List of Dallas Cowboys head coaches
Encyclopedia
The Dallas Cowboys
are a professional American football
team based in Arlington
, Texas
(formerly Irving
, Texas
). They are members of the Eastern Division
of the National Football Conference
(NFC) in the National Football League
(NFL). The Cowboys franchise was originally founded in 1960 as an expansion team. The team played their games in the Cotton Bowl
from 1960 to 1970, then in Texas Stadium
from 1971 to 2008 and Cowboys Stadium from 2009 to present.
There have been eight head coach
es for the Dallas Cowboys. Three coaches have won Super Bowls with the team: Tom Landry
in Super Bowl VI
and XII
, Jimmy Johnson
in Super Bowl XXVII
and XXVIII
, and Barry Switzer
in Super Bowl XXX
. Landry is the team's all-time leader in games coached and wins, and Jason Garrett
leads all coaches in winning percentage
with .636. Dave Campo
has the worst winning percentage (.313) of all Cowboys coaches. The team's first coach, Tom Landry, has been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
. The current coach is Jason Garrett
who replaced Wade Phillips on November 8, 2010.
.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
are a professional American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team based in Arlington
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(formerly Irving
Irving, Texas
Irving is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within Dallas County. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city population was 216,290. Irving is within the Dallas–Plano–Irving metropolitan division of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area, designated...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
). They are members of the Eastern Division
NFC East
The NFC East is a division of the National Football League's National Football Conference. It currently has four members: the Philadelphia Eagles, the New York Giants, the Dallas Cowboys, and Washington Redskins....
of the National Football Conference
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the American Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL.-Current teams:Since 2002, the NFC has comprised 16 teams,...
(NFC) in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
(NFL). The Cowboys franchise was originally founded in 1960 as an expansion team. The team played their games in the Cotton Bowl
Cotton Bowl (stadium)
The Cotton Bowl is a stadium which opened in 1929 and became known as "The House That Doak Built" due to the immense crowds that former SMU running back Doak Walker drew to the stadium during his college career in the late 1940s. Originally known as Fair Park Stadium, it is located in Fair Park,...
from 1960 to 1970, then in Texas Stadium
Texas Stadium
Texas Stadium was a football stadium in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. The stadium opened on September 17, 1971.Built to replace the aging Cotton Bowl, it was the home field of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, and had a seating capacity of 65,675...
from 1971 to 2008 and Cowboys Stadium from 2009 to present.
There have been eight head coach
Head coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
es for the Dallas Cowboys. Three coaches have won Super Bowls with the team: Tom Landry
Tom Landry
Thomas Wade "Tom" Landry was an American football player and coach. He is ranked as one of the greatest and most innovative coaches in National Football League history, creating many new formations and methods...
in Super Bowl VI
Super Bowl VI
Super Bowl VI was an American football game played on January 16, 1972, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1971 regular season...
and XII
Super Bowl XII
Super Bowl XII was an American football game played on January 15, 1978 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana to decide the National Football League champion following the 1977 regular season...
, Jimmy Johnson
Jimmy Johnson (American football coach)
James William "Jimmy" Johnson is an American former NCAA and National Football League head coach. As of 2010, he is currently an analyst for Fox NFL Sunday, the Fox network's NFL pregame show. He was the first football coach whose teams won both an NCAA Division 1A National Championship and a...
in Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII
Super Bowl XXVII was a football game played on January 31, 1993 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California to decide the National Football League champion following the 1992 regular season. The National Football Conference champion Dallas Cowboys defeated the American Football Conference champion...
and XXVIII
Super Bowl XXVIII
Super Bowl XXVIII was an American football game played on January 30, 1994, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia, to decide the National Football League champion following the 1993 regular season. The National Football Conference champion Dallas Cowboys defeated the American Football...
, and Barry Switzer
Barry Switzer
Barry Switzer is a former football coach, active in the college and professional ranks between 1962 and 1997. He has one of the highest winning percentages of any college football coach in history, and is one of only two head coaches to win both a college football national championship and a...
in Super Bowl XXX
Super Bowl XXX
Super Bowl XXX was an American football game played on January 28, 1996 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona to decide the National Football League champion following the 1995 regular season...
. Landry is the team's all-time leader in games coached and wins, and Jason Garrett
Jason Garrett
Jason Calvin Garrett is an American former National Football League player and the current head coach of the Dallas Cowboys...
leads all coaches in winning percentage
Winning percentage
In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. It is defined as wins divided by wins plus losses . Ties count as a ½ loss and a ½ win...
with .636. Dave Campo
Dave Campo
Dave Campo is an American football coach, a former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, and currently secondary coach with the Cowboys.-High school years:...
has the worst winning percentage (.313) of all Cowboys coaches. The team's first coach, Tom Landry, has been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees...
. The current coach is Jason Garrett
Jason Garrett
Jason Calvin Garrett is an American former National Football League player and the current head coach of the Dallas Cowboys...
who replaced Wade Phillips on November 8, 2010.
Key
| # | Number of coachesA running total of the number of coaches of the Cowboys. Thus, any coach who has two or more separate terms as head coach is only counted once. |
| GC | Games coached |
| W | Wins |
| L | Losses |
| T | Ties |
| Win% | Winning percentage Winning percentage In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. It is defined as wins divided by wins plus losses . Ties count as a ½ loss and a ½ win... |
| * | Spent entire NFL head coaching career with the Cowboys |
| † | Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League . It opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter inductees... as a coach |
Coaches
Note: Statistics are correct as of the 2010 NFL season2010 NFL season
The 2010 NFL season was the 91st regular season of the National Football League.The regular season began with the NFL Kickoff game on NBC on Thursday, September 9, at the Louisiana Superdome as the New Orleans Saints, Super Bowl XLIV champions, defeated the Minnesota Vikings 14–9.Tom Brady,...
.
| # | Name | Term | Regular Season | Playoffs | Achievements | Reference | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GC | W | L | T | Win% | GC | W | L | Win% | |||||||||
| Dallas Cowboys | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Tom Landry Tom Landry Thomas Wade "Tom" Landry was an American football player and coach. He is ranked as one of the greatest and most innovative coaches in National Football League history, creating many new formations and methods... *† |
1960 1960 NFL season The 1960 NFL season was the 41st regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, Pete Rozelle was elected NFL commissioner as a compromise choice on the twenty-third ballot. Meanwhile, the league expanded to 13 teams with the addition of the Dallas Cowboys. Also, the Cardinals... –1988 1988 Dallas Cowboys season 1988 was the final year for Cowboys head coach Tom Landry. After the season, the team would undergo drastic changes including a new head coach, and change of ownership from the late Bum Bright to current owner Jerry Jones. Notable additions to the team that year include wide receiver Michael Irvin,... |
418 | 250 | 162 | 6 | .607 | 36 | 20 | 16 | .556 | AP Coach of the Year (1966) Sporting News Coach of the Year (1966) UPI NFL Coach of the Year (1966) UPI NFC Coach of the Year (1975) 2 Super Bowl Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather... championships (1971, 1977) 5 NFC championships (1970, 1971, 1975, 1977, 1978) |
|||||
| 2 | Jimmy Johnson Jimmy Johnson (American football coach) James William "Jimmy" Johnson is an American former NCAA and National Football League head coach. As of 2010, he is currently an analyst for Fox NFL Sunday, the Fox network's NFL pregame show. He was the first football coach whose teams won both an NCAA Division 1A National Championship and a... |
1989 1989 Dallas Cowboys season The 1989 Dallas Cowboys season was the first year of the franchise under the ownership of Jerry Jones as well as under the helm of head coach Jimmy Johnson, who had compiled a 44–4 record in his last 4 years as coach of the University of Miami Hurricanes.... –1993 1993 Dallas Cowboys season The 1993 Dallas Cowboys season marked their 34th in the NFL and a quest for back-to-back Super Bowl titles. The season saw the franchise become the first team to start 0–2 and still reach the Super Bowl.-Regular season:... |
80 | 44 | 36 | 0 | .550 | 8 | 7 | 1 | .875 | AP Coach of the Year (1990) UPI NFC Coach of the Year (1990) 2 Super Bowl championships (1992, 1993) |
|||||
| 3 | Barry Switzer Barry Switzer Barry Switzer is a former football coach, active in the college and professional ranks between 1962 and 1997. He has one of the highest winning percentages of any college football coach in history, and is one of only two head coaches to win both a college football national championship and a... |
1994 1994 Dallas Cowboys season The 1994 Dallas Cowboys season would mark their 35th in the NFL. Following their second Super Bowl title, the Cowboys would see a multitude of changes. In March, months of frustration finally reached its climax as team owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jimmy Johnson held a press conference and... –1997 1997 Dallas Cowboys season The 1997 Dallas Cowboys season would mark their 38th in the NFL and for the first time since 1990, the team would suffer a losing season and miss the playoffs.-Regular season:... |
64 | 40 | 24 | 0 | .625 | 7 | 5 | 2 | .714 | Super Bowl championship (1995) | |||||
| 4 | Chan Gailey Chan Gailey Thomas Chandler "Chan" Gailey, Jr. is an American professional and college football coach. Gailey is the current head coach of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League ; he was formerly the head coach of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets college football... |
1998 1998 Dallas Cowboys season The 1998 Dallas Cowboys season would mark their 39th in the NFL and team owner Jerry Jones would hire former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Chan Gailey to be the fourth head coach of the Dallas Cowboys franchise.-Regular season:... –1999 1999 Dallas Cowboys season -Regular season:The season would begin at Washington with a dramatic come-from-behind victory over the hated division rival Washington Redskins. After trailing by three touchdowns in the second half, free agent acquisition Rocket Ismail would pay immediate dividends for the team by hauling in the... |
32 | 18 | 14 | 0 | .563 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 | ||||||
| 5 | Dave Campo Dave Campo Dave Campo is an American football coach, a former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, and currently secondary coach with the Cowboys.-High school years:... |
2000 2000 Dallas Cowboys season The 2000 Dallas Cowboys season would mark their 41st in the NFL and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones would promote the team's long-time defensive coordinator, Dave Campo to be the fifth head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.-Offseason:... –2002 2002 Dallas Cowboys season -Offseason:Despite an off-season filled with promise, the season would again prove to be a disaster. Former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator and head coach Bruce Coslet was brought in to run the offense for Dallas. Even though he was dismissed by Cincinnati, his history of high-powered... |
48 | 15 | 33 | 0 | .313 | — | — | — | — | ||||||
| 6 | Bill Parcells Bill Parcells Duane Charles "Bill" Parcells is a former American football head coach, most recently with the Dallas Cowboys from 2003 to 2006... |
2003 2003 Dallas Cowboys season 2003 marked the 44th season for the Dallas Cowboys organization as the team, coming off three consecutive 5–11 seasons, hired former New York Giants and New England Patriots coach Bill Parcells.... –2006 2006 Dallas Cowboys season The 2006 Dallas Cowboys season began with the team trying to improve on their 9–7 record in 2005. The base offense was changed to a 2-TE formation. Several high profile free agents were signed including controversial wide receiver Terrell Owens and kicker Mike Vanderjagt... |
64 | 34 | 30 | 0 | .531 | 2 | 0 | 2 | .000 | ||||||
| 7 | Wade Phillips Wade Phillips Wade Allen Phillips is the defensive coordinator for the Houston Texans and former head coach for the National Football League's Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, and Buffalo Bills. He was also an interim head coach for the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons... |
2007 2007 Dallas Cowboys season The 2007 Dallas Cowboys season was the 48th season for the team in the National Football League. The Cowboys finished the regular season tied for the best record in the NFC , and earned a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs... –2010 2010 Dallas Cowboys season The 2010 Dallas Cowboys season is the 51st season for the team in the National Football League, and the second season playing their home games at Cowboys Stadium... |
56 | 34 | 22 | 0 | .607 | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | ||||||
| 8 | Jason Garrett Jason Garrett Jason Calvin Garrett is an American former National Football League player and the current head coach of the Dallas Cowboys... |
2010 2010 Dallas Cowboys season The 2010 Dallas Cowboys season is the 51st season for the team in the National Football League, and the second season playing their home games at Cowboys Stadium... –Present |
19 | 12 | 7 | 0 | .632 | — | — | — | — | ||||||
External links
- Dallas Cowboys official website
- Voices of Oklahoma interview with Barry Switzer. First person interview conducted on August 17, 2009 with Barry Switzer, Dallas Cowboy's head coach from 1994-1997. Original audio and transcript archived with Voices of Oklahoma oral history project.