When Tom Landry vacated the position of head coach of the Cowboys, it seemed impossible that someone in the NFL could moderately fill the shoes of the legendary coach. It was precisely why Jerry Jones turned to the NCAA to find his new HC. The result? A short-lived success.
Jones, who was just starting his tenure as a Dallas owner, decided to give the opportunity to Jimmy Johnson, until then head coach of the Miami Hurricanes, to become the second HC in Cowboys history. One of the factors that decided the hiring was the relationship that the entrepreneur and the coach forged during their time at the University of Arkansas.
Despite having consecrated Miami college soccer champions in 1987, the start of Johnson’s tenure was seen as a total failure. In the first instance, the newcomer got rid of Herschel Walker in a trade with the Vikings in a package that included eight draft picks (three first-round). To add weight to the crockery on Johnson’s shoulders, the Cowboys finished 1-15, the worst in the organization’s history since its inaugural campaign in 1960 (0-11-1).
However, time proved Johnson right. With the capital obtained in the exchange los Cowboys seleccionaron a Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, Clayton Holmes, Kevin Smith y Darren Woodson, all elements that were part of the club during its three Super Bowl titles.
The setback that the 1989 campaign represented was only the exception and not the norm in Johnson’s management. In 1990 the Cowboys improved to 7-9; in 1991 they qualified for the postseason and lost in the divisional round, and the meteoric rise ended in 1992, when Dallas won the third Super Bowl in its history.
To add to the myth around the Cowboys, Johnson made them two-time NFL champions in 1993 ─In perspective, only Vince Lombardi, Don Shula, Chuck Noll, Mike Shanahan and Bill Belichick are the other consecutive Super Bowls winning coaches.
Unfortunately, that rapid rise to glory came at a high cost. The small differences between Jones and Johnson grew to the degree that they became irreconcilable, soe after five years at the helm of the Cowboys, Johnson stepped aside.
Jerry made divorce a public derision to Johnson and hired Barry Switzer, one of Jimmy’s nemesis in the NCAA, the new Cowboys coach.
The shadow of what was
After a couple of years away from the NFL, Jimmy Johnson accepted a new challenge, just as complicated as the previous one: successfully relieving Don Shula in Miami. Despite the Dolphins going 36-28 and qualifying the club for the playoffs three times, Johnson left South Florida after four years.
His preponderance in the NFL during the early nineties, his ability to put the Cowboys and his Vince Lombardi pair earned Jimmy Johnson a bust in the Hall of Fame 22 years after his last game as head coach.
