Kind of hard to believe that the last time Dallas won an NFC East title was nine seasons ago. If you don’t recall the 1998 season, here is a recap:
* Depending on your point of view, the Cowboys’ dynasty was either dead or on its last leg. The Cowboys had finished 6-10 in 1997 in Barry Switzer’s last season. He was replaced with Chan Gailey, who was best known for his innovative use of QB/Slash Kordell Stewart in Pittsburgh.
* The Cowboys started strong, winning at home against Arizona 38-10. Even after Troy Aikman went out with a collarbone injury in week 2 against Denver, the Cowboys were still able to come away with a 4-2 record to start the year. The team followed a loss to Chicago (awful) with four straight wins, improving the record to 8-3.
* The team started showing cracks with three straight losses, including a 46-36 loss to Minnesota and a horrible 22-3 loss at New Orleans. The team won its last two games, though, to take the NFC East title.
* Dallas lost in the playoffs that year to the Cardinals in one of the most embarrassing postseason letdowns in club history, prompting a younger kickholder to call for the Cowboys to cut Michael Irvin for lack of effort. He repented afterward (kickholder, that is).
So now it’s nine years later, and the Cowboys are back on top of the East. With one more win, Dallas will clinch a first-round bye. More incentive is always a good thing.
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Here is a complete listing of the Cowboys’ NFC East titles, beginning in 1970:
1970 (10-4)– Lost Super Bowl V vs. Baltimore Colts
1971 (11-3)– Won Super Bowl VI vs. Miami
1973 (10-4)– Lost in the NFC Championship Game vs. Minnesota
1976 (11-3)– Lost in NFC Playoffs to L.A. Rams
1977 (12-2)– Won Super Bowl XII vs. Denver
1978 (12-4)– Lost Super Bowl XIII vs. Pittsburgh
1979 (11-5)– Lost in NFC Playoffs vs. L.A. Rams
1981 (12-4)– Lost in the NFC Championship Game vs. San Francisco
1985 (10-6)– Lost in NFC Playoffs vs. L.A. Rams
1992 (13-3)– Won Super Bowl XXVII vs. Buffalo
1993 (12-4)– Won Super Bowl XXVIII vs. Buffalo
1994 (12-4)– Lost in the NFC Championship Game vs. San Francisco
1995 (12-4)– Won Super Bowl XXX vs. Pittsburgh
1996 (10-6)– Lost in NFC Playoffs vs. Carolina
1998 (10-6)– Lost in NFC Playoffs vs. Arizona
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Not very good questions last week, but we do have some answers:
Question #1: Will the reaction to Jon Kitna’s comments have effect on the game Sunday?
50% of respondents said that the Dallas defense would be inspired. Not even close. Dallas played soft in the secondary and barely generated a pass rush. Moreover, the tackling was pretty much awful. This needs immediate improvement.
Question #2: Which skill player will have the biggest game on offense on Sunday?
48% said Terrell Owens, who was a non-factor (other than the fact that he was double-teamed, allowing others to run free). Jason Witten received 19% of the votes, but he clearly had the better game.
Question #3: Which of the following is more important for the Cowboys?
The choices were:
(1) Continuing to play at a high level to maintain momentum going into the playoffs.
(2) Clinching home field advantage so that we can rest players.
(3) It doesn’t matter. Once the playoffs starts, it’s a completely new season.
69% agreed with the first choice, compared with 19% for #2 and 12% for #3. I strongly agree with #1.
