Slow Starts for Dallas in the 70s; but Great Teams

[LeonardRachiele]

Going back to the 70s,  fans say that the Miami Dolphins and the Pittsburgh Steelers were the dominant teams.  The Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls.  The Miami Dolphins were in the Super Bowl three consecutive years, winning the last two.  The Dallas Cowboys were in five Super Bowls in that decade with a 2-3 record.  Most seasons, the Cowboys started slowly but began to pour it on as the season progressed.  No Cowboy fan has any reason to complain.  Nevertheless,  had Dallas won earlier in these years they could have played some throw away games with an eye to the future. Here is a quick look.

1970-the Cowboys' record was 5-4 after nine games; included were a 54 to 13 loss at Minnesota and a 38 to 0 loss at home to St Louis; after that, the  Cowboys won five consecutive games to finish at 10-4; in the playoffs they defeated Detroit 5 to 0 and San Francisco 17 to 10; Dallas lost the Super Bowl to the Baltimore Colts 16 to 13.

1971-the Cowboys record was 4-3 after seven games; Dallas then won seven in a row to finish 11-3; in the playoffs they defeated the Minnesota Vikings 20 to 12 and the San Francisco 49ers 14 to 3; the Cowboys defeated the Miami Dolphins 24 to 3 in the Super Bowl.

1973-as with 1971, the Cowboys' record was 4-3 after seven games; then Dallas won six of the next seven to finish at 10-4;  Dallas defeated the Los Angeles Rams 27 to 16 and lost the NFC Championship to Minnesota 27 to 10.

1974-the Cowboys let the early season problems go too long in a rebuilding but still good year;  defeated the Atlanta Falcons 24 to 0 in the first game; lost four close games in a row and stood at 1-4; Dallas won seven of the next eight; oddly the four game slide started with a 13 to 10 loss on Monday football at Philadelphia; and seven of eight winning streak began with a 31 to 24 victory at home versus Philadelphia; the only loss was 28 to 21 at Washington; included in this streak were a 10 to 0 win over the Houston Oilers and the famous Thanksgiving win 24 to 23 over the Redskins; Clint Longley replaced Roger Staubach and threw two touchdown passes.   The  Cowboys were 8-6 in 1974 and out of the playoffs.  Note they did have two shoutouts

1975-After eight games, Dallas was only 5-3;  then they won five of the next six to finish 10-4.  Dallas defeated the Vikings 17 to 14 and the Rams 37 to 7.  In the Super Bowl the Cowboys lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 21 to 17.

1978-After ten games, the Cowboys were only 6-4;  after that, they won the final six games to finish 12-4.   They defeated the Atlanta Falcons 27 to 20 and the Los Angeles Ram 28 to 0 in the playoffs.  Dallas lost the Super Bowl 35 to 31 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.