1971 Dallas Cowboys season

1971 Dallas Cowboys season
Head coach	Tom Landry
General manager	Tex Schramm
Owner	Clint Murchison, Jr.
Home field	Cotton Bowl Texas Stadium
Results
Record	11–3
Division place	1st NFC East
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Vikings) 20–12 Won Conference Championship (49ers) 14–3 Won Super Bowl VI (Dolphins) 24–3

The 1971 Dallas Cowboys season was the team's 12th in the National Football League and the first at the new Texas Stadium in suburban Irving, Texas. The club led the NFL with 406 points scored. Their defense allowed 222 points.

For the sixth consecutive season, the Cowboys had a first-place finish. They won their second-consecutive NFC championship, then defeated the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI to capture their first Super Bowl championship. They were the first team from the NFC to win a Super Bowl since the 1970 merger of the National Football League and the American Football League, and subsequently, the first team from the NFC East division to win the title.

Offseason

Draft

The 1971 NFL Draft was one of the worst in the history of the franchise, although the Cowboys recovered draft choices by trading Tody Smith and Ike Thomas to other teams.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1971 Dallas Cowboys draft
1	25	Tody Smith	DE	USC
2	51	Ike Thomas	DB	Bishop
3	69	Sam Scarber	RB	New Mexico
3	77	Bill Gregory	DT	Wisconsin
4	80	Joe Carter	TE	Grambling State
4	103	Adam Mitchell	OT	Ole Miss
5	129	Ron Kadziel	LB	Stanford
6	155	Steve Maier	WR	Northern Arizona
7	181	Bill Griffin	OT	Catawba
8	206	Ron Jessie	WR	Kansas
9	233	Honor Jackson	DB	Pacific
10	259	Rodney Wallace	OT	New Mexico
11	285	Ernest Bonwell	DT	Lane
12	311	Steve Goepel	QB	Colgate
13	337	James Ford	RB	Texas Southern
14	363	Tyrone Couey	DB	Utah State
15	389	Bob Young	TE	Delaware
16	415	John Brennan	OT	Boston College
17	440	John Bomer	C	Memphis
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

^[1]

Season recap

The Cowboys opened the new Texas Stadium with a 44–21 win over the New England Patriots on Oct. 24. Duane Thomas scored the first touchdown, a 56-yard run two minutes and 16 seconds after the start of the game. Attendance was 65,708 persons.

The team entered the season still having the reputation of "not being able to win the big games" and "next year's champion". The Super Bowl V loss added more fuel to that widely held view. As in the previous season, Dallas had a quarterback controversy as Staubach and Craig Morton alternated as starting quarterback (in a loss to the Bears in game 7, Morton and Staubach alternated plays).^[2] The Cowboys were 4–3 at the season midpoint. But after head coach Tom Landry settled on Staubach, the Cowboys won their last seven regular season games to finish with an 11–3 record.

Cowboys' running back Duane Thomas rushing the ball for a touchdown in Super Bowl VI.

Staubach finished the regular season as the NFL's top rated passer (101.8) by throwing for 1,882 yards, 15 touchdowns, and only 4 interceptions. He was also a terrific rusher, gaining 343 yards and 2 touchdowns on 41 carries. Said Cold Hard Football Facts of Staubach's 1971 season, "Staubach finally out-jockeyed Craig Morton for the starting gig with the Cowboys in 1971 and instantly produced one of the greatest passing seasons in history. The numbers are not big and gaudy, but they were ruthlessly efficient –- the 104.8 passer rating truly amazing in a season in which the average rating was 62.2. His 8.9 [yards-per-attempt] in the regular season is phenomenal in any era of the NFL, as was his 18 [touchdowns] against a meager 4 [interceptions] (including postseason). The Cowboys did not lose a single one of Staubach's 13 starts in 1971 and –- most impressively –- he lifted the proverbial "team that couldn't win the big game" to its long-awaited first NFL championship.[...]"^[3]

Dallas also had an outstanding trio of running backs, Walt Garrison, Duane Thomas, and Calvin Hill, who rushed for a combined total of 1,690 yards and 14 touchdowns during the season. Garrison led the team in receptions during the season. (Thomas, upset that the Cowboys would not renegotiate his contract after his excellent rookie year, had stopped talking to the press and to almost everyone on the team). Wide Receivers Bob Hayes and Lance Alworth also provided a deep threat, catching a combined total of 69 passes for 1,327 yards and 10 touchdowns. The offensive line, anchored by all-pro tackle Rayfield Wright, Pro Bowlers John Niland and Ralph Neely, and #64 Tony Liscio who was coaxed out of retirement by Tom Landry after Ralph Neely got injured off the field, was also a primary reason for their success on offense. (Neely had broken his leg in November in a dirt-bike accident, and was replaced first by Gregg and then by Tony Liscio, who came out of retirement.)

The Dallas defense (nicknamed the "Doomsday Defense") had given up only one touchdown in the last 25 quarters prior to the Super Bowl. Their defensive line was anchored by Pro Bowl defensive tackle Bob Lilly, who excelled at pressuring quarterbacks and breaking up running plays. Dallas also had an outstanding trio of linebackers: Pro Bowler Chuck Howley, who recorded 5 interceptions and returned them for 122 yards; Dave Edwards 2 interceptions; and Lee Roy Jordan, who recorded 2 interceptions. The Cowboys secondary was led by 2 future hall of fame cornerbacks Herb Adderley (6 interceptions for 182 return yards) and Mel Renfro (4 interceptions for 11 yards). Safeties Cliff Harris and Pro Bowler Cornell Green also combined for 4 interceptions.After the 1971 Bob Lilly would play in the last of his last pro bowl despite being selected after the 1972 and 1973 seasons.Lilly would also score his final career touchdown in a 42–7 smashing of The Philadelphia Eagles.Lilly would retire with the NFL record of scoring the most tds by a defensive lineman with 4.

September 26, 1971 – Herb Adderley became the first Cowboy to have three interceptions in one game.
The Cowboys earned their first win on Monday Night Football by defeating the New York Giants 20–13 which also the last game The Cowboys played in The Cotton Bowl.

Schedule

Week	Date	Result	Record	Opponent	Points For	Points Against	First Downs	Attendance
1	September 19	Win	1–0	at Buffalo Bills	49	37	19	46,206
2	September 26	Win	2–0	at Philadelphia Eagles	42	7	23	65,358
3	October 3	Loss	2–1	Washington Redskins	16	20	20	61,554
4	October 11	Win	3–1	New York Giants	20	13	21	68,378
5	October 17	Loss	3–2	at New Orleans Saints	14	24	20	83,088
6	October 24	Win	4–2	New England Patriots	44	21	20	65,708
7	October 31	Loss	4–3	at Chicago Bears	19	23	26	55,049
8	November 7	Win	5–3	at St. Louis Cardinals	16	13	20	50,486
9	November 14	Win	6–3	Philadelphia Eagles	20	7	21	60,178
10	November 21	Win	7–3	at Washington Redskins	13	0	16	53,041
11	November 25	Win	8–3	Los Angeles Rams	28	21	15	66,595
12	December 4	Win	9–3	New York Jets	52	10	26	66,689
13	December 12	Win	10–3	at New York Giants	42	14	23	62,815
14	December 18	Win	11–3	St. Louis Cardinals	31	12	18	66,672

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Dallas Cowboys	11	3	0	.786	7–1	8–3	406	222	W7
Washington Redskins	9	4	1	.692	6–1–1	8–2–1	276	190	L1
Philadelphia Eagles	6	7	1	.462	4–3–1	5–5–1	221	302	W3
St. Louis Cardinals	4	9	1	.308	1–7	2–8–1	231	279	L2
New York Giants	4	10	0	.286	1–7	3–8	228	362	L5

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

Game summaries

Week 1

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	7	21	7	14	49
Bills	14	10	6	7	37

Week 2

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Cowboys	0	21	7	14	42
Eagles	0	0	0	7	7

Date: September 26
Location: Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, PA
Game start: 1:00 p.m.
Game weather: 59°F; wind 7

Scoring summary

Q2	DAL	Hill 1 yard run (Clark kick)	DAL 7–0

Q2	DAL	Lilly 7 yard fumble return (Clark kick)	DAL 14–0

Q2	DAL	Garrison 4 yard pass from Morton (Clark kick)	DAL 21–0

Q3	DAL	Richardson 16 yard pass from Morton (Clark kick)	DAL 28–0

Q4	DAL	Morton 2 yard run (Clark kick)	DAL 35–0

Q4	DAL	Welch 2 yard run (Clark kick)	DAL 42–0

Q4	PHI	Nelson 102 yard field goal return (Feller kick)	DAL 42–7

^[4]

Week 4

	1	2	3	4	Total
Giants	3	3	0	7	13
• Cowboys	3	10	7	0	20

Date: October 11
Location: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas
Game start: 8:00 p.m. CDT
Game weather: 64°F • Wind 7
Referee: Tommy Bell
TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, and Don Meredith

Scoring summary

1	DAL	Mike Clark 42-yard field goal	Cowboys 3–0

1	NYG	Pete Gogolak 35-yard field goal	Tie 3–3

2	DAL	Mike Clark 41-yard field goal	Cowboys 6–3

2	NYG	Pete Gogolak 20-yard field goal	Tie 6–6

2	DAL	Billy Truax 4-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 13–6

3	DAL	Bob Hayes 48-yard pass from Craig Morton (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 20–6

4	NYG	Clifton McNeil 24-yard pass from Fran Tarkenton (Pete Gogolak kick)	Cowboys 20–13

^[5]

Week 6

	1	2	3	4	Total
Patriots	7	0	0	14	21
• Cowboys	10	24	0	10	44

Date: October 24
Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Game start: 1:00 p.m. CDT
Game weather: 62°F • Wind 6
Referee: Fred Wyant
Television network: NBC

Scoring summary

1	DAL	Duane Thomas 56-yard run (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 7–0

1	DAL	Mike Clark 16-yard field goal	Cowboys 10–0

1	NE	Jim Nance 1-yard run (Charlie Gogolak kick)	Cowboys 10–7

2	DAL	Roger Staubach 2-yard run (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 17–7

2	DAL	Mike Clark 17-yard field goal	Cowboys 20–7

2	DAL	Bob Hayes 35-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 27–7

2	DAL	Bob Hayes 28-yard pass from Roger Staubach (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 34–7

4	DAL	Mike Clark 12-yard field goal	Cowboys 37–7

4	NE	Randy Vataha 33-yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Charlie Gogolak kick)	Cowboys 37–14

4	DAL	Joe Williams 2-yard run (Mike Clark kick)	Cowboys 44–14

4	NE	Tom Beer 31-yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Charlie Gogolak kick)	Cowboys 44–21

^[6]

Dallas' first game at Texas Stadium.

Week 8

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Cowboys	3	0	3	10	16
Cardinals	0	10	0	3	13

Date: November 7
Location: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO
Game start: 1:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: 29°F; wind 11
Referee: Fred Swearingen

Scoring summary

Q1	DAL	Fritsch 27 yard field goal	DAL 3–0

Q2	STL	Bakken 41 yard field goal	Tie 3–3

Q2	STL	Williams 11 yard pass from Hart (Bakken kick)	STL 10–3

Q3	DAL	Fritsch 14 yard field goal	STL 10–6

Q4	DAL	Ditka 4 yard pass from Staubach (Reeves run)	DAL 13–10

Q4	STL	Bakken 36 yard field goal	DAL 16–10

Q4	DAL	Fritsch 26 yard field goal	DAL 16–13

^[7]

Week 9

	1	2	3	4	Total
Eagles	0	0	0	7	7
• Cowboys	3	7	7	3	20

Date: November 14
Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, TX
Game start: 2:00 p.m.
Game weather: 73°F; wind 17

Scoring summary

Q1	DAL	Fritsch 23 yard field goal	DAL 3–0

Q2	DAL	Thomas 1 yard run (Fritsch kick)	DAL 10–0

Q3	DAL	Thomas 13 yard run (Fritsch kick)	DAL 17–0

Q4	DAL	Fritsch 46 yard field goal	DAL 20–0

Q4	PHI	Liske 1 yard run (Feller kick)	DAL 20–7

^[8]

Playoffs

NFC Divisional Playoff

Dallas Cowboys 20, Minnesota Vikings 12

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	3	3	14	0	20
Vikings	0	3	0	9	12

at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota

Date: December 25, 1971
Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: 31 °F (−1 °C), mostly cloudy
Game attendance: 47,307
Referee: Norm Schachter
TV announcers (CBS): Jack Whitaker and Irv Cross

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	Cowboys	Vikings
1					Cowboys	26-yard field goal by Mike Clark	3	0
2					Vikings	27-yard field goal by Fred Cox	3	3
2					Cowboys	44-yard field goal by Mike Clark	6	3
3					Cowboys	Duane Thomas 13-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good	13	3
3					Cowboys	Bob Hayes 9-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Mike Clark kick good	20	3
4					Vikings	Roger Staubach tackled in endzone for a safety by Alan Page	20	5
4					Vikings	Stu Voigt 6-yard touchdown reception from Gary Cuozzo, Fred Cox kick good	20	12
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							20	12

NFC Championship Game

Dallas Cowboys 14, San Francisco 49ers 3

	1	2	3	4	Total
49ers	0	0	3	0	3
Cowboys	0	7	0	7	14

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Date: January 2, 1972
Game time: 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. CST
Game attendance: 63,409
Referee: Tommy Bell
TV announcers (CBS): Jack Buck and Pat Summerall

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	49ers	Cowboys
2					Cowboys	Calvin Hill 1-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good	0	7
3					49ers	28-yard field goal by Bruce Gossett	3	7
4					Cowboys	Duane Thomas 2-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good	3	14
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							3	14

Super Bowl VI

Dallas Cowboys 24, Miami Dolphins 3

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	3	7	7	7	24
Dolphins	0	3	0	0	3

at Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, Louisiana

Date: January 16, 1972
Game time: 2:30 p.m. EST/1:30 p.m. CST
Referee: Jim Tunney
TV announcers (CBS): Ray Scott and Pat Summerall

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	Cowboys	Dolphins
1					Cowboys	9-yard field goal by Mike Clark	3	0
2					Cowboys	Lance Alworth 7-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Mike Clark kick good	10	0
2					Dolphins	31-yard field goal by Garo Yepremian	10	3
3					Cowboys	Duane Thomas 3-yard touchdown run, Mike Clark kick good	17	3
4					Cowboys	Mike Ditka 7-yard touchdown reception from Roger Staubach, Mike Clark kick good	24	3
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							24	3

Roster

Dallas Cowboys 1971 roster

Quarterbacks

14 Craig Morton
12 Roger Staubach

Running Backs

Wide Receivers

Tight Ends

89 Mike Ditka
87 Billy Truax

Offensive Linemen

Defensive Linemen

66 George Andrie DE
63 Larry Cole DE
77 Bill Gregory DT
74 Bob Lilly DT
75 Jethro Pugh DT
85 Tody Smith DE
67 Pat Toomay DE

Linebackers

60 Lee Roy Caffey OLB
52 Dave Edwards OLB
54 Chuck Howley OLB
55 Lee Roy Jordan MLB
50 D. D. Lewis OLB
56 Tom Stincic MLB

Defensive Backs

26 Herb Adderley CB
34 Cornell Green SS/CB
43 Cliff Harris FS/PR
20 Mel Renfro CB/FS
37 Ike Thomas CB/KR
41 Charlie Waters FS

Special Teams

83 Mike Clark K
10 Ron Widby P

Reserve Lists

78 Bob Asher T (IR)

Rookies in italics
45 Active, 0 Inactive

Awards and records

Led NFC, Fewest Rushing Yards Allowed, 1,144 yards
Led NFL, 401 Points Scored
Led NFL, 5,035 Total Yards Gained
Herb Adderley, Three Interceptions in One Game, Club Record
Roger Staubach, MVP, Super Bowl VI
Roger Staubach, NFL Passing Leader
Roger Staubach, Led NFL, 2,786 pass yards
Roger Staubach, Bert Bell Award^[9]
Roger Staubach, NFC Pro Bowl
Roger Staubach, All-Pro Quarterback
Duane Thomas, NFL Touchdown Leader (13 – 11 Rushing, 2 Receiving)

References

↑ The Football Database. Retrieved 2015-Jul-31.
↑ Roger Staubach, "Super Bowl VI," Super Bowl: The Game of Their Lives, Danny Peary, editor. Macmillan, 1997. ISBN 0-02-860841-0
↑ Cold Hard Football Facts: The Dandy Dozen: 12 best passing seasons in history
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Jun-30.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 30-Jun-2014.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Jul-01.
↑ http://www.maxwellfootballclub.org/content/awards/bell/past_bell.htm

External links

Super Bowl champions

Dallas Cowboys seasons

1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Bold indicates Super Bowl victory Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance

Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl VI Champions

10 Ron Widby 12 Roger Staubach (MVP) 14 Craig Morton 15 Toni Fritsch 19 Lance Alworth 20 Mel Renfro 22 Bob Hayes 23 Margene Adkins 26 Herb Adderley 30 Dan Reeves 31 Gloster Richardson 32 Walt Garrison 33 Duane Thomas 34 Cornell Green 35 Calvin Hill 36 Joe Williams 37 Isaac Thomas 41 Charlie Waters 42 Claxton Welch 43 Cliff Harris 46 Mark Washington 50 D. D. Lewis 51 Dave Manders 52 Dave Edwards 54 Chuck Howley 55 Lee Roy Jordan 56 Tom Stincic 60 Lee Roy Caffey 61 Blaine Nye 62 John Fitzgerald 63 Larry Cole 64 Tony Liscio 66 George Andrie 67 Pat Toomay 70 Rayfield Wright 71 Rodney Wallace 72 Don Talbert 73 Ralph Neely 74 Bob Lilly 75 Jethro Pugh 76 John Niland 77 Bill Gregory 79 Forrest Gregg 83 Mike Clark 85 Tody Smith 87 Billy Truax 89 Mike Ditka

Head Coach: Tom Landry Coaches: Ermal Allen Bobby Franklin Jim Myers Dan Reeves Ray Renfro Ernie Stautner Jerry Tubbs

Dallas Cowboys

Founded in 1960 Based in Arlington, Texas Headquartered in Valley Ranch, Irving, Texas

Franchise	Franchise History Coaches Players Seasons Expansion Draft Draft History Quarterbacks First-round draft picks

Stadiums	Cotton Bowl Texas Stadium AT&T Stadium

Culture	NFL on Thanksgiving Day America's Team Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Doomsday Defense Crazy Ray Rowdy Jerry Jones Black Sunday King of the Hill

Lore	Tom Landry Tex Schramm Captain Comeback Ice Bowl Hail Mary The Catch Herschel Walker trade Dirty Dozen Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor Bounty Bowl series 4–3 defense

Rivalries	Washington Redskins Philadelphia Eagles New York Giants San Francisco 49ers Pittsburgh Steelers Houston Oilers

Super Bowl Appearances (8)	V VI X XII XIII XXVII XXVIII XXX

League Championships (5)	1971 1977 1992 1993 1995

Ring of Honor	Bob Lilly Don Meredith Don Perkins Chuck Howley Mel Renfro Roger Staubach Lee Roy Jordan Tom Landry Tony Dorsett Randy White Bob Hayes Tex Schramm Cliff Harris Rayfield Wright Troy Aikman Michael Irvin Emmitt Smith Drew Pearson Charles Haley Larry Allen Darren Woodson

Media	Radio network KRLD-FM Brad Sham Babe Laufenberg

Current League Affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: East Division

Seasons (56)	1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

1971 NFL season

East	Central	West	East	Central	West
Baltimore	Cincinnati	Denver	Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
Buffalo	Cleveland	Kansas City	NY Giants	Detroit	Los Angeles
Miami	Houston	Oakland	Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego	St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
NY Jets			Washington

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