The 2002 Dallas Cowboys season was the 43rd season for the team in the National Football League (NFL) and the third and final under head coach Dave Campo. It was Emmitt Smith's 13th and final season with the team, officially marking the end of the famed "triplets" tenure in Dallas after wide receiver Michael Irvin was forced to retire prematurely after the 1999 season and quarterback Troy Aikman retired prior to the start of the 2001 season. All three players would eventually be inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It was also the last of three consecutive 5–11 finishes for the Cowboys, which began in 2000. Texas Stadium also saw new RealGrass Turf surface by week 5, replacing the AstroTurf. The Cowboys' 5–11 record meant that they were the only NFL team operational from 2000 to 2002 that did not win more than 5 games in a season and would not have another consecutive losing seasons until 2024 and 2025.
Offseason Additions SubtractionsTE Tony McGee (Bengals) QB Ryan Leaf (Seahawks/Retirement)LB Kevin Hardy (Jaguars) LS Mike Solwold (Buccaneers)DT La'Roi Glover (Saints) WR Darrin Chiaverini (Falcons)WR Darnay Scott (Bengals) FS Izell Reese (Broncos) C Mark Stepnoski (retirement)
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 had been dismissed by Cincinnati, his history of high-powered offenses while running the Bill Walsh–style West Coast offense provided hope for the Cowboys. A promising draft which included former Oklahoma Sooners All-American selection safety Roy Williams in the first round and the free agent addition of Pro Bowl defensive tackle La'Roi Glover provided even more hope for weary Cowboys fans. The team was also covered throughout training camp and featured on the HBO series Hard Knocks with a strong emphasis on the anticipation of running back Emmitt Smith's road to the NFL's all-time rushing record.
2002 expansion draft
+ Dallas Cowboys selected during the expansion draft Round Overall Name Position Expansion team—19Johnny HugginsTight endHouston Texans
2002 draft class
Notes The Cowboys traded their original first-round (No. 6 overall) selection to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for first (No. 8 overall) and third-round (No. 75 overall) selections, and a 2003 sixth-round (No. 186 overall) selection. The Cowboys traded their original third (No. 72 overall), fourth (No. 104 overall) and fifth-round (No. 140 overall) selections to the Chicago Bears in exchange for second (No. 63 overall) and fourth-round (No. 129 overall) selections. The Cowboys traded return man Jeff Ogden to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a seventh-round (No. 237 overall) selection. The Cowboys traded their seventh-round (No. 237 overall) and 2003 fifth-round (No. 168 overall) selection to the New England Patriots for a fifth-round (No. 168 overall) selection. The Cowboys traded their 2001 fourth-round (No. 102 overall) and 2002 seventh-round (No. 217 overall) selections to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for tight end O.J. Santiago.
Undrafted free agents
+ 2002 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeDaShawn Abram CornerbackWyomingDarius BryantDefensive TackleNC StateKhary CampbellLinebackerBowling GreenSam ClemonsQuarterbackWestern IllinoisBilly CundiffPlacekickerDrakeWoodrow DantzlerRunning backClemsonKeith DavisSafetySam Houston StateKevin DeRondeDefensive EndIowa StateFilip FilipovićPunterSouth DakotaEnnis HaywoodRunning backIowa StateChad HutchinsonQuarterbackStanfordRay RobinsonRunning backNC StateJoey SlatenTackleSMU
Personnel Staff
Roster Dallas Cowboys 2002 roster Quarterbacks Quincy Carter Chad Hutchinson Clint Stoerner
Running backs Woody Dantzler KR Troy Hambrick Jason McKie FB Emmitt Smith Robert Thomas FB Michael Wiley
Wide receivers Antonio Bryant Joey Galloway PR Ken-Yon Rambo KR Darnay Scott Reggie Swinton KR/PR Randal Williams
Tight ends Mike Lucky Tony McGee James Whalen Offensive linemen Flozell Adams T Javiar Collins T Andre Gurode G Matt Lehr C/G Solomon Page G/T Ross Tucker G Kurt Vollers T Tyson Walter C
Defensive linemen Ebenezer Ekuban DE Greg Ellis DE Demetric Evans DE La'Roi Glover DT Michael Myers DT John Nix DT Brandon Noble DT Daleroy Stewart DT Colston Weatherington DE Peppi Zellner DELinebackers Dexter Coakley OLB Kevin Hardy OLB Louis Mackey OLB Dat Nguyen MLB Markus Steele MLB
Defensive backs Keith Davis FS Tony Dixon SS Mario Edwards CB Dwayne Goodrich CB Pete Hunter CB Jermaine Jones CB Derek Ross CB Lynn Scott SS Roy Williams FS
Special teams Billy Cundiff K Filip Filipović P Jeff Grau LSReserve lists Larry Allen G (IR) Jamal Brooks LB (IR) Dan Collins G (IR) Rocket Ismail WR (IR) Anthony Lucas WR (IR) Jamar Martin FB (IR) Marques McFadden G/T (IR) Jeremy McKinney G (NF-Inj.) Jeff Robinson LS/TE (IR) Bob Slowikowski TE (IR) Darren Woodson S (IR)
Practice squad Markese Fitzgerald CB Ennis Haywood RB Deveren Johnson WR Derrius Monroe DE Dave Volk T
Rookies in italics 53 active, 11 inactive, 5 practice squad
Regular season The air was immediately let out of the Cowboys' balloon in the opening regular-season contest which saw the team lose to first-year expansion team and new cross-state rival, the Houston Texans. Though quarterback Quincy Carter again opened the season as the starter, he was eventually benched in favor of newly signed Chad Hutchinson who, until that year, had been a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals after leaving Stanford as a two-sport star. Many believed that owner Jerry Jones pressured head coach Dave Campo into starting Hutchinson much too early, due in part to the large signing bonus Jones paid to acquire the quarterback. Regardless, neither quarterback proved effective and the team once again spiraled towards a losing season.
It is believed 2002 was the first time an NFL franchise had five African American starters on their offensive line, when the Cowboys lined up rookie center Andre Gurode, tackles Flozell Adams and Solomon Page, guards Larry Allen and Kelvin Garmon.
The Cowboys kept making NFL history on October 27 at home against the Seattle Seahawks. Despite a close loss, Emmitt Smith broke the all-time career yardage rushing record previously held by Walter Payton.Numbelievable!, p. 159, Michael X. Ferraro and John Veneziano, Triumph Books, Chicago, Illinois, 2007, The game was stopped momentarily in recognition of the moment, allowing an emotional Smith to briefly celebrate with teammates both current and past who attended the game, as well as members of Payton's family. Smith later scored the 125th rushing touchdown of his career on the same drive. The milestone moment would provide the lone bright spot of the year for the team and Smith, who failed to reach the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season for the first time in his career since his rookie season of 1990. Overshadowed by the NFL rushing landmark, safety Darren Woodson quietly became the Cowboys' all-time leading tackler.
During a late-season loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, reports began to surface that owner Jerry Jones had secretly met with Bill Parcells, the former head coach of the New York Giants, New England Patriots and New York Jets, about the Cowboys' head-coaching position, on board Jones's private jet. Though this would prove to be a critical move to the Cowboys' future success, it was nonetheless embarrassing for current head coach Dave Campo, who had received no word that any potential moves were pending, and Jones was roundly criticized for the incident. On-field ineptitude and off-field controversy once again led to a 5–11 season, the team's third consecutive such finish. Dave Campo was predictably dismissed after the season and would be the last head coach to have multiple losing seasons until Mike McCarthy in 2020 and 2024.
Notable additions to the team included wide receiver Antonio Bryant and center Andre Gurode.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Venue Attendance Record 1 September 8 at Houston Texans L 10–19 Reliant Stadium 69,604 0–1 2 September 15 Tennessee Titans W 21–13 Texas Stadium 62,527 1–1 3 September 22 at Philadelphia Eagles L 13–44 Veterans Stadium 65,537 1–2 4 September 29 at St. Louis Rams W 13–10 Edward Jones Dome 66,165 2–2 5 October 6 New York Giants L 17–21 Texas Stadium 63,447 2–3 6 October 13 Carolina Panthers W 14–13 Texas Stadium 61,773 3–3 7 October 20 at Arizona Cardinals L 6–9 Sun Devil Stadium 59,702 3–4 8 October 27 Seattle Seahawks L 14–17 Texas Stadium 63,854 3–5 9 November 3 at Detroit Lions L 7–9 Ford Field 61,789 3–6 10 Bye 11 November 17 at Indianapolis Colts L 3–20 RCA Dome 57,057 3–7 12 November 24 Jacksonville Jaguars W 21–19 Texas Stadium 62,204 4–7 13 November 28 Washington Redskins W 27–20 Texas Stadium 63,606 5–7 14 December 8 San Francisco 49ers L 27–31 Texas Stadium 64,097 5–8 15 December 15 at New York Giants L 7–37 Giants Stadium 78,698 5–9 16 December 21 Philadelphia Eagles L 3–27 Texas Stadium 63,209 5–10 17 December 29 at Washington Redskins L 14–20 FedExField 84,142 5–11 Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 2: vs. Tennessee Titans
Week 7: at Arizona Cardinals
Week 8: vs. Seattle Seahawks
Week 9: at Detroit Lions
Week 12: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Standings Division
Conference
Awards and records Darren Woodson, Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award
Publications The Football Encyclopedia Total Football Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes
References
External links 2002 Dallas Cowboys Pro Football Hall of Fame Dallas Cowboys Official Site