It is Day 20 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff. We are looking back at the 100 most iconic games in Dallas Cowboys history. The countdown will leads us right up to the opening game of 2026. Our look back doesn’t depend on just one criteria for our rankings. We take into consideration things like how big the game was for the organization, how memorable the game was, games that had unusual events take place, games that are a part of NFL lore, Cowboys firsts, and games where the Cowboys just plain
dominated. Variety is the spice of life and we have all different kind of Cowboys games to review. At the bottom, we’ll link each day of the countdown so you can go back and check out any you missed.
We’ve reached Day 20 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff, when we revisit the conference championship victory that sent one of the greatest teams in Cowboys history to Super Bowl XII. Dallas combined a balanced rushing attack with an overpowering defensive performance to defeat the Minnesota Vikings and capture its fourth NFC title.
Sunday, January 1, 1978 — 5:00 p.m. ET
Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Final Score: Dallas Cowboys 23, Minnesota Vikings 6
The Cowboys had finished the regular season 12-2 and demolished Chicago 37-7 in the Divisional Round. Minnesota arrived after beating the Los Angeles Rams in the rain-soaked “Mud Bowl,” but the Vikings were without starting quarterback Fran Tarkenton and again turned to Bob Lee.
Dallas immediately placed Minnesota under pressure. Vikings running back Robert Miller fumbled on the third play of the game, with Harvey Martin recovering at the Minnesota 39-yard line. Roger Staubach soon found Golden Richards for a 32-yard touchdown, although Efrén Herrera’s extra point was blocked, leaving the Cowboys ahead 6-0.
The Doomsday Defense produced another takeaway later in the opening quarter. Ed “Too Tall” Jones broke into the backfield and forced Chuck Foreman to fumble, allowing Martin to make his second recovery of the game.
Dallas created separation during the second quarter. Danny White ran 14 yards on a fake punt to keep an eight-play drive alive before Robert Newhouse scored from five yards out, extending the advantage to 13-0. Newhouse repeatedly punished Minnesota between the tackles and finished as Dallas’ leading rusher.
The Vikings responded through two Fred Cox field goals, from 32 and 37 yards, to reduce the deficit to 13-6. Dallas answered before halftime when Staubach connected with Preston Pearson for 32 yards, setting up Herrera’s 21-yard field goal and sending the Cowboys into the break ahead 16-6.
Neither team scored during the third quarter. Dallas drove inside the Minnesota 15-yard line, but Tony Dorsett lost a fumble and prevented the Cowboys from increasing their lead. The defense ensured the mistake caused no damage, keeping the Vikings out of scoring range throughout the period.
The clinching score arrived in the fourth quarter after Thomas “Hollywood” Henderson forced punt returner Manfred Moore to fumble and Jay Saldi recovered for Dallas. Five plays later, Dorsett scored on an 11-yard run, completing the scoring and securing the Cowboys’ trip to New Orleans.
This game belongs on the countdown because it represented championship-level execution from a complete Cowboys team. Dallas scored following turnovers, controlled the line of scrimmage and prevented Minnesota from reaching the end zone. There was little late drama because the Cowboys never allowed the Vikings to seriously threaten their lead.
Interesting Facts About the Game
The Cowboys held Minnesota without a touchdown. That meant across two playoff appearances , the Cowboys had allowed only one touchdown.
Countdown to kickoff
100, 99, 98, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 92, 91, 90, 89, 88, 87, 86, 85, 84, 83, 82, 81, 80, 79, 78, 77, 76, 75, 74, 73, 72, 71, 70, 69, 68, 67, 66, 65, 64, 63, 62, 61, 60, 59, 58, 57,56, 55, 54, 53, 52, 51, 50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40, 39, 38, 37, 36, 35, 34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21
