Every Quarterback Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys took almost no time at all establishing themselves as one of the best teams in the NFL after joining the league in its 1960 expansion. And over the years, success at the most important position on the field has been key to the team’s success.

In nearly every single decade since its foundation, Dallas has drafted at least one franchise quarterback. Two Hall of Famers stand out on the list of Cowboys quarterback draft picks, but even beyond Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman, the franchise has four other draftees who threw for more than 20,000 yards in their careers.

Let’s examine every single quarterback the team has selected over the years -- 32 in total since 1961.

MORE: 10 Best Draft Picks and 10 Worst Draft Picks in Cowboys History

The Cowboys Have Drafted Some Iconic QBs

• Roger Staubach, 1964
  The funny thing about Staubach is that for as much as he’s known as the first face of the franchise, he didn’t even become the Cowboys’ regular starter until his 30s. He didn’t play professionally until he was 27 because of military service, and then spent his first two seasons backing up Craig Morton. Coach Tom Landry inserted Staubach relatively early in the 1972 season and the Cowboys went 10-0 over the quarterback’s starts, beginning a dynasty that would see Dallas win two Super Bowls during Staubach’s stint while he made six Pro Bowls and eventually the Hall of Fame.

• Craig Morton, 1965
  Morton became the Cowboys’ primary starter in 1969 and held the gig for three seasons before ceding it permanently to Staubach. Far from finished, though, Morton would go on to play another nine years in the NFL with the New York Giants and Denver Broncos, serving as both teams’ starters until, basically, the end in 1982. He is the first quarterback to start a Super Bowl for two different teams (Dallas and Denver) and finished with his best season in his second-to-last, throwing for 3,195 yards and 21 touchdowns.

• Danny White, 1974
  As Staubach went into the back half of his career, Dallas needed to groom his replacement. White spent his first four seasons as Dallas’ punter with some occasional quarterbacking duties. In 1980, he took over the No. 1 gig and finished with just one losing season over the course of his eight years as the Cowboys’ starter.

• Steve Deberg, 1977
  Deberg never played for Dallas, instead, landing with the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad in 1977. They thrust him into a starting role too soon and over three seasons with the Niners, Deberg went 7-28 as a starter. He moved on to play for the Broncos and Tampa Bay in the 1980s before finding his greatest success with Kansas City in the late 80s and early 1990s, ultimately throwing for more than 34,000 yards in his 17-year career.

• Troy Aikman, 1989
  The No. 1 overall pick in the 1989 draft, Aikman, like Deberg, was given immediate control. He went 0-11 during his first year. The Cowboys, however, stuck with him and the Oklahoma native eventually led the team to three Super Bowl wins while earning Pro Bowl honors in six straight seasons. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2006.

• Dak Prescott, 2016
  Since Aikman was taken in 1989, only one quarterback the Cowboys have selected in the draft has made it more than a couple of seasons as starter. Quincy Carter led the Cowboys to the playoffs in 2003, but fizzled shortly after. Prescott, however, has rewritten the franchise’s record books. And while Dallas has yet to find playoff glory under Prescott’s watch, the fourth-round draft pick has been one of the best quarterbacks of his generation.