How close 1995 came to not ending in a championship for Dallas

[Red Dragon]

I've been going down history lane again and it's remarkable just how many things had to fall the Cowboys' way for them to get that elusive 5th ring.

The Cowboys were slumping badly down the stretch and it took a fantastic leaping diving catch (inch-perfect) by Kevin Williams near the end of the Giants game for Dallas to get a game-winning field goal and win, 21-20.

But then the Niners were still poised to capture homefield advantage. It took Steve Young slightly overthrowing Jerry Rice on a deep pass with only a few seconds remaining in the season finale to lose to Atlanta. Had Young thrown that ball just a bit lower, the 49ers would have won and took the No. 1 seed. Instead, Dallas was buoyed by the Niners' loss and proceeded to beat the Cards the following night, taking homefield advantage.

But even then......the Cowboys needed one additional favor. They needed the Pack to beat the Niners. (These same 49ers had slaughtered Dallas 38-20 in the regular season, at Texas Stadium, without Steve Young. So even hosting the NFC title against San Fran at home would have been a mighty fierce battle for the Cowboys.)

And even then, when the Pack came to town, Green Bay temporarily held a 27-24 lead over Dallas, entering the fourth quarter of the conference championship game. With a play or two going the other way, it could have easily been a Packers win.

And even then, in the Super Bowl, the Cowboys found themselves clinging to a 20-17 lead for dear life as the Steelers had all the momentum going their way. O'Donnell made a bad read during a Dallas blitz and threw to a spot when in fact Andre Hastings was streaking deep. Had O'Donnell just held on to the ball one second longer and realized where Hastings was going, he could have thrown deep and the Steelers would be leading 24-20. Instead, the ball ended up in the arms of Larry Brown.

It was by far the unlikeliest of the Cowboys' five championships.

 

[fredp22]

yeah but can do the same thing the other way- Jackie Smiths drop, The catch (sorry-even Montana said he was throwing it away), Dez catch. I could go on
we could easily have 6-8 rings

 

[Jake]

I've been going down history lane again and it's remarkable just how many things had to fall the Cowboys' way for them to get that elusive 5th ring.

The Cowboys were slumping badly down the stretch and it took a fantastic leaping diving catch (inch-perfect) by Kevin Williams near the end of the Giants game for Dallas to get a game-winning field goal and win, 21-20.

But then the Niners were still poised to capture homefield advantage. It took Steve Young slightly overthrowing Jerry Rice on a deep pass with only a few seconds remaining in the season finale to lose to Atlanta. Had Young thrown that ball just a bit lower, the 49ers would have won and took the No. 1 seed. Instead, Dallas was buoyed by the Niners' loss and proceeded to beat the Cards the following night, taking homefield advantage.

But even then......the Cowboys needed one additional favor. They needed the Pack to beat the Niners. (These same 49ers had slaughtered Dallas 38-20 in the regular season, at Texas Stadium, without Steve Young. So even hosting the NFC title against San Fran at home would have been a mighty fierce battle for the Cowboys.)

And even then, when the Pack came to town, Green Bay temporarily held a 27-24 lead over Dallas, entering the fourth quarter of the conference championship game. With a play or two going the other way, it could have easily been a Packers win.

And even then, in the Super Bowl, the Cowboys found themselves clinging to a 20-17 lead for dear life as the Steelers had all the momentum going their way. O'Donnell made a bad read during a Dallas blitz and threw to a spot when in fact Andre Hastings was streaking deep. Had O'Donnell just held on to the ball one second longer and realized where Hastings was going, he could have thrown deep and the Steelers would be leading 24-20. Instead, the ball ended up in the arms of Larry Brown.

It was by far the unlikeliest of the Cowboys' five championships.

I was at that Giants game and breathed a sigh of relief when Boniol kicked the game winner. Definitely was surprised when San Fran lost on the final weekend to open the door then the Cowboys rolled the Cardinals.

It's funny how for most of the 90s Dallas owned Green Bay, San Fran had problems with Green Bay, and Dallas had problems with San Fran - all about match ups. I loved seeing the Packers coming to town instead of the Niners.

The second half of that Super Bowl was frustrating. Steelers fans to this day insist O'Donnell was "paid off" (as opposed to winning a SB and making tens of millions legally).

But the fact that team managed to win a Super Bowl with Barry bleepin' Switzer as head coach is a testament to their own ability to will themselves to victory.

 

[ChronicCowboy]

Yes I remember watching those games in detail. We dominated the 4th vs. Green Bay and deserved that win. The Steelers on the other hand, gave us that SB.

 

[fivetwos]

I just feel fortunate to have witnessed those great 90s teams Jerry put together with his great GM skills.

Those key trades and drafts...all him.

 

[mrmojo]

The dynasty was on its last legs. They were fortunate that the Pack beat the Niners (the Niners just had their number), but probably the most important thing Jerry did that season was sign Deon and keep him away from the Niners. A remarkable accomplishment if you think about it they overcame internal fighting (Aikman, Switzer, Blake), injuries (K Smith), suspensions (Lett), aging and depleted talent.

The Packer game was scary, seemed like they couldn't stop Farve, but they came through, the O-line played great and they pulled away.

Was one of the hardest championship seasons I ever watched, the actual winning of the SB was more a relief to me than anything else.....Cowboy hate at that time was at astronomical levels.

 

[CTcowboy203]

Yup....Super Bowls are hard to win and require real luck

 

[HanD]

I just feel fortunate to have witnessed those great 90s teams Jerry put together with his great GM skills.

Those key trades and drafts...all him.

My brother reminds me all the time that he was too young to enjoy those glory years like I did. He barely remembers them. His real memories are of the quincy era.

 

[Thomas82]

The dynasty was on its last legs. They were fortunate that the Pack beat the Niners (the Niners just had their number), but probably the most important thing Jerry did that season was sign Deon and keep him away from the Niners. A remarkable accomplishment if you think about it they overcame internal fighting (Aikman, Switzer, Blake), injuries (K Smith), suspensions (Lett), aging and depleted talent.

The Packer game was scary, seemed like they couldn't stop Farve, but they came through, the O-line played great and they pulled away.

Was one of the hardest championship seasons I ever watched, the actual winning of the SB was more a relief to me than anything else.....Cowboy hate at that time was at astronomical levels.

Well said!!

 

[links18]

I've been going down history lane again and it's remarkable just how many things had to fall the Cowboys' way for them to get that elusive 5th ring.

The Cowboys were slumping badly down the stretch and it took a fantastic leaping diving catch (inch-perfect) by Kevin Williams near the end of the Giants game for Dallas to get a game-winning field goal and win, 21-20.

But then the Niners were still poised to capture homefield advantage. It took Steve Young slightly overthrowing Jerry Rice on a deep pass with only a few seconds remaining in the season finale to lose to Atlanta. Had Young thrown that ball just a bit lower, the 49ers would have won and took the No. 1 seed. Instead, Dallas was buoyed by the Niners' loss and proceeded to beat the Cards the following night, taking homefield advantage.

But even then......the Cowboys needed one additional favor. They needed the Pack to beat the Niners. (These same 49ers had slaughtered Dallas 38-20 in the regular season, at Texas Stadium, without Steve Young. So even hosting the NFC title against San Fran at home would have been a mighty fierce battle for the Cowboys.)

And even then, when the Pack came to town, Green Bay temporarily held a 27-24 lead over Dallas, entering the fourth quarter of the conference championship game. With a play or two going the other way, it could have easily been a Packers win.

And even then, in the Super Bowl, the Cowboys found themselves clinging to a 20-17 lead for dear life as the Steelers had all the momentum going their way. O'Donnell made a bad read during a Dallas blitz and threw to a spot when in fact Andre Hastings was streaking deep. Had O'Donnell just held on to the ball one second longer and realized where Hastings was going, he could have thrown deep and the Steelers would be leading 24-20. Instead, the ball ended up in the arms of Larry Brown.

It was by far the unlikeliest of the Cowboys' five championships.

In other words-- classic NFL football drama.

 

[Red Dragon]

Was one of the hardest championship seasons I ever watched, the actual winning of the SB was more a relief to me than anything else.....Cowboy hate at that time was at astronomical levels.

I believe Mickey Spagnola, Cowboys columnist, wrote that after that Super Bowl was over, he found the assistant coaches all slumped down in a room, too exhausted with relief to get up or celebrate. No joy or ecstasy, just sheer relief and exhaustion.

 

[fivetwos]

The dynasty was on its last legs. They were fortunate that the Pack beat the Niners (the Niners just had their number), but probably the most important thing Jerry did that season was sign Deon and keep him away from the Niners. A remarkable accomplishment if you think about it they overcame internal fighting (Aikman, Switzer, Blake), injuries (K Smith), suspensions (Lett), aging and depleted talent.

The Packer game was scary, seemed like they couldn't stop Farve, but they came through, the O-line played great and they pulled away.

Was one of the hardest championship seasons I ever watched, the actual winning of the SB was more a relief to me than anything else.....Cowboy hate at that time was at astronomical levels.

Key "last leg" guys were Jay Novacek and Charles Haley.

Replaced with Jerry Jones specials....David LaFleur and Kavika Pittman.

The bad part is it got way worse from there.

The man STILL doesnt realize he cant get it done.

 

[mmohican29]

I've been going down history lane again and it's remarkable just how many things had to fall the Cowboys' way for them to get that elusive 5th ring.

The Cowboys were slumping badly down the stretch and it took a fantastic leaping diving catch (inch-perfect) by Kevin Williams near the end of the Giants game for Dallas to get a game-winning field goal and win, 21-20.

But then the Niners were still poised to capture homefield advantage. It took Steve Young slightly overthrowing Jerry Rice on a deep pass with only a few seconds remaining in the season finale to lose to Atlanta. Had Young thrown that ball just a bit lower, the 49ers would have won and took the No. 1 seed. Instead, Dallas was buoyed by the Niners' loss and proceeded to beat the Cards the following night, taking homefield advantage.

But even then......the Cowboys needed one additional favor. They needed the Pack to beat the Niners. (These same 49ers had slaughtered Dallas 38-20 in the regular season, at Texas Stadium, without Steve Young. So even hosting the NFC title against San Fran at home would have been a mighty fierce battle for the Cowboys.)

And even then, when the Pack came to town, Green Bay temporarily held a 27-24 lead over Dallas, entering the fourth quarter of the conference championship game. With a play or two going the other way, it could have easily been a Packers win.

And even then, in the Super Bowl, the Cowboys found themselves clinging to a 20-17 lead for dear life as the Steelers had all the momentum going their way. O'Donnell made a bad read during a Dallas blitz and threw to a spot when in fact Andre Hastings was streaking deep. Had O'Donnell just held on to the ball one second longer and realized where Hastings was going, he could have thrown deep and the Steelers would be leading 24-20. Instead, the ball ended up in the arms of Larry Brown.

It was by far the unlikeliest of the Cowboys' five championships.

The Cowboys owned GB, GB owned SF.

To say the Cowboys would have lost to SF is faulty. That would have been a pick'em contest.

94 SF was slightly better, gifted both victories @ home IMHO.

92-93. Dallas much, much better.

95-would have been all about if Dallas had been in the mood or not. Strange team with some pedestrian performances but explosive firepower as well.

 

[fivetwos]

Heres a cool number for all you numbers guys...

I paid $950 to a ticket broker to see SB XXX, which was a nice markup on the $175 face value.

For several years now the actual face value for a SB ticket is higher than the premium broker rate was the last time they appeared in the game.

We are a few years away from where everyone on the Dallas roster was not born before the date of the last SB appearance.

Anyone want to wager on what happens first?

 

[NeathBlue]

The Cowboys owned GB, GB owned SF.

To say the Cowboys would have lost to SF is faulty. That would have been a pick'em contest.

94 SF was slightly better, gifted both victories @ home IMHO.

92-93. Dallas much, much better.

95-would have been all about if Dallas had been in the mood or not. Strange team with some pedestrian performances but explosive firepower as well.

I’ve no doubt the Cowboys would have been in the mood if they’d played the 49ers in the championship game...
They might have taken them too lightly in the run up to the regular season game, Irvin and Deion joking about ‘which Jerry, Jerry Rice or the real Jerry, Jerry Jones’, that imo really fired the niners up... but if they’d met again, a different beast in the shape of Irvin would have turned up, the one that was going crazy on the sideline as time ticked down when we lost the previous year’s championship game.
The Super Bowl against Pittsburgh should have been a blow out, and probably would have been if the TD when Irvin was called for pushing off hadn’t been nullified, but I think the team became a little complacent and really were hanging on.

 

[tyke1doe]

I've been going down history lane again and it's remarkable just how many things had to fall the Cowboys' way for them to get that elusive 5th ring.

The Cowboys were slumping badly down the stretch and it took a fantastic leaping diving catch (inch-perfect) by Kevin Williams near the end of the Giants game for Dallas to get a game-winning field goal and win, 21-20.

But then the Niners were still poised to capture homefield advantage. It took Steve Young slightly overthrowing Jerry Rice on a deep pass with only a few seconds remaining in the season finale to lose to Atlanta. Had Young thrown that ball just a bit lower, the 49ers would have won and took the No. 1 seed. Instead, Dallas was buoyed by the Niners' loss and proceeded to beat the Cards the following night, taking homefield advantage.

But even then......the Cowboys needed one additional favor. They needed the Pack to beat the Niners. (These same 49ers had slaughtered Dallas 38-20 in the regular season, at Texas Stadium, without Steve Young. So even hosting the NFC title against San Fran at home would have been a mighty fierce battle for the Cowboys.)

And even then, when the Pack came to town, Green Bay temporarily held a 27-24 lead over Dallas, entering the fourth quarter of the conference championship game. With a play or two going the other way, it could have easily been a Packers win.

And even then, in the Super Bowl, the Cowboys found themselves clinging to a 20-17 lead for dear life as the Steelers had all the momentum going their way. O'Donnell made a bad read during a Dallas blitz and threw to a spot when in fact Andre Hastings was streaking deep. Had O'Donnell just held on to the ball one second longer and realized where Hastings was going, he could have thrown deep and the Steelers would be leading 24-20. Instead, the ball ended up in the arms of Larry Brown.

It was by far the unlikeliest of the Cowboys' five championships.

Yep! I was so happy the Niners loss to the Packers. I don't think we beat them in Candlestick.

 

[tyke1doe]

The dynasty was on its last legs. They were fortunate that the Pack beat the Niners (the Niners just had their number), but probably the most important thing Jerry did that season was sign Deon and keep him away from the Niners. A remarkable accomplishment if you think about it they overcame internal fighting (Aikman, Switzer, Blake), injuries (K Smith), suspensions (Lett), aging and depleted talent.

The Packer game was scary, seemed like they couldn't stop Farve, but they came through, the O-line played great and they pulled away.

Was one of the hardest championship seasons I ever watched, the actual winning of the SB was more a relief to me than anything else.....Cowboy hate at that time was at astronomical levels.

It was a relief to me too. I was never confident in that team.

 

[NeathBlue]

Yep! I was so happy the Niners loss to the Packers. I don't think we beat them in Candlestick.

We would have had them at home... Them losing their final regular season game to Atlanta and us beating the Cardinals meant Dallas had home field advantage.

 

[tyke1doe]

We would have had them at home... Them losing their final regular season game to Atlanta and us beating the Cardinals meant Dallas had home field advantage.

You're right. I still don't think we beat them even at home. They killed in Dallas in the Big D.

 

[NeathBlue]

You're right. I still don't think we beat them even at home. They killed in Dallas in the Big D.

The niners were shot come the end of the season, their defence wasn’t what it was the previous season and their lack of depth was hurting them.
Dallas however was a team reborn in the playoffs... We really struggled down the stretch in the regular season, but when the 49ers lost to Atlanta, it seemed to give us back our confidence.