Today’s guest post comes from Tom Nawrocki, a longtime fan of the site and not of the Dallas Cowboys. What follows are his words….

I grew up in the 1970s, watching the NFL and hating the Dallas Cowboys, as all right-thinking Americans did. The Cowboys were consistently strong throughout the decade; they made the Super Bowl after the 1970, 1971, 1975, 1977 and 1978 seasons.

What was additionally frustrating for us Cowboy haters was the way they kept adding top-flight talent throughout the decade. Despite the fact that they were a perennial playoff team, they seemed to have a top draft choice nearly every season. In the middle of this run, the Cowboys had the No. 1 or No. 2 pick in the draft for three out of four years, and the fact that they made the most of those choices helped give their dynasty a second wind. But how were they able to get those top draft picks, when they were successful every year? [continue reading…]