-Calvin Hill led the Cowboys in rushing in 1969 and then again from 1972 to 1974. A total of four seasons.

-Don Perkins was one of the early Dallas Cowboys to experience success in the league. He led the team in rushing seven times, from 1961 to 1965 and then again in 1967 and 1968.

-Tony Dorsett won the Heisman Trophy at Pitt and then came to Dallas and made an immediate impact. He led the team in rushing ten consecutive years, from 1977 to 1986.

-It should come as no surprise though that the player who has led the Dallas Cowboys in rushing the most years is also the NFL‘s all time rushing yards leader, Emmitt Smith. Smith led the Cowboys in rushing every year from 1990 to 2002, a total of 13 seasons.

Many different players have led the Cowboys in rushing over the years including Marion Barber, Julius Jones, Troy Hambrick, Paul Palmer, Herschel Walker, Doug Dennison, Robert Newhouse, Duane Thomas, Dan Reeves, and L.G. Dupre. None however can match the 13 seasons that the great Emmitt Smith led the team in rushing. He’s in a class by himself.

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Tony Romo is one of those great NFL stories. He was a backup quarterback, who though he was thought of as somewhat of a prospect, he wasn’t thought of as a top flight quarterback at all. He got his shot though to lead the Dallas Cowboys and ever since he has been justifiably grouped with the better quarterbacks in the league.

In his short time in the league, who have is favorite receivers been? When it comes time to throw a touchdown pass, who does he throw to the most?

Here is a look at the top five receivers through the 2009 NFL season, based on the number of touchdown passes thrown to them by Tony Romo.

Terrell Owens – 34

Patrick Crayton – 19

Jason Witten – 14

Miles Austin – 14

Roy E. Williams – 7

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One position that doesn’t get the attention it deserves is kicker. Here is a look at the five best seasons put up by a Dallas Cowboys kicker.

#1 – 1995 – Chris Boniol
The 1995 Dallas Cowboys went 12-4, finished first in their division, and went on to win the Super Bowl. Their kicker that season, Chris Boniol, attempted 28 field goals and made 27 of them, for a field goal percentage of 96.4%. He did miss two extra points that season, but because of the high powered offense he attempted 48, so that isn’t too bad.

#2 – 1997 – Richie Cunningham
1997 saw the Cowboys put up a record of 6-10, but it wasn’t because of their kicking game. They were actually 6-5 at one point before losing the last five games of the season. This was the last season that Barry Switzer was the head coach of the team. Richie Cunningham was the kicker that year and he made 34 of 37 attempts for a 91.9 field goal percentage. He was also perfect on his extra point attempts, 24 for 24.

#3 – 2008 – Nick Folk
In 2008, the Cowboys went 9-7. This was Wade Phillips second season as the head coach of the team. This was also the kicker Nick Folk’s second year in the league. He would do really well, making 20 of 22 field goal attempts for a 90.9 field goal percentage. At 42 for 42, he was perfect on his extra point attempts.

#4 – 1996 – Chris Boniol
Chris Boniol makes his second appearance on this list, thanks to the results he was able to achieve in 1996. This was the year following their Super Bowl victory and saw the team go 10-6 again. They beat the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round of the playoffs before losing to the Carolina Panthers the next week. Boniol would make 32 of his 36 attempts for a percentage of 88.9. He would make 24 of his 25 extra point attempts, or 96%.

#5 – 1987 – Roger Ruzek
1987 was not the best season in Dallas Cowboys history. They were 5-9 at one point before winning their final two games to go 7-9 for the season. Roger Ruzek was the kicker for the team that year and he would make 22 of his 25 field goal attempts for a 84.8 field goal percentage. He would hit 26 of 26 extra point attempts, so he was good there as well. Ruzek would only play in 12 of the team’s 16 games that year though. The kickers that would fill in for the other games were Kerry Brady and Luis Zendejas.

Incidentally, the worst field goal percentage a Dallas Cowboys kicker ever put up over a full year was 33.3%. That happened in the team’s second year in pro football, 1961, when Allen Green made just five of the 15 field goals he attempted. Of note though is that he made 19 of 19 extra point attempts. This would be Green’s only year in pro football.

The worst full year a Cowboys kicker ever had from an extra point perspective came in 1979. That year, Rafael Septien made 40 of 44 extra point attempts for a 90.9 percentage.

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This officially licensed Dallas Cowboys Mr. Potato Head is designed for collectors and fans of all ages. Standing 6” tall, this player is the perfect size for proudly displaying on a shelf or playing “mix and match” to create a variety of hilarious combinations.

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Here is a look at 22 tidbits of Terrell Owens trivia:

-Terrell Owens has returned a kickoff five times during his career, the longest one went for 23 yards in 1997.

-The most times T.O. has fumbled the ball in one season is three. This happened in 2000, and he wouldn’t fumble the ball again until 2004.

-Terrell Owens’ favorite player as a kid growing up in Alabama: Jerry Rice.

-One other NFL player came from the same hometown as Terrell Owens, Alexander City, Alabama: Jim Phillips played wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams and the Minnesota Vikings from 1958 to 1967, earning trips to the Pro Bowl three times.

-Terrell Owens has five career tackles. None were make as a member of the San Francisco 49ers. Three came as a Dallas Cowboy and two came with the Buffalo Bills

-The longest run T.O has ever made after taking a hand off went for 38 yards in 2002 while with the 49ers.

-As a member of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga basketball team, Terrell Owens got to play in the 1995 NCAA Basketball Tournament. The tournament was won that year by Tyus Edney and the UCLA Bruins.

-Terrell Owens has passed two hundred yards receiving in a game twice in his career. The first time when he caught 20 passes for 283 yards with the 49ers in 2000 and the second time when he caught seven passes for 213 yards with the Cowboys in 2008.

-The most touchdowns he has ever scored in one game is four. This happened in 2007 with the Cowboys in a 28-23 win over the Redskins.

-Through the 2009 season, there are two NFL teams that Terrell Owens has gained over 1000 yards receiving against in his career: The St. Louis Rams (1,035) and the Carolina Panthers (1,110).

-In 2005, his 91 yard touchdown reception was the longest TD catch of the year in the NFL.

-T.O. caught nine passes for 122 yards in his only Super Bowl appearance, Super Bowl XXXIX in 2004 while with the Eagles. Of those nine catches, four of them went for ten yards exactly.

-Terrell Owens wore #82 and played a member of the fictional Miami Sharks in the 1999 Oliver Stone movie ‘Any Given Sunday’.

-T.O. has caught more touchdown passes against the New Orleans Saints, with a total of 12, than he has against any other team. The Atlanta Falcons are in second on the list with 11, and then the Rams, Giants, and Panthers are tied for third with ten scored against each of them.

-Terrell Owens has caught more touchdown passes in the 2nd quarter, a total of 43 during his career, than he has in any other quarter of play.

-The most touchdowns receptions he ever caught in one season was 16 with the 49ers in 2001.

-T.O. has caught five postseason touchdown passes during his career. The first four came with the 49ers and all came in games his team one. The last one came in 2007 with the Cowboys in a game they lost to the New York Giants.

-Terrell Owens was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the third round of the 1996 NFL Draft, the 89th pick overall.

-Other wide receivers selected ahead of Terrell Owens in the 1996 NFL Draft include: Keyshawn Johnson, Terry Glenn, Eddie Kennison, Marvin Harrison, Eric Moulds, Alex Van Dyke, Amani Toomer, Bryan Still, Muhsin Muhammad, Bobby Engram, and Derrick Mayes.

-The longest touchdown reception of his career went for 98 yards and came in a 18-15 Buffalo Bills lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars. It was a third quarter score and was thrown by Ryan Fitzpatrick.

-No quarterback has thrown more touchdown passes to Terrell Owens than Jeff Garcia with 50. Tony Romo is in second with 34.

-Through the 2009 season, T.O. has scored a touchdown rushing three different times. He did it first in 1998 in a 28-10 win over the Rams, then he did it in 2002 in a 20-10 win over the Redskins, and he did it for the third and so far final time in 2009 as a member of the Bills in a 31-10 loss to the Houston Texans.

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Some interesting facts about Jimmy Smith:

-Jimmy Smith topped the 100 reception mark twice during his career, he caught 112 passes in 2001 and led the league with 116 catches in 1999.

-During his career, Jimmy Smith rushed the ball twice. He lost three yards the first time and gained two the next, meaning for his career he has -1 rushing yards.

-After being released by the Cowboys, Jimmy Smith was briefly signed with the Philadelphia Eagles before being cut again and eventually signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

-In 1995, the Jaguars first year in the league, Jimmy Smith returned 24 kickoffs, including one for a touchdown. He would return two the next season and then never return kickoffs again during his career.

-Jimmy Smith never fumbled the ball more than twice during any season he played in.

-Jimmy Smith was named to five straight Pro Bowls from 1997 to 2001.

-At the time of his retirement, only three wide receivers in NFL history had gained more receiving yards than Jimmy Smith: Art Monk, Steve Largent, and James Lofton.

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Emmitt Smith is the all time leading rusher in National Football League history. He also caught the fifth most touchdown passes thrown by Troy Aikman with 11.

Fourth on the list of touchdown passes thrown by Aikman is fullback Daryl “Moose” Johnston with 13.

Alvin Harper ranks third in this category with 16 touchdown receptions thrown to him by Troy Aikman.

The receiver that caught the second most of Troy Aikman’s touchdown passes is tight end Jay Novacek who caught 20 from him during his career.

The receiver who caught more touchdown passes thrown by Troy Aikman than anyone else is fellow Hall of Fame member Michael Irvin. Troy Aikman threw 165 touchdown passes during his career, 49 of those went to Michael Irvin.

Troy Aikman had a great career with the Cowboys that included a number of big games and a great many touchdown passes. He truly was one of the all time greats, just ask Michael Irvin, Jay Novacek, Alvin Harper, Daryl Johnston, and Emmitt Smith.

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photo credit: bradleygee

Currently NFL teams play 16 games during the regular season, but it hasn’t always been this way. Up until 1947, the league fluctuated between ten and twelve games played per season. Some of this had to do with the instability of some teams as well as playing during the seasons affected by World War II. In 1961 though, the NFL changed to a 14 game season and stayed that way until 1978 when the change to the current 16 game format was made.

So, who was the last team to win it all during a 12 game schedule?

That would be the 1960 Philadelphia Eagles who went 10-2 and then defeated the Green Bay Packers 17-13 for the NFL Championship. That Eagles team was coached by Buck Shaw and featured the likes of Norm Van Brocklin, Pete Retzlaff, Chuck Bednarik, Marion Campbell, and Tommy McDonald. They beat a Packers team being coached by Vince Lombardi for just the second season and featured players like Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Jim Taylor Max McGee, Willie Davis, and Ray Nitschke.

And who was the last team to win the championship during a 14 game schedule?

That would be the 1977 Dallas Cowboys who defeated the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings in the playoffs before going on to beat the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl. The Cowboys were coached by Tom Landry and featured players like Roger Staubach, Drew Pearson, Butch Johnson, Ed “Too Tall” Jones, Randy White, and a young rookie running back named Tony Dorsett. The Orange Crush Broncos were coached by Red Miller and featured players like Craig Morton, Otis Armstrong, Haven Moses, Rick Upchurch, Lyle Alzado, Steve Foley, Randy Gradishar, and future ESPN broadcaster Tom Jackson.

So, the Eagles and the Broncos go down as the last NFL champions during the final seasons before a change in the amount of regular season games. If they bump up to an 18 game schedule in 2011, that means the team that wins it all this year will join that group.

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Here are some interesting facts about Drew Pearson:

-Drew Pearson played quarterback in high school at South River High School in South River, New Jersey. He took over the starting quarterback position after the previous quarterback had graduated. That previous quarterback was future Washington Redskins‘ quarterback Joe Theismann.

-In 1977, Drew Pearson led the NFL in receiving yards (870) and receiving yards per game (62.1).

-During his rookie season in 1973, Drew Pearson returned two punts and seven kickoffs. These were the only special teams returns of his career.

-Drew Pearson was named as one of the members of the NFL’s All-Decade Team for the 1970s.

-During his career, Drew Pearson attempted seven passes as a wide receiver. He had five completions, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.

-Twice during his career, Drew Pearson recovered fumbles for touchdowns.

-In 1994, NFL Films named the top 75 plays in NFL history. Three of them were catches made by Drew Pearson.

-Drew Pearson was the general manager of the New York/New Jersey Hitmen of the XFL during the league’s only season in 2001.

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Roger Staubach rushed the ball 410 times for 2,264 yards during his career with the Cowboys. He averaged 5.5 yards per carry, 17.3 rushing yards per game, and scored 20 rushing touchdowns. His longest run from scrimmage was 33 yards. On the Dallas Cowboys all time rushing yards list he ranks 10th, just ahead of Ron Springs and just behind Marion Barber and Julius Jones.

Where do other Cowboys quarterbacks rank on the team’s all time rushing yards list?
13th – Dan Reeves (1965-72)
17th – Don Meredith (1960-68)
21st – Troy Aikman (1989-2000)
25th – Steve Pelluer (1985-88)
31st – Quincy Carter (2001-03)
33rd – Danny White (1976-87)
46th – Tony Romo (2005-09)
50th – Craig Morton (1965-73)
59th – Eddie LeBaron (1960-63)
70th – Randall Cunningham (2000)
77th – Drew Bledsoe (2005-06)
79th – Chad Hutchinson (2002-03)
88th – Gary Hogeboom (1982-85)
96th – Kevin Sweeney (1987-88)

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