Dorsett-The Forgotten RB

[hughp33]

I use "33" on the end of all my pasword because of him. I was a fan of his when I lived in Pittsburgh, when the Steelers were big, and he got drafted by Dallas. That's how I became a 'Boys fan!!:starspin

 

[muck4doo]

My first favorite sports hero. I became a Cowboys fan when Dallas drafted him. Before that I didn't pay much attention to football, and was more into baseball. He is never forgotten.

 

[erod]

I remember when he was drafted. What was Seattle thinking?

I was giddy as could be. Couldn't sit still during fifth grade getting ready for that season, and Cowboys news was really hard to come by in 1976.

One of the most fun seasons I can ever remember, his rookie year. Unfortunately, that'd be his only Super Bowl victory.

 

[KJJ]

Tony Dorsett is far from forgotten he's one of the most memorable players in NFL history. His NFL record 99 yard TD run has been shown as many times through the years as the Hail Mary. No back could go from 0 to 60 quicker than Dorsett or could change directions on a dime like he could.

 

[KJJ]

I remember when he was drafted. What was Seattle thinking?

They were probably thinking the same thing as Tampa who had the #1 overall pick that Dorsett was too small. The Bucs opted for Ricky Bell who was a bigger back. Seattle had OL issues and chose an OT with their first pick at #14. There were many who didn't think Dorsett had the size to play in the NFL even Landry was concerned about it. I read that Dorsett showed up at camp his rookie year at 175-180 lbs. Drew Pearson commented in an interview about how fragile Dorsett looked.

 

[footballnflstyle]

tony dorsett is one the best RB to play the game,in college playing for pitt the dude was just ridiculous and he carried it over in the NFL..the critics would say he was small and couldn't take alot of punishment,but he was built like a freakin rock and was alot stonger then defender's thought..i think i said enough about TD..who's next?

 

[CooterBrown]

Without looking, I'd bet money that Dorsett is the only player ever to win a Heisman, play on a collegiate National Championship team, and a play on a Superbowl winning team in the next football season. He made winning look easy.

 

[footballnflstyle]

tony dorsett is one the best RB to play the game,in college playing for pitt the dude was just ridiculous and he carried it over in the NFL..the critics would say he was small and couldn't take alot of punishment,but he was built like a freakin rock and was alot stonger then defender's thought..i think i said enough about TD..who's next?

i also wanted to add,back in the 70's when he was playing at pitt i couldn't wait for saturday to come around and watch this dude..everytime he touch the ball you thought it would be for 6..classic games down in southbend ind against ND,going to georgia to play the bulldogs TD would be unstoppable..

 

[KJJ]

Dorsett was a gifted back but he was very fortunate to end up on a championship caliber Cowboys team that had a great OL and was being led by Roger Staubach. I think it's safe to say his NFL career wouldn't have gone nearly as well had he ended up in Tampa or Seattle.

 

[Reverend Conehead]

When I was a kid the Cowboys won the Super Bowl with two excellent running backs in Duane Thomas and Calvin Hill. Thomas was a bruiser style of runner like Jim Brown, but he was a major head case whose time on the team and in the NFL was short-lived. After Thomas went off to play for the Chargers, Calvin Hill carried the load. He was a hard hitter capable of delivering yards, but I always remember wishing we had OJ Simpson. I watched highlights of The Juice and was amazed and wished he didn't have to waste his career on a crappy team like the Bills. If only OJ could become a Cowboy! That, of course, never happened, but when we signed Dorsett I had visions of OJ. We finally had a super fast and insanely elusive RB. (Today I'm glad OJ never became a Cowboy, but at the time I was a huge fan.)

 

[5Stars]

They were probably thinking the same thing as Tampa who had the #1 overall pick that Dorsett was too small. The Bucs opted for Ricky Bell who was a bigger back. Seattle had OL issues and chose an OT with their first pick at #14. There were many who didn't think Dorsett had the size to play in the NFL even Landry was concerned about it. I read that Dorsett showed up at camp his rookie year at 175-180 lbs. Drew Pearson commented in an interview about how fragile Dorsett looked.

KJJ, you are a wealth of knowledge! How the hell can you remember all of that?

:laugh2:

 

[footballnflstyle]

When I was a kid the Cowboys won the Super Bowl with two excellent running backs in Duane Thomas and Calvin Hill. Thomas was a bruiser style of runner like Jim Brown, but he was a major head case whose time on the team and in the NFL was short-lived. After Thomas went off to play for the Chargers, Calvin Hill carried the load. He was a hard hitter capable of delivering yards, but I always remember wishing we had OJ Simpson. I watched highlights of The Juice and was amazed and wished he didn't have to waste his career on a crappy team like the Bills. If only OJ could become a Cowboy! That, of course, never happened, but when we signed Dorsett I had visions of OJ. We finally had a super fast and insanely elusive RB. (Today I'm glad OJ never became a Cowboy, but at the time I was a huge fan.)

it's ashame what OJ did to ruin his life,but OJ on the football field was very close to how TD ran the football..they pretty much had the same glide in there stride..uncanny!!

 

[ITSEL33]

I use "33" on the end of all my pasword because of him. I was a fan of his when I lived in Pittsburgh, when the Steelers were big, and he got drafted by Dallas. That's how I became a 'Boys fan!!:starspin

Me too!!:starspin

 

[KJJ]

KJJ, you are a wealth of knowledge! How the hell can you remember all of that?

:laugh2:

It's a result of being a diehard Cowboys/NFL fan and all the in depth research I've done over an 11 year period from talking/arguing football online. I've had countless debates over the years that have forced me to dig up many a fact which has resulted in a very strong relationship with google. I certainly don't remember everything and what I don't remember I look up.

 

[ilovejerry]

I loved this guy. I think he gets overlooked because of Emmitts greatness. I hope Demarco can turn into our next great one. This vid is sweet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nhyc1AB2N0

[youtube]4nhyc1AB2N0[/youtube]

Forgotten? By who ? Any self respecting Cowboy fan who doesn't acknowledge the greatness of TD is not a Cowboy fan in my opinion. Number 2 rushing yard leader when he retired....My favorite Cowboy off all time!!!

 

[dfan32]

Dorsett was a gifted back but he was very fortunate to end up on a championship caliber Cowboys team that had a great OL and was being led by Roger Staubach. I think it's safe to say his NFL career wouldn't have gone nearly as well had he ended up in Tampa or Seattle.

You could say that Emmitt was very fortunate to end up in Dallas as well. I think they were both great backs....would have been great no matter where they went but were better in Dallas than they would have been elsewhere.

 

[KJJ]

You could say that Emmitt was very fortunate to end up in Dallas as well. I think they were both great backs....would have been great no matter where they went but were better in Dallas than they would have been elsewhere.

You could say that but at the time Emmitt didn't look very fortunate the Cowboys had just come off a 1-15 season when they drafted him. The Cowboys were a dreadful team when Emmitt arrived but were a championship caliber team and had been for a number of years when Dorsett arrived. The Cowboys went 11-3 without Dorsett the year before and were only 2 years removed from a SB appearance. Dorsett had an established team around him as a rookie loaded with veteran players who had years of playoff experience. The Cowboys could win games without Dorsett but he added an element that the team lacked.

The Cowboys couldn't win without Emmitt their offense revolved around him which is why his rushing yards are at the top of the all-time list and Aikman's passing yards are middle of the pack. Dorsett wouldn't have had a very long career had he been used like Emmitt who had 4 seasons of over 360 carries. Dorsett never had one season of over 360 carries. We can only speculate on how each player would have done with another team but Emmitt showed even on a bad Cowboy team in 1990 that he could be very effective. He was a punishing runner who could slither through defenders, bounce off of piles and had a nose for the endzone.

Emmitt sucked the life out of teams with 10 to 20 yard runs. Dorsett was known for the big electrifying run but would have struggled on far less talented teams that were forced to pound him behind a poor OL or had to abandon the run due to always being behind. Dorsett's open field runs were a thing of beauty that's what he's remembered for. You could stop him all day then BOOM! He did virtually nothing against the Vikings on that Monday Night game in 82 before busting off his record setting 99 yard TD run. He was a great player but Emmitt with his style, stout build and durability would have fit even on a bad team which was proven with the 7-9 1990 Cowboys.

 

[CooterBrown]

When I was a kid the Cowboys won the Super Bowl with two excellent running backs in Duane Thomas and Calvin Hill. Thomas was a bruiser style of runner like Jim Brown, but he was a major head case whose time on the team and in the NFL was short-lived. After Thomas went off to play for the Chargers, Calvin Hill carried the load. He was a hard hitter capable of delivering yards, but I always remember wishing we had OJ Simpson. I watched highlights of The Juice and was amazed and wished he didn't have to waste his career on a crappy team like the Bills. If only OJ could become a Cowboy! That, of course, never happened, but when we signed Dorsett I had visions of OJ. We finally had a super fast and insanely elusive RB. (Today I'm glad OJ never became a Cowboy, but at the time I was a huge fan.)

Calvin Hill was there as the starting running back before Duane Thomas was drafted. In fact, (I don't remember the year) Calvin Hill won the rookie of the year award. I believe Hill was injured so Thomas got to play. Duane Thomas' first duty with the Cowboys was as a kick returner. Duane Thomas lost his marbles (or was smart enough to know how much he should have been paid, depending on who you ask), Calvin Hill went to the WFL, Ron Springs was a servicable running back but not elite, and so.....here came Dorsett. All this is from a long-time fan's memory bank.

 

[muck4doo]

It's a result of being a diehard Cowboys/NFL fan and all the in depth research I've done over an 11 year period from talking/arguing football online. I've had countless debates over the years that have forced me to dig up many a fact which has resulted in a very strong relationship with google. I certainly don't remember everything and what I don't remember I look up.

'Hear hear!

 

[Reverend Conehead]

Calvin Hill was there as the starting running back before Duane Thomas was drafted. In fact, (I don't remember the year) Calvin Hill won the rookie of the year award. I believe Hill was injured so Thomas got to play. Duane Thomas' first duty with the Cowboys was as a kick returner. Duane Thomas lost his marbles (or was smart enough to know how much he should have been paid, depending on who you ask), Calvin Hill went to the WFL, Ron Springs was a servicable running back but not elite, and so.....here came Dorsett. All this is from a long-time fan's memory bank.

I remember these things, but I was really young when the things with Duane Thomas went down. I remember my dad being angry with him. He felt that the Cowboys could have won two championships in a row if Thomas hadn't wigged out. Thomas went on to the Chargers and then to the Commanders. I think he also went to the WFL, but I'm not sure. I do remember he came back to the Cowboys in the preseason in about '75 or '76. We were rooting for him to do well, but by then he had lost a step and didn't make the team. It's a shame because he had a flash or greatness.

There are other running backs I loved. Robert Newhouse wasn't flashy, but was powerful and built low to the ground, rough to tackle. I recently re-watched the '75 playoff game against the Vikes, the one known for the "Hail Mary." What people forget about that game was that it was primarily a grind it out running game. Newhouse carried much of the load. The other running back I loved was Herschel Walker. He was the epitome of a great attitude and was an amazing all-around back. I was furious when he was traded. At the time he was my favorite Cowboys player and I didn't know what a great deal for us that trade was. He came back for a second stint with the team in '96. I was really hoping the team had enough in the tank for another Super Bowl so that Herschel would get a ring, but it just wasn't meant to be I guess.