The Dallas Cowboys parted ways with Jason Garrett this past weekend and on Monday surprised a lot of people by hiring former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy. McCarthy joins a select group of men who have been Dallas Cowboys head coaches throughout the 60 year history of the organization. Of those men, who are the greatest Dallas Cowboys head coaches of All-Time. Here are the top 5.
5. JASON GARRETT (2010-2019)
Jason Garrett’s contract was not renewed for 2020 ending a decade of disappointment for Dallas Cowboys fans. Cowboys fans have now failed to see their team reach the conference championship round for a twenty fourth consecutive season after Garrett’s teams failed to accomplish that goal with three divisional round playoff losses. While many fans wanted to move on from Jason Garrett a long time ago, he was actually a decent head coach during his time in Dallas. He posted an 85-67 record (.559 winning %), won three division titles, and had a 2-3 post season record. Expectations were high for Jason Garrett (especially this last season) but the 2016 NFL coach of the year did have some successful seasons and will go down as an above average coach with a winning record during his tenure in Dallas.
4. BARRY SWITZER (1994-1997)
Barry Switzer had the difficult task of replacing back to back defending Super Bowl champion Jimmy Johnson after he and Jerry Jones mutually parted ways. It was a no win situation with the Super Bowl being the expectation and yet all the credit still being attributed to his predecessor. Barry Switzer responded well to the challenge and posted a 40-24 record which was good for the highest winning % of any Dallas Cowboys head coach at .625. Switzer won 3 straight divsion titles and appeared in 2 conference championship games, winning one and becoming only the second head coach to win a National Championship as a college coach and a Super Bowl at the NFL level. Switzer had a 5-2 record in the playoffs in three appearances. Switzer’s tenure in Dallas was short and sweet. He led the team to a Super Bowl but then resigned his position following his only losing season in 1997.
3. BILL PARCELS (2003-2007)
Unlike Barry Switzer who inherited a Super Bowl championship team, Bill Parcells inherited a team with three consecutive 5-11 seasons under Dave Campo. Parcells led the Dallas Cowboys back to the playoffs in his first season as coach before rebuilding the roster which eventually won 13 games under his heir Wade Phillips in 2007. Parcells also ushered in the Tony Romo era and groomed coaches like Sean Payton and Mike Zimmer. Bill Parcells overall record in Dallas was a respectable 34-30 (.531 winning %). He led the team to the playoffs in two of his four seasons although the Cowboys went 0-2 in the post season under Parcells. Despite his limited success, the job Parcells did rebuilding the roster and making it to the playoffs in his first season with a 5 win roster and Quincy Carter at QB earn him the #3 spot on this list.
2. JIMMY JOHNSON (1989-1993)
Jimmy Johnson was hired from the college ranks to coach a 3 win team and replace a legend in Tom Landry. After winning only 1 game in his first season, Johnson took only 4 years to build a Super Bowl champion. He posted a 44-36 record (.550 winning %), went 7-1 in the playoffs, and won back to back championships before the notorious rift between he and Jerry Jones resulted in the two mutually deciding to part ways. Most believe that had Jimmy Johnson stayed on as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, they would have won 4 straight Super Bowls. Jimmy Johnson made history with the Dallas Cowboys because at the time he was the only head coach to win a college National Championshp and win a Super Bowl. This is still a rare feat today with only Barry Switzer and Pete Carroll accomplishing the same feat.
1.TOM LANDRY (1960-1988)
Tom Landry is the most iconic head coach in the history of the Dallas Cowboys and maybe the most iconic in the history of the NFL. He is by far the longest tenured coach in team history and his accomplishments are astounding. A 250-162 record (.605 winning %), 13 division titles, 20-16 playoff record, 18 playoff appearances in 20 year span, 5 Super bowl appearances, 2x Super Bowl champion, and 12 NFL/NFC championship appearances. Tom Landry Took an expansion team that failed to win a single game in their inaugural season and turned them into “America’s team”, a moniker that he hated ironically. Landry was an innovator, a consummate professional, and he epitomized class and respect. No other coach could ever dethrone the one man who is the undisputed number one on the list of greatest Dallas Cowboys head coaches of all time. The Hall of Famer, the legend, the man in the fedora..Tom Landry.
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*All statistics and data obtained and verified from https://www.pro-football-reference.com/