The 2007 postseason marks the 29th time that the Dallas Cowboys have made the playoffs. We can divide these appearances into four eras, which are as follows:

1. 1966 to 1973: Beginning with the team featuring Meredith, Perkins, Lilly and so forth, the Cowboys made the playoffs eight consecutive seasons out of the first fifteen of the team’s existence (this does not count the Playoff Bowl of 1965).

2. 1975 to 1985: Covering both the Staubach and White years, the Cowboys made the playoffs 10 out of 11 seasons between 1975 and 1985.

3. 1991 to 1999: In the second golden age for the Cowboys, the team had postseason appearances in eight of 10 seasons during the decade of the 1990s.

4. 2003 to present: The current decade has not been good for the Cowboys. Things should change for the better, though.

Below is a list of facts and trivia about the first era, covering 1966 through 1973.

1966

* The Cowboys first playoff game in its history technically was the Playoff Bowl following the 1965 season. Dallas lost to Baltimore 35-3 in the game that decided which team finished third in the NFL.

* The first playoff game that the Cowboys hosted in their history was the 1966 NFL Championship Game, attended by 74,152 at the Cotton Bowl on January 1, 1967. Dallas lost 34-27 to Green Bay.

* With the Cowboys trailing 34-20 in the fourth quarter, Dallas receiver Frank Clarke caught a 68-yard touchdown pass from Don Meredith to cut the lead to one touchdown. Clarke’s name reappeared in 2007 when Terrell Owens broke his mark for touchdown receptions in a season.

* Clarke finished with 108 receiving yards, while running back Don Perkins gained 108 yards on 17 carries.

1967

* The first playoff win in franchise history was a 52-14 triumph against Cleveland on December 24, 1967. Thanks in part to an 86-yard touchdown reception from Meredith to Bob Hayes, Dallas raced to a 24-0 first half lead.

* Reserve running back Craig Baynham, who had only six rushing yards during the 1967 season, scored three touchdowns against the Browns. In the NFL Championship Game the following week, Baynham finished with negative rushing yards (-2 on one carry) and negative receiving yards (-3 on one reception).

* In the win against the Browns, Don Meredith finished with a perfect passer rating of 158.3 (using today’s system, which was not created until 1973). He completed 10 of 12 passes for 212 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Backup Craig Morton, on the other hand, had a rating of 8.33 (on three attempts, of course).

* The famous Ice Bowl on December 31, 1967 had an attendance of 50,861, nearly 20,000 less than the Cowboys had at the Cotton Bowl the week before.

* With his 50-yard touchdown pass to Lance Rentzel in the fourth quarter of the Ice Bowl, Dan Reeves nearly equaled the passing yards of Meredith (who finished with 59) for the entire game. Reeves’ halfback option pass for a score gave Dallas a 17-14 lead. Most know the rest.

1968

* One year after dismantling the Browns, Meredith had a complete reversal of fortune in the 1968 playoff game at Cleveland. He completed only three of nine passes for 42 yards and three interceptions, giving him a quarterback rating of 9.72. Morton was not much better, completing nine of 23 passes for 163 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

* In the 1968 playoff game, the Cowboys and Browns were tied 10-10, thanks to Chuck Howley’s 44-yard return of a fumble in the second quarter. However, a series of turnovers in the second half proved to be the Cowboys’ undoing, as Dallas lost 31-20.

* Meredith’s last game as a Cowboy was the 1968 Playoff Bowl, which Dallas won 17-13. It was also Don Perkins’ final game.

1969

* The 1969 Playoffs were worse for the Cowboys, as they lost 38-14 to the Browns in a game that was never close. Morton completed only eight of 24 passes for 92 yards and had two interceptions.

* Roger Staubach’s first playoff appearance was against the Browns in 1969. He completed four of five passes, including a touchdown to Rentzel.

* The final Playoff Bowl played on January 3, 1970 was not much better for the Cowboys, as they lost 31-0 to the Rams.

1970

* The Cowboys advanced to the first NFC Championship Game by beating the Lions 5-0.

* Craig Morton completed only four of 18 attempts for 38 yards, but the Cowboys were able to move the ball thanks to strong rushing performances by Duane Thomas (135 yards on 30 carries) and Walt Garrison (72 yards on 17 carries).

* The Dallas defense held Detroit to 168 yards in total offense. The Lions were second in the NFL in points scored with 347 but could not manage a single point against Dallas.

* The Cowboys had to face the team that led the league in points scored, the 49ers, in the NFC Championship Game. San Francisco managed only 10 point in a 17-10 loss to the Cowboys.

* Thomas was once again the hero in the Cowboys’ win over San Francisco, gaining 142 yards on 27 carries with a touchdown. Garrison added 71 on 17 carries and caught a touchdown pass.

* Morton was not much better in the Championship Game, completing only seven of 22 passes for 101 yards and one touchdown.

* Super Bowl V is best remembered as a comedy of errors. For Cowboys’ fans, it was not an entertaining comedy. Leading 13-6 in the fourth quarter with eight minutes remaining, Morton attempted a pass to Garrison, but the pass was deflected and ended up in the arms of Baltimore safety Rick Volk. Volk returned the ball to the Dallas 3, which set up the tying touchdown for the Colts. Then with 1:09 remaining, Morton attempted a pass to Dan Reeves, but the ball was tipped and picked off by Mike Curtis.  The Curtis interception set up Jim O’Brien’s 32-yard field goal that gave Baltimore a 16-13 win.

* Morton’s 1970 playoff stats (three games): 23 of 66, 266 yards, 2 TD, 4 Int. Modern passer rating: 32.8.

* While the Cowboys certainly gave Baltimore all of the help necessary, what really hurt Dallas was the ineffectiveness of Thomas, who gained only 35 yards on 18 carries and had a fumble about one foot from the end zone early in the third quarter. A score then would have given Dallas a 20-6 lead.

* Chuck Howley was the first non-quarterback, the first defensive player, and the first player from a losing team to be named as Super Bowl MVP. His honor was given due to two interceptions and a fumble recovery.

* Total first downs combined in Super Bowl V: 24 (14 for Baltimore, 10 for Dallas).

* Total turnovers in Super Bowl V: 10.

* Total Dallas penalties and penalty yards in Super Bowl V: 10 for 133 yards.

1971

* Staubach’s first playoff start came on the road at Minnesota in a game that Dallas won 20-12. He threw for 99 yards and a touchdown.

* The Minnesota defense was the Cowboys’ biggest hurdle, as the Vikings featured a unit that had allowed a league-low 139 points in 14 games in 1971. It was the Dallas defense, however, that limited the Vikings to three points until the fourth quarter.

* The first playoff game ever played at Texas Stadium was the 1971 NFC Championship Game. Attendance for the matchup between Dallas and San Francisco was 63,409.

* The Cowboys’ leading rusher in the Championship Game was Staubach, who gained 55 yards on eight carries. Staubach also had 103 yards by completing nine of 18 passes with no interceptions.

* Prior to the game, the Cowboys had been worried about the 49ers’ passing attack, which featured quarterback John Brodie. However, Brodie managed only 184 yards and was picked off three times.

* Defensive end George Andrie made one of the biggest plays in the 14-3 win when he picked off one of Brodie’s screen passes deep in San Francisco territory. Andrie returned the interception to the Dallas two, and Calvin Hill scored two plays later. Dallas led for the rest of the game.

* Of the 22 offensive and defensive starters for Dallas in Super Bowl VI, 18 had begun their careers with the Cowboys. The other four, though, were very important: WR Lance Alworth (from San Diego), TE Mike Ditka (from Chicago), LB Chuck Howley (originally played with Chicago), and CB Herb Adderley (from Green Bay).

* Staubach’s 119 passing yards were the fewest of any starting quarterback for a Super Bowl winner at that time (Len Dawson had 142 in Kansas City’s win in Super Bowl IV). This distinction lasted one year, when Bob Griese had only 88 passing yards in Miami’s win over Washington. No other quarterback who has won the MVP has ever had fewer passing yards than Staubach, though.

1972

* The Cowboys had only one appearance in the Chicago Charities College All-Star Game, participating in the annual event on July 28, 1972 thanks to their win in Super Bowl VI. Dallas won 20-7, though Staubach suffered an injury (recall that another injury suffered during that preseason wiped out nearly all of the 1972 regular season for Staubach).

* Staubach’s legend grew considerably in the Cowboys 30-28 win over San Francisco in the 1972 playoffs. Trailing 28-13 in the fourth quarter, Staubach came off the bench to lead the Cowboys to 17 fourth quarter points. This included touchdown passes to Billy Parks and Ron Sellers in the final minute and a half of the game.

* Trailing 28-23 with less than two minutes remaining, Dallas needed to recover an onside kick to stay in the game. San Francisco receiver Preston Riley caught the kick, but he was demolished by backup linebacker Ralph Coleman. Mel Renfro recovered the ball, giving Dallas life.

* Dallas scored with 52 seconds left, giving the 49ers another chance. However, Charlie Waters picked off a John Brodie pass in the final seconds to preserve the win.

* San Francisco had defeated the Cowboys at Texas Stadium 31-10, exactly one month prior to this playoff game.

* The 1972 NFC Championship Game was one of the worst in team history. The Cowboys managed only eight first downs in a 26-3 loss to the Redskins.

* Did you know? The Cowboys have faced the Redskins only twice in the playoffs, losing both times in conference championship games (1972 and 1982).

1973

* The Cowboys faced the Rams in the playoffs (not counting the Playoff Bowl here) seven times between the 1973 and 1985 seasons. The first of these games was a 27-12 Dallas win at Texas Stadium in 1973.

* Dallas raced to a 17-6 halftime lead over the Rams, only to see it evaporate to a 17-16 lead in the fourth quarter. What saved the game for Dallas was a pass to Drew Pearson on a deep post pattern with 9:37 remaining in the game that turned into an 83-yard touchdown play. It was Pearson’s second touchdown reception of the game, tying his total for the 1973 regular season.

* Calvin Hill had 97 rushing yards against the Rams but suffered a dislocated elbow. He could not play in the NFC Championship Game against Minnesota, forcing Dallas to start second year fullback Robert Newhouse.

* For the second consecutive season, the Cowboys played poorly in the Championship Game. Dallas managed only 169 yards in total offense, as Staubach threw for only 89 yards with four interceptions.

* Only 60,272 people attended the 27-10 loss to Minnesota. There were a total of 4,252 no-shows.

* With the Cowboys missing the 1974 playoffs, the 1973 NFC Championship Game brought and end to an eight-year playoff run. Another would begin soon, though.

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Dallas Cowboys Playoff Stats, 1966-1973

Games: 15
Record: 8-7
NFL/NFC Championship Game Appearances: 6
NFL/NFC Championship Game Record: 2-4
Super Bowl Appearances: 2
Super Bowl Championships: 1