The Dallas Cowboys had gone a winless 0-11-1 as a NFL expansion team in 1960 but stunned the Steelers in their opening game in ’61 and were hosting the latest expansion franchise, the Minnesota Vikings, on September 24, 1961.
Head Coach Tom Landry’s team had hope for improvement
coming into the second season. The Cowboys drafted DE Bob Lilly out of Texas
Christian (later a DT) and also would have HB Don Perkins (pictured above), a 1960 draft choice
out of New Mexico who missed the entire season due to a foot injury, available
to bolster the running game. QB Don Meredith had spent his rookie year behind
diminutive veteran Eddie LeBaron and was ready to put in more time behind
center.
The Vikings, coached by former star quarterback Norm Van
Brocklin, were a typical first-year amalgam of old, unwanted, and upcoming players.
Nevertheless, they stunned the Chicago Bears in their first game and had
uncovered an exciting rookie quarterback in Fran Tarkenton out of Georgia, who
had quickly displaced veteran George Shaw.
There were 20,500 in attendance at the Cotton Bowl and
they saw the home team score in the first quarter. Don Perkins took off on a
47-yard run to set up a six-yard touchdown carry by FB Amos Marsh.
The Cowboys drove 80 yards to their next score in the
second quarter. Don Meredith passed for 39 yards and ran for 29, including a
20-yard touchdown carry with Marsh throwing a key block along the way. Allen
Green added his second extra point and it was 14-0 in favor of Dallas.
The Vikings finally got into the end zone in the second
quarter when Tarkenton completed a pass to end A.D. Williams for 49 yards to
the Dallas 27 and two carries by ex-Giants FB Mel Triplett (pictured at left) advanced the ball
another 21 yards. HB Tommy Mason finished the series with a four-yard touchdown
run, losing the ball at one point but recovering in the air to score. Mike
Mercer’s extra point made the score 14-7 at the half.
The Vikings threatened several times but key defensive
plays stopped them from scoring and Mercer failed on three field goal attempts,
one of which was blocked by LB Gene Babb. Safeties Dick Moegle and Bob Bercich
made big plays for the Cowboys, with Bercich intercepting a pass.
In the third quarter, the Vikings drove 76 yards to the
Dallas one in a drive largely propelled by Triplett’s running, but came up
empty at a point where a TD and extra point would have tied the score. This was soon followed by the interception of
a Tarkenton pass by CB Don Bishop. Meredith tossed a screen pass to Marsh for a
19-yard touchdown and that was more than enough to put the game away. The
Cowboys won by a decisive 21-7 score.
Dallas dominated the Vikings in total yards (437 to 251)
with 208 of that total coming on the ground. The Cowboys also had the edge in
first downs (22 to 16). Each team turned the ball over three times. The Dallas
defense recorded three sacks while the Vikings had one.
Don Perkins was the key performer on offense for the
Cowboys, rushing for 108 yards on 17 carries and catching 5 passes for 61 more
yards. Amos Marsh (pictured at right) ran for 64 yards and a TD on 11 attempts and contributed
another 37 yards and a score on three pass receptions. Don Meredith completed
12 of 22 passes for 163 yards with a touchdown and an interception and ran the
ball 6 times for 36 yards and a TD. Eddie LeBaron saw action and was 5 of 8 for
75 yards with one pass intercepted.
For the Vikings, Fran Tarkenton came down to earth after
an outstanding opening game performance as he was successful on only 8 of 24
throws for 117 yards and had two intercepted. George Shaw came into the contest
and was five of eight for 33 yards with one picked off. Mel Triplett ran for 57
yards on 9 carries while another old pro, 32-year-old HB Hugh McElhenny,
contributed 42 yards on 9 attempts. A.D. Williams led the receivers with four
catches for 78 yards.
The promising start did not herald a winning season for
the young Cowboys – they lost the next week, improved to 3-1 in a rematch with
the Vikings in Minnesota, and then won only one more game the rest of the way to
finish at 4-9-1 and sixth in the seven-team Eastern Conference. Minnesota
didn’t win again until Week 9 and ended up at the bottom of the Western
Conference with a 3-11 record.
Don Perkins continued to play well and rushed for 815
yards on 200 carries (4.1 avg.) while catching 32 passes for 298 yards. He was
selected to the Pro Bowl. Eddie LeBaron still saw most of the action at
quarterback for the Cowboys but Don Meredith showed progress as he passed for
1161 yards and 9 TDs as well as 11 interceptions.
Fran Tarkenton recovered to pass for 1997 yards and 18
touchdowns while showing off his flashy scrambling skills in what was the first
of 18 seasons in his Hall of Fame career. Mel Triplett rushed for 407 yards on
80 carries (5.1 avg.) in his seventh year.
