Who are the most underrated players in Cowboys history?

[noshame]

Tough one

Moose
Preston Pearson
Cole Beasley I know Cole didn’t end well but he was open on 3rd down
Oh yeah Newhouse

 

[Cmac]

Novacek and Moose

 

[shabazz]

Alvin Harper…….not a big stats guy but came through when called upon in the biggest situations.

 

[mrmojo]

Butch Johnson....but could neve get past Drew or Hill as a starter
Jay Saldi....solid TE, ST player and blocker
Michael Downs.......solid safety

 

[Western]

The greatness of the hall of fame coaches like Tom Landry, & Jimmy Johnson is that they excelled at getting the best out of average players.
These players may not have been high draft choices or outstanding athletes, but Landry & Jimmy (along with the quality assistant coaching staff they assembled and hired) pushed the right buttons, and sparked these players to perform at the highest level in crucial moments in critical games.
When the lights came on, these underrated players bought into the team concept, accepted their role, and executed and performed their individual skill set at a maximum level.

In the construction of championship teams, having smart commanding authoritative disciplined head coaches who can utilize, and motivate 'average' underrated players to excel, and even transcend their athletic skill set, is an imperative for any quality football organization.

 

[kskboys]

Jay Ratliff. He was a beast of a DL, who would've had a much better career if not played out of position.

 

[Cowboyluck]

Mark stepnowiski

 

[Nickyd2208]

Kevin Smith before the achilles!

 

[Tabascocat]

My uncle William….#40

 

[Chuck 54]

Tough one

Moose
Preston Pearson
Cole Beasley I know Cole didn’t end well but he was open on 3rd down
Oh yeah Newhouse

Preston Pearson is an excellent choice. A solid back who came to Dallas and created the third down specialist position. He was the man on third downs and made some incredible catches out of the backfield.

 

[BourbonBalz]

Aikman should be on the overrated list in my opinion.

LOL. That’s all I need to post.

 

[Pass2Run]

I'm going to throw Doug Free's name into the ring. He was a very solid starter who came up playing next to a bunch of bums, until Jerry started drafting o-line.

Same thing with Greg Ellis. Very solid player who lined up with a bunch of bums until Ware showed up.

You could also add DeMarco Murray.

Scandrick and Woodson also come to mind..

 

[Zekeats]

Danny White, Romo, Dak

Too many people think these guys arent great QB's because the team around them didnt have the success of other QB's. Its the difference between understanding football and not.

Aikman should be on the overrated list in my opinion.

u r lost

 

[JoeKing]

Nate Newton - no RoH, no HoF
Walt Garrison - Texas Sports HoF, ProRodeo HoF but no Cowboys RoH no Pro Football HoF
Don Meredith - RoH but no HoF

 

[plymkr]

Ray Donaldson

 

[plymkr]

Jay Ratliff. He was a beast of a DL, who would've had a much better career if not played out of position.

And if he wasn't crazy.

 

[Hadenough]

Joseph Randle
Dallas beats GB if they split carries with Randle and Murray. Murray was fatigued when he had the ball stripped and that changed the whole momentum of the game. Randle never got his chance. Murray was run into the ground that year and he should of been in a time share with Randle.

 

[J_Allen]

Darren Woodson, Sean Lee, Flozell Adams, Billy Cundiff, Greg Ellis.

Not many people remember this, I've only found one person, but Greg Ellis was a top 5 defensive end before he broke his leg in his second year. He was never the same after that.

 

[Clarke82]

I have a short list of guys for this list. But first my criteria:

• A guy who was never a star
• Contributed to teams that won playoff games
• Is under appreciated outside of Cowboys world. (And maybe in Cowboys world as well)

Here are my three most underrated in no particular order:

• Larry Cole- DE- 1968-1980- played for 13 seasons and played in a whopping 26 playoff games for Dallas, including 7 NFC championship games and 5 SBs, and has two rings. Made many big plays in huge games. His tackle of John Riggins on 3rd and 3 in that skins game in 1979 saved the game and season. One of Tom Landry’s favorite players.
• Tom Rafferty- G/C- 1976-1989- played for 14 seasons, mostly at C, and played in 18 playoff games including 2 SBs and 5 NFC championship games. One of only 5 Cowboys to play for BOTH Tom Landry and Jimmy Johnson. In 1989, he started the first 8 games at C, and was succeeded by a young guy named Mark Stepnoski.
• Bill Bates-S/ST- 1983-1997- played 15 seasons and became a fan favorite as a ST star and backup safety. Played in 14 playoff games, 3 SBs and 4 NFC championship games. Was another of the guys who played for Landry and Jimmy.

Who’s your most underrated Cowboy?

John Niland
Jethro Pugh
Larry Cole
Tom Rafferty
Frank Clarke

 

[kskboys]

And if he wasn't crazy.

Only one incident. Jay's sitting there extremely frustrated w/ an injury that made him unable to play. Jerry walks up to him and exclaims, "C'mon, Jay, get out on the field." I don't blame Jay for blowing up, not at all. And what a chickenpoop thing to say by Jerry.