The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The Cowboys joined the NFL as an expansion team in 1960 and have played their home games at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, since 2009. [1] [2] [3] Originally a member of the NFL Western Conference, the team was moved to the NFL Eastern Conference in 1961 after just one season, they remained in this conference until 1970. [4] In 1967 the NFL subdivided the Eastern and Western conferences into divisions, assigning the Cowboys to the NFL Capitol Division. [5] In 1970, as part of the AFL–NFL merger, the Cowboys were re-assigned to the National Football Conference (NFC). In addition to being re-assigned conferences, the Cowboys division, the NFL Capitol Division, was renamed to the NFC East Division. [6] [7]
The franchise has made it to the Super Bowl eight times, tying it with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos for second-most Super Bowl appearances in history behind the New England Patriots' record 11 appearances. Of their eight appearances, the Cowboys have won five Super Bowls ( Super Bowls VI, XII, XXVII, XXVIII and XXX) which is tied for the seventh most total championships amongst all 32 NFL franchise. [3] [8] The Cowboys have won eight NFC championships, tied for most in the conference's history. The Cowboys are the only NFL team to record 20 consecutive winning seasons (from 1966 to 1985) during which they missed the playoffs only twice (1974 and 1984). [2] [9] The Cowboys have won their division 25 times, which is tied for the second-most with the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, behind only the Green Bay Packers (with 31). [8]
Over their 64 seasons in the NFL, the Cowboys have accumulated a record of 562 wins, 413 losses, and 6 ties in the regular season, which is the best all-time regular season record among active franchises in terms of win–loss percentage. [8] They have also made the playoffs 36 times, an NFL record shared with the Green Bay Packers, and have the eighth-best playoff record in terms of win–loss percentage with 36 wins and 31 losses. [8] [10] The team currently has had 40 winning seasons, 18 losing seasons, and 6 seasons with as many wins as losses. [11]
NFL champions§ (1920–1969) | Super Bowl champions† (1966–present) | Conference champions* | Division champions^ | Wild Card berth# |
Season | Team | League | Conference | Division | Regular season | Postseason results | Awards | Head coach | Refs | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Finish | W | L | T | |||||||||
1960 | 1960 | NFL | Western | 7th | 0 | 11 | 1 | Tom Landry | [16] | |||
1961 | 1961 | NFL | Eastern [A] | 6th | 4 | 9 | 1 | [17] [B] | ||||
1962 | 1962 | NFL | Eastern | 5th | 5 | 8 | 1 | [19] | ||||
1963 | 1963 | NFL | Eastern | 5th | 4 | 10 | 0 | [20] | ||||
1964 | 1964 | NFL | Eastern | 5th | 5 | 8 | 1 | [21] | ||||
1965 | 1965 | NFL | Eastern | 2nd | 7 | 7 | 0 | [22] | ||||
1966 | 1966 | NFL | Eastern* | 1st* | 10 | 3 | 1 | Lost NFL Championship ( Packers) 34–27 | Tom Landry ( COY ) | [23] [24] | ||
1967 | 1967 | NFL | Eastern* | Capitol^ [C] | 1st^ | 9 | 5 | 0 | Won
Conference playoffs (
Browns) 52–14 Lost NFL Championship (at Packers) 21–17 |
[25] | ||
1968 | 1968 | NFL | Eastern | Capitol^ | 1st^ | 12 | 2 | 0 | Lost Conference playoffs (at Browns) 31–20 | [26] | ||
1969 | 1969 | NFL | Eastern | Capitol^ | 1st^ | 11 | 2 | 1 | Lost Conference playoffs ( Browns) 38–14 | Calvin Hill ( OROY ) | [27] [28] | |
1970 | 1970 | NFL | NFC* [D] | East^ [D] | 1st^ | 10 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Lions) 5–0 Won NFC Championship (at 49ers) 17–10 Lost Super Bowl V (vs. Colts) 16–13 |
Chuck Howley ( SB MVP ) | [29] [30] | |
1971 | 1971 | NFL† | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 11 | 3 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (at
Vikings) 20–12 Won NFC Championship ( 49ers) 14–3 Won Super Bowl VI (1) (vs. Dolphins) 24–3 |
Roger Staubach ( SB MVP ) | [31] [30] | |
1972 | 1972 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 10 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (at
49ers) 30–28 Lost NFC Championship (at Redskins) 3–26 |
[32] | ||
1973 | 1973 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 10 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Rams) 27–16 Lost NFC Championship ( Vikings) 27–10 |
[33] | ||
1974 | 1974 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 8 | 6 | 0 | [34] | |||
1975 | 1975 | NFL | NFC* | East | 2nd# | 10 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (at
Vikings) 17–14 Won NFC Championship (at Rams) 37–7 Lost Super Bowl X (vs. Steelers) 21–17 |
[35] | ||
1976 | 1976 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 11 | 3 | 0 | Lost Divisional playoffs ( Rams) 14–12 | [36] | ||
1977 | 1977 | NFL† | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 2 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Bears) 37–7 Won NFC Championship ( Vikings) 23–6 Won Super Bowl XII (2) (vs. Broncos) 27–10 |
Tony Dorsett (
OROY ) Harvey Martin ( DPOY , SB MVP ) Randy White ( SB MVP ) |
[37] [28] [38] [30] | |
1978 | 1978 | NFL | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Falcons) 27–20 Won NFC Championship (at Rams) 28–0 Lost Super Bowl XIII (vs. Steelers) 35–31 |
[39] [E] | ||
1979 | 1979 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 11 | 5 | 0 | Lost Divisional playoffs ( Rams) 21–19 | [41] | ||
1980 | 1980 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (
Rams) 34–13 Won Divisional playoffs (at Falcons) 30–27 Lost NFC Championship (at Eagles) 20–7 |
[42] | ||
1981 | 1981 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Buccaneers) 38–0 Lost NFC Championship (at 49ers) 28–27 |
[43] | ||
1982 | 1982 | NFL | NFC | None [F] | 2nd# | 6 | 3 | 0 | Won
First Round playoffs (
Buccaneers) 30–17 Won Second Round playoffs ( Packers) 37–26 Lost NFC Championship (at Redskins) 31–17 |
[45] | ||
1983 | 1983 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 12 | 4 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs ( Rams) 24–17 | [46] | ||
1984 | 1984 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 9 | 7 | 0 | [47] | |||
1985 | 1985 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Divisional playoffs (at Rams) 20–0 | [48] | ||
1986 | 1986 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 7 | 9 | 0 | [49] | |||
1987 | 1987 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 7 | 8 | 0 | [50] [G] | |||
1988 | 1988 | NFL | NFC | East | 5th | 3 | 13 | 0 | [52] | |||
1989 | 1989 | NFL | NFC | East | 5th | 1 | 15 | 0 | Jimmy Johnson | [53] | ||
1990 | 1990 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 7 | 9 | 0 |
Jimmy Johnson (
COY ) Emmitt Smith ( OROY ) |
[54] [55] [28] | ||
1991 | 1991 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 11 | 5 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (at
Bears) 17–13 Lost Divisional playoffs (at Lions) 38–6 |
[56] | ||
1992 | 1992 | NFL† | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 13 | 3 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Eagles) 34–10 Won NFC Championship (at 49ers) 30–20 Won Super Bowl XXVII (3) (vs. Bills) 52–17 |
Troy Aikman ( SB MVP ) | [57] [30] | |
1993 | 1993 | NFL† | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Packers) 27–17 Won NFC Championship ( 49ers) 38–21 Won Super Bowl XXVIII (4) (vs. Bills) 30–13 |
Emmitt Smith ( SB MVP ) | [58] [30] | |
1994 | 1994 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Packers) 35–9 Lost NFC Championship (at 49ers) 38–28 |
Barry Switzer | [59] | |
1995 | 1995 | NFL† | NFC* | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Divisional playoffs (
Eagles) 30–11 Won NFC Championship ( Packers) 38–27 Won Super Bowl XXX (5) (vs. Steelers) 27–17 |
Larry Brown ( SB MVP ) | [60] [30] | |
1996 | 1996 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 10 | 6 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (
Vikings) 40–15 Lost Divisional playoffs (at Panthers) 26–17 |
[61] | ||
1997 | 1997 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 6 | 10 | 0 | [62] | |||
1998 | 1998 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs ( Cardinals) 20–7 | Chan Gailey | [63] | |
1999 | 1999 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 8 | 8 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs (at Vikings) 27–10 | [64] | ||
2000 | 2000 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 5 | 11 | 0 | Dave Campo | [65] | ||
2001 | 2001 | NFL | NFC | East | 5th | 5 | 11 | 0 | [66] | |||
2002 | 2002 | NFL | NFC | East [H] | 4th | 5 | 11 | 0 | [68] | |||
2003 | 2003 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 10 | 6 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs (at Panthers) 29–10 | Bill Parcells | [69] | |
2004 | 2004 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 | [70] | |||
2005 | 2005 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 9 | 7 | 0 | [71] | |||
2006 | 2006 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 9 | 7 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs (at Seahawks) 21–20 | [72] | ||
2007 | 2007 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 13 | 3 | 0 | Lost Divisional playoffs ( Giants) 17–21 | Greg Ellis ( CBPOY ) | Wade Phillips | [73] [74] |
2008 | 2008 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 9 | 7 | 0 | [75] | |||
2009 | 2009 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 11 | 5 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (
Eagles) 34–14 Lost Divisional playoffs (at Vikings) 34–3 |
[76] | ||
2010 | 2010 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 |
Wade Phillips (
1–7) Jason Garrett ( 5–3) |
[77] | ||
2011 | 2011 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 8 | 8 | 0 | Jason Garrett | [78] | ||
2012 | 2012 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 8 | 8 | 0 | Jason Witten ( WPMOY ) | [79] [80] | ||
2013 | 2013 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd | 8 | 8 | 0 | [81] | |||
2014 | 2014 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 4 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (
Lions) 24–20 Lost Divisional playoffs (at Packers) 26–21 |
DeMarco Murray ( OPOY ) | [82] [83] | |
2015 | 2015 | NFL | NFC | East | 4th | 4 | 12 | 0 | [84] | |||
2016 | 2016 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 13 | 3 | 0 | Lost Divisional playoffs ( Packers) 34–31 |
Jason Garrett (
COY ) Dak Prescott ( OROY ) |
[85] [86] [28] | |
2017 | 2017 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd | 9 | 7 | 0 | [87] | |||
2018 | 2018 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 10 | 6 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (
Seahawks) 24–22 Lost Divisional playoffs (at Rams) 30–22 |
[88] | ||
2019 | 2019 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd | 8 | 8 | 0 | [89] | |||
2020 | 2020 | NFL | NFC | East | 3rd | 6 | 10 | 0 | Mike McCarthy | [90] | ||
2021 | 2021 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 5 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs ( 49ers) 23–17 | Micah Parsons ( DROY ) | [91] [92] [I] | |
2022 | 2022 | NFL | NFC | East | 2nd# | 12 | 5 | 0 | Won
Wild Card playoffs (at
Buccaneers) 31–14 Lost Divisional playoffs (at 49ers) 19–12 |
Dak Prescott ( WPMOY ) | [94] [95] | |
2023 | 2023 | NFL | NFC | East^ | 1st^ | 12 | 5 | 0 | Lost Wild Card playoffs ( Packers) 48–32 | [96] | ||
Total | 562 | 413 | 6 | All-time regular season record (1960–2023) | [11] | |||||||
36 | 31 | — | All-time postseason record (1960–2023) | |||||||||
598 | 444 | 6 | All-time regular season and postseason record (1960–2023) |