalries Washington Redskins Philadelphia Eagles New York Giants San Francisco 49ers Pittsburgh Steelers Houston Texans Super Bowl Appearances (8) V VI X XII XIII XXVII XXVIII XXX League Championships (5) 1971 1977 1992 1993 1995 Ring of Honor Bob Lilly Don Meredith Don Perkins Chuck Howley Mel Renfro Roger Staubach Lee Roy Jordan Tom Landry Tony Dorsett Randy White Bob Hayes Tex Schramm Cliff Harris Rayfield Wright Troy Aikman Michael Irvin Emmitt Smith Drew Pearson Charles Haley Larry Allen Media Radio network KRLD-FM Brad Sham Babe Laufenberg Current League Affiliations League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: East Division   Seasons (56) 1960s 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980s 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990s 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000s 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010s 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Dallas Cowboys seasons 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Bold indicates Super Bowl victory

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