1997 Dallas Cowboys season

1997 Dallas Cowboys season
Head coach	Barry Switzer
Owner	Jerry Jones
Home field	Texas Stadium
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	4th NFC East
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 1997 Dallas Cowboys season would mark their 38th in the NFL and for the first time since 1990, the team would suffer a losing season and miss the playoffs. They collapsed from a 6–5 start and finished at 6–10.

Roster

Dallas Cowboys 1997 roster
Quarterbacks  8 Troy Aikman 17 Jason Garrett 18 Wade Wilson Running Backs 48 Daryl Johnston FB 22 Emmitt Smith 45 Nicky Sualua FB 34 Herschel Walker FB/RB/KR 20 Sherman Williams Wide Receivers 87 Billy Davis 88 Michael Irvin 83 Anthony Miller 80 Stepfret Williams Tight Ends 81 Scott Galbraith 89 David LaFleur		Offensive Linemen 73 Larry Allen G 63 John Flannery G 69 George Hegamin T 66 Tony Hutson T/G 61 Nate Newton G 77 Steve Scifres G 50 Clay Shiver C 71 Mark Tuinei T 79 Erik Williams T Defensive Linemen 96 Antonio Anderson DT 91 Darren Benson DE/DT 98 Shante Carver DE 75 Tony Casillas DT 95 Chad Hennings DT 78 Leon Lett DT 99 Hurvin McCormack DT 97 Kavika Pittman DE 92 Tony Tolbert DE		Linebackers 52 Dexter Coakley OLB 56 Randall Godfrey OLB 58 Nate Hemsley MLB 57 Vinson Smith OLB 55 Fred Strickland MLB 51 Broderick Thomas OLB Defensive Backs 40 Bill Bates SS 35 Wendell Davis CB 31 Brock Marion FS 23 Kevin Mathis CB 27 Singor Mobley SS/CB 21 Deion Sanders CB/PR 26 Kevin Smith CB 24 Omar Stoutmire FS 30 Kenny Wheaton CB 42 Charlie Williams CB 28 Darren Woodson SS Special Teams  3 Richie Cunningham K  4 Toby Gowin P 70 Dale Hellestrae LS/C/OT		Reserve Lists 86 Eric Bjornson TE (IR) 29 Alundis Brice CB (IR) 19 Macey Brooks WR (IR) Rookies in italics 53 Active, 0 Inactive

Regular season

Though the season began well with an impressive win against the Pittsburgh Steelers and a 3–1 start, the Cowboys would soon see a sharp decline that included five consecutive losses to close out the year. A series of countless off-the-field incidents, lack of discipline, and rumors of infighting between quarterback Troy Aikman and head coach Barry Switzer plagued the team throughout the year. In a season filled with injuries and controversy, which also saw a tearful Michael Irvin promising change following a tough loss to the New York Giants in the final regular season game, Switzer would later resign after the season. Notable additions to the team were linebacker Dexter Coakley.

Schedule

Opponent			Result	Attendance	TV Time
at Pittsburgh Steelers	37	7	W	60,397	FOX 12:00CT
at Arizona Cardinals	22	25	L	71,578	TNT 7:00CT
Philadelphia Eagles	21	20	W	63,942	ABC 8:00CT
Chicago Bears	27	3	W	64,082	FOX 3:15CT
at New York Giants	17	20	L	77,137	FOX 12:00CT
at Washington Redskins	16	21	L	76,159	ABC 8:00CT
Jacksonville Jaguars	26	22	W	64,464	NBC 12:00CT
at Philadelphia Eagles	12	13	L	67,106	FOX 12:00CT
at San Francisco 49ers	10	17	L	68,657	FOX 3:15CT
Arizona Cardinals	24	6	W	64,302	FOX 12:00CT
Washington Redskins	17	14	W	64,559	FOX 3:15CT
at Green Bay Packers	17	45	L	60,111	FOX 12:00CT
Tennessee Oilers	14	27	L	63,421	NBC 3:00CT
Carolina Panthers	13	23	L	63,251	ABC 8:00CT
at Cincinnati Bengals	24	31	L	60,043	FOX 12:00CT
New York Giants	7	20	L	63,746	FOX 12:00CT

Game summaries

Week 1

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 0 17 17 3 37 Steelers 0 0 0 7 7 Date: August 31 Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, PA Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 65°F; wind 4

Scoring summary Q2 DAL Miller 12 yard pass from Aikman (Cunningham kick) DAL 7–0 Q2 DAL Irvin 42 yard pass from Aikman (Cunningham kick) DAL 14–0 Q2 DAL Cunningham 52 yard field goal DAL 17–0 Q3 DAL Irvin 15 yard pass from Aikman (Cunningham kick) DAL 24–0 Q3 DAL Cunningham 24 yard field goal DAL 27–0 Q3 DAL Johnston 13 yard pass from Aikman (Cunningham kick) DAL 34–0 Q4 DAL Cunningham 28 yard field goal DAL 37–0 Q4 PIT Bruener 4 yard pass from Stewart (Johnson kick) DAL 37–7

• Michael Irvin 7 Rec, 153 Yds

^[1]

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
^(3) New York Giants	10	5	1	.656	307	265	W3
Washington Redskins	8	7	1	.531	327	289	W1
Philadelphia Eagles	6	9	1	.406	317	372	L3
Dallas Cowboys	6	10	0	.375	304	314	L5
Arizona Cardinals	4	12	0	.250	283	379	W1

Awards and records

• Troy Aikman, Walter Payton Man of the Year Award

Publications

The Football Encyclopedia ISBN 0-312-11435-4
Total Football ISBN 0-06-270170-3
Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes ISBN 0-446-51950-2

References

1. Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Oct-20.

External links

• 1997 Dallas Cowboys
• Pro Football Hall of Fame
• Dallas Cowboys Official Site