Tom Landry

American football player

1924 – 2000

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Who was Tom Landry?

Thomas Wade "Tom" Landry was an American football player and coach. He is ranked as one of the greatest and most innovative coaches in National Football League history, creating many new formations and methods. He invented the now popular 4–3 defense, and the "flex defense" system made famous by the "Doomsday Defense" squads he created during his 29 year tenure with the Dallas Cowboys. His 29 years as the coach of one team are an NFL record, along with his 20 consecutive winning seasons.

Landry won two Super Bowl titles, 5 NFC titles, 13 Divisional titles, and compiled a 270-178-6 record, the 3rd most wins of all time for an NFL coach. His 20 career playoff victories are the most of any coach in NFL history. He was named the NFL Coach of the Year in 1966 and the NFC Coach of the Year in 1975. His most impressive professional accomplishment is his 20 consecutive winning seasons, an NFL record that remains unbroken and unchallenged. From 1966 to 1982 Dallas played in 12 NFL or NFC Championship games, a span of 17 years. More impressive is the Cowboys' appearance in 10 NFC Championship games in the 13-year span from 1970 to 1982. Leading the Cowboys to 3 Super Bowl appearances in four years between 1975 and 1978, and five in nine years between 1970 and 1978, and being on television more than any other NFL team is what spawned the title of "America's Team", a title Landry did not appreciate because he felt it would bring on extra motivation from the rest of the league to compete with the Cowboys. In 2013, a major new biography of Landry was published, entitled The Last Cowboy.

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Born
Sep 11, 1924
Mission
Also known as
  • Thomas Wade Landry
Parents
Siblings
Spouses
Children
Ethnicity
  • Cajun
Nationality
  • United States of America
Profession
Education
  • University of Houston
  • University of Texas at Austin
  • Mission High School
Lived in
  • Mission
Died
Feb 12, 2000
Dallas

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

Citation

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"Tom Landry." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/tom_landry>.

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