There are officially 81 days until the toe meets the ball at AT&T Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys will host the New York Giants on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.
Get your popcorn ready. Today we are going to unveil who the Greatest 81 in Dallas Cowboys History is. This is one of the flashier numbers at the wide receiver position, so hopefully we’ve got somebody who can live up to that standard!
The following players have all worn 81 for the Dallas Cowboys:
- Scott Ankrom, WR
- Tyji Armstrong, TE
- Marv Bateman, P
- Curtis Clay, WR
- Danny Coale, WR
- Colin Cochart, TE
- Kelvin Edwards, WR
- Scott Galbraith, TE
- Andre Holmes, WR
- Percy Howard, WR
- Billy Howton, WR
- Rocket Ismail, WR
- Patrick Jeffers, WR
- Quincy Morgan, WR
- Terrell Owens, WR
- Kirk Phillips, WR
- Karl Powe, WR
- Peerless Price, WR
- Laurent Robinson, WR
- Jackie Smith, TE
- Robert Steele, WR
- James Whalen, TE
- Steve Wilson, DB
- Alexander Wright, WR
This is quite the list. 24 gentlemen have put on the Cowboys 81, and it pains me a great deal that one of them was Jackie Smith. For those of you that don’t know, Jackie Smith is a Hall of Fame tight end who spent the majority of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals. He joined the Cowboys for the 1978 season and for what I believe is the greatest game ever played…Super Bowl XIII against the Pittsburgh Steelers. XIII was one of the more riveting Super Bowls, going back and forth, and Jackie dropped what would have been a game-tying touchdown in the middle of the third quarter. The Cowboys had to settle for 3, and ultimately lost the game by 4 points.
Billy Howton is one of the heroes to wear 81. He was one of the first Dallas Cowboys receivers ever, he was literally one of the first to start in 1960, and helped the young Cowboys find their way in the NFL. In the first ever DC victory, Billy Howton chimed in for a game-high 138 yards receiving with a touchdown. He and Eddie LeBaron were quite the aerial attack in the early 60s, and in 1963 Howton surpassed Don Hutson to become the NFL’s all-time leading receiver.
The Greatest 81 in Dallas Cowboys History has one of the most amazing middle names that I have ever heard. The Cowboys signed Terrell Eldorado Owens as a free agent in 2006. He would go on to lead the league with 13 touchdown receptions (after fresh young quarterback Tony Romo took over midseason) as the Cowboys made the playoffs. In 2007 T.O. really shined. He caught 81 balls (funny how that worked out, huh?), for 1,355 yards and 15 touchdowns. The 2007 Cowboys squad was one of the more prolific offenses in not just franchise, but NFL history. T.O. and his offensive production were a huge reason for this. The Cowboys obtained the number one seed that year, and T.O. was recognized as a Pro Bowler and First-Team All-Pro. His finest hour that season, and arguably throughout his whole Cowboys career, came on November 18th against the Washington Redskins at Texas Stadium. Owens caught 8 passes for 173 yards and an incredible 4 touchdowns.
While T.O. had some off-the-field drama that ultimately led to his release after the 2008 season, and even though he only played three seasons under the blue and silver, he comes out on top of his fellow 81s. In those three seasons he totaled 235 catches for 3,587 yards and 38 touchdowns. That’s an insane amount of production in just 47 games. Owens also played a huge role in Tony Romo’s growth in our offense. Say what you will about his locker room presence, but it serves a young QB well to have a big, strong, future Hall of Fame wideout like T.O. to learn from. He gave us some great moments and some big laughs, and T.O. is the Greatest 81 in Dallas Cowboys History.
Check back tomorrow to find out who the Greatest 80 in Dallas Cowboys History is!
Say what you will about T.O. and all the whining and bitching and drama, but he was a good receiver. We got him at the tail-end of his prime, but he was still good. He definitely helped Romo start strong for a good while there.