In 1993, Bill Murray starred as a television weatherman stuck in an endless loop, repeating the same Groundhog Day events over and over.
Twenty years later, Cowboys’ fans felt like they were similarly trapped in a never-ending nightmare of repeating 8-8 seasons.
Dallas had gone 8-8 for the last two years. Surely, the fanbase thought, surely they couldn’t do it three straight years, right?
Yes they could. And…
Hit And Miss Draft
The Cowboys landed a solid center in Travis Frederick with their first round pick. They got five solid years from him.
Were it not for a non-football-related medical issue, he’d probably still be their starting center in 2023.
Despite having solid tight ends in Jason Witten and James Hanna, the Cowboys burned a second round pick on tight end Gavin Escobar.
It was a reach. And a bad one at that.
After four seasons Escobar was cut after making seven starts. He finished with 30 receptions for 333 yards and eight touchdowns.
A tight end that was available when Dallas made that selection? Travis Kelce. Whatever became of that guy anyway?
Dallas took receiver Terrance Williams in the third round. A foot injury in 2018 derailed his promising NFL career.
We Like It Here
The Cowboys finally got to start the season at home for the first time since 2007. Their opponent that year was the Giants.
They hosted those same Giants to start the 2013 campaign. Leading 30-17 with 12 minutes left, Dallas survived two late Eli Manning touchdown passes for a 36-31 win.
Manning actually threw the game-winning third touchdown pass of the fourth quarter as well. That one went to Dallas’ Brandon Carr.
Carr went 49 yards for the touchdown and a 36-24 Dallas lead with 1:50 remaining.
Dallas dropped a 17-16 decision to the Chiefs in Kansas City the following week. They easily dispatched the Rams at home, 31-7, to go to 2-1 on the season.
No Momentum Generated
The Cowboys would never get more than a game below .500, and only once would they be more than a game above .500.
They would drop two straight, a 30-21 loss at San Diego before coming home to lose to Denver 51-48.
Romo and Peyton Manning would put on a show in the game. Romo would throw for 506 yards and five touchdowns.
Romo’s efforts would tie the record he and Aikman shared for touchdowns in a single game. The 506 yards is a Cowboys’ record and stands 16th all-time in NFL history.
Manning finished with 414 yards and four touchdowns in the victory.
He also faked out the entire planet on a quarterback keeper for a one-yard touchdown run. Rumor has it they used a calendar to time his run on the play.
Dallas recovered with a two-game winning streak. A 31-16 win over the Redskins and a 17-3 win at Philadelphia put Dallas back over the .500 mark at 4-3.
The Cowboys took a 13-7 lead into the fourth quarter at Detroit. Then both teams took their defenses off the field as they combined for 41 points in the quarter.
Matthew Stafford’s one-yard run gave the Lions a 31-30 victory. Romo’s seven-yard pass to Dwayne Harris with 35 seconds left pushed Dallas past Minnesota the next week, 27-23.
A 49-17 blowout loss at the Superdome at the hands of the Saints sent Dallas to their bye week at 5-5 on the season.
Another Playoff Run Falls Short
Bailey’s 35-yard field goal as time expired gave Dallas a 24-21 win over the Giants in New York. On Thanksgiving, Dallas rallied from 21-7 down for a 31-24 victory over the Raiders.
A 45-28 loss at Chicago ended the streak. The Cowboys pulled away to a 29-10 lead over the Packers with 6:33 left in the third quarter.
With Aaron Rodgers out, Green Bay had turned to Matt Flynn as their starting quarterback.
In the final 16 minutes, Matt Damon’s doppelganger would throw three touchdowns.
His third scoring pass had pulled the Packers to within five points with just over four minutes remaining. Romo would throw two interceptions after that.
The first would give Green Bay the ball at midfield with 2:46 left. The Packers would drive 50 yards and score the go ahead touchdown with 1:34 remaining.
Two plays later, Romo would throw his second interception. The Packers would hold on for a 37-36 win.
The following week, Romo would lead a scoring drive, hitting DeMarco Murray on a 10-yard pass with 68 seconds remaining for a 24-23 win at the Redskins.
At 8-7, Dallas would need a win at home against the Eagles to win the division and make the playoffs. A loss and another 8-8 finish and a missed playoff spot would result.
Orton Falls Short
The victory over Washington had come at a cost. Romo had suffered a herniated disc in his lower back and would not be able to play.
The Cowboys turned to Kyle Orton with their season on the line. In a valiant effort, Orton rallied the team back from an early 17-7 hole.
Three Bailey field goals got Dallas to within a point at 17-16 going into the fourth quarter. The Eagles made it 24-16 with six minutes left on a Bryce Brown run.
Orton drove Dallas 80 yards for a touchdown, capping the drive with 32-yard pass to Dez Bryant. Needing a two-point conversion to tie, Orton looked for Bryant again.
But the pass fell incomplete. Dallas got the ball back one last time on its own 32 with 1:49 to play. Orton’s first pass was intercepted and the Eagles ran out the clock.
For the third straight year, Dallas finished at 8-8. For the fourth straight year, they missed the playoffs.
The fan base made one thing clear: They would not tolerate any more 8-8 and no playoffs seasons in Dallas.
Jason Garrett’s seat was not only hot, it was white hot. And it was getting warmer by the minute.
