History of the Dallas Cowboys - 2000s
Rebuilding the NFL Cowboys and the Era of Tony Romo
Sep 18, 2009
With four losing seasons out of five, the decade of the 2000s did not start well for the Dallas Cowboys football team. However, with their rebuilding efforts, which brought in such players as Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Patrick Crayton, Jason Witten, DeMarcus Ware, Bradie James, and others, the Dallas Cowboys appear poised to return to their winning tradition.
Dallas Cowboys Season Records in the 2000s
The Dallas Cowboys had five winning seasons from 2000 through the 2008 season with an overall win-loss-tie record of 71-73-0:
- 2000: 5-11-0
- 2001: 5-11-0
- 2002: 5-11-0
- 2003: 10-6-0
- 2004: 6-10-0
- 2005: 9-7-0
- 2006: 9-7-0
- 2007: 13-3-0
- 2008: 9-7-0
- 2009: 0-0-0 (season in progress)
Dallas Cowboys Championships in the 2000s
The Dallas Cowboys qualified for the playoffs three times during the 2000s.
- 2003: With a 10-6 season, the Dallas Cowboys had their first winning season since 1999. They lost to the Carolina Panthers in the Wild Card game.
- 2006: The Dallas Cowboys qualified for the playoffs but lost their Wild Card game 21-20 against Seattle.
- 2007: Led by Tony Romo to their best season of the 2000s, the Dallas Cowboys won the NFC Eastern Division title but lost the divisional playoff game to the New York Giants, who went on to win Super Bowl XLII.
Quarterback Changes for the Dallas Cowboys in the 2000s
Eleven different Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks saw significant playing time during the 2000s. Troy Aikman and Randall Cunningham were the team's quarterbacks in 2000. In Aikman's last season with the Dallas Cowboys, he passed for 1,632 yards and seven touchdowns. Cunningham accounted for six touchdowns on 849 passing yards.
Quincy Carter gained playing time with the Dallas Cowboys from 2001 to 2003.
- Carter passed for 1,072 yards with five touchdowns in 2001 while Anthony Wright, Ryan Leaf, and Clint Stoerner accounted for an additional 1,336 yards and nine touchdowns.
- In 2002, Chad Hutchinson had 1,555 passing yards and seven touchdowns while Carter recorded 1,465 yards with seven touchdowns.
- In 2003, Quincy Carter led the Dallas Cowboys to their first winning season of the decade with 3,302 passing yards and 17 touchdowns.
Vinny Testaverde was the Dallas Cowboys quarterback in 2004, passing for 3,532 passing yards and 17 touchdowns. The following year, Drew Bledsoe took over as the Cowboys' starting quarterback and threw 23 touchdowns with 3,639 passing yards. During the season, Bledsoe became the tenth NFL player to cross the 10,000 career passing yards mark.
Drew Bledsoe was the Cowboys starting quarterback at the beginning of the 2006 season, passing for 1,164 yards and seven touchdowns. Head coach Bill Parcells replaced Bledsoe midway through the season with Tony Romo who completed the 2006 season with 2,903 yards passing and 19 touchdowns.
Tony Romo passed for 4,211 with 36 touchdowns in 2007 and, in 2008, accounted for 3,448 yards and 26 touchdowns. When Romo missed some games in 2008 due to injuries, Brad Johnson took over and accumulated 427 passing yards with two touchdowns.
Dallas Cowboys Head Coach Changes in the 2000s
Chan Gailey served as the Dallas Cowboys head coach from February 12, 1998 until he was fired on January 11, 2000. His overall record with the Cowboys was 18-14 with one Wild Card playoff loss in both 1998 and 1999. Three head coaching changes occurred during the 2000s.
- Dave Campo, who had served as an assistant coach for the previous eleven years in Dallas, was named as the Cowboys fifth head coach on January 26, 2000. He was fired on December 30, 2002 after posting an overall record of 10-22.
- Bill Parcells became the Dallas Cowboys' sixth head coach on January 2, 2003. He compiled a 34-30 regular season record and two playoff losses before retiring on January 22, 2007.
- Wade Phillips was introduced as the seventh head coach of the Dallas Cowboys on February 7, 2007. Phillips currently holds that position and posted a 22-10 record through 2008.
Of the Dallas Cowboys' seven head coaches, Tom Landry served for the first 29 years while six others have served as head coach during the next 21 years.
Cowboys Stadium Opened in 2009
After playing in Texas Stadium for 37 seasons, the Dallas Cowboys opened the new $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium prior to the 2009 season. The facility is the largest, most expensive and technologically advanced football stadium to serve the NFL and contains the world's largest high definition television screen, measuring 160 feet wide and 72 feet high.
The first NFL game played in Cowboys Stadium was the August 21, 2009, preseason game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Tennessee Titans which the Cowboys won 30-10. The first regular season game in Cowboys Stadium was played on September 20, 2009, against NFC East rivals New York Giants who won the contest 33-31.
Overview of the Dallas Cowboys in the 2000s
The 2000s started as a bleak period of losing seasons and rebuilding for the Dallas Cowboys. The franchise gradually filled the team with young talent and achieved four consecutive winning seasons from 2005 through 2008. With their recent successes, the Dallas Cowboys have given their fans hope that the team will soon be back at the top of the NFL and possibly repeat their accomplishments of the 1970s and 1990s.
Additional Reading on the Dallas Cowboys
- The History of the Dallas Cowboys - 1960s details the birth and early years of the Cowboys.
- To learn more about their ten consecutive winning seasons, five Super Bowl trips and two championships in one decade, go to the History of the Dallas Cowboys - 1970s.
- Read about the team's three Super Bowl championships in History of the Dallas Cowboys - 1990s.
Sources:
- Team History by Season, DallasCowboys.com
- History of Football - Dallas Cowboys, NFL.com
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