text: 1979 Dallas finished the 1979 season 11–5. The team slumped in November but rallied to win its next two games. This set the stage for the regular season finale against Washington, with the winner capturing the NFC East title and the loser missing the playoffs. The Cowboys trailed 17–0, but then scored three touchdowns to take the lead. Led by running back John Riggins, the Redskins came back to build a 34–21 lead, but the Cowboys scored 2 touchdowns in the final five minutes -– including a Staubach touchdown pass to Tony Hill with less than a minute remaining –- for a 35–34 victory. The season ended with a whimper, however, as two weeks later, the underdog Rams traveled to Dallas and upset the Cowboys 21–19 in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Cowboys had a chance to win in the final two minutes after the Rams scored their final touchdown, but the Rams' defense stopped Staubach from making another comeback. The Rams went on to win the NFC Championship Game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-0 and reach Super Bowl XIV, which they lost to the defending champion, Pittsburgh, by a score of 31–19. After this game, repeated concussions compelled Staubach to announce his retirement a few months later in an emotional press conference at Texas Stadium.
  All told, from 1970 through 1979, the Cowboys won 105 regular season games, more than any other NFL franchise during that span.
  1980s
  1980 - 82: Next Year's Champions again
  Danny White became the Cowboys' starting quarterback in 1980. Without Staubach, not much was expected of the Cowboys, but they surprised everyone with a 12–4 regular season. Philadelphia also finished 12–4 but got the division title on a close tiebreaker. The Cowboys won the wildcard game at home against the Rams, then White engineered a late comeback to win the divisional playoff game in Atlanta. Dallas faced the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game, but lost 20–7 to their division rival in Veterans Stadium.