The 5 most underappreciated players in Cowboys history
While playing for the Dallas Cowboys certainly has its benefits, it can have its flaws as well. With a moniker like “Americas Team,” it is incredibly difficult to go under the radar. With that being said, some players seemed to find a way to not be appreciated to their fullest extent, whether that is due to not being noticed enough or by being over scrutinized by media and fans.
These players deserve to be respected as you cannot paint the picture of Cowboys history without them, regardless of what national media thinks. So, while there are numerous players throughout Cowboys history who could be deemed “underappreciated”, we made a list of the top 5.
The top 5 most underappreciated players in Dallas Cowboys history
5. Bob Hayes, WR (1965-74)
The case for greatness:
The late great Bob Hayes was nicknamed “Bullet Bob” for good reason, as not many could keep up with the two-time Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter. Hayes was fast as lightning. In 1964, he set the then Olympic record for the 100-yard dash, and some believe if given an even playing field that he could have been faster than Usain Bolt.
Being the only player ever to win a gold medal and a Super Bowl, Hayes lit the league on fire posting two 1,000-yard seasons in his first two years and averaging 20 yards per reception for his entire career, with the peak being 26. He truly was the first of his kind and a big-play threat from anywhere on the field.
Hayes essentially was the fastest player to ever put on a helmet, but he wasn’t one-dimensional. If you take into consideration his stats from his prime, which would’ve been his first seven years in the league, he averaged 13 games a year, 945 yards, and 9.6 touchdowns. If you expand those averages to a modern-day 17-game schedule it looks even more ridiculous, as it would’ve been 1,236 yards and 13 touchdowns per year.
Why he’s underappreciated:
In a franchise with as many great receivers as the Cowboys have had (especially with the No. 88s in Drew Pearson, Michael Irvin, and Dez Bryant), you can see why a receiver from his era would certainly be forgotten. Hayes was a revelation, a player built for modern-day, air-it-out football trapped in an era that focused mainly on ground-and-pound.
While Hayes is a Hall of Famer, he did not get inducted until his posthumous induction in 2009, and he has not received the recognition he truly deserves as one of the greatest receiving threats to ever play.