After he won two Super Bowls and returned the franchise to its former glory, it was announced that head coach Jimmy Johnson would be departing Dallas
On March 29, 1994, the Dallas Cowboys held a press conference to announce that Jimmy Johnson was stepping down as head coach, after having won two Super Bowls and restoring the franchise to its former glory. Team owner Jerry Jones immediately replaced him with Jones’ longtime friend, ex-college roommate, and former Oklahoma Sooners coach, Barry Switzer.
The forced move was widely criticized by fans and members of the media, particularly in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The rift between Johnson and Jones had grown to the point that their working relationship had been severed.
The hand-picked hire of Switzer drew even more comments from the peanut gallery. And even though the college football icon did win the Super Bowl in his first year with the ‘Boys, the perception was (and somewhat still is) viewed as him winning the Lombardi Trophy with ‘Jimmy Johnson’s team’.
In many ways, ‘America’s Team’ has never fully recovered from that Dallas drama in the mid-1990s. In the decades that have followed Switzer’s lone NFL title on the sidelines, the team hasn’t reached the Super Bowl. And their playoff record since that 1994 season is a disastrous 5-13.
Following his exit from the Cowboys, Jimmy Johnson eventually returned to the sidelines with the Miami Dolphins in 1996. He led the Dolphins to three playoff appearances (1997–1999), but they were unable to reach the Super Bowl. His tenure ended after the 1999 season.
After coaching, he became a prominent NFL analyst, most notably on Fox NFL Sunday, where his personality and insight made him a fan favorite and a long-time fixture on pregame coverage.
Johnson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020.
The Sidearmer 