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Tom Landry was the first coach of the Dallas Cowboys and took the team to five playoff appearances in the 1980s, including three straight NFC Championship Games to start the decade. Source: https://wrtla.org/legacy-giving/(May be subject to copyright) |
At the dawn of the 1980s, it looked as if Coach Tom Landry and his Dallas Cowboys would continue on building that legacy, but as the decade ended so did the coach’s time with the team.
I recently read Tom Landry’s autobiography and it was very telling not only of the game and the teams he coached, but of the man himself.
Dawn of the decade
It looked very much like business as usual for the Dallas Cowboys as the calendar flipped to 1980. Although their star quarterback Roger Staubach, who had taken them to Super Bowl glory had retired, venerable back-up Danny White stepped in without missing a beat.
It looked very much like business as usual for the Dallas Cowboys as the calendar flipped to 1980. Although their star quarterback Roger Staubach, who had taken them to Super Bowl glory had retired, venerable back-up Danny White stepped in without missing a beat.
NFC Championship Game – Act 1
The Cowboys had finished tied with the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East Division title in the 1980 season. However, they lost a tiebreaker and had to take the long way to the NFC Championship Game. The Cowboys defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Wildcard Game then upset the top-seeded Atlanta Falcons to advance to the NFC Championship to face the upstart Eagles. Philadelphia had been a perennial doormat, but found new life under head coach Dick Vermeil and quarterback Ron Jaworski, and were threatening to go to their first Super Bowl in franchise history.
The game was held in the cold of Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, and the Eagles used home-field advantage to defeat the Cowboys by a score of 20-7.
NFC Championship Game – Act 2
However, the Cowboys were back in the NFC Championship Game in 1981. It would turn out to hinge on one of the most famous and memorable plays in football history.
Dallas went 12-4 to win the NFC East Division. They defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional Playoff to face the upstart San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. This was where legends were born. The teams went back and forth until Dallas led 27-21 late in the game. San Francisco quarterback Joe Montana took over and drove the ball down the field. In what looked like an innocuous play, he was flushed out of the pocket and running to his right. To avoid a loss, he just seemingly threw the ball away. Then receiver Dwight Clark leaped high in the air and caught the ball, landing with both feet in bounds for the winning touchdown. It has become one of the game’s iconic moments and really began San Francisco’s run as one of the best teams of the century. They went on to defeat Cincinnati to win their first of four Super Bowls in the 1980s.
NFC Championship Game – Act 3
Still, the Cowboys were not done yet, advancing to their third straight NFC Championship Game in 1982. This time they were in a dogfight with their NFC East rivals from Washington. However, there were no divisional rivalries per se that year. A player strike shortened the NFL schedule from 16 games to nine games, forcing a realignment of the playoffs. Instead of divisional champions and wildcard teams qualifying for the playoffs, in 1982 the top eight teams in each conference made the playoffs in a self-styled Super Bowl tournament. First place would play eighth place, second would play seventh and so on.
The Cowboys finished second in the NFC behind Washington who went 8-1. That gave them a first-round game against Tampa Bay for the second year in a row. They beat Tampa Bay, advancing to the semi-final where they defeated Green Bay to move on to the NFC Championship Game against Washington. But, for the third straight season, the Cowboys could just not make it past the NFC Championsgip Game, falling 31-17 to Washington, who would go on to defeat Miami to win the Super Bowl.
It would be the last time the Cowboys would get that far in the playoffs under Tom Landry.
Slow descent
The Cowboys broke the record for most consecutive playoff appearances at nine in the 1983 season. They finished second to Washington in the NFC East, and played the Los Angeles Rams in the Wildcard Game, losing to the Rams.
The Cowboys broke the record for most consecutive playoff appearances at nine in the 1983 season. They finished second to Washington in the NFC East, and played the Los Angeles Rams in the Wildcard Game, losing to the Rams.
That streak would be broken in 1984 when the Cowboys missed the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. They went 9-7 and finished fourth on the NFC East.
Dallas was back in the playoffs in 1985, finishing 10-6 and first in the NFC East. That put the Cowboys in the NFC Divisional Game which they lost to the Rams by a 20-0 score. It was the last time Dallas would make the playoffs under Tom Landry.
In 1986, the Cowboys went 7-9 finishing third in the NFC East, followed by a 7-8 record and second in the NFC East in the strike-shortened 1987 season.
It all came to an end in 1988. The Cowboys fell to 3-13, missing the playoffs for the third straight season. It was the worst record in the NFL. It was also the worst record in franchise history since they went winless in 1960. That year, however, the team was an expansion franchise.
Winds of change
Tom Landry had been the first and only coach in Cowboys’ history. He served under Tex Schramm, who had been general manager from the start, and Clint Murchison, who was the owner and founder of the Dallas Cowboys.
Tom Landry had been the first and only coach in Cowboys’ history. He served under Tex Schramm, who had been general manager from the start, and Clint Murchison, who was the owner and founder of the Dallas Cowboys.
They forged a winning relationship that took them to five Super Bowls, and two championships. The key to success was that Murchison left Schramm to be general manager and Schramm left Landry to be coach.
Things began to change in 1984 when Murchison got sick and sold the Cowboys to Bum Bright. He left things pretty much status quo, until he sold the team to Jerry Jones in 1989.
Change was coming.
End of an era
Rumours started almost immediately that Jones was going to make some changes. It didn't matter who was with the Cowboys when he bought them, nor for how long.
Rumours started almost immediately that Jones was going to make some changes. It didn't matter who was with the Cowboys when he bought them, nor for how long.
The rumours ramped up he was going to name Jimmy Johnson the new coach of the Cowboys. Johnson was Jones' old college friend and was currently the head coach of the University of Miami Hurricanes.
Landry was never kept in the loop, and began preparing for the next season, just as he had the previous 28 seasons. He had hired new coaches and scheduled team meetings.
Rumours intensified. Pretty soon Schramm was let go, and Tom Landry went out the door right along with him.
It was the end of an era.
By the book
Landry’s autobiography reveals a lot of interesting behind-the-scene information. The book starts with his imminent departure from the Cowboys and just how little Jerry Jones kept him informed of his plans.
Landry’s autobiography reveals a lot of interesting behind-the-scene information. The book starts with his imminent departure from the Cowboys and just how little Jerry Jones kept him informed of his plans.
It then traces Landry’s rise from player to coach. He was the defensive coordinator of a powerhouse New York Giants coaching staff that included Vince Lombardi as offensive coordinator. When Dallas was granted an NFL expansion franchise for the 1960 season, Landry would be named the team’s inaugural coach.
Meanwhile, Lombardi would go to Green Bay to coach the Packers and, once the Cowboys got rolling, the two franchises, and their coaches, would become intense rivals for the NFL Championship.
That rivalry was obviously very important to Landry, because he spends a lot more time describing all those losses to the Packers than some of his Super Bowl victories. In fact, he spends a lot of time talking about Dallas’ playoff futility leading up to their win over Miami in Super Bowl VI. Later on, he spends just one page on the Cowboys’ Super Bowl win over Denver at the end of the 1977 season.
The book also talks about various relationships with players. Most notably for me was the relationship with Roger Staubach, who was one of the first players I ever really liked a lot. The book chronicles how Staubach was drafted out the Naval Academy and had to fulfill military service before joining the Cowboys. Then he went through a quarterback controversy with Craig Morton and ultimately prevailed, in time to lead Dallas to their first Super Bowl win, over Miami. One of the interesting aspects of their relationship was the disagreement they had over play calling. Landry insisted on calling the offensive plays while Staubach constantly agitated to call his own plays.
Landry also discusses his dislike for the Cowboys being called America’s team, the relationship he had with all-star runningback Tony Dorsett and more.
The book concludes with his ouster by Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson, and how much protest came not only from Dallas, but from all of Texas and the entire country.
I got the sense that gave Landry a bit of closure. It showed him how much all his efforts as the first, and to that point only, coach of the Dallas Cowboys was really appreciated.
Parting thoughts
Some times what is not written in an autobiography is just as telling as what is. Looking back, I am still struck by how humble he was about his victories and, consequently, did not go into much detail on them. Yet he spent a great deal of time on his setbacks and failures, but also how the Cowboys ultimately overcame them.
Some times what is not written in an autobiography is just as telling as what is. Looking back, I am still struck by how humble he was about his victories and, consequently, did not go into much detail on them. Yet he spent a great deal of time on his setbacks and failures, but also how the Cowboys ultimately overcame them.
Although he does not whine or complain, I definitely could sense the hurt Tom Landry felt at the way Jerry Jones replaced him. It is true that Landry began as an innovator but, as things tend to happen, over time he fell behind the times. Football was not the same game in 1988 as it was in 1960.
It probably was time for Landry to move on from coaching the Cowboys. Yet, it could have been handled with much more class and respect, so the coach could leave with his dignity, and his head held high.
Still, he was one of the greats.
He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990, and passed away in 2000 at the age of 75.
The last phase of his success was in the 1980s, where he went to three straight NFC Championship Games and made the playoffs five out of the 10 seasons of the decade.
Most teams would die for that type of success.
For Tom Landry, it was just par for the course.
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