Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

I felt, at the time, that Landry did Craig Morton a great injustice by starting Staubach in that game. I felt that way to a slightly lesser degree when Shula started Bob Griese over Earl Morrall in the SB. The difference was that Griese had played as the starter that season until he broke his ankle in Week 5 against the Chargers while Roger hadn’t started a game all season.

Handling the qb position was never really a strength of Landry's.

Could this affair possibly be compared to Bills/Steelers' divisional rounder of '92? "What-if" Brister starts instead? IMO it doesn't matter. The Cowher Era Steelers were still new to playoffs whereas Buffalo obviously weren't (and coming really hot off that comeback). Can't imagine Morton making too much difference. This was Washington's year as far as NFC supremacy was concerned. No one in the conference was stopping them. This and the following year's NFCCG were the only lopsided playoff loses Staubach ever suffered.

74_75_78_79_ wrote:This and the following year's NFCCG were the only lopsided playoff loses Staubach ever suffered.

Well, he played in 6 conference championship games, and none were close.

I'll give him credit for the 1972 game against the Niners. So overall:
3-0
1-1
1-1
0-0
2-1
0-1
3-0
2-1
0-1
Overall Record: 12-6
Margin 30+ 2-0 (30W, 30W
Margin 20+ 2-1 (21W, 23L, 28W)
Margin 10+ 5-1 (11W, 11W, 17L, 17W, 17W, 10W
Less than 10 pts 3-4 (8W, 2W, 4W, 4L, 2L, 4L, 2L)

2-4 record in one score games. That hurts a litte bit on the overall. Cowboys, despite being successful, lost more than their share of close games in the playoffs.

Morton did not have that great a year in 1972. 21 INT. Plus he'd done poorly in the playoffs given multiple chances. And the Cowboys running game, coming off a good year and good performance in SF, got stoned anyway.

Interesting if the playoffs had been seeded like they were in 1975 going forward. I think the Packers could beat the Cowboys in Lambeau. Landry would never do the five man line that Allen did. The Redskins, at home against the 49ers, probably win fairly easily. Then they beat the Pack in NFCC. But maybe don't spend as much emotion doing so, and are more ready for the Dolphins. Who knows.

74_75_78_79_ wrote:Could this affair possibly be compared to Bills/Steelers' divisional rounder of '92? Can't imagine Morton making too much difference. This was Washington's year as far as NFC supremacy was concerned. No one in the conference was stopping them.

Jay Z wrote:Morton did not have that great a year in 1972. 21 INT. Plus he'd done poorly in the playoffs given multiple chances. And the Cowboys running game, coming off a good year and good performance in SF, got stoned anyway.

I think a similar situation happened a few years later in the NFC. James Harris had been the Rams starter for the 1975 season, had kind of a down year and then got hurt at the end of the regular season. Jaworski started the divisional game and played well in a big win. Knox sent Jaworski back to the bench for the championship game against Dallas, Harris started and immediately threw an INT leading to the first score of the game. Jaworski relieved Harris, and didn't do much either, and Dallas overcame a +6.5 line and won in a road upset.

Morton was terrible in the postseason with the Cowboys. Like historically terrible. When he was pulled in the 72 Niners game, he was 8-21 for 96 yards and 2 INTs and a 29.2 rating...which was actually better than 2 of his previous 4 postseason starts. The only reason to start Morton in the NFC Championship game was that he and the Cowboys had beaten Washington just a few weeks earlier. The Redskins were resting Larry Brown, but the Cowboys did score 34 points on offense.

Going into that Redskins game, Morton's postseason numbers were: 49 of 137 for 4 TD's, with 10 interceptions. PFR credits him with a 3-2 record in his playoff starts up to that point, but the first of those was the 5-0 snoozefest against the Lions in 70 and the Niners game the week before the 72 title game--which Staubach really won.