Troy Aikman drops Super Bowl joke at Cowboys' expense during Rich Eisen's first time hosting SportsCenter in 22 years

SportsCenter aired on Monday night after the preseason matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Washington Commanders. As a result, ESPN Monday Night Football announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman joined Eisen at the top of the show.

As Eisen introduced the duo, highlights from Buck’s first time calling the World Series and Aikman’s career with the Dallas Cowboys played on the screen.

While a highlight of Dallas competing in the Super Bowl played, Aikman fired off a Super Bowl joke directed at the Cowboys.

"There's proof that it actually did happen," said Eisen as the highlight played.

"Yes, the Cowboys actually did play in a Super Bowl," quipped Aikman.

"Wow. That's right, back in the day," replied Eisen.

The Cowboys haven't reached the Super Bowl since 1996 when they defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX.

At the time, it felt like the Cowboys would never slow down -- even without Jimmy Johnson on the sideline.

The post-Jimmy Johnson era, however, has proved to be a struggle for Jerry Jones and the Cowboys.

Dallas has won just five playoff games since its last Super Bowl appearance and hasn’t returned to a conference championship game since early 1996. If you're under 30, the idea of the Cowboys as an annual Super Bowl contender probably feels mythical. But that was reality for those of us who grew up with corded phones, dial-up internet, and puffy Starter jackets.