Age: 28
7th season in pro football & with Cowboys
College: Southern Methodist
Height: 6’3” Weight: 203
Prelude:
A native of the Dallas metro area who played collegiately at SMU, Meredith was originally chosen by the Chicago Bears in the third round of the 1960 NFL draft, but a deal was worked out so the expansion Cowboys could sign him in order to keep him away from the Dallas Texans of the new AFL. He backed up veteran QB Eddie LeBaron for the first two years and saw increasingly more action as he gradually took over the starting role in 1962 and ’63. Mobile and with a good arm, he improved (and fought off injuries) along with the team. The Cowboys broke even for the first time in 1965 at 7-7 as Meredith, while only completing 46.2 % of his passes, threw for 2415 yards and 22 TDs.
1966 Season Summary
Appeared in 13 of 14 games
[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Passing
Attempts – 344 [7]
Most attempts, game – 45 at Cleveland 10/23
Completions – 177 [7]
Most completions, game – 26 at Cleveland 10/23
Yards – 2805 [4]
Most yards, game – 406 at Washington 11/13
Completion percentage – 51.5 [9]
Yards per attempt – 8.2 [2]
TD passes – 24 [3]
Most TD passes, game – 5 vs. NY Giants 9/18, vs. Philadelphia 10/9
Interceptions – 12 [12, tied with Earl Morrall & Ron Smith]
Most interceptions, game – 4 at Cleveland 10/23
Passer rating – 87.7 [3]
400-yard passing games – 1
300-yard passing games – 3
200-yard passing games – 6
Rushing
Attempts – 38
Most attempts, game - 6 (for 33 yds.) vs. Minnesota 9/25, (for 32 yds.) at Washington 11/13
Yards – 242
Most yards, game – 41 yards (on 3 carries) vs. Pittsburgh 10/30
Yards per attempt – 6.4
TDs – 5
Scoring
TDs – 5
Points – 30
Postseason: 1 G (NFL Championship vs. Green Bay)
Pass attempts – 31
Pass completions – 15
Passing yardage – 238
TD passes – 1
Interceptions – 1
Rushing attempts – 4
Rushing yards – 22
Average gain rushing – 5.5
Rushing TDs – 0
Awards & Honors:
NFL Player of the Year: Bert Bell Award
2nd team All-NFL: AP, UPI, NY Daily News
Pro Bowl
Cowboys went 10-3-1 to finish first in the Eastern Conference while leading the NFL in total yards (5145), passing yards (3023), scoring (445 points), and touchdowns (56). Lost NFL Championship to Green Bay Packers (34-27).
Aftermath:
The Cowboys again advanced to the NFL title game in 1967 – and once more lost a close contest to the Packers – although Meredith had a lesser, injury-plagued year in which he threw for just 1834 yards with 16 interceptions along with 16 TD passes. He still was chosen for the Pro Bowl and was again in ’68 as he passed for 2500 yards and 21 touchdowns. The Cowboys lost in the Eastern Conference title game, however, and the following summer Meredith abruptly retired. “Dandy Don” went on to an acting and broadcasting career – most notably on Monday Night Football. For his NFL career, he passed for 17,199 yards with 135 TD passes and 111 interceptions and rushed for 1216 yards with a 5.0 average gain.
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MVP Profiles feature players who were named MVP or Player of the Year in the NFL, AAFC (1946-49), AFL (1960-69), WFL (1974), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press, Pro Football Writers Association, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, Maxwell Club – Bert Bell Award, or the league itself).
[Updated 2/9/14]
