Troy Aikman

The Dallas Cowboys, who had fallen on hard times in the late 1980s, made no secret of the fact that they wanted to tap Aikman in the 1989 NFL draft. Dallas drafted Aikman first overall in the draft. In his first year with the Cowboys, Aikman found himself in competition with Steve Walsh, another rookie, for the job of starting quarterback. Although Aikman eventually won the job, the Cowboys suffered through a disastrous season, ending with a record of 1-15. In 1990, things improved, but only slightly. The Cowboys improved their record to 7-9. However, Aikman performed well, as he did again in 1991, leading the Cowboys to the playoffs with an 11-5 record in the regular season. The quarterback was injured in the twelfth game of the regular season and rode the bench for the remainder of the season and the playoffs. Aikman's brilliance on the gridiron was not to be denied in 1992. With a pass-completion rate of sixty-four percent, he threw for 3,445 yards and twenty-three touchdowns, leading the Cowboys to the NFC Championship. Facing off against the Buffalo Bills in the Super Bowl, Aikman led Dallas to a one-sided 52-17 victory.

The Cowboys got off to a shaky start in 1993, losing the first two games of the season. But the team bounced back to finish the year with a 12-4 record and making it into the playoffs once again. With a pass-completion rate of sixty-nine percent, Aikman led the Cowboys to the NFC East Division championship. Although Aikman was injured in the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, he was back in action for the Super Bowl, which featured a rematch with the Bills. Once again, Dallas prevailed, winning the NFL Championship with a 30-13 victory over Buffalo.