Garrett Says 90s Teams Influenced Cowboys' O-Line Overhaul

Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett isn’t about to draw any comparisons from the current team to the teams of the 1990s that won three Super Bowls. But having been part of two of those three Super Bowl Champions, those teams have had a very real and evident influence on how these Cowboys have been constructed, and how they operate.

“I’m not one to make comparisons, and certainly don’t want to make comparisons with a team that won three Super Bowls in four years,” Garrett told Rick Gosselin on 1310-AM The Ticket recently, via the Dallas Morning News. “But I was a part of those teams and was influenced significantly by those teams. So much of why those teams were so good was how they played and the makeup of those rosters.

“Having a big, strong physical offensive line where you can run the football, having playmakers outside; having a quarterback who plays at a high level; having a defense that can really run, make plays and take the ball away. Those are all models that I live with, and we had a lot of success here during that time. You can never really recreate another team based on an earlier team, but I do think you can learn from the experiences you’ve had.”

Indeed, going into this year’s draft, the Cowboys had used three of their last four first round picks on offensive linemen--Tyron Smith in 2011, Travis Frederick in 2013 and Zack Martin in 2014. This year, they waited until the third round to draft a lineman, Chaz Green out of Florida, but they essentially got another first rounder after the draft when they picked up La’el Collins as a rookie free agent. In building this line, many in North Texas have been reminded of the Great Wall of Dallas that led the way for those ‘90s teams.

“One of the things we’ve tried to do is reconstruct our offensive line over the last four years,” Garrett said. “We’ve allocated a lot of resources to that position, and I think it’s had a really positive impact,  not only on the other players on offense but throughout our team. There’s a certain style we want to play with. There’s a relentless nature we want to play with. All of those things that are successful, not only for those teams from the ’90’s; but for most successful teams in this league throughout history--(and) that’s the style of play we want the Dallas Cowboys to have. It’s a work in progress every day. We’re always try to build that kind of identity, but it’s a fun process to be part of.”