Thoughts On The End Of The Landry Era

[RiggoForever]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.

[burmafrd]

A lot of the problem with the late Landry years was that he no longer had a good staff and the scouting department stank it up. I happen to think that with the right personell the Flex could still be a good D but it certainly takes more time and effort to build it- and in this day and age you do not have that. I do not think as regards to coaching he was declining but with the other problems it was clear that major changes needed to be made. I have no problem with JJ wanting his own coach- I just DESPISED the way he did it.

[Yeagermeister]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.

I was stationed overseas when it happened and like most Cowboys fans I was ticked but not so much that it happened but the way it happened. Coach Landry deserved to leave under better terms.

[Jarv]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.

I could write pages and pages of what I thought of the man. But to keep it short...

Player (Giants), player/coach (Giants), coach of a new franchise team (That did not even get to draft, no less 1st pick)...

Inovation in Defense (4-3), Inovation in offense with line hitch, movement and brought back the shotgun...Computers to draft, family man, spiritual man,great results (as mentione, 20 straight winning seasons...Not sure how many straight playoff berths too)...

Bottom line he represented class in the NFL.

[lurkercowboy]

I have a Cowboys helmet pin on my nameplate at work. It has been there for over 18 years except for one day, the day after Jones fired Landry. I knew it was time for a change but it was still a sad time.

[RiggoForever]

Didn't Jerry Jones eventually apologize for the way it happened and Landry agreed to come back and be inducted in the Ring of Honor?

[CowboyChris]

i was around during the Landry years, and he is the best coach we have ever had, i think most fans knew it was time for a change, but what angers most everyone is how it was handled. including myself, i more angered how jerry handled the jimmy situation, no way i wouldve let him leave, and furthermore if you really want to get my blood boiling Jerry hired Switzer, Gailey and Campo after Jimmy that was worse than the firing of Landry. just my 2 cents

[Yeagermeister]

i was around during the Landry years, and he is the best coach we have ever had, i think most fans knew it was time for a change, but what angers most everyone is how it was handled. including myself, i more angered how jerry handled the jimmy situation, no way i wouldve let him leave, and furthermore if you really want to get my blood boiling Jerry hired Switzer, Gailey and Campo after Jimmy that was worse than the firing of Landry. just my 2 cents

I was much more upset over Switzer than Landry.

[Eddie]

I've been a Cowboy fan since 5th grade ... 1978. I never had an opportunity to see Tom Landry win a Super Bowl. I saw the lose to Pittsburgh in SB 13 as well as the three straight NFC-CG game losses. Those all broke my heart.

Things started falling apart after 1985, and even though we went 10-6 in 86, it wasn't real.

But honestly, the 3-13 team of 1988 wasn't really as bad as the record indicated. We were a good QB away from being 8-8 ... many close games lost due to poor QB play by Steve Pelluer.

I was in college when Landry was fired. A friend and I were discussing how Tom was the only thing we had in Dallas. But deep down, we knew it was time for a change. Contrary to popular belief, the game had NOT passed Ton Landry by. Poor drafting by managment did him in ... just like the lousy drafting of JJ over the past decade, Tom Landry took the brunt of it.

I'm not sure Tom would have been able to bring the team back from the depths, but much of the foundation for the future Super Bowl teams were already on board ... Tuinei, Newton, Irvin, Jeffcoat, et al. Troy Aikman would have been the logical choice for 1989.

I have the fondest memories of Tom Landry, but I also endured some of the hardest moments of my teenage life in those years.

[hipfake08]

A lot of the problem with the late Landry years was that he no longer had a good staff and the scouting department stank it up. I happen to think that with the right personell the Flex could still be a good D but it certainly takes more time and effort to build it- and in this day and age you do not have that. I do not think as regards to coaching he was declining but with the other problems it was clear that major changes needed to be made. I have no problem with JJ wanting his own coach- I just DESPISED the way he did it.

I do not know if the scouting department stank it up...
But all the other NFL teams caught up to the Cowboys in that regard.
The Cowboys also started reaching for players in the draft and had some injury problems with number 1's - Billy Cannon. That really set them back

And picking at the bottom of the draft every year did not help.

[Yakuza Rich]

When I think of Landry, a lot of things go into my mind. Even though he's probably not the greatest person to listen to since he often took his liberties in his writing, I always thought Peter Gent gave a solid description of Landry. Landry was extremely odd in the sense that a lot of players genuinely would dislike him, but they were extremely fearful of letting him down and wanted to prove him wrong. But even more odd was that after these players would retire or leave the team, they grew an even more intense amount of respect for Landry...especially when he passed away.

I usually hate it when somebody calls a current coach a "genius." Sorry, but the real football geniuses are either dead or retired. Landry was truly a "genius." Every D-Coordinator from high school to the NFL is borrowing a philosophy that Landry created....pre-snap reads on defense. While he didn't invent the shotgun, he was the first guy to really use it as a passing formation. His use of Bob Hayes was innovative in it's own right as back then coaches always put the fastest guy on the team at tailback. By putting Hayes at receiver, he opened the doors for guys like Steve Smith and Santana Moss to have their proper place in this sport.

I was only 12 at the end of the Landry era, but I had a solid knowledge of Landry and what he brought to the game at that time. However, at that point Landry just wasn't as sharp as he used to be and Jones made the right move by getting rid of him.

What was bitterly ironic was the way Landry was let go by Jones. For years Landry used to release players in the same fashion he was dismissed from the team. Still, two wrongs didn't make a right and while many players would say that they didn't like Landry for the way he handled their releases, they later realized that there was nothing Landry could do about it since it was a front office decision.

I've never been a huge Jimmy Johnson fan. But, he was a helluva drafter and I think he scared the daylights out of every player because you didn't know what he was going to do if you let him down. My favorite Jimmy story was when somebody stole Super Bowl tickets out of Chad Hennings locker and Jimmy gathered everybody around and said that if the person who stole the tickets returned them the next day, there would be no problems. But if it didn't happen, Jimmy proclaimed that not only would that player be cut, but he'd make sure to do everything in his power to blackball him from the league.

That was Jimmy in a nutshell. Not a real astute X's and O's guy, but he knew talent when he saw it and because players knew he was capable of ruining their lives, they didn't dare mess with him.

Still, it was probably a dose of bitter karma when Jimmy stated that his dream job was to coach the Dolphins when Shula retired. Jerry took a ton of flack by hiring Johnson who many thought was a joke of a coach at Miami. When the Cowboys went 1-15 their first year under Jimmy, the laughs became even more audible. I've still never really forgiven Jimmy for saying that and have always stuck up for Jerry's feelings of betrayal.

Parcells OTOH, is more of my type of coach. Perhaps it's the fact that I'm originally a NY'er and I like his style of coaching, but he's definitely one of the best coaches ever.

In many regards I think he's a mix of Jimmy and Landry.


Rich.......

[burmafrd]

I would NEVER take anything Pete Gent said about Landry as accurate. He HATED Landry because Landry told him that he doubted that Gent would ever amount to anything as a player. Hard BUT true. Landry had a problem with being able to connect with people he was not VERY close to. Bob Lilly, Staubach in his later years, and a few others knew Landry and saw behind the facade. Most of his players never saw that part of him. Years later, most of them realized that that was just the way he was and it was nothing personal and he DID care about them. Meredith was one that really had it bad with Landry as a player, but in later years would also say that he got it and realized that that was just Tom.

[Yakuza Rich]

I would NEVER take anything Pete Gent said about Landry as accurate. He HATED Landry because Landry told him that he doubted that Gent would ever amount to anything as a player. Hard BUT true. Landry had a problem with being able to connect with people he was not VERY close to. Bob Lilly, Staubach in his later years, and a few others knew Landry and saw behind the facade. Most of his players never saw that part of him. Years later, most of them realized that that was just the way he was and it was nothing personal and he DID care about them. Meredith was one that really had it bad with Landry as a player, but in later years would also say that he got it and realized that that was just Tom.

Gent has later said that he has a ton of respect for Landry, especially for his coaching prowess. Pat Toomey has stated very similar things when it came to Landry. While I don't think Gent is ever completely accurate, from listening and reading stuff from former Landry players, he seems to have a pretty good idea on Landry.


Rich........

[Alexander]

I was stationed overseas when it happened and like most Cowboys fans I was ticked but not so much that it happened but the way it happened. Coach Landry deserved to leave under better terms.

That he did, but it was time.

I don't know if he would have stepped aside so Jones could bring in Johnson. In a way, it is a no-win for Jerry Jones. But once Bright sold the team, it made logical sense that Landry go. He clearly was not as sharp as he was in the years prior. We had lost our edge, that was completely clear.

[Alexander]

Gent has later said that he has a ton of respect for Landry, especially for his coaching prowess. Pat Toomey has stated very similar things when it came to Landry. While I don't think Gent is ever completely accurate, from listening and reading stuff from former Landry players, he seems to have a pretty good idea on Landry.


Rich........

I have never heard a single player from that era claim that Coach Landry wasn't an elite head coach and innovator. Even Duane Thomas couldn't argue that. He just connected with some players better than others, like any coach.

[parchy]

Everybody blames Jerry Jones for "forcing" Landry out the door, which is funny. Given, Jerry had his guy (Jimmy), but he made it known faaar before he was hired that he and JJ were a package deal. Bum Bright is the one that ultimately "forced" Tom out the door. He haaated Landry and wanted an owner that would clean house, and knowing Jerry to be who he was, his choice for successor was a no-brainer. Bright would have forced Landry out the door even earlier if Schramm hadn't gone behind his back and signed Landry to a guaranteed 3-year deal instead of three one year deals like he told him to.

For the most part, Jerry was just caught in the crossfire.

[dboyz]

Great thread.

I have the utmost for Landry the person and also the incredible coach that he was. I think he could definitely still coach at the time he was fired, it was just lack of talent.

Landry was distant and didn't connect with players. He stated that he didn't want to get too close to players, because it would cause him to not make decisions rationally. That was his style and I think you have to respect that. I'm sure Tom was a very different person around his friends and family than he was as football coach. He was trying to do his job in the best job in the way he knew how. Parcells is totally opposite. He gets close to his players and gets to know them, but still tries not to let it affect his decisions. Two styles and two totally different personalities. Both work.

As far as the firing of Landry, I was disappointed when it happened and really wanted Landry to rebuild the franchise, because I thought he could still do it, especially with Aikman coming in. Jones botched the firing, but there was nothing intentional about it. He didn't intend for it to get leaked out, but it did. Bum Bright could have handled the firing, becuase I think he wanted Landry gone, but didn't have the guts to do it.

Landry held a bit of a grudge with the way it was handled, but as much as I respected Landry, I think Tom (as most of us would do) was just sensitive about what had happened because he held the job for 29 years and thought he should go out on his own terms. I think however he would have been fired, he would not have been happy.

[Angus]

Everybody blames Jerry Jones for "forcing" Landry out the door, which is funny. Given, Jerry had his guy (Jimmy), but he made it known faaar before he was hired that he and JJ were a package deal. Bum Bright is the one that ultimately "forced" Tom out the door. He haaated Landry and wanted an owner that would clean house, and knowing Jerry to be who he was, his choice for successor was a no-brainer. Bright would have forced Landry out the door even earlier if Schramm hadn't gone behind his back and signed Landry to a guaranteed 3-year deal instead of three one year deals like he told him to.

For the most part, Jerry was just caught in the crossfire.


Parchy, that is news to me and it puts a different slant on the Jerry Jones action. Still, Jerry did it in an awkward way that still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I must give him credit, though, for getting that hat in the Ring of Honor.

[Alexander]

Great thread.

I have the utmost for Coach Landry the person and also the incredible coach that he was. I think he could definitely still coach at the time he was fired, it was just lack of talent.

Did you watch the games back then or old enough to remember? He was really losing it at the end. I had the utmost respect for what he did for the franchise, but it was clear, he just didn't have it anymore. It wasn't his fault, it is just that we were so ahead of the curve for so long, the rest of the league caught up. The lack of talent issue was glaring, but what hurt more was that we couldn't use our bad talent to harvest more (we swindled more teams in trade than I can count) and we squandered most of the choices we made.

One fallacy about that era (like the Johnson one too) is that we just drafted so well and hit on the talent. That's completely false. Go back and look at how many first, second and third round choices we simply blew. We aren't talking average players who couldn't crack the roster on a great team, we are talking players who didn't play anywhere in the league once we gave up.

We simply stockpiled choices like Coach Johnson did and hit on a reasonable percent and played the averages. Where we really cleaned up was scouting well outside of the draft. We took players that went undrafted and made them All Pros. Take Drew Pearson and Cliff Harris for example. Once other teams smartened up, they began to do the same things that we did for years without competition.

We also gave up early on talent that did well elsewhere: LB Mike Walter & Steve DeBerg (49ers) and TE Todd Christensen (Raiders) are two classic examples. They were ours once, but we cut them quickly.

[dboyz]

Did you watch the games back then or old enough to remember? He was really losing it at the end. I had the utmost respect for what he did for the franchise, but it was clear, he just didn't have it anymore. .

Yeah I started watching the late 70's early 80's so I remember that era well. And let me say that I can't argue that firing Landry didn't turn out well for the franchise. 3 Super Bowls later and no one can argue that. However, I do believe that Landry could still coach.

They drafted terribly in the 80's. You talk about the Johnson not hitting on every pick, but the draft is a crapshoot and Johnson stockpiled picks and hit on enough. Johnson also was fortunate enough to have a franchise quarterback fall in his lap.

But nearly every 1st round pick in the 80's was a bust. Kevin Brooks and Billy Cannon, and Danny Noonan and on and on. Injuries were also a big problem. Mike Sherrard kept getting hurt. 87 started out ok, and then Danny White got hurt. Two draft picks that turned out pretty well that Landry didn't get the chance to see much because of injuries: Irvin and Norton.

If you look at that 88 team, there was hardly any good young talent on it. None. Ray Alexander (if I remember right) was the leading receiver. We had one guy: Herschel Walker (and Jimmy did the right thing with him). The solid veterans like Too Tall and Randy White had aged and were shells of their former selves.

Anyway, its a question we'll never know the answer to. I think that the "game has passed him buy" argument gets thrown out there pretty quickly when the talent dries up. People had been been saying that about Paterno at Penn St., and lo and behold he gets some talent and they have a good year.

[Doomsday101]

Everybody blames Jerry Jones for "forcing" Landry out the door, which is funny. Given, Jerry had his guy (Jimmy), but he made it known faaar before he was hired that he and JJ were a package deal. Bum Bright is the one that ultimately "forced" Tom out the door. He haaated Landry and wanted an owner that would clean house, and knowing Jerry to be who he was, his choice for successor was a no-brainer. Bright would have forced Landry out the door even earlier if Schramm hadn't gone behind his back and signed Landry to a guaranteed 3-year deal instead of three one year deals like he told him to.

For the most part, Jerry was just caught in the crossfire.

I always blamed Bum Bright. He knew what was about to happen and as the employer of Landry and Tex, Bum should have told them what the deal was. It would have allowed Landry the oppertunity to step down as HC instead of putting Jones who already had a coach in tow in the position of firing him. Only thing I faulted Jones for and Jones himself has admitted it could have been done better but in the end it was going to happen.

[Big Dakota]

That he did, but it was time.

I don't know if he would have stepped aside so Jones could bring in Johnson. In a way, it is a no-win for Jerry Jones. But once Bright sold the team, it made logical sense that Landry go. He clearly was not as sharp as he was in the years prior. We had lost our edge, that was completely clear.

Exactly!

I was 26 at the time. I had lived through the good times and the bad times. I loved old Tom, but the worm had turned for the threesome of Landry, Schramm and Brandt. Bum was not a great owner. He probably would have hung onto the old guys and we would have NEVER won in the 90's, but thank god Bum needed the cash and Jerry stepped in. I remember it like it was yeatsrday. I was just so overjoyed the team was going in a different direction and we had a guy like Jimmy coming in to coach. I didn't know who this Jerry Jones guy was, but he was young and enthusiastic and we had the #1 overall pick and we were gonna get Troy. It was like a weight was lifted for me. I knew the wins would be few and far between for a while, but i also knew we had a chance to turn things aroound.

[parchy]

One fallacy about that era (like the Johnson one too) is that we just drafted so well and hit on the talent. That's completely false. Go back and look at how many first, second and third round choices we simply blew. We aren't talking average players who couldn't crack the roster on a great team, we are talking players who didn't play anywhere in the league once we gave up.

Those first round busts were the reason why the mid, late-80's were such lean years, and probably why Landry ultimately was fired. Picks like Larry Bethea were simply products of the rest of the NFL's scouting departments catching up. Heck, Schramm was the first to do so many things (intensive scouting outside of the first two rounds, taking players from basketball and other sports, using computers to assess talent etc...) that they were forced to take a ton of chances to try and stay ahead. Unfortunately for them, they had one too many busts.

[Doomsday101]

Those first round busts were the reason why the mid, late-80's were such lean years, and probably why Landry ultimately was fired. Picks like Larry Bethea were simply products of the rest of the NFL's scouting departments catching up. Heck, Schramm was the first to do so many things (intensive scouting outside of the first two rounds, taking players from basketball and other sports, using computers to assess talent etc...) that they were forced to take a ton of chances to try and stay ahead. Unfortunately for them, they had one too many busts.

I don't think the game passed Landry by, I agree we had some bust we also had guys like Sherrad that who got injured as well as Irvin. I'm confident that Landry would have taken Aikman based on seeing Tom meet Troy at the 50 yard line at the cotton bowl after the UCLA and Ark was over which is not something you would normally see from NFL HC and all speculation at that time was Dallas was going to get Troy in the upcoming draft. I understood why Jones wanted to go in a different direction so I never held that against him but I do not believe the game passed Landry by

[parchy]

I don't think the game passed Landry by, I agree we had some bust we also had guys like Sherrad that who got injured as well as Irvin. I'm confident that Landry would have taken Aikman based on seeing Tom meet Troy at the 50 yard line at the cotton bowl after the UCLA and Ark was over which is not something you would normally see from NFL HC and all speculation at that time was Dallas was going to get Troy in the upcoming draft. I understood why Jones wanted to go in a different direction so I never held that against him but I do not believe the game passed Landry by

The reason I think he would have been fine is because he fired Hackett, whose wide-open offensive schemes never meshed with his, and Tom had finally agreed to give up on the Flex before he was fired. They would have scooted those linemen up a little bit and moved into a base 4-3, which would have made up a couple of points each game in itself. I think he would have been fine had Jerry decided to keep him on board, but oh well. Three Super Bowls later and we're free to discuss this without bitterness, I suppose.

[ravidubey]

It was time for not just Tom Landry to go, but also Gil Brandt and Tex Schramm. All three had lost some or a lot of their edge, though Landry was still a good coach. Brandt spent most of the 1980's in a downward spiral.

At some level, every Cowboys who understood football knew this had to happen. What is unfortunate is the way it happened-- how Tom discovered he was being fired. He should have been given the option of resigning or retiring.

His knowledge of the division alone should have been reason to keep him on as a consultant of some kind as some kind of golden parachute. Instead they burned bridges and alienated fans; some forever.

The worst result was Tom and Tex being entered into the ROH posthumously.

[ravidubey]

I don't think the game passed Landry by, I agree we had some bust we also had guys like Sherrad that who got injured as well as Irvin. I'm confident that Landry would have taken Aikman based on seeing Tom meet Troy at the 50 yard line at the cotton bowl after the UCLA and Ark was over which is not something you would normally see from NFL HC and all speculation at that time was Dallas was going to get Troy in the upcoming draft. I understood why Jones wanted to go in a different direction so I never held that against him but I do not believe the game passed Landry by

Landry would never have traded Herschel Walker and Brandt didn't have a clue how to rebuild the team. Schramm had become irrelevant.

[Doomsday101]

The reason I think he would have been fine is because he fired Hackett, whose wide-open offensive schemes never meshed with his, and Tom had finally agreed to give up on the Flex before he was fired. They would have scooted those linemen up a little bit and moved into a base 4-3, which would have made up a couple of points each game in itself. I think he would have been fine had Jerry decided to keep him on board, but oh well. Three Super Bowls later and we're free to discuss this without bitterness, I suppose.

I agree. I looked at it as if this guys is going to spend this many millions to buy a ball club then he should put people around him he trusted and that is what Jerry did. Now the other group beside Jerry that was looking into buying the Cowboys was a Japanese group and I could not deal with America's team being owned by a Japanese group of investors. At that time the Japanese’s were buying up a lot of things in the US, thank god the Cowboys were not added to that list

[Doomsday101]

Landry would never have traded Herschel Walker and Brandt didn't have a clue how to rebuild the team. Schramm had become irrelevant.

I guess we will never know, your entitled to that opinion but I don't know if that would have been the case considering what the Vikes were offering.

[ravidubey]

I guess we will never know, your entitled to that opinion but I don't know if that would have been the case considering what the Vikes were offering.

Landry was quoted after the trade as saying he had no idea how the Cowboys could trade a player like Hershel Walker. Landry was also surprised that the Cowboys management had decided to rebuild via the draft. Of course we know how critical both that trade and the draft were in creating the Cowboys of the 1990's.

Now it could be Landry resented Jones and Johnson and was inclined to criticize anything they did, but that is what he said.

Still, you are right, we will never know, but I suspect we'd have been waiting a long time.

[Angus]

It was time for not just Tom Landry to go, but also Gil Brandt and Tex Schramm. All three had lost some or a lot of their edge, though Landry was still a good coach. Brandt spent most of the 1980's in a downward spiral.

At some level, every Cowboys who understood football knew this had to happen. What is unfortunate is the way it happened-- how Tom discovered he was being fired. He should have been given the option of resigning or retiring.

His knowledge of the division alone should have been reason to keep him on as a consultant of some kind as some kind of golden parachute. Instead they burned bridges and alienated fans; some forever.

The worst result was Tom and Tex being entered into the ROH posthumously.

Tex was dead when he was installed in the Ring of Honor, but not Tom. He was there.

[CrazyCowboy]

Mr. Jones admits he handled Coach Landry and the situation wrong. He wished he could do it over again in a better light, however, it is done now.

I am glad that Mr. Jones tired to make thing better by putting our legend coach in the Ring of Honor where he belongs....and I love the little hat.

[Zippy Speedster]

I had been a fan my whole life, lol, the whole 14 years leading up to this, but, I was really at that age where I was just becoming a true diehard, breath, bleed, Cowboy fan. First us getting Herschal Walker was what really propelled me into this phase I've just never been able to grow out of, and to be honest that was the one point, and possibly the only one where a concern came up as far as Jerry & Jimmy go, was when they made that blockbuster trade sending him to the Vikes. I mean the love was here when they let Landry go, but I was ready for a new age. The Cowboys had really gone down hill in those last several years of the Landry-era and it was really time for a change, perhaps even past-due, in my eyes. I welcomed those two gunslingers in with open arms, though I do remember LOTS and i mean ALOT of people having issues with his dismissal and the seemingly (or in their eyes) cold-nature inwhich Jerry went about it. Looking back though, I'm willing to be it was more of a mutual decision then what was portrayed through the press at the time. Tom may not have wanted to go but there was never any questioning whether or not his heart blead Cowboy-blood, he knew it was time and if any time was the most realistic time for him to stepdown that it would have been at that point and at no other point in the foreseeable future.

My only regret is that Jimmy couldn't have been that guy to take us through the next 29 years. Which makes me wonder, at the time did Jimmy or Jerry possibly have any delusions of Jimmy being here for a long haul or was it just commonly thought of as a short stint about to happen and not much more by the two men? And as far as mistakes go made by Jerry...the Jimmy one imo was more devistating to this organization then the adrupt firing of Tom ever was. It truly would have been interesting to see how far Jimmy could have taken this team. Is OUR dynasty still somewhat in tact, today?

[Alexander]

Landry was quoted after the trade as saying he had no idea how the Cowboys could trade a player like Hershel Walker. Landry was also surprised that the Cowboys management had decided to rebuild via the draft. Of course we know how critical both that trade and the draft were in creating the Cowboys of the 1990's.

Now it could be Landry resented Jones and Johnson and was inclined to criticize anything they did, but that is what he said.

Still, you are right, we will never know, but I suspect we'd have been waiting a long time.

Great point.

Landry loved Walker because he was truly a Tom Landry-type.

[MissionCoach]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.

Tom Landry was a living LEGEND at the time...I was stunned and honestly very angry at the way JJ handled the situation. As I recall, Coach Landry had 1 more year left on his contract...I felt that he deserved the respect to be able to finish out his contract...Jimmy Johnson could have taken over the following year...Even though Jerry tried to make amends years later by honoring Coach Landry...I don't think it ever made up for what took place when Jerry essentially "fired" Coach Landry...And even though JJ and Jimmy won two Super Bowls...you just don't fire HOF Coaches with the LEGENDARY Status that Coach Landry deserved and earned...JMO :starspin :starspin :starspin

[Alexander]

Tom Landry was a living LEGEND at the time...I was stunned and honestly very angry at the way JJ handled the situation. As I recall, Coach Landry had 1 more year left on his contract...I felt that he deserved the respect to be able to finish out his contract...Jimmy Johnson could have taken over the following year...Even though Jerry tried to make amends years later by honoring Coach Landry...I don't think it ever made up for what took place when Jerry essentially "fired" Coach Landry...And even though JJ and Jimmy won two Super Bowls...you just don't fire HOF Coaches with the LEGENDARY Status that Coach Landry deserved and earned...JMO :starspin :starspin :starspin

I was upset about the way it was handled, but I had no desire to see Coach Landry fulfill another year especially with lame duck status. It was time. We had to rebuild and Coach Landry was not the man to lead it. Sometimes you have to make a break and Jones made it.

It was just an ugly situation that you knew wouldn't end well. But it could have been handled more respectfully.

[jimmy40]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.
I was thrilled,I wanted Jimmy Johnson to be the coach of the Cowboys for a couple years before he got there. It was time for Landry to go.

[MissionCoach]

I was upset about the way it was handled, but I had no desire to see Coach Landry fulfill another year especially with lame duck status. It was time. We had to rebuild and Coach Landry was not the man to lead it. Sometimes you have to make a break and Jones made it.

It was just an ugly situation that you knew wouldn't end well. But it could have been handled more respectfully.

I agree sir...which was my point, the situation was handled in the worst possible way. I still believe that JJ could have started the re-building process with Coach Landry at the helm...heck, if memory serves, Jimmy only won 1 game in his first year. Coach Landry was the consumate professional, and a team player. I have to believe he would have done whatever was best for his Cowboys. Although some in here feel the game had passed him by...I felt the whole situation left a blight on the organization. Tom Landry was...and to many still is....the face of the Cowboys.

[lcharles]

There will never be another Tom Landry.

I hated the way Jones treated him. Took me a while to get over it. I will say this, had Jerry and Jimmy NOT had the sucess that they did, Jerry Jones would without a doubt be the most hated figure in Cowboys history.


Those Superbowls saved Jerrys arse.


I think he needs another one now or else the success he has had will always be atributed to Jimmy. That must really tick Jerry off.

[jimmy40]

I agree sir...which was my point, the situation was handled in the worst possible way. I still believe that JJ could have started the re-building process with Coach Landry at the helm...heck, if memory serves, Jimmy only won 1 game in his first year. Coach Landry was the consumate professional, and a team player. I have to believe he would have done whatever was best for his Cowboys. Although some in here feel the game had passed him by...I felt the whole situation left a blight on the organization. Tom Landry was...and to many still is....the face of the Cowboys.I don't think Landry would have EVER gotten rid of the guys Johnson got rid of and pretty much started over the way Johnson did. It was time for Landry to go.

[burmafrd]

The only reason Landry had not gotten rid of the dead wood was because there was nothing to replace them with. He had the beginning of a core of new talent (Tui, Nate, Irvin, a few others) Bill Bates, Jeffcoat, Tolbert. There is little doubt that Landry would have drafted Aikman. But there was a lot of nothing there otherwise- why do you think the boys went 1-15 in 89?
Landry was quite aware that he needed to clean house- and I think he would have started in 89 if he had not been fired. He never hesitated to cut people before- but usually only when he had someone to replace them with. In 74 and 75 he virtually rebuilt the team- BUT he had a couple of top drafts and was able to do it. What really got him in the end was that Brandt and the scouts really were lousy for the last half of the 80's.

[The30YardSlant]

The first time I watched the Cowboys was in 1990 when I was 5. I had no idea the circumstances of Jones dealing with Landry. However, when i was older and elarbned of them , I've always held a grudge against JJ for the way he handled the situation.

[J-DOG]

For those of you that have been Cowboys fans a long time, I was wondering what the general attitude was in Dallas when Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson came in and cleared house in 1989? How long did it take you to adjust to a new regime?

When I read about Landry having 20 straight winning seasons, my mouth drops. That has to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of professional sports. I don't think it will ever be duplicated.

I can remember in the mid to late 80's, my father (who hated the Cowboys), telling me that "he's the only coach the Cowboys have ever had". At the time, I had no idea what that meant, and had no idea of the reverence in that statement for him, even as a die hard Skins fan.

If Joe Gibbs was fired after a couple of losing seasons, I'd still be beside myself because of what he's done for the team and the area as a whole...and Gibbs has been a head coach only 1/2 the time of Landry.

My eyes pop open when I look back and see that players like Bill Bates, Michael Irvin, Nate Newton, Ken Norton, and Mark Tuinei were all brought to Dallas by Landry. He has to get at least some of the credit for the future Dallas dynasty.

I just wish I was a bit older so I could remember more of the guy. He seems like he wasn't only a great coach, but he redefined the way the game is played as well.
I had great respect for the man and even met him once which I recounted in another thread. I became a fan of the Boys in the Hail Mary game and watched Coach Landry's TV show every week. The show was great as most of the show had Landry breaking down film and showing how players executing made the plays work. When Jimmy and Jerry took over I was as shocked as anyone and I was not a fan of Jimmy Johnson at all. I hated the Canes and Irvin before he was drafted by the Cowboys.
But getting Irvin set a chain of events in place that made the Cowboys the team of the 90's. I know that Landry drafted him and I can remember Landry getting set to draft Aikman before JJ took over. I didn't think Coach Landry was losing his touch but that his staff was not what it use to be in my opinion. I also felt as though Gil Brandt and the scouting dept. had been caught up to and passed by most of the league by the time JJ took over. Getting Irvin on the team was the first step in getting players who were physical and had a swagger about them. Jimmy drafted fast players who were winners and had some of that same flair about them as Irvin had.
Landry was not losing his touch but he was caught in a situation that a lot of coaches find themselves in now at this time. New management was coming in with new idea's and people they trusted to make the team a success. A lot of older Cowboy fans have never forgiven JJ for firing Landry but to me I thought that Landry was just fired because JJ wanted Jimmy as his coach and Landry just happened to be the coach of the Cowboys when JJ took over. I was not bitter about how it went down like a lot of older Cowboy fans and JJ should be allowed to hire and fire people as he see's fit.
Landry will always be the coach I think of as the all-time coach of the Cowboys but JJ is the owner and he did a hell of job(along with Jimmy of course) bringing the Cowboys back to the top.

[SA_Gunslinger]

i think most of us were mad at the time about how it happened.

the question is....of those of you who were mad....have you forgiven jerry?


i mean, 3 super bowl titles (more than landry in less time)
he put landry in the ring of honor
he had a statue erected in his honor
he had the 'hat patch' on dallas uniforms at his death (and extra props for not selling it...we all know jerry likes to make a buck where he can)

imo, it was a crummy way to take out a legend, but it was the right call. but he made up for it by honoring him in a few great ways.

:starspin

[big dog cowboy]

i think most of us were mad at the time about how it happened.
I was extremely mad but at the same time I understood why it happened. Our team was a top 5 team in the early 80's and a bottom 5 team in the late 80's. That is more than enough to justify changes being made.

[bbgun]

Landry says goodbye to Albritton, Jeffcoat, and some guy I don't recognize.

http://www.123imagehost.com/uploads/235-641-U89108068.jpg

[parchy]

Landry says goodbye to Albritton, Jeffcoat, and some guy I don't recognize.

http://www.123imagehost.com/uploads/235-641-U89108068.jpg

He looks like Robert Duvall in that picture

[MONT17]

I miss Landry and a part of me wishes he was the coach today because there is NO WAY the NFL will be able to make him wear Logo Gear on the sideline!!!


I was in HS when Landry was let go and I lived in an area that didnt have Cable... we didnt even have our own Police station (they used to send state boys to break up our partys) but anyway I didnt get the details on ESPN!!! I had no idea what "really" went down till year or so later but at the time it was like lets turn this thing around!!!




1-15 was a dream compared to 3-13!!!


But lets give Landry Credit he Drafted IRVIN and he would have drafted ROY... other names from the Landry days were: Del Rio... Gogan... Lockhart... Jeffcoat... Herchel Walker were all key parts with the Boys after Landry was gone!!!