The Cowboys – coming off the disappointing ending of the previous campaign — reloaded for the 1981 season.
They added offensive lineman Howard Richards (1st) and Glenn Titensor (3rd) in the draft and defensive backs Michael Downs and Everson Walls as undrafted free agents.
By the time camp packed up the Cowboys were ready to reclaim their place atop the NFC East.
Perfect At The Quarter Pole
The Cowboys opened the season at the Redskins with a solid 26-10 win. Danny White threw a pair of touchdowns to Billy Joe Dupree and Drew Pearson.
Tony Dorsett racked up 132 rushing yards on 21 carries and Rafael Septien hit four second-half field goals. The Cowboys defense picked off four Joe Theismann passes.
Dorsett rumbled for 129 yards and Ron Springs scored three rushing touchdowns in a 30-17 win over the Cardinals at home.
The Cowboys got 162 yards – including a 75-yard scoring run – from Dorsett and two White touchdown passes for a 35-21 win at New England.
Dallas improved to 4-0 on the year with an 18-10 win over the Giants that wasn’t even that close. Dallas’ defense picked off Phil Simms three times in the game.
Road Woes
The Cowboys dropped back-to-back games on the road, spoiling their perfect start to the season.
Neil O’Donoghue’s late 37-yard field goal in St. Louis handed the Cowboys a 20-17 loss to the Cardinals in an evenly-played contest.
But a trip out west to San Francisco turned nightmarish in a hurry. The Cowboys fell behind 24-0 early in the second quarter in what turned out to be a 45-14 loss to the 49ers.
San Francisco almost made it 52-7 in the fourth, but Benny Barnes recovered a fumble and returned it 72 yards for the Cowboys final score.
Four-Game Win Streak
The blowout loss seemed to fire up Dallas as they played three of their next four games at Texas Stadium. Dorsett ran for 159 yards and a score in a 29-17 win over the Rams.
A 14-6 halftime lead against the Dolphins turned into a wild fourth quarter shootout. After Miami had scored twice for a 27-17 lead, White tossed two touchdowns for a 28-27 victory.
The Cowboys would score two late touchdowns again the next week in Philadelphia to escape with a 17-14 win over the Eagles.
The Bills would take a 14-7 lead at halftime, but a 73-yard pass to Dorsett, who added 117 rushing yards, started a 20-0 scoring run. Dallas won the game 27-14 and sat at 8-2 on the season.
Down The Stretch They Come
With six games left in the season, Dallas was tied with the Eagles for first place in the division. They fell out of first the next week.
The Eagles downed the Colts in Week 11. Dallas yielded an 81-yard touchdown pass from Eric Hipple to Billy Sims and a 47-yard Eddie Murray field goal in a 27-24 loss to the Lions.
Philadelphia would then go on a three-game losing streak. The Cowboys would dispatch the Redskins (24-10), the Bears (10-9), and the Colts (37-13).
With two games left, Dallas held a two-game lead over the Eagles with the teams set to play at Texas Stadium. This year, a win of any kind would seal the division for Dallas.
The Eagles would jump out to an early lead, 10-0, on a Booker Russell touchdown run. White responded with an eight-yard pass to Hill to make it 10-7 at halftime.
White found Butch Johnson on a 36-yard pass for a 14-10 lead in the third. Ron Springs sealed the win, and the division, with a 12-yard run for a 21-10 victory.
Dallas fell to the Giants 13-10 in overtime in New York to finish 12-4 again, but this time as division champions.
They would not have to play a wild card game. But they were the No. 2 seed behind the 13-3 49ers.
After a scoreless first quarter in the divisional round game against Tampa Bay, the Cowboys scored 38 unanswered points.
White’s nine-yard pass to Tony Hill in the second quarter was all the points needed. But four different running backs would score a rushing touchdown each as insurance.
The Cowboys were back in the NFC Championship game for the second straight year. This time, they were heading west to San Francisco.
The Catch
Looking at the box score after the fact, the Cowboys should have won the NFC Championship game running away.
San Francisco had six turnovers. Joe Montana was picked off three times, twice by Walls. The 49ers had seven penalties for 106 yards.
By comparison, Dallas had just three turnovers and 39 yards on five penalties. White was 16-for-24 for 173 yards and two touchdowns. Dorsett had 91 yards rushing and a touchdown.
Dallas had taken a 17-14 lead into the half and led 27-21 in the fourth after White connected with Doug Cosbie on a 21-yard scoring pass.
But somehow Montana drove the 49ers to the win with the six-yard pass that Cowboys’ fans still see in their nightmares today.
“The Catch” is often considered the winning play of that game. It wasn’t. It was “The Arm Tackle.”
White hit Drew Pearson on a nice crossing route that had nothing between Pearson and the endzone but green grass. Only an amazing tackle by Eric Wright prevented a Cowboys victory.
Still, at midfield, and with time to drive into position for a game-winning field goal, White fumbled on the next play.
The 49ers recovered, ran out the clock, and went on to establish a dynasty. The Cowboys went back home, once again one agonizing win short of another Super Bowl appearance.