The Cowboys streak of consecutive NFC Championship game appearance had ended at four in 1996. The team came into the 1997 season looking to get back on top.
Instead, the whole thing unraveled. Troy Aikman's long-running frustration with Barry Switzer's coaching style boiled over in an epic sideline rant.
The Cowboys were an undisciplined team under Switzer, a stark contrast to Jimmy Johnson's stricter style that Aikman thrived under.
By the time the season ended, the Cowboys would finish with a losing record and miss the playoffs for the first time since 1990.
After the season Switzer decided he'd had enough of the NFL, packed up his Super Bowl ring from 1995, and resigned.
The Cowboys again had a mediocre draft, landing one long-term player in linebacker Dexter Coakley in the third round.
The team's first-round pick, tight end David LaFleur, would start 44 games over four seasons for the Cowboys. His NFL career would end after the 2000 season with 60 games played, 85 receptions for 729 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Great Start
Aikman and Michael Irvin got off to a great start in a 37-7 win over the Steelers to open the season.
Aikman threw for 295 yards and four touchdowns. Irvin had 11 catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns.
The Cowboys jumped out to a 22-7 lead over the Cardinals in Phoenix. But Arizona rallied with 15 late points to send the game into overtime before handing Dallas a 25-22 loss.
The Cowboys rallied back the next week, scoring 12 fourth quarter points for a 21-20 win over the Eagles. A 27-3 rout of the Bears had Dallas at 3-1 for the year.
Inconsistency Proves Costly
The Cowboys would drop the next two games, 20-17 to the Giants and 21-16 to the Redskins. After letting a 19-7 get away, Aikman hit Herschel Walker on a 64-yard pass for a 26-22 win over the Jaguars.
Losses to the Eagles (13-12) and the 49ers (17-10) followed. The Cowboys again recovered, defeating Arizona (24-6) and the Redskins (17-14) to get back over .500 at 6-5.
The Season Implodes
The Cowboys would drop their last five games of the season, starting with a 45-17 loss at Green Bay.
Tennessee arrived to play the Thanksgiving Day game and the Cowboys acted like it was Christmas Day instead. Five turnovers led to an embarrassing 27-14 loss.
Aikman would throw for 356 yards in the game against Steve McNair's 81 passing yards. The Oilers – they hadn't yet become the Titans – only had 245 offensive yards in the game.
Carolina made it 2-0 against the Cowboys in their young history with a 23-13 victory at Texas Stadium.
The Cowboys hit the road and grabbed a 10-0 lead over the Bengals only to watch Cincinnati rally back for a 31-24 win.
The season mercifully came to an end with a 20-7 loss at home to the Giants.
Switzer's Stats
Switzer would not return in 1998. His four-year run as the Cowboys' third head coach ended with a record of 40-24 (.625).
He would lead the team to two NFC Championship games and one Super Bowl victory. But he would always have that asterisk attached to his record.
Yes, his overall record at Dallas was successful, despite the disappointing final season. But he'd done it with a team he'd done little to build. And he certainly hadn't improved the team during his tenure.
As Aikman noted, in the video referenced above, each year's team was not as good as the one that played the year before.
