Cowboys countdown to kickoff: Top 100 iconic games – Day 44

It is Day 44 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 have reached reach Day 44 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff, when we revisit a playoff control game from one of the most complete teams in Cowboys history. Dallas hosted the Chicago Bears in the NFC Divisional Round after finishing the regular season 12-2, and this was the first step in what became the Cowboys’ march to Super Bowl XII. The Bears had Walter Payton, the league’s MVP and rushing champion, but Dallas had the Doomsday Defense, Roger Staubach, Tony Dorsett, and too much playoff polish.

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Monday, December 26, 1977 — 2:00 p.m. ET

Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Final Score: Dallas Cowboys 37, Chicago Bears 7

Dallas set the tone early with the run game. Staubach hit Dorsett for 32 yards, which set up Doug Dennison’s two-yard touchdown run and gave the Cowboys a 7-0 lead. That opening sequence mattered because it immediately put Chicago in chase mode, something the Bears were not built to do. They wanted the game in Payton’s hands. Dallas made it about Bob Avellini having to throw into a defense that was waiting for mistakes. 

The Cowboys kept building in the second quarter. Staubach connected with Drew Pearson for 31 yards, then found Billy Joe DuPree for a 28-yard touchdown to make it 14-0. Efren Herrera added a 21-yard field goal, and Dallas led 17-0 at halftime. Chicago had a chance to cut into the lead before the break, but Charlie Waters intercepted Avellini in the end zone. That play captured the whole afternoon, the Bears would get a little movement, then Dallas would slam the door. 

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The game fully broke open on the first play of the second half. D.D. Lewis intercepted Avellini, and Dallas immediately turned the short field into a Tony Dorsett 23-yard touchdown run. On Chicago’s next possession, Avellini lost a fumble, and Herrera turned that into another field goal. Within minutes, the Cowboys had stretched a 17-0 lead to 27-0, and the game was effectively finished.

Dorsett added a seven-yard touchdown run later in the third quarter, Herrera kicked another field goal in the fourth, and Dallas led 37-0 before Chicago finally avoided the shutout on a 34-yard Avellini touchdown pass to Steve Schubert. By then, the only question was how dominant the final numbers would look. Dallas had controlled the ball, controlled the line of scrimmage, and most of all they controlled Payton.

Andy there was the biggest story of the day. Payton had rushed for 1,852 yards during the regular season, but the Cowboys held him to 60 yards on 19 carries. Chicago finished with seven turnovers, including four Avellini interceptions with Waters making three of them, while Lewis added another. For a Bears team making its first playoff appearance since the 1963 championship season, Dallas turned the moment into a lesson in postseason football.

This game belongs on the countdown because it shows the 1977 Cowboys at their most ruthless. Chicago arrived with the league MVP and a six-game winning streak. Dallas turned that into a 30-point playoff blowout. One week later, the Cowboys beat Minnesota 23-6 in the NFC Championship Game, then defeated Denver 27-10 in Super Bowl XII. This was the first postseason hammer blow in that title run, and it was a really big hammer.