D.D. Lewis, the Dallas Cowboys' all-time leader in postseason games played and one of the most underappreciated players in franchise history, has died. He was 79.
Drafted by the Cowboys in 1968, Lewis was a sixth-round pick out of Mississippi State, where he was an All-American and a College Football Hall of Famer. After a one-year military stint, he returned to the team in 1970, serving as a backup to Chuck Howley before stepping into the starting lineup in 1973.
"It took two or three years for it to click for me and understand what it's all about," Lewis once said during an interview for the Cowboys' Deep Blue documentary series.
"But especially when Chuck got hurt in the 1972 season, that's when I got my chance to play."
Over a career that spanned 13 years, all spent with the Cowboys, Lewis missed only four regular season games. From 1973 to 1981, he started 132 out of a possible 134 contests at weakside linebacker in Tom Landry's famed Doomsday Defense, lining up next to middle linebacking great Lee Roy Jordan, who passed away on August 30, and later Bob Breunig.
"Yeah, D.D.'s such a great guy," Breunig said several years ago. "D.D. was a locker room peacemaker, peacekeeper, because everybody loved D.D. I mean, he's got this happy spirit about him and was a great linebacker, too, by the way."
"I never realized that we had such a great defense until I got out of football and started looking back at it," Lewis said. "But my attitude was, 'Okay we won that one, but let's get back to work on the next one, you know? Let's put it together.'"
Not once during his time with the Cowboys did Lewis ever experience a losing season. He reached the playoffs in 12 of his 13 years, appearing in seven NFC Championship Games and five Super Bowls while also helping Dallas win the Lombard Trophy in both 1971 and 1977. He intercepted two passes in the Cowboys' 1975 NFC Championship victory over the Rams and is still tied for fifth all-time in team annals with four career postseason picks.
Lewis appeared in 27 career playoff games in all, which at the time was an NFL record and still ranks as the most in Cowboys history. In fact, among non-kickers, his league mark has been surpassed over the years by only two players: Tom Brady and Jerry Rice. Another has tied Lewis with 27 playoff games as well, that being Peyton Manning. Needless to say, Lewis is in good company.
Of course, he is also responsible for perhaps the most famous quote in franchise history, saying, "Texas Stadium has a hole in its roof so God can watch his favorite team play."
Although he was never named an All-Pro or Pro Bowler, in his final season of 1981, Lewis was given the Cowboys' Man of the Year Award. He was also voted to the franchise's Silver Anniversary Team in 1984.
However, perhaps his greatest honor came later when, upon Landry's retirement, the Hall of Fame head coach stated that Lewis was the team's most underappreciated player in his 29 years with the Cowboys.
"I don't remember him saying anything like that, so when I read that after he retired, just, wow, those words blew me away," Lewis said. "There was nothing more than a pat on the behind after a game from Tom, which also meant the world to me. I just wanted to play football. I didn't care about all that other stuff. I was just a regular working stiff."
