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The Dallas Cowboys are arguably the most storied franchise in the NFL. As a country, one of the defining aspects of the United States is their association with Cowboys. On a world stage, it does not get much more American than the Dallas Cowboys. In their history, the Dallas Cowboys have won five Super Bowl trophies.
In their recent history, the Cowboys have not quite reached the same heights after the start of the 21st century. However, there are still plenty of eye-popping players from both sides of the turn of the century. From Roger Staubach to Troy Aikman to Tony Romo and everyone in between, here are the ten best players to ever play for the Dallas Cowboys.
Best Dallas Cowboys to ever wear the uniform (1/3)
#10 - DeMarcus Ware, defensive end
DeMarcus Ware was drafted in 2005 with the 11th overall pick. He went on to play nine seasons with the Cowboys. In those seasons, he earned a franchise record 117 sacks and 32 forced fumbles. He played in 141 games with the Cowboys from 2005-2013.
As an added bonus, he was instrumental after leaving the Cowboys to join the Denver Broncos. Without Ware to pair with Von Miller, the Broncos would not have won a Super Bowl in 2015. Put simply, he was able to dominate no matter where he was. As a football player, it is tough to get that much credit.
#9 - Dez Bryant, WR
While the end of Dez Bryant's career, was much less shiny than the start, Bryant's presence was a core of the Cowboys experience from 2011-2017. Bryant hit his peak in 2012-2014. In 2012, Bryant had 92 receptions for 1382 yards and 12 touchdowns. In 2013, Bryant had 93 receptions for 1233 yards and 13 touchdowns.
2014 was Dez Bryant's best season in the NFL. He earned 88 catches for 1320 yards and 16 touchdowns. In total, Bryant had 7459 yards on 531 receptions and a whopping 73 touchdowns. That is equivalent to 438 points scored for the Cowboys, without counting extra points. Including extra points, Bryant gave the Cowboys a chance at 511 points.
His last season in Dallas was in 2017, when he earned 69 catches for 838 yards and six touchdowns. He missed 2018 with an Achillies injury and was out of football in 2019. He was given a brief period with the Baltimore Ravens in 2020, when he played in six games and earned two touchdowns. It remains to be seen if he will show up in the NFL in 2021.
Best Dallas Cowboys to ever wear the uniform (2/3)
#8 - Deion Sanders, CB/PR
Deion Sanders was a lockdown cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys, however, he was not a Dallas Cowboys player for life. His first five seasons in the NFL saw him play for the Atlanta Falcons from 1989-1993. After, he landed in San Francisco with the 49ers for a season. It wasn't until 1995 that he got his fateful stint with the Dallas Cowboys.
From 1995-1999, Sanders played for the Cowboys. His best season came in 1998. Despite only playing in 11 games, he earned five interceptions, including a pick-six. He also scored two touchdowns as a punt returner.
After his time with the Cowboys, Sanders played for the Washington Redskins for a season. After, he stepped away from the league, only to return four seasons later to play two years with the Baltimore Ravens. He retired in 2005.
#7 - Tony Romo, QB
Unless someone started watching Cowboys football within the last few years, they should remember the Tony Romo years fondly. While his teams were never good enough to make some noise in the playoffs, Tony Romo was good enough to keep the offense afloat and give the team a chance year after year.
Romo is 78-49-0 in his career. From 2006-2014, Romo was at the center of the Dallas Cowboys. With the exception of 2010, Romo was at least .500 as a quarterback all of his seasons. He threw for 248 touchdowns and 117 interceptions. He eventually retired after repeated injury issues forced the Cowboys to draft Dak Prescott as a high-quality backup.
However, when Romo got injured next, Prescott effectively took the job and Romo rode off into the sunset at the end of the 2016 season. He now calls games for CBS and it is clear how good of a quarterback he was as he can still read defenses better than most quarterbacks still in the game.
#6 - Troy Aikman, QB
Also a sports commentator in retirement, Troy Aikman, was the captain of the ship that sailed to three Super Bowl wins in four years. Based on that accomplishment alone, Aikman deserves to be included in the top ten Cowboys players of all time. That said, his statistics do not back him up as well as time marches on.
During that era, his statistics were solid. However, a look back from 2021 shows their unimpressive nature. In his career, Aikman threw for 165 yards and 141 interceptions. He completed 61.5 percent of his passes and threw for 32942 yards.
Also Read: Who is Troy Aikman’s Wife?
Best Dallas Cowboys to ever wear the uniform (3/3)
#5 - Roger Staubach, QB
Roger Staubach predates most Cowboys fans watching the game today. However, after looking at Aikman's statistics in the 1990s, Staubach's statistics are extremely impressive.
Basically, looking back, the NFL's history of offense has been the slow evolution of the passing game. Back in the day, running the football was the main way to move the needle. Today, passing the ball is much more heavily relied upon.
Comparing Tony Romo's statistics to Troy Aikman's shows this. However, Staubach predates Aikman but has better passing statistics. In other words, Staubach was able to be more effective passing the ball when passing offenses were even less reliable than in the 1990s.
Staubach played from 1969-1979. During that time, he threw for 153 touchdowns and 109 interceptions. He was averaging roughly 1.5 touchdowns per interception. Meanwhile, Aikman was averaging barely more than one touchdown per interception.
Staubach went 85-29 in his career with the Cowboys. The Cowboys went to four Super Bowls in that span and won two.
#4 - Mel Renfro, DB
Mel Renfro played for the Dallas Cowboys from 1964-1977. Madden players will know him well as one of the better players in Madden Ultimate Team. In his 14 seasons, Renfro earned at least two interceptions per season. His best season came in 1969 when he had ten interceptions.
In total, Renfro earned 52 interceptions in his career and played in 174 games. In 1996, Renfro was added to the Hall of Fame, according to Bleacher Report.
#3 - Jason Witten, TE
Jason Witten was drafted by the Cowboys in 2003. He went on to play for the Cowboys from 2003-2017. He retired to call games on Monday Night Football for a season before unretiring and returning to the Dallas Cowboys for an encore season. In 2020, Witten landed with the Las Vegas Raiders.
In 16 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, Witten earned 1215 receptions for 12,977 yards and 72 touchdowns. He played 255 games with the team. His best season came in 2007 when he earned 96 receptions for 1145 yards and seven touchdowns.
#2 - Michael Irvin, WR
Michael Irvin was the best wide receiver in Cowboys history. He was drafted in 1988 and retired in 1999. His best season came in 1995, when he caught 111 balls for 1,603 yards and ten touchdowns. In total, his peak years ran from 1991-1998. At the end of his career, Irvin played in 159 games. He earned 750 catches for 11904 yards and 65 touchdowns.
#1 - Emmitt Smith, RB
Without Emmitt Smith, the Cowboys would not be the same team they are today. He was added to the team in 1990 and retired in 2004. He spent 13 years in Dallas. With the exception of his rookie season, Smith earned at least 1000 yards in each season with the Cowboys.
His best season came in 1995, when he earned 1,773 yards and a whopping 25 touchdowns. In total, Smith ran in 201 games for the Cowboys. He earned 17162 yards and 153 touchdowns in 4052 rushes. He currently holds the record for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a career. This makes him the best Cowboys player of all time.
