It is Day 11 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.
Get ready folks for Day 11 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff, when we revisit a Cowboys loss that still produced one of the greatest individual moments in NFL history. The result went Seattle’s way, but the afternoon belonged to Emmitt Smith.
Sunday, October 27, 2002
Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
Final Score: Seattle Seahawks 17, Dallas Cowboys 14
Dallas entered the game 3-4 during a difficult 2002 season, with rookie Chad Hutchinson making his first NFL start after replacing Quincy Carter. Seattle was struggling as well at 1-5, meaning the larger football world was focused less on the matchup itself and more on Emmitt Smith’s chase for the all-time rushing record.
Seattle opened the scoring early in the second quarter when Shaun Alexander finished a drive with a two-yard touchdown run. Dallas went into halftime trailing 7-0, with Smith steadily accumulating yards but still short of reaching the rushing record.
The Cowboys finally responded immediately after halftime. Hutchinson found former Seahawks receiver Joey Galloway for a 39-yard touchdown, tying the game at 7-7. It was one of Hutchinson’s better moments in his first start and gave Dallas some offensive life.
Seattle regained the lead in the fourth quarter when Alexander scored again, this time from five yards out. Dallas was trailing 14-7 when the game’s historic moment finally arrived. Smith needed 10 more yards to pass Walter Payton when he took a handoff and gained 11 yards with 9:10 remaining. The game stopped as Smith celebrated with teammates, former Cowboys and his family after officially becoming the most productive rusher the NFL had ever seen.
The moment carried extra emotion because of Smith’s admiration for Payton, who had died in 1999. Smith had spent years openly pursuing the record while maintaining enormous respect for the man whose name had occupied the top spot since 1984. Brad Sham captured the occasion on Cowboys radio with the memorable call, “Move over Sweetness, make a place for Emmitt.”
Smith’s day was not finished. Dallas continued the same possession and eventually gave the ball back to him at the goal line, where he scored from one yard out to tie the game at 14-14. It was the 150th rushing touchdown of his NFL career, adding another milestone to an already historic afternoon. Smith ultimately finished with 109 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries.
Unfortunately, Dallas could not complete the celebration with a victory. Seattle mounted the final scoring drive and Rian Lindell kicked a 20-yard field goal in the closing seconds, giving the Seahawks a 17-14 lead. The Cowboys were left with a frustrating defeat despite witnessing one of the most significant achievements in franchise history.
This game belongs on the countdown because sometimes the result becomes secondary to the history created within it. Smith arrived in Dallas as a first-round pick in 1990, became the engine of three Super Bowl championship teams and eventually ran farther than any player who had come before him. On October 27, 2002, that remarkable journey reached its defining statistical milestone.
Interesting Facts About the Game
Darren Woodson also became the Cowboys’ all-time leading tackler during the game, although his accomplishment was largely overshadowed by Smith’s NFL record.
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, 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12
