Trivia Thursday: Cowboys-Jets Answers 

1) This perennial Pro Bowl tackle for the Cowboys finished his NFL career with the Jets.

Tyron Smith played 13 years with the Cowboys, earning eight trips to the Pro Bowl and two first-team All-Pro honors. He was also named to the All-Decade Team for the 2010s. Smith closed out his NFL career by suiting up for the Jets in 2024.

2) True or False: Current Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer has worked for nine NFL teams during his career but never for the Jets.

False. Brian Schottenheimer served as offensive coordinator for the Jets from 2006-11. He has also worked in the NFL for the Chiefs, Commanders, Chargers, Rams, Colts, Seahawks, Jaguars and now the Cowboys.

3) What Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach guided the Jets before then becoming the bench boss in Dallas?

Bill Parcells won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants and then spent four seasons with the New England Patriots before leading the New York Jets from 1997-99. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones then convinced Parcells to leave his TV gig to become the head coach of the Cowboys in 2003 and he spent four seasons in Dallas, retiring for good after the 2006 campaign.

4) What connection does Cowboys cornerback Kaiir Elam have to the Jets?

Kaiir Elam's father, Abram, played 15 games as a rookie with Dallas in 2006 before then spending the next two years suiting up for the Jets. A safety, Abram eventually returned to the Cowboys for the 2011 season and started all 16 games, finishing third on the team with 68 tackles.

5) Former Jets and current Cowboys defensive tackle Solomon Thomas played his high school football in this Dallas suburb.

Solomon Thomas was a star player for Coppell High School. A 5-star recruit, he recorded 78 tackles, 26 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks during his senior season.

6) Which current Fox Sports personality played wide receiver for both the Cowboys and Jets during his 11-year NFL career.

Keyshawn Johnson was the No. 1 overall pick by the Jets in 1996 and played four years in New York before a four-year stint with the Buccaneers. He then joined the Cowboys for two seasons, 2004-05, before a final year in Carolina. Currently, Johnson is a co-host for the FS1 sports talk show Speak.

7) On Sept. 17, 2023, against the Jets, this Cowboys kicker was good on all five of his field goal attempts to become only the fourth rookie in franchise history to make at least five in a game.

Brandon Aubrey split the uprights from 35, 21, 55, 26 and 30 yards during the Cowboys' 30-10 win over the Jets, a career high. He also added a point-after attempt. Not to be forgotten, Dan Bailey is among the four rookies on the list as well, having kicked six field goals on Sept. 26, 2011, against Washington.

8) In his rookie season with Pittsburgh, what did current Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens accomplish for the first time in his NFL career in a game against the Jets on Oct. 2, 2022?

George Pickens topped 100 yards receiving for the first time in his NFL career when he hauled in six passes for 102 yards in the Steelers' 24-20 loss to the Jets. Pickens' 134-yard effort on Sept. 28 vs. Green Bay marked his ninth 100-yard game.

9) On Dec. 4, 1971, against the Jets, who returned the opening kickoff 101 yards for a touchdown, which is still tied for the second longest in franchise history?

Ike Thomas got the scoring started with his 101-yard kickoff return, as the Cowboys went on to steamroll the Jets, 52-10. The 42-point margin of victory is tied for the sixth highest in team record books.

10) What kicker became the first rookie named to the Pro Bowl for the Cowboys, only to beat Dallas with a last-second field goal for the Jets four years later?

Nick Folk (2) was drafted by Dallas in 2007 and made the Pro Bowl that season, one of 13 Pro Bowlers from the Cowboys. But in 2011, he was a member of the Jets and kicked a game-winning field goal to beat the Cowboys in 27-24 in the Week 1 season opener. Currently, Folk is back with the Jets as their kicker during his 18th pro season.

11) The Cowboys' first game against the Jets came in 1971, a 52-10 victory. When did the Jets earn their first win in the series?

It took 19 years and five games before the Jets finally defeated the Cowboys. After Dallas won four straight to begin the series, the team fell, 24-9, to New York on Nov. 4, 1990. The big blow was a 98-yard punt return by the Jets' Terance Mathis (pictured), the longest by an opponent in Cowboys history.

12) What Cowboys franchise record was set on Oct. 4, 1987, against the Jets?

Only 12,370 people attended this Cowboys game at the Jets, setting the lowest attendance mark for an away game in franchise history. There was one caveat, though. The NFL was in the midst of a strike, which resulted in replacement players taking the field. Thus the lack of interest. Concidentally, the largest regular-season attendance mark for a Cowboys game in Texas Stadium history came on Dec. 4, 1971, also against the Jets, when 66,689 fans attended.

13) Which Cowboys quarterback made their first-career NFL start against the Jets?

All of the above! In 1975, Clint Longley made his first start with the Cowboys against the Jets, subbing in for Roger Staubach late in the season. Danny White got the same chance in 1978 as the Cowboys had already wrapped up a playoff spot. And in 1987, Kevin Sweeney was the quarterback for the replacement team against the Jets during the NFL strike.

14) How many quarterbacks played for both the Cowboys and Jets?

Four quarterbacks have spent time with both the Cowboys and Jets: Quincy Carter and Vinny Testaverde (pictured together at training camp in 2004) as well as Brooks Bollinger and Mark Sanchez. Of that group, Carter had the most success in Dallas, posting a 16-15 record with 5,839 passing yards over three seasons from 2001-03.

15) This Cowboys player had two turnovers, including an interception returned for his first-career TD in the Cowboys' 28-7 win over the Jets on Dec. 18, 1993.

Kevin Smith recovered a fumble on the first play of the second quarter, returning it 14 yards, and then late in the third quarter, he picked off a pass and took it back 32 yards for a touchdown, the only pick-6 of his career.

16) In that same game, who was the former NFL MVP that was picked off for the touchdown in 1993 game?

Boomer Esiason, known for his stellar career with the Bengals that included winning NFL MVP in 1988, joined the Jets in 1993. He played most of the game but was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter after this play during the Cowboys' 28-7 win.

17) Who returned an interception or a touchdown in a 34-3 rout of the NY Jets on Thanksgiving Day in 2007?

Terence Newman made the biggest play of the game for the defense during a 34-3 win over the Jets. His 50-yard interception for a touchdown was the first of his career. He finished his 15-year career with three Pick-6 scores.

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Terence Newman celebrates after returning an interception for a touchdown during an NFL football game against the New York Jets, Thursday, Nov. 22, 2007, in Irving, Texas. Newman came into the NFL with sprinter's speed, the kind that routinely produces highlights. Yet now in his fifth season as a cornerback and occasional punt returner for the Cowboys, Newman has rarely provided many must-see clips, until the last two weeks. Newman had a game-saving interception against Washington last Sunday, then a 50-yard interception return for a touchdown against the Jets on Thanksgiving. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

18) This running back had 127 rushing yards and a touchdown to help the Cowboys knock off the Jets on the road in 2003.

Troy Hambrick had a 31-yard touchdown run against the Jets in 2003, lifting Dallas to a 17-6 win.

Hambrick rushed for 127 yards that day en route to a team-leading 972 yards during the 2003 season.

19) Who had the game-winning interception to lift the Cowboys over the Chargers in the 2005 season-opener in San Diego?

Aaron Glenn, the current head coach of the New York Jets, made an impression during his Cowboys debut in 2005. His interception in the end zone gave the Cowboys a dramatic 28-24 win over the Chargers in Week 1. Glenn played two years for the Cowboys under head coach Bill Parcells.

20) In a 1999 home loss to the Parcells-coached NY Jets, what Cowboys tight end scored a 22-yard rushing touchdown?

• Jay Novacek
• Eric Bjornson
• James Whalen
• David LaFleur

20) In a 1999 home loss to the Parcells-coached NY Jets, what Cowboys tight end scored a 22-yard rushing touchdown?

Tight end Eric Bjornson, who served as the holder for field goals and extra points, ran in a fake for a 22-yard touchdown run against the Jets. Dallas lost the game to Parcells and Jets, 22-21. It was the only home loss of the season for the Cowboys, who went 7-1 at home, but just 1-7 on the road.