Crazy recent history: a lack of back to back success

It’s been 15 years since the Cowboys had back to back playoff seasons. That last happened in 2006-07. Even more amazingly, it’s been 26 years since the Cowboys won the NFC East in back to back seasons, which last occurred in 1994-95.

If we want to be taken serious as an organization and earn some of that respect many fans crave, this organization must reverse this trend of not repeating a successful season with another.

Let’s look at this trend and how the Cowboys performed following a playoff season:

• 2008 season– following their very successful 13-3 2007 season, the Cowboys were expected to be SB contenders. In 2008, we won our first 3 games, only to win 6 of their last 13, finishing 9-7 and missed the playoffs.
• 2010 season– after an 11-5 season in 2009, a season where Tony Romo won his first of two playoff games in his career, 2010 was another year with high hopes. Romo was injured early in the 2010 and missed most of the season. Wade Phillips was fired at mid season and Jason Garrett hired. The Cowboys finished 6-10.
• 2015 season- following a successful 2014 season, where the Cowboys went 12-4, won a playoff game and were close to defeating GB in the divisional round, the ‘Boys went 4-12 in 2015. It’s was another injury season for Romo, one that proved to be his last stand as a starter.
• 2017 season- following an exciting 2016 season where the draft produced new stars Zeke and Dak and a 13-3 season where the team won a team record 11 games in a row and earned the #1 seed…the Cowboys had a disappointing 9-7 clunker. Failed to make the playoffs,
• 2019 season- In 2018, the Cowboys had made a mid season surge after the Amari Cooper trade to win the East and also won Dak’s first playoff game vs the Seahawks. Followed by another non-playoff clunker in 2019. The ‘Boys were fast out of the gate in 2019, winning their first 3 games, only to lose 7 of 13 afterward.

So following a 12-5 NFCE winning season in 2021…this team must reverse its 15 yr trend of not being able to make the playoffs in back to back seasons.

Will they break this cycle? It’s one of the top questions going into 2022.