Dallas Cowboys: Cowboys Season Similar to ’92

In 1992, the Dallas Cowboys went 13-3, won the NFC East, secured a #2 seed, and won the Super Bowl. This Cowboys team is capable of doing the same thing.

During the 1992 season, the Dallas Cowboys were a young and upcoming team with plenty of talent. In 1991, that particular Cowboys team beat the Chicago Bears in the playoffs before losing to the Detroit Lions in the Divisional round.

Something special was in the making.

So when the 1992 season started, the Cowboys were expected to make the playoffs, but that was about it. At the time, the San Francisco 49ers were the best team in the NFL, with future Hall of Famers galore. The 49ers were the cream of the crop — the New England Patriots of their era.

Dallas was a considered a year or two away from dethroning the 49ers. But it changed that year when Dallas went 13-3 and beat the 49ers in the NFC Championship game.

The young, ultra talented Cowboys humiliated the Buffalo Bills 52-17 in Super Bowl XXVII, and won their first of three Super Bowls in four years.

A dynasty was born.

This Dallas team is similar to the ’92 team in several ways.

One of the first similarities is the expectations. Although there is a plot twist, the reality is the same, since each team wasn’t expected to make a lot of noise.

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Because of the injury to starting quarterback Tony Romo, this team wasn’t expected to do anything, except prepare itself for another top-five draft pick for the second consecutive year.

Of course, that changed as rookie signal caller Dak Prescott led Dallas to a surprising 13 victories and setting rookie franchise records along the way.

Like the ’92 team, this team isn’t taken seriously, either, despite owning the best record in the NFC and winning 11 consecutive games.

Even though Dallas is favored to beat the Green Bay Packers, there are many critics who believe Aaron Rodgers (the next Messiah) is going to upset the Cowboys.

Rodgers has the Packers on a seven game winning streak, dating back to the regular season. For some reason the critics forget the Cowboys beat the Packers at Lambeau Field already.

Dallas will have to destroy the Packers like the previous Cowboys team did when they crushed the Philadelphia Eagles 34-10 in the Divisional round of the playoffs back in ’92.

One of the most glaring similarities is the Cowboys’ running game. The ’92 team leaned heavily on the running game with Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith carrying the load. The elusive Smith won the rushing title and led all backs in touchdowns.

Rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott led the NFL in rushing this season. and he’s the same workhorse as Smith was to that Dallas team. Because of Zeke, Dallas led the league in TOP (time of possession) and Zeke makes it hard for opposing defenses to play nickel packages.

Zeke is a phenomenal runner like Emmitt, scoring touchdowns and moving the changes. Also, Zeke makes opposing teams pick their poison, too, which is the next similarity.

We all know the ’92 team consisted of the triplets, Hall of Famers Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, and Smith. In addition to Zeke, there is Dez Bryant and Dak.

What made the 90’s triplets special was that when teams loaded the box, Irvin dominated the man coverage and scored touchdowns. This team is built the same way with Dez dominating man coverage.

Because there is no better wideout at catching one on one deep passes than Dez.

I’ll be the first to admit that Dez has struggled in some games, but he’s also made up for those games, too. The Cowboys depend on Dez like their predecessors depended on Irvin — always making the big play in crunch time.

The most complex similarity is the quarterback position. When Aikman led the Cowboys on their Super Bowl run, he was in his fourth year, a seasoned veteran who took his knocks along the way.

Dak is in his first year. I’ve heard enough about Dak being a rookie, the rookie wall, the playoffs are different, he’s a fourth rounder, the lights will be too big for him, and the tooth fairly is for children etc….

Dak has all of the traits Aikman possessed: leadership, command of the huddle, poise, pocket awareness, high football IQ, and being a dominant Field General. Dak also gained the respect of his veteran teammates in preseason.

What Dak lacks in years of experience he makes up for with the aforementioned characteristics.

Dez, Jason Witten, Terrance Williams, Sean Lee, Demarcus Lawrence, Orlando Scandrick, and Morris Claiborne would not follow this young man if he wasn’t a leader, especially Dez  and Witten.

Head coach Jason Garrett is not former Dallas head coach Jimmy Johnson, but Garrett is doing his best coaching ever.

Garrett has kept this team focused and has done a wonderful job with Dak. He deserves COY (Coach of the Year). He doesn’t get enough credit for getting this team to overachieve, like the “no name defense”. 

In fact, one could argue Garrett’s job is much harder than the one Johnson had back in ’92. To start the season with a rookie signal caller is a task all by itself.

The ’92 team was a talented team littered with first round players, but it was experienced, something that gets over looked. Free Agency didn’t exist yet, so most of the players had been together for at least four years.

And this team is young and talented with experience, too. Outside of Dak, Zeke, and corner Anthony Brown as rookie starters, the rest of the team has been together for several seasons.

People forget that the majority of this team played together in the 2014 playoffs, and some of this team has been together since 2012, if you want to count top draft picks.

Let’s be mindful that Dallas won four games last season because of pathetic quarterback play. That’s the only reason. If not for that, Dallas makes the playoffs.

Next: Surprise! the Dallas Cowboys Secondary is Actually a Strength

All I’m saying is that the experience is there for the Cowboys, along with the new triplets, the coaching, the victories, and the expectations.

Similar to the 1992 Super Bowl winning Cowboys!