Best and Worst Trades in Cowboys History

Bobhaze

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In their 60+ years of storied history, the Dallas Cowboys have made some great trades that helped win some championships. And they also had some trade bummers too.

Here’s a look at the best and worst trades in our history:
BEST
  • 1989- The Hershel Walker Trade- In arguably one of the most one sided trades in NFL history, the Cowboys traded HW for 4 number one draft picks over a three year period, and the Cowboys turned those picks into guys like Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, and Darren Woodson. We also received some spare part players like Ike Holt and Jesse Solomon. That trade became the foundation for the 90s championship run of 3 SB wins in 4 years. It’s was Jimmy Johnson’s greatest move.
  • 1977- The Seattle Trade to get Tony Dorsett- on draft day, 1977, everyone knew the Cowboys were looking for a RB. At the last minute it was announced that the Cowboys acquired Seattle’s first round pick (second overall) in exchange for the Cowboys first round pick in 77 plus 3 future 2nd round picks. The Cowboys picked Heisman winner Tony Dorsett. That trade translated into winning the SB that year for the Cowboys and also winning NFC in 77 and 78.
  • 1974- The Trade with the Oilers for Too Tall and Danny- the Oilers traded the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft along with their 3rd round pick to the Cowboys for WR Billy Parks and DE Toadie Smith (Bubba Smith’s little bro) The Cowboys selected Ed “Too Tall” Jones with the first pick. One of the most underrated DL in Cowboys history. Jones played 15 seasons and half of his career, sacks weren’t even kept. He probably had over 100. With the 3rd round pick, the Cowboys acquired QB/P Danny White, who backed up Roger Staubach for 5 seasons before taking over in 1980, leading the team to 3 straight NFC Championships.
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
WORST
  • 2000- The Joey Galloway Trade- Having lost Michael Irvin to injury in ‘99, Jerry was feeling desperate with the clock ticking on Troy Aikman’s career. Jerry worked a deal with Seattle to acquire WR Joey Galloway in exchange for two Cowboys #1 draft picks- in 2000 and 2001. Galloway suffered a serious knee injury in his first game with Dallas in 2000 and was lost for the entire 2000 season, and Troy ended up retiring at the end of the season. Galloway never turned into much in Dallas.

  • 2008 The Roy Williams Trade- Apparently not learning from the Galloway debacle, Jerry pulled another disaster WR trade out of the hat just before the mid-#season trade deadline in 2008. The Cowboys gave up their 2009 first round pick and a third round pick also in 2009 to the lions in exchange for Williams. And he just never fit in. He dropped passes constantly, ran poor routes and was considered lazy. To top it off, in 2009, Williams was given a $54 million contract extension. Probably the worst trade in Cowboys history.
  • 2012- The Mo Claiborne “trade up”- in the 2012 draft, we traded up 8 spots- giving our 14th and 45th pick in that year’s draft to acquire Morris Claiborne with the 6th pick in that draft. Claiborne spent the next 5 years constantly nursing injuries, blowing coverages and basically sparing us all to death. In 2017-18 he played with the jets, then had a one year stint with the chiefs in 2019. He was out of the league at 29.
There are certainly more trades- good and bad that could be mentioned. Any thoughts?
 

Ranching

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In their 60+ years of storied history, the Dallas Cowboys have made some great trades that helped win some championships. And they also had some trade bummers too.

Here’s a look at the best and worst trades in our history:
BEST
  • 1989- The Hershel Walker Trade- In arguably one of the most one sided trades in NFL history, the Cowboys traded HW for 4 number one draft picks over a three year period, and the Cowboys turned those picks into guys like Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, and Darren Woodson. We also received some spare part players like Ike Holt and Jesse Solomon. That trade became the foundation for the 90s championship run of 3 SB wins in 4 years. It’s was Jimmy Johnson’s greatest move.
  • 1977- The Seattle Trade to get Tony Dorsett- on draft day, 1977, everyone knew the Cowboys were looking for a RB. At the last minute it was announced that the Cowboys acquired Seattle’s first round pick (second overall) in exchange for the Cowboys first round pick in 77 plus 3 future 2nd round picks. The Cowboys picked Heisman winner Tony Dorsett. That trade translated into winning the SB that year for the Cowboys and also winning NFC in 77 and 78.
  • 1974- The Trade with the Oilers for Too Tall and Danny- the Oilers traded the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft along with their 3rd round pick to the Cowboys for WR Billy Parks and DE Toadie Smith (Bubba Smith’s little bro) The Cowboys selected Ed “Too Tall” Jones with the first pick. One of the most underrated DL in Cowboys history. Jones played 15 seasons and half of his career, sacks weren’t even kept. He probably had over 100. With the 3rd round pick, the Cowboys acquired QB/P Danny White, who backed up Roger Staubach for 5 seasons before taking over in 1980, leading the team to 3 straight NFC Championships.
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
WORST
  • 2000- The Joey Galloway Trade- Having lost Michael Irvin to injury in ‘99, Jerry was feeling desperate with the clock ticking on Troy Aikman’s career. Jerry worked a deal with Seattle to acquire WR Joey Galloway in exchange for two Cowboys #1 draft picks- in 2000 and 2001. Galloway suffered a serious knee injury in his first game with Dallas in 2000 and was lost for the entire 2000 season, and Troy ended up retiring at the end of the season. Galloway never turned into much in Dallas.

  • 2008 The Roy Williams Trade- Apparently not learning from the Galloway debacle, Jerry pulled another disaster WR trade out of the hat just before the mid-#season trade deadline in 2008. The Cowboys gave up their 2009 first round pick and a third round pick also in 2009 to the lions in exchange for Williams. And he just never fit in. He dropped passes constantly, ran poor routes and was considered lazy. To top it off, in 2009, Williams was given a $54 million contract extension. Probably the worst trade in Cowboys history.
  • 2012- The Mo Claiborne “trade up”- in the 2012 draft, we traded up 8 spots- giving our 14th and 45th pick in that year’s draft to acquire Morris Claiborne with the 6th pick in that draft. Claiborne spent the next 5 years constantly nursing injuries, blowing coverages and basically sparing us all to death. In 2017-18 he played with the jets, then had a one year stint with the chiefs in 2019. He was out of the league at 29.
There are certainly more trades- good and bad that could be mentioned. Any thoughts?
Worst trade was a bag of chips for Garrett
 

CowboyRoy

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In their 60+ years of storied history, the Dallas Cowboys have made some great trades that helped win some championships. And they also had some trade bummers too.

Here’s a look at the best and worst trades in our history:
BEST
  • 1989- The Hershel Walker Trade- In arguably one of the most one sided trades in NFL history, the Cowboys traded HW for 4 number one draft picks over a three year period, and the Cowboys turned those picks into guys like Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, and Darren Woodson. We also received some spare part players like Ike Holt and Jesse Solomon. That trade became the foundation for the 90s championship run of 3 SB wins in 4 years. It’s was Jimmy Johnson’s greatest move.
  • 1977- The Seattle Trade to get Tony Dorsett- on draft day, 1977, everyone knew the Cowboys were looking for a RB. At the last minute it was announced that the Cowboys acquired Seattle’s first round pick (second overall) in exchange for the Cowboys first round pick in 77 plus 3 future 2nd round picks. The Cowboys picked Heisman winner Tony Dorsett. That trade translated into winning the SB that year for the Cowboys and also winning NFC in 77 and 78.
  • 1974- The Trade with the Oilers for Too Tall and Danny- the Oilers traded the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft along with their 3rd round pick to the Cowboys for WR Billy Parks and DE Toadie Smith (Bubba Smith’s little bro) The Cowboys selected Ed “Too Tall” Jones with the first pick. One of the most underrated DL in Cowboys history. Jones played 15 seasons and half of his career, sacks weren’t even kept. He probably had over 100. With the 3rd round pick, the Cowboys acquired QB/P Danny White, who backed up Roger Staubach for 5 seasons before taking over in 1980, leading the team to 3 straight NFC Championships.
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
WORST
  • 2000- The Joey Galloway Trade- Having lost Michael Irvin to injury in ‘99, Jerry was feeling desperate with the clock ticking on Troy Aikman’s career. Jerry worked a deal with Seattle to acquire WR Joey Galloway in exchange for two Cowboys #1 draft picks- in 2000 and 2001. Galloway suffered a serious knee injury in his first game with Dallas in 2000 and was lost for the entire 2000 season, and Troy ended up retiring at the end of the season. Galloway never turned into much in Dallas.

  • 2008 The Roy Williams Trade- Apparently not learning from the Galloway debacle, Jerry pulled another disaster WR trade out of the hat just before the mid-#season trade deadline in 2008. The Cowboys gave up their 2009 first round pick and a third round pick also in 2009 to the lions in exchange for Williams. And he just never fit in. He dropped passes constantly, ran poor routes and was considered lazy. To top it off, in 2009, Williams was given a $54 million contract extension. Probably the worst trade in Cowboys history.
  • 2012- The Mo Claiborne “trade up”- in the 2012 draft, we traded up 8 spots- giving our 14th and 45th pick in that year’s draft to acquire Morris Claiborne with the 6th pick in that draft. Claiborne spent the next 5 years constantly nursing injuries, blowing coverages and basically sparing us all to death. In 2017-18 he played with the jets, then had a one year stint with the chiefs in 2019. He was out of the league at 29.
There are certainly more trades- good and bad that could be mentioned. Any thoughts?

Worst trade was trading another half of year of Wade for 10.5 years or Garrett. I lost a decade of my life watching that clown pretend to be a HC in the NFL.
 

MarkP88

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I should have listed that one! We don’t win that SB in ‘92 without Haley!
Yours were good, though. I almost feel pity for the Seahawks when I think of that Dorsett trade. Like, what in the world were they thinking?
 

Jake

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In their 60+ years of storied history, the Dallas Cowboys have made some great trades that helped win some championships. And they also had some trade bummers too.

Here’s a look at the best and worst trades in our history:
BEST
  • 1989- The Hershel Walker Trade- In arguably one of the most one sided trades in NFL history, the Cowboys traded HW for 4 number one draft picks over a three year period, and the Cowboys turned those picks into guys like Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, and Darren Woodson. We also received some spare part players like Ike Holt and Jesse Solomon. That trade became the foundation for the 90s championship run of 3 SB wins in 4 years. It’s was Jimmy Johnson’s greatest move.
  • 1977- The Seattle Trade to get Tony Dorsett- on draft day, 1977, everyone knew the Cowboys were looking for a RB. At the last minute it was announced that the Cowboys acquired Seattle’s first round pick (second overall) in exchange for the Cowboys first round pick in 77 plus 3 future 2nd round picks. The Cowboys picked Heisman winner Tony Dorsett. That trade translated into winning the SB that year for the Cowboys and also winning NFC in 77 and 78.
  • 1974- The Trade with the Oilers for Too Tall and Danny- the Oilers traded the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft along with their 3rd round pick to the Cowboys for WR Billy Parks and DE Toadie Smith (Bubba Smith’s little bro) The Cowboys selected Ed “Too Tall” Jones with the first pick. One of the most underrated DL in Cowboys history. Jones played 15 seasons and half of his career, sacks weren’t even kept. He probably had over 100. With the 3rd round pick, the Cowboys acquired QB/P Danny White, who backed up Roger Staubach for 5 seasons before taking over in 1980, leading the team to 3 straight NFC Championships.
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
WORST
  • 2000- The Joey Galloway Trade- Having lost Michael Irvin to injury in ‘99, Jerry was feeling desperate with the clock ticking on Troy Aikman’s career. Jerry worked a deal with Seattle to acquire WR Joey Galloway in exchange for two Cowboys #1 draft picks- in 2000 and 2001. Galloway suffered a serious knee injury in his first game with Dallas in 2000 and was lost for the entire 2000 season, and Troy ended up retiring at the end of the season. Galloway never turned into much in Dallas.

  • 2008 The Roy Williams Trade- Apparently not learning from the Galloway debacle, Jerry pulled another disaster WR trade out of the hat just before the mid-#season trade deadline in 2008. The Cowboys gave up their 2009 first round pick and a third round pick also in 2009 to the lions in exchange for Williams. And he just never fit in. He dropped passes constantly, ran poor routes and was considered lazy. To top it off, in 2009, Williams was given a $54 million contract extension. Probably the worst trade in Cowboys history.
  • 2012- The Mo Claiborne “trade up”- in the 2012 draft, we traded up 8 spots- giving our 14th and 45th pick in that year’s draft to acquire Morris Claiborne with the 6th pick in that draft. Claiborne spent the next 5 years constantly nursing injuries, blowing coverages and basically sparing us all to death. In 2017-18 he played with the jets, then had a one year stint with the chiefs in 2019. He was out of the league at 29.
There are certainly more trades- good and bad that could be mentioned. Any thoughts?

So the best trades were when either Jimmy or Landry were involved. The worst were when Jerry & Stephen were left unsupervised.

A microcosm of the last 50 years of the Dallas Cowboys.
 

jazzcat22

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In their 60+ years of storied history, the Dallas Cowboys have made some great trades that helped win some championships. And they also had some trade bummers too.

Here’s a look at the best and worst trades in our history:
BEST
  • 1989- The Hershel Walker Trade- In arguably one of the most one sided trades in NFL history, the Cowboys traded HW for 4 number one draft picks over a three year period, and the Cowboys turned those picks into guys like Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, and Darren Woodson. We also received some spare part players like Ike Holt and Jesse Solomon. That trade became the foundation for the 90s championship run of 3 SB wins in 4 years. It’s was Jimmy Johnson’s greatest move.
  • 1977- The Seattle Trade to get Tony Dorsett- on draft day, 1977, everyone knew the Cowboys were looking for a RB. At the last minute it was announced that the Cowboys acquired Seattle’s first round pick (second overall) in exchange for the Cowboys first round pick in 77 plus 3 future 2nd round picks. The Cowboys picked Heisman winner Tony Dorsett. That trade translated into winning the SB that year for the Cowboys and also winning NFC in 77 and 78.
  • 1974- The Trade with the Oilers for Too Tall and Danny- the Oilers traded the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft along with their 3rd round pick to the Cowboys for WR Billy Parks and DE Toadie Smith (Bubba Smith’s little bro) The Cowboys selected Ed “Too Tall” Jones with the first pick. One of the most underrated DL in Cowboys history. Jones played 15 seasons and half of his career, sacks weren’t even kept. He probably had over 100. With the 3rd round pick, the Cowboys acquired QB/P Danny White, who backed up Roger Staubach for 5 seasons before taking over in 1980, leading the team to 3 straight NFC Championships.
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
WORST
  • 2000- The Joey Galloway Trade- Having lost Michael Irvin to injury in ‘99, Jerry was feeling desperate with the clock ticking on Troy Aikman’s career. Jerry worked a deal with Seattle to acquire WR Joey Galloway in exchange for two Cowboys #1 draft picks- in 2000 and 2001. Galloway suffered a serious knee injury in his first game with Dallas in 2000 and was lost for the entire 2000 season, and Troy ended up retiring at the end of the season. Galloway never turned into much in Dallas.

  • 2008 The Roy Williams Trade- Apparently not learning from the Galloway debacle, Jerry pulled another disaster WR trade out of the hat just before the mid-#season trade deadline in 2008. The Cowboys gave up their 2009 first round pick and a third round pick also in 2009 to the lions in exchange for Williams. And he just never fit in. He dropped passes constantly, ran poor routes and was considered lazy. To top it off, in 2009, Williams was given a $54 million contract extension. Probably the worst trade in Cowboys history.
  • 2012- The Mo Claiborne “trade up”- in the 2012 draft, we traded up 8 spots- giving our 14th and 45th pick in that year’s draft to acquire Morris Claiborne with the 6th pick in that draft. Claiborne spent the next 5 years constantly nursing injuries, blowing coverages and basically sparing us all to death. In 2017-18 he played with the jets, then had a one year stint with the chiefs in 2019. He was out of the league at 29.
There are certainly more trades- good and bad that could be mentioned. Any thoughts?

You should add a side note trade of what led to the Walker trade.

Dallas sent who was it, Mike Renfro to the Oilers for their 5th round draft pick in 1985. Dallas selected Walker knowing he was going to the USFL.
Or was it Butch Johnson or both.
 

Bobhaze

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So the best trades were when either Jimmy or Landry were involved. The worst were when Jerry & Stephen were left unsupervised.

A microcosm of the last 50 years of the Dallas Cowboys.
The Galloway and Williams trades were not only bad- they set up arguably the worst drafts in Cowboys history in 2001 and 2009, having given up their first round picks and also a third. Those trades could be used as models in a training class on how to set your franchise back a decade. Both complete debacles that would have had any NFL executive fired.
 

Bobhaze

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You should add a side note trade of what led to the Walker trade.

Dallas sent who was it, Mike Renfro to the Oilers for their 5th round draft pick in 1985. Dallas selected Walker knowing he was going to the USFL.
Or was it Butch Johnson or both.
Good point. I don’t know the particulars of that but it would be interesting.
 

Jake

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The Galloway and Williams trades were not only bad- they set up arguably the worst drafts in Cowboys history in 2001 and 2009, having given up their first round picks and also a third. Those trades could be used as models in a training class on how to set your franchise back a decade. Both complete debacles that would have had any NFL executive fired.

I'll be honest: I thought the Galloway trade was a good idea. Clearly, I was wrong.

But I was screaming from the heavens to NOT do the Williams trade, and taking a lot of heat on another forum for opposing it. I nailed that one.
 

Bobhaze

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I'll be honest: I thought the Galloway trade was a good idea. Clearly, I was wrong.

But I was screaming from the heavens to NOT do the Williams trade, and taking a lot of heat on another forum for opposing it. I nailed that one.
As bad as the Galloway trade was on its face, I can give JJ a slight pass on it because many thought it was a way to give Aikman another weapon, thinking Troy had 3-4 more years left. The Williams trade is complete moronic stupidity. They did little homework on Williams who was a great athlete and a stud in college at UT. But he was lazy and had very little drive to improve himself as a pro. Bad, bad trade.
 

Jake

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It wasn’t a trade but how about giving up on WR Jimmy Smith back in ‘93?

That looks bad now, but Smith was waived after refusing a pay cut. The Eagles signed him in '94 then cut him in training camp. No one else signed him.

If not for the expansion in 1995, it's likely Smith never has an NFL career. The Jags had open tryouts and he got his shot. The rest is history.
 

jazzcat22

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Good point. I don’t know the particular of that but it would be interesting.

I would need to look it up, the trade. But Dallas selected Walker in the 5th round, and when the USFL went defunct, they had his rights.

Walker was under a personal services contract to Donald Trump who owned the NJ Generals. When they went defunct, he could have had Walker work for him in some other capacity. Instead he let him out of his contract so he could sign with Dallas.
 

Trendnet

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[QUOTE="Bobhaze, post: 11017587, member: 40028"
  • 1990- The Steve Walsh Trade- I think this is an underrated trade. The Cowboys traded Steve Walsh to New Orleans for a first, second and a third round pick. The Cowboys eventually acquired LB Dixon Edwards and more importantly T Erik Williams with that trade capital.
[/QUOTE]

Interestingly enough, if Walsh isn't drafted, chances are Hurricane and future HOF Cortez Kennedy get drafted by the Cowboys with the #1 overall pick in the 90 draft.
 
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