Commanders vs. Cowboys: 5 Things To Know About This Historic NFC East Rivalry

Cowboys. Commanders. For the better part of NFL history, they’ve been fierce rivals, no matter where they play or what they’re called. From the Cowboys’ induction into the sport in 1960 to the heyday of both franchises in the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s to the present day, these two teams have clashed on and off the field, generating hate between each other and their fan bases. The latest episode of this rivalry comes on Sunday afternoon, as the Cowboys host the Commanders at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX. Here are five things to know about the historic NFC East rivalry: This rivalry didn’t begin on grass or turf. It began in a courtroom. In 1958, every franchise in the then-12-team NFL voted in favor of expansion except for one: Washington. Then-owner George Preston Marshall vehemently argued against expansion. At the time, Washington was the southernmost team in the sport and viewed the southeastern portion of the country as a greater target audience. What could pose a threat to this? An NFL team in Texas. After a potential sale of the Washington franchise to Clint Murchison Jr. fell through, the Texas oilman continued to try and buy an NFL team, and he chose subterfuge. With Marshall being his biggest obstacle to getting a franchise in Texas (NFL owners had to unanimously approve expansion), Murchison bought the rights to Washington’s rallying cry song from band director Barnee Breeskin, who had a rocky relationship with Marshall at the time. After getting the rights, Murchison pledged to give them to Marshall only if he voted for expansion and therefore, a team in Dallas. Marshall obliged, and the Cowboys were born in 1960. Fascinating, isn’t it? Curious why somebody may hate the Cowboys? George Allen, Washington’s head coach from 1971-77, had many reasons. It took a minute, but once Dallas head coach Tom Landry got his then-transcendent 4-3 defense — which ended up producing Hall of Famers like Bob Lilly, Randy White and Chuck Howley — and a dazzling offensive core in place, the Cowboys were a force to be reckoned with. And they hammered Washington in the process. After a relatively even start to the all-time series in the early-to-mid-1960s, Dallas swept the season series with Washington from 1968-70 and won eight of 10 games against its rival going through the 1972 regular season. To make matters worse for Washington, Dallas defeated the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI, winning a title in the Super Bowl era before the team whose owner tried to deny the Cowboys entry into the league. Now, there was a blip on the radar for Dallas, which was a precious moment for Washington. In the season following the Cowboys’ Super Bowl VI triumph (1972), Washington blasted Dallas in the NFC Championship Game 26-3 to advance to Super Bowl VII. Granted, Miami went on to beat Washington to complete the only perfect season in NFL history (17-0). As for the NFC Championship Game, Washington out-gained Dallas in total yards 316-169, with Cowboys Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach completing just nine passes. Meanwhile, Washington quarterback Billy Kilmer and Hall of Famer Charley Taylor hooked up for two touchdown passes, with the former completing 14 of 18 passes and posting a 148.6 passer rating. The two teams split the season series against each other from 1973-76. During Allen’s tenure from 1971-77, Washington went 7-8 against Dallas. And the head coach seethed. Time and time again, Allen was seen pushing his players to be the aggressor against the Cowboys, as evidenced by the brutal hits they’d lay on each other. Moreover, another reason this game was a “blip on the radar” is that the Cowboys won the Super Bowl again in the 1977 season, with Staubach and star playmakers Tony Dorsett and Drew Pearson, among others, etching their names in NFL history. Washington didn’t make the postseason that year. In 1981, Washington hired San Diego Chargers offensive coordinator Joe Gibbs as its new head coach, and the franchise commenced its golden era — and ended its bitter rival’s in the process. After an 8-8 debut year with Gibbs, Washington won its first Super Bowl in 1982, going 8-1 in a season that was truncated due to an NFL lockout. While beating the Dolphins in the Super Bowl — exacting revenge for their 1973 season defeat — and John Riggins’ MVP performance are surely on the shortlist of treasured moments in franchise history, Washington handling Dallas in the NFC Championship Game may have been just as sweet for the fan base. After losing six consecutive games to Dallas, Washington beat the Cowboys at RFK Stadium to advance to the Super Bowl, intercepting quarterback Gary Hogeboom twice with Riggins rushing for 140 yards and two touchdowns. The following year, Washington won an NFL-best 14 regular-season games but was blown out by the Los Angeles Raiders in the Super Bowl 38-9. Four years later (1987), though, in another strike-impacted season, Washington won the Super Bowl. And in a Monday Night Football game that year on the road, Washington beat the Cowboys with the majority of its roster being replacement players. Dallas, meanwhile, had roughly half of its regulars on the roster. And in 1991, Washington was on top of the football world again, with its third Super Bowl title, marking the most for a team in the NFC East at the time. Washington won its three Super Bowls with as many quarterbacks (Joe Theismann in 1982, Doug Williams in 1987 and Mark Rypien in 1991) and had a balanced defense featuring star cornerback Darrell Green, who played for Washington from 1983-2002 and is the franchise leader with 54 interceptions. Meanwhile, in Dallas, Landry was fired after the 1988 season by new team owner Jerry Jones in the wake of missing the playoffs in four of the previous five seasons. The Cowboys hired Miami Hurricanes head coach and national champion Jimmy Johnson as their new coach and went 1-15 in their first season under him (1989). Still, the two teams went 12-12 against each other with Gibbs in his initial stint as Washington’s head coach from 1981-92 (he returned for a second stint from 2004-07). But, more often than not, it was Washington playing deep into January and Dallas watching. Being a Cowboys fan in the 1980s and the opening seconds of the 1990s was rough. Why’s that? Well, arguably the Cowboys’ two biggest rivals, Washington (1982, 1987 and 1991) and the New York Giants (1986 and 1990), won half of the Super Bowls in the sport from 1982-91. But then the Cowboys came of age. In Johnson’s fourth season as head coach (1992), the likes of NFL all-time rushing leader Emmitt Smith, star wide receiver Michael Irvin, tight end Jay Novacek and quarterback Troy Aikman sparked one of the NFL’s preeminent offenses, leading Dallas to its first Super Bowl win in 15 years with a 52-17 shellacking of the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVII. And the Cowboys ran it back by beating the Bills in the Super Bowl again the following year, 30-13. Then, Dallas had to weather the storm of Johnson and the Cowboys parting ways after the 1993 season, with former Oklahoma Sooners head coach and national champion Barry Switzer taking the reins. After losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the 1994 NFC Championship Game, Dallas got back on the pedestal in 1995, winning its third Super Bowl in four years and tying San Francisco for the most Super Bowls in league history at the time with five. Throughout the Cowboys’ run, Washington always met the moment, as the two teams were .500 against each other from 1992-97. At the same time, Washington failed to make the playoffs from 1993-98. The team actually hired former Dallas offensive coordinator Norv Turner as its head coach for the 1994 season, but the Turner era only produced one playoff appearance and just two winnings seasons from 1994 to 2000. The history of the NFL can’t be told without this rivalry. The way the Cowboys finessed their way to get Washington to let them into the league, the furious matchups, the two teams ending a golden run for the other and the animosity through it all. This rivalry has it all. Would you rather dominate the all-time series in the win column against a team you despise or struggle in the regular season against a team you despise but beat them in the postseason? That’s the dichotomy regarding the question of who has been the “winner” of this rivalry. As alluded to earlier, Washington has gotten the best of Dallas in January, winning the two times the teams have squared off in the playoffs, with both years resulting in an appearance in the Super Bowl for Washington. Plus, Washington beat Dallas in a win-or-go-home Week 17 game in 2012 that decided who won the NFC East and whose season was over, with Alfred Morris rushing for 200 yards and three touchdowns and Washington intercepting Cowboys QB Tony Romo three times. At the same time, the Cowboys are 81-49-2 in the all-time series. Dallas won 10 consecutive games against Washington from 1997-2002 and 14 of 15 stretching to 2005, while also winning 11 of 14 games against Washington from 2013-19 and having won eight of the past 10 matchups. And just for good measure, Dallas is 8-2 against Washington in Thanksgiving Day games. That’s damning! These teams are each in their own respective title droughts. In 2024, Washington won a playoff game for the first time in 19 years and reached the NFC Championship Game for the first time in 33 years, but it has been 25 years since the Lombardi Trophy was hoisted in Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, Dallas hasn’t reached the NFC Championship Game since winning its last championship (1995). The Commanders and Cowboys are more alike than different — but they couldn’t hate each other more.