1980 Dallas Cowboys season

The 1980 Dallas Cowboys season was their 21st in the league. The team improved to 12-4 following Roger Staubach's retirement after the 1979 season. They qualified for the 1980 NFL postseason as an NFC Wild Card, yet ultimately lost in the Conference Championship game.

1980 Dallas Cowboys season
Owner	Clint Murchison, Jr.
General manager	Tex Schramm
Head coach	Tom Landry
Home field	Texas Stadium
Results
Record	12–4
Division place	2nd NFC East
Playoff finish	Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Rams) 34–13 Won Divisional Playoffs (at Falcons) 30–27 Lost NFC Championship (at Eagles) 7–20

The Cowboys playing the Eagles in the 1980 NFC Championship Game

Going into the final week of the season, Dallas (11–4) played Philadelphia (12–3) at Texas Stadium. Under that season's NFL tiebreakers, Dallas had to beat the Eagles by 25 points or greater to win the NFC East, entering the NFC postseason as the number two seed while Philadelphia would be a wildcard team. The Eagles win NFC East should the Cowboys lose, tie or win by 24 points or fewer.

Dallas was leading the final regular season game 35–10 in the fourth quarter; however, the Eagles scored 17 unanswered points to pull within 35–27. Dallas had to play an extra week in the Wild Card round and as visitors in the following week road game in Atlanta in the Divisional Round. Dallas lost at Philadelphia in the NFC Championship Games

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article: 1980 NFL draft

1980 Dallas Cowboys draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
3	78	Bill Roe	LB	Colorado
3	80	James Jones	RB	Mississippi State
4	105	Kurt Petersen	OG	Missouri
5	133	Gary Hogeboom	QB	Central Michigan
6	162	Timmy Newsome	FB	Winston-Salem State
7	189	Lester Brown	RB	Clemson
8	216	Larry Savage	LB	Michigan State
9	246	Jackie Flowers	WR	Florida State
10	273	Matthew Teague	LB	Prairie View A&M
11	300	Gary Padjen	LB	Arizona State
12	330	Norm Wells	DE	Northwestern
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

1980 Undrafted Free Agents of note

Player	Position	College
Mike Brock	Offensive Line	Alabama
Dextor Clinkscale	Safety	South Carolina State
Roy Dean	Wide receiver	Alabama
Anthony Dickerson	Linebacker	SMU
Mike Glenn	Offensive Line	Utah State
Richard Grimmett	Offensive tackle	Illinois
Jim Himic	Offensive Line	West Virginia
Jay Howlett	Defensive Line	Holy Cross
Kevin Kelly	Offensive Line	Duke
Bill Leer	Offensive Line	Colorado State
Mike Mancuso	Quarterback	Nebraska–Omaha
Don Smerek	Defensive end	Nevada
Roosevelt Smith	Running back	Michigan

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game Site	Attendance	Recap
1	September 8	at Washington Redskins	W 17–3	1–0	RFK Stadium	55,045	Recap
2	September 14	at Denver Broncos	L 20–41	1–1	Mile High Stadium	74,919	Recap
3	September 21	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 28–17	2–1	Texas Stadium	62,750	Recap
4	September 28	at Green Bay Packers	W 28–7	3–1	Milwaukee County Stadium	54,776	Recap
5	October 5	New York Giants	W 24–3	4–1	Texas Stadium	59,126	Recap
6	October 12	San Francisco 49ers	W 59–14	5–1	Texas Stadium	63,399	Recap
7	October 19	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 10–17	5–2	Veterans Stadium	70,696	Recap
8	October 26	San Diego Chargers	W 42–31	6–2	Texas Stadium	60,639	Recap
9	November 2	at St. Louis Cardinals	W 27–24	7–2	Busch Memorial Stadium	50,701	Recap
10	November 9	at New York Giants	L 35–38	7–3	Giants Stadium	68,343	Recap
11	November 16	St. Louis Cardinals	W 31–21	8–3	Texas Stadium	52,567	Recap
12	November 23	Washington Redskins	W 14–10	9–3	Texas Stadium	58,809	Recap
13	November 27	Seattle Seahawks	W 51–7	10–3	Texas Stadium	57,540	Recap
14	December 7	at Oakland Raiders	W 19–13	11–3	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum	53,194	Recap
15	December 15	at Los Angeles Rams	L 14–38	11–4	Anaheim Stadium	65,154	Recap
16	December 21	Philadelphia Eagles	W 35–27	12–4	Texas Stadium	62,548	Recap

Division opponents are in bold text

Game summaries

Week 1 at Redskins

See also: 1980 Washington Redskins season

Week One: Dallas Cowboys (0–0) at Washington Redskins (0–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	7	3	0	7	17
Redskins	0	0	0	3	3

at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.

• Date: September 8
• Game time: 9:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: 78 °F (26 °C)
• Game attendance: 55,045
• Referee: Gene Barth
• TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, and Howard Cosell
• Box Score

Game information

First quarter DAL – Tony Dorsett 6-yard run (Rafael Septién kick). Cowboys 7–0. Drive: Second quarter DAL – Rafael Septién 19-yard field goal. Cowboys 10–0. Drive: Third quarter No scoring Fourth quarter WSH – Mark Moseley 45-yard field goal. Cowboys 10–3. Drive: DAL – Ron Springs 4-yard run (Rafael Septién kick). Cowboys 17–3. Drive: Top passers DAL – Danny White – 10/18, 107 yards, 2 INT WSH – Joe Theismann – 19/34, 190 yards, INT Top rushers DAL – Tony Dorsett – 17 rushes, 66 yards, TD WSH – Clarence Harmon – 7 rushes, 39 yards Top receivers DAL – Tony Hill – 3 receptions, 69 yards WSH – Clarence Harmon – 7 receptions, 67 yards

Week 2

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 10 3 7 20 • Broncos 7 17 14 3 41 Date: September 14, 1980 Location: Mile High Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 74,919 Game weather: Sunny; 67 °F (19 °C) Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (CBS): Lindsey Nelson and Sonny Jurgensen

Week 3

1 2 3 4 Total Bucs 7 10 0 0 17 • Cowboys 7 7 7 7 28 Date: Sunday Sept 21, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game weather: Sunny; 86 °F (30 °C) Referee: Chuck Heberling TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Week 4

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 7 7 7 7 28 Packers 0 7 0 0 7 Date: Sunday Sept 28, 1980 Location: Milwaukee County Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 55 °F (13 °C); Wind 9 mph (14 km/h) Referee: Fred Silva

Week 5

1 2 3 4 Total Giants 0 0 0 3 3 • Cowboys 3 14 0 7 24 Date: Sunday Oct 5, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C)

Week 6

1 2 3 4 Total 49ers 0 7 0 7 14 • Cowboys 14 24 14 7 59 Date: Sunday Oct 12, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game weather: Sunny; 86 °F (30 °C) Referee: Pat Haggerty Television network: CBS

Week 7

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 3 0 0 10 • Eagles 0 10 0 7 17 Date: October 19 Location: Veterans Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,696 Game weather: Sunny; 69 °F (21 °C) Referee: Cal Lepore TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Scoring summary Q1 DAL Hegman recovered fumble in end zone (Septién kick) DAL 7–0 Q2 PHI Franklin 35 yard field goal DAL 7–3 Q2 PHI Carmichael 5 yard pass from Jaworski (Franklin kick) PHI 10–7 Q2 DAL Septién 33 yard field goal Tie 10–10 Q4 PHI Smith 15 yard pass from Jaworski (Franklin kick) PHI 17–10

Week 8

1 2 3 4 Total Chargers 3 21 0 7 31 • Cowboys 7 7 21 7 42 Date: Sunday Oct 26, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST Game weather: Clear; 55 °F (13 °C) Referee: Dick Jorgensen Television network: ABC

Week 9

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 0 10 3 14 27 Cardinals 7 3 7 7 24 Date: Sunday Nov 2, 1980 Location: Civic Center Busch Memorial Stadium Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game weather: Clear; 49 °F (9 °C), wind 12 mph (19 km/h) TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 10

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 7 14 14 0 35 • Giants 7 21 0 10 38 Date: Sunday Nov 9, 1980 Location: Giants Stadium Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST Game weather: Overcast; 44 °F (7 °C), wind 12 mph (19 km/h) Referee: Ben Dreith TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 11

1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 14 7 0 0 21 • Cowboys 7 10 7 7 31 Date: Sunday Nov 16, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 44 °F (7 °C), wind 18 mph (29 km/h) TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 12

1 2 3 4 Total Redskins 0 3 0 7 10 • Cowboys 7 0 0 7 14 Date: Sunday Nov 23, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 47 °F (8 °C), wind 8 mph (13 km/h) Referee: Fred Silva TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Week 13

1 2 3 4 Total Seahawks 0 0 0 7 7 • Cowboys 9 21 0 21 51 Date: Thursday Nov 27, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game weather: 40 °F (4 °C), wind 14 mph (23 km/h) Referee: Pat Haggerty TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Week 14

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 7 9 3 0 19 Raiders 7 3 3 0 13 Date: December 7 Location: Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California Game start: 1:00 p.m. Game attendance: 53,194 Game weather: 48 °F (9 °C), wind 8 mph (13 km/h) Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Scoring summary Q1 OAK Raymond Chester 6 yard pass from Jim Plunkett (Chris Bahr kick) OAK 7–0 Q1 DAL Tony Dorsett 20 yard rush (Rafael Septién kick) TIE 7–7 Q2 DAL Rafael Septién 52 yard field goal DAL 7–10 Q2 DAL Ron Springs 2 yard rush DAL 7–16 Q2 OAK Chris Bahr 22 yard field goal DAL 10–16 Q3 DAL Rafael Septién 34 yard field goal DAL 10–19 Q3 OAK Chris Bahr 38 yard field goal DAL 13–19

Week 15

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 0 0 14 14 • Rams 7 21 10 0 38 Date: Monday December 15, 1980 Location: Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, CA Game start: 9:00 p.m. Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C), wind 5 mph (8.0 km/h) Referee: Gene Barth TV announcers (ABC): Howard Cosell, Frank Gifford and Don Meredith

Week 16

1 2 3 4 Total Eagles 0 0 10 17 27 • Cowboys 7 14 7 7 35 Date: December 21 Location: Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas Game start: 3:00 p.m. Game weather: 28 °F (−2 °C), wind 9 mph (14 km/h) Referee: Dick Jorgensen TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Scoring summary 1 DAL Danny White 1 yard run (Rafael Septién kick) Cowboys 7–0 2 DAL Tony Hill 36 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Cowboys 14–0 2 DAL Preston Pearson 9 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Cowboys 21–0 3 PHI Louie Giammona 1 yard run (Tony Franklin kick) Cowboys 21–7 3 DAL Drew Pearson 11 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Cowboys 28–7 3 PHI Tony Franklin 29 yard field goal Cowboys 28–10 4 DAL Billy Joe DuPree 15 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Cowboys 35–10 4 PHI Rodney Parker 30 yard pass from Ron Jaworski (Tony Franklin kick) Cowboys 35–17 4 PHI Tony Franklin 19 yard field goal Cowboys 35–20 4 PHI Wilbert Montgomery 6 yard run (Tony Franklin kick) Cowboys 35–27

Playoffs

Main article: 1980–81 NFL playoffs

Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Game Site	Attendance	Recap
Wild Card	December 28, 1980	Los Angeles Rams (5)	W 34–13	Texas Stadium	64,533	Recap
Divisional	January 4, 1981	at Atlanta Falcons (1)	W 30–27	Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium	60,022	Recap
NFC Championship	January 11, 1981	at Philadelphia Eagles (2)	L 7–20	Veterans Stadium	70,696	Recap

Wildcard Round

1 2 3 4 Total Rams 6 7 0 0 13 • Cowboys 3 10 14 7 34 Date: December 28, 1980 Location: Texas Stadium Game start: 1:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 64,533 Game weather: Sunny; 49 °F (9 °C) Referee: Pat Haggerty TV announcers (CBS): Gary Bender and John Madden

Divisional Round

1 2 3 4 Total • Cowboys 3 7 0 20 30 Falcons 10 7 7 3 27 Date: Sunday Jan 4, 1981 Location: Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST Game attendance: 60,022 Game weather: Sunny; 40 °F (4 °C) Referee: Fred Silva TV announcers (CBS): Vin Scully and George Allen

Scoring summary Q1 ATL Tim Mazzetti 38 yard field goal ATL 7–0 Q1 ATL Alfred Jenkins 60 yard pass from Steve Bartkowski (Tim Mazzetti kick) ATL 10-0 Q1 Dal Rafael Septién 38 yard field goal ATL 10-3 Q2 DAL Billy Joe DuPree 5 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) Tie 10-10 Q2 ATL Lynn Cain 1 yard rush (Tim Mazzetti kick) ATL 17-10 Q3 ATL William Andrews 12 yard pass from Steve Bartkowski (Tim Mazzetti kick) ATL 24-10 Q4 DAL Robert Newhouse 1 yard rush (Rafael Septién kick) ATL 24-17 Q4 ATL Tim Mazzetti 34 yard field goal ATL 27-17 Q4 DAL Drew Pearson 14 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) ATL 27-24 Q4 DAL Drew Pearson 23 yard pass from Danny White (Rafael Septién kick) DAL 30-27

Conference Championship

1 2 3 4 Total Cowboys 0 7 0 0 7 • Eagles 7 0 10 3 20 Date: January 11, 1981 Location: Veterans Stadium Game start: 12:30 p.m. EST Game attendance: 70,696 Game weather: Sunny; 17 °F (−8 °C) Referee: Jerry Markbreit TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Scoring summary Q1 PHI Montgomery 42 yard run (Franklin kick) PHI 7–0 Q2 DAL Dorsett 3 yard run (Septién kick) Tie 7–7 Q3 PHI Franklin 26 yard field goal PHI 10–7 Q3 PHI Harris 9 yard run (Franklin kick) PHI 17–7 Q4 PHI Franklin 20 yard field goal PHI 20–7

Veterans Stadium during the 1980 NFC Championship Game against the Dallas Cowboys, January 11, 1981.

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Philadelphia Eagles(2)	12	4	0	.750	6–2	9–3	384	222	L1
Dallas Cowboys(4)	12	4	0	.750	6–2	9–3	454	311	W1
Washington Redskins	6	10	0	.375	4–4	5–7	261	293	W3
St. Louis Cardinals	5	11	0	.313	2–6	4–10	299	350	L2
New York Giants	4	12	0	.250	2–6	3–9	249	425	L2

Roster

Dallas Cowboys 1980 roster
Quarterbacks 18 Glenn Carano 14 Gary Hogeboom 11 Danny White P Running backs 33 Tony Dorsett 23 James Jones RS 44 Robert Newhouse FB 30 Timmy Newsome RB/FB 26 Preston Pearson 20 Ron Springs FB Wide receivers 80 Tony Hill 86 Butch Johnson 88 Drew Pearson Tight ends 84 Doug Cosbie 89 Billy Joe DuPree 87 Jay Saldi WR		Offensive linemen 61 Jim Cooper T/C 67 Pat Donovan T 62 John Fitzgerald C 71 Andy Frederick T 65 Kurt Petersen G 64 Tom Rafferty G 68 Herbert Scott G 52 Robert Shaw C Defensive linemen 76 Larry Bethea DT 63 Larry Cole DT/DE 78 John Dutton DE/DT 72 Ed Jones DE 79 Harvey Martin DE 77 Bruce Thornton DE 66 Norm Wells DT 54 Randy White DT		Linebackers 53 Bob Breunig MLB 59 Guy Brown OLB 51 Anthony Dickerson OLB 58 Mike Hegman OLB 57 Bruce Huther MLB 50 D. D. Lewis OLB 56 Bill Roe MLB Defensive backs 31 Benny Barnes CB 47 Dextor Clinkscale SS 40 Eric Hurt CB 34 Aaron Mitchell CB 32 Dennis Thurman FS/CB 41 Charlie Waters SS 45 Steve Wilson CB/WR Special teams  1 Rafael Septién K		Reserve lists -- Rich Grimmett T (IR) 42 Randy Hughes FS (IR) 22 Wade Manning CB (IR) 60 Don Smerek DE (IR) Rookies in italics 46 active, 4 inactive