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1979 Dallas Cowboys
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Record: 11-5-0, Finished 1st in NFC East Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 371 points (23.2/g), 5th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 313 points (19.6/g), 12th.
Differential of 58 points (3.6/g), 5th.
Expected W-L: 9.6-6.4.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential -11 (-0.7/g), 25th.
Coached by Tom Landry (11-5-0)
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1979 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Roger Staubach* | 37 | 10 | 16 | 267 for 461, 3,586 yards, 27 td, 11 int, & 37 rushes for 172 yards and 0 td | Kansas City Chiefs / 16th / 122nd pick / 1964 |
| RB | Tony Dorsett | 25 | 2 | 14 | 250 rushes for 1,107 yards, 6 td, & 45 catches for 375 yards and 1 td | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1977 |
| FB | Robert Newhouse | 29 | 7 | 12 | 124 rushes for 449 yards, 3 td, & 7 catches for 55 yards and 1 td | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 35th pick / 1972 |
| WR | Tony Hill* | 23 | 2 | 0 | 60 catches for 1,062 yards, 10 td, & 2 rushes for 18 yards and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1977 |
| WR | Drew Pearson | 28 | 6 | 0 | 55 catches for 1,026 yards, 8 td, & 3 rushes for 27 yards and 0 td | |
| TE | Billy Joe DuPree | 29 | 6 | 16 | 29 catches for 324 yards, 5 td, & 2 rushes for 19 yards and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 20th pick / 1973 |
| LT | Pat Donovan* | 26 | 4 | 0 | 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 90th pick / 1975 |
| LG | Herbert Scott* | 26 | 4 | 0 | Dallas Cowboys / 13th / 330th pick / 1975 |
|
| C | John Fitzgerald | 31 | 8 | 0 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 101st pick / 1970 |
|
| RG | Tom Rafferty | 25 | 3 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 119th pick / 1976 |
| RT | Jim Cooper | 24 | 2 | 11 | 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 164th pick / 1977 |
| RT | Rayfield Wright | 34 | 12 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 182nd pick / 1967 |
|
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Larry Cole | 33 | 11 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 16th / 428th pick / 1968 |
|
| LDE | John Dutton | 28 | 5 | 5 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 5th pick / 1974 |
|
| LDT | Dave Stalls | 24 | 2 | 12 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 191st pick / 1977 |
| LDT | Larry Cole | 33 | 11 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 16th / 428th pick / 1968 |
|
| RDT | Randy White*+ | 26 | 4 | 14 | 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1975 |
| RDE | Harvey Martin* | 29 | 6 | 0 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1973 |
|
| LLB | Thomas Henderson | 26 | 4 | 10 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 18th pick / 1975 |
|
| MLB | Bob Breunig* | 26 | 4 | 16 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 70th pick / 1975 |
|
| MLB | Mike Hegman | 26 | 3 | 5 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 173rd pick / 1975 |
|
| RLB | D.D. Lewis | 34 | 11 | 0 | 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 159th pick / 1968 |
| LCB | Benny Barnes | 28 | 7 | 15 | 2 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | |
| RCB | Aaron Kyle | 25 | 3 | 16 | 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 27th pick / 1976 |
| SS | Randy Hughes | 26 | 4 | 0 | 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 96th pick / 1975 |
| FS | Cliff Harris* | 31 | 9 | 0 | 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Rafael Septien | 26 | 2 | 0 | 19 of 29 field goals & 40 of 44 extra points | New Orleans Saints / 10th / 258th pick / 1977 |
| P | Danny White | 27 | 3 | 0 | 76 punts for a 41.7 average, 0 blocked | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1974 |
| PR | Steve Wilson | 22 | Rook | 0 | 35 punt returns for a 6.7 average and 0 td | |
| KR | Ron Springs | 23 | Rook | 0 | 38 kick returns for a 20.5 average and 0 td | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 136th pick / 1979 |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Benny Barnes | 28 | DB | 15 | 15 | 190 | 6-1 | Stanford | 3/3/1951 | 7 | |
| 76 | Larry Bethea | 23 | DT-DE | 16 | 2 | 251 | 6-2 | Michigan State | 7/21/1956 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 28th pick / 1978 |
| 24 | Alois Blackwell | 25 | RB | 6 | 0 | 195 | 5-10 | Houston | 11/12/1954 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 110th pick / 1978 |
| 53 | Bob Breunig* | 26 | LB | 16 | 16 | 226 | 6-7 | Arizona State | 7/4/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 70th pick / 1975 |
| 36 | Larry Brinson | 25 | RB | 14 | 0 | 214 | 6-2 | Florida | 6/6/1954 | 2 | |
| 59 | Guy Brown | 24 | LB | 15 | 0 | 223 | 6-4 | Houston | 6/1/1955 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 108th pick / 1977 |
| 18 | Glenn Carano | 24 | QB | 3 | 0 | 201 | 6-3 | UNLV | 11/18/1955 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 54th pick / 1977 |
| 63 | Larry Cole | 33 | DE-DT | 16 | 16 | 252 | 6-5 | Air Force,Hawaii,Houston | 11/15/1946 | 11 | Dallas Cowboys / 16th / 428th pick / 1968 |
| 61 | Jim Cooper | 24 | T-C-G | 15 | 11 | 262 | 6-5 | Temple | 9/28/1955 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 164th pick / 1977 |
| 84 | Doug Cosbie | 23 | TE | 16 | 1 | 236 | 6-6 | Holy Cross,Santa Clara | 3/27/1956 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 76th pick / 1979 |
| 67 | Pat Donovan* | 26 | T | 16 | 0 | 253 | 6-5 | Stanford | 7/1/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 90th pick / 1975 |
| 33 | Tony Dorsett | 25 | RB | 14 | 14 | 192 | 5-11 | Pittsburgh | 4/7/1954 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1977 |
| 89 | Billy Joe DuPree | 29 | TE | 16 | 16 | 225 | 6-4 | Michigan State | 3/7/1950 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 20th pick / 1973 |
| 78 | John Dutton | 28 | DT-DE | 8 | 5 | 266 | 6-6 | Nebraska | 2/6/1951 | 5 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 5th pick / 1974 |
| 62 | John Fitzgerald | 31 | C-G | 15 | 0 | 255 | 6-5 | Boston College | 4/16/1948 | 8 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 101st pick / 1970 |
| 71 | Andy Frederick | 25 | T | 16 | 0 | 257 | 6-6 | New Mexico | 7/25/1954 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 137th pick / 1977 |
| 43 | Cliff Harris* | 31 | DB | 16 | 0 | 188 | 6-0 | Ouachita Baptist | 11/12/1948 | 9 | |
| 58 | Mike Hegman | 26 | LB | 16 | 5 | 227 | 6-1 | Alabama A&M,Tennessee State | 1/17/1953 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 173rd pick / 1975 |
| 56 | Thomas Henderson | 26 | LB | 11 | 10 | 221 | 6-2 | Langston | 3/1/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 18th pick / 1975 |
| 80 | Tony Hill* | 23 | WR | 16 | 0 | 199 | 6-2 | Stanford | 6/23/1956 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 62nd pick / 1977 |
| 42 | Randy Hughes | 26 | DB | 15 | 0 | 209 | 6-4 | Oklahoma | 4/3/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 96th pick / 1975 |
| 57 | Bruce Huther | 25 | LB | 16 | 0 | 221 | 6-1 | New Hampshire | 7/23/1954 | 2 | |
| 86 | Butch Johnson | 25 | WR | 11 | 1 | 187 | 6-1 | California-Riverside | 5/28/1954 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 87th pick / 1976 |
| 25 | Aaron Kyle | 25 | DB | 16 | 16 | 185 | 5-11 | Wyoming | 4/6/1954 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 27th pick / 1976 |
| 35 | Scott Laidlaw | 26 | RB | 16 | 3 | 206 | 6-0 | Stanford | 2/17/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 14th / 356th pick / 1975 |
| 66 | Burton Lawless | 26 | G | 15 | 0 | 253 | 6-4 | Florida | 11/1/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 44th pick / 1975 |
| 50 | D.D. Lewis | 34 | LB | 16 | 0 | 225 | 6-1 | Mississippi State | 10/16/1945 | 11 | Dallas Cowboys / 6th / 159th pick / 1968 |
| 22 | Wade Manning | 24 | WR-DB | 9 | 0 | 190 | 5-11 | Ohio State | 7/25/1955 | Rook | |
| 79 | Harvey Martin* | 29 | DE-DT | 16 | 0 | 260 | 6-5 | Texas A&M-Commerce | 11/16/1950 | 6 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1973 |
| 34 | Aaron Mitchell | 23 | DB | 16 | 1 | 196 | 6-1 | Morris Brown,UNLV | 12/15/1956 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 55th pick / 1979 |
| 44 | Robert Newhouse | 29 | RB | 14 | 12 | 209 | 5-10 | Houston | 1/9/1950 | 7 | Dallas Cowboys / 2nd / 35th pick / 1972 |
| 88 | Drew Pearson | 28 | WR | 15 | 0 | 184 | 6-0 | Tulsa | 1/12/1951 | 6 | |
| 26 | Preston Pearson | 34 | RB | 14 | 0 | 205 | 6-1 | Illinois | 1/17/1945 | 12 | Baltimore Colts / 12th / 298th pick / 1967 |
| 64 | Tom Rafferty | 25 | C-G | 16 | 16 | 256 | 6-3 | Penn State | 8/2/1954 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 4th / 119th pick / 1976 |
| 87 | Jay Saldi | 25 | TE-WR | 16 | 0 | 225 | 6-3 | South Carolina | 10/8/1954 | 3 | |
| 68 | Herbert Scott* | 26 | G-T | 16 | 0 | 254 | 6-2 | Virginia Union | 1/18/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 13th / 330th pick / 1975 |
| 1 | Rafael Septien | 26 | K | 16 | 0 | 176 | 5-10 | La-Lafayette | 12/12/1953 | 2 | New Orleans Saints / 10th / 258th pick / 1977 |
| 52 | Robert Shaw | 23 | C-G | 16 | 1 | 245 | 6-4 | Tennessee | 10/15/1956 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 27th pick / 1979 |
| 20 | Ron Springs | 23 | RB | 16 | 0 | 213 | 6-0 | Ohio State | 11/4/1956 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 136th pick / 1979 |
| 65 | Dave Stalls | 24 | DE-DT-NT | 16 | 12 | 250 | 6-5 | Northern Colorado | 9/19/1955 | 2 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 191st pick / 1977 |
| 12 | Roger Staubach* | 37 | QB | 16 | 16 | 197 | 6-3 | Navy,New Mexico Military Inst. | 2/5/1942 | 10 | Kansas City Chiefs / 16th / 122nd pick / 1964 |
| 77 | Bruce Thornton | 21 | DE-DT | 16 | 0 | 263 | 6-5 | Illinois | 2/14/1958 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 8th / 219th pick / 1979 |
| 32 | Dennis Thurman | 23 | DB | 16 | 0 | 176 | 5-11 | USC | 4/13/1956 | 1 | Dallas Cowboys / 11th / 306th pick / 1978 |
| 11 | Danny White | 27 | QB-P | 16 | 0 | 193 | 6-2 | Arizona State | 2/9/1952 | 3 | Dallas Cowboys / 3rd / 53rd pick / 1974 |
| 54 | Randy White*+ | 26 | DT-LB-DE | 15 | 14 | 257 | 6-4 | Maryland | 1/15/1953 | 4 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 2nd pick / 1975 |
| 81 | Steve Wilson | 22 | DB-WR | 16 | 0 | 195 | 5-10 | Howard | 8/24/1957 | Rook | |
| 70 | Rayfield Wright | 34 | T-TE | 16 | 5 | 255 | 6-6 | Fort Valley State | 8/23/1945 | 12 | Dallas Cowboys / 7th / 182nd pick / 1967 |
| Team Total | 26.4 | 16 | 221.7 | 6-2.3 | 3.9 |