The Story of the Star

[Cap Ologist]

In 1960, the NFL awarded an expansion team to Clint Murchison. The team would be based in Dallas and would play their games at the Cotton Bowl. Clint's first order of business was selecting the leaders who would guide his franchise to NFL glory.

That's where I come into the story. My name is Tex Schramm, and I've known Murchison for years. We've shared many a beer together, always discussing what is the best way to run a team. Clint had the money, I had the football background, and when he was awarded the team, he offered me the position of President of Football Operations. It sounds like a pretty impressive title, and that was Clint's way. Basically, my job would be to oversee the hiring of a scouting staff, a coaching staff and handle player acquisition.

We began our first season a little pressed for time. We assembled a haphazard collection of players and hoped for the best. Our hopes never materialized. A bickering team went 1-15, and there were numerous personality conflicts on the team that would need to be dealt with.

There were a few bright spots in that first season. QB Don Meredith showed signs of developing into a starter. Flanker Frank Clarke caught 81 passes for 896 yards and 5 touchdowns. Defensive end Nate Borden showed flashes of brilliance before being lost for the season with a hernia and NT Ed Husmann proved he was more than capable of holding the point of attack on the interior of the line.

Our offense averaged 87.8 yards rushing (31st in the league) and 215.5 yards passing (7th in the league). We remarkably only allowed 21 sacks, 7ty best in the league. On defense, we allowed 128.8 yards on the ground (23rd in the league) and 190.4 yards passing (12th in the league). We finished with 43 sacks on defense, tied for 3rd best overall.

The playoffs would end with Indianapolis beating San Francisco in the first Super Bowl, 38-31. We spent the playoffs renegotiating contracts and cutting players who did not fit into our long-term plans.

[Cap Ologist]

Free agency comes without a big name splash, we have plenty of holes to fill and the available talent leaves much to be desired. We look for a few specific skills, but are mainly content with signing guys who will be great for team chemistry.

After free agency and our rookie interviews, we're ready for the draft. The emergence of Don Meredith last season gives us great flexibility in the draft because we don't have to take a quarterback with our first selection. We'll look to trade down and add either an offensive or defensive lineman in the first round.

We trade down from 1.1 to 1.4 then to 1.8 and pick up an additional 3 picks this year (2nd, 3rd, 5th) and 3 picks next year (1st, 3rd, 5th).

Our selections:

Faison, Earl          95  RDE         1    47                72  
Mercer, Mike          18  K           1    43                48  
Green, Allen          12  K           1    37                50  
Roberts, Cliff        65  LT          1    29                59  
Shaw, Billy           67  RG          1    28                58  
Daniel, Willie        30  SS          1    28                50  
Gaiters, Bob          32  RB          1    21                37  
Ferguson, Charley     83  SE          1    15                45 
Frongillo, John       57  C           1    9                 33  
Yeast, Steve          13  QB          1    3                 64  

We earn an A- for our first draft, and no doubt we were penalized for selecting 2 kickers.