Dallas' 10 Greatest Athletes
Honorable Mention to Texas Rangers in the Baseball Hall of Fame, each of whom would be a lot higher on this list if he'd been in Arlington longer than the following number of seasons: Bert Blyleven (2), Ferguson Jenkins (6), Gaylord Perry (4), Goose Gossage (1), Vladimir Guerrero (1), and, most notably, Nolan Ryan (5).
In those 5 seasons in Arlington, Ryan was 51-39, for a .567 winning percentage, which was better than he was in Flushing, Anaheim or the Astrodome. But though he led the American League in strikeouts twice and WHIP twice, and was 12-6 with a no-hitter as late as 1991 (age 44), let's be honest: The Rangers wouldn't even have acquired him if he hadn't been from Texas... and he was from the Houston side of Texas. Which didn't stop an earlier Ranger management team from acquiring David Clyde, with disastrous results.
Dishonorable Mention to Ivan Rodriguez, Juan Gonzalez and Rafael Palmeiro. All 3 of these Rangers could have made the Hall of Fame. The 1st did, the 2nd and 3rd didn't. None should have, and you know why.
Honorable Mention to Dallas Cowboys in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, who did not otherwise make this Top 10: Mel Renfro, Bob Hayes, Rayfield Wright, Mike Ditka, Michael Irvin, Larry Allen, Charles Haley, Deion Sanders. Ditka, Haley and Sanders would have made this Top 10 had they spent most or all of their careers with Dallas.
When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, Sanders was ranked 37th. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, Sanders was ranked 34th, Irvin 92nd, and Allen 95th.
Honorable Mention to Jason Kidd and Steve Nash, both of whom would have made this Top 10 if they'd spent most of their careers, or even their best years, with the Dallas Mavericks. Newly elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame, they were the 1st 2 players to have played more than 1 season for the Mavs to make it.
Honorable Mention to Dallas Stars in the Hockey Hall of Fame, who did not otherwise make this Top 10: Ed Belfour, Brett Hull, Joe Nieuwendyk. Any of them would have made the Top 10 had they played all or most of their careers with the Stars.
Honorable Mention to John Best, Ilija Mitic, Kenny Cooper Sr. and Kyle Rote Jr., who starred for the Dallas Tornado in the old North American Soccer League in the 1970s.
Honorable Mention to Jason Kreis, still the all-time leading scorer for FC Dallas.
10. Adrian Beltre, 3rd base, Texas Rangers, 2011-18. As far as I know, he's been clean. He's had 3 of his 4 All-Star seasons with the Rangers, has won 3 of his 5 Gold Gloves for them, has batted .306 for them, has 190 of his 468 home runs for them, has 3 of his 5 100+ RBI seasons for them, and has 1,243 of his 3,132 hits for them. (All of these career stats are correct as of last night's game between the Rangers and Yankees.)
He was with the Boston Red Sox when the Rangers won the 2010 American League Pennant, but he was with the Rangers when they won their 2011 Pennant, and has helped them reach the postseason again in 2012, '15 and '16.
9. Jere Lehtinen, right wing, Dallas Stars, 1995-2010. A 2-time All-Star, he was a 3-time winner of the Frank Selke Trophy as the NHL's best defensive forward. He was a member of the Stars' 1999 Stanley Cup winners and their 2000 finalists. The Stars retired his Number 26. He is eligible for the Hockey Hall of Fame, but is not yet in it.
8. Troy Aikman, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys, 1989-2000. 8th? When he quarterbacked 3 Super Bowl wins? Well, it does match his uniform number, and it can be argued that he was never the best player on his own team, or even the 2nd-best.
A 6-time Pro Bowler, he led the Dallas Cowboys to win Super Bowls XXVII (he was named the game's Most Valuable Player), XXVIII and XXX. UCLA retired his Number 8. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given his 8 out since he retired, and they named him to their Ring of Honor.
In 1999, The Sporting News ranked him 95th on their 100 Greatest Football Players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 80th on their 100 Greatest Players.
7. Mike Modano, center, Dallas Stars, 1993-2010, plus 1988-93 with the team as the Minnesota North Stars. A 7-time All-Star, he is the North Stars/Stars all-time leader in games, goals, assists and points. No American-born player has more regular-season goals (561), regular-season points (1,374), or Playoff points (146), and no American-born forward has played more regular-season games (1,499).
He led the Stars to the 1999 Stanley Cup and the 2000 Finals. His Number 9 was retired. He was named to the Hockey Hall of Fame and the NHL's 100th Anniversary 100 Greatest Players.
6. Dirk Nowitzki, forward, Dallas Mavericks, 1998-present. More than any player on any Dallas team -- more than Nolan Ryan, Mike Modano, or even Roger Staubach -- he is the face of his franchise. He is a 13-time All-Star, led the Mavs to their 1st Western Conference title in 2006, and won the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2007.
But the joke was that the Mavs always had a great offense, but were poor on defense. "No D," leading to jokes about "Allas" and "Irk." Finally, in 2011, Dirk led the Mavericks to the NBA Championship, defeating the Miami Heat of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. He was named Finals MVP, now known as the Bill Russell Award.
He is the greatest NBA player from Europe, and will no doubt be named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary 75 Greatest Players in 2021. He can look forward to the retirement of his Number 41 and election to the Basketball Hall of Fame -- if he ever retires. At 40, he shows neither inclination nor reason to do so.
5. Tony Dorsett, running back, Dallas Cowboys, 1977-87. The 1976 Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Pittsburgh followed up his National Championship season with a Rookie of the Year and Super Bowl winning-season. A 4-time Pro Bowler, he rushed for 12,739 yards, caught 398 passes for an additional 3,554 yards, and scored 90 touchdowns.
Pitt retired his Number 33. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given Number 33 back out since, and they named him to their Ring of Honor. He was elected to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame. He and Marcus Allen are the only 2 players ever to win the Heisman, the National Championship and the Super Bowl, and to be elected to both the College and the Pro Football Halls of Fame. When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, he was ranked 53rd. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 77th.
His son Anthony Dorsett played 8 seasons as an NFL defensive back, appearing in 2 Super Bowls, but winning neither.
4. Randy White, linebacker, Dallas Cowboys, 1975-88. As a defensive tackle at the University of Maryland, he was nicknamed "Manster": Half-man, half-monster. A 9-time Pro Bowler, he and Harvey Martin were named Co-MVPs of the Cowboys' dominant victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XII.
He was named to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, the NFL's 1980s All-Decade Team, and the Cowboys Ring of Honor. The team has, however, given his Number 54 back out. When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, White was ranked 51st. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 62nd.
3. Roger Staubach, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys, 1969-79. To rank the man known, for quarterbacking "America's Team," as "Captain America" only 3rd seems like sacrilege. Well, it's kind of hard to put him ahead of the top 2 guys on this list.
After winning the Heisman Trophy at the U.S. Naval Academy in 1963, he fulfilled his military commitment, during the Vietnam War, and played on service teams until his commitment was complete. The Cowboys had drafted him, and he was able to join them in 1969. They won the NFC Championship in 1970, with Craig Morton as quarterback, but lost Super Bowl V. He was handed the starting job, and led them to win Super Bowl VI, being named the game's MVP.
A 6-time Pro Bowler, and the 1971 NFL MVP, he became known as Roger the Dodger -- due to his scrambling, as he certainly hadn't dodged the draft, military or NFL. He led the Cowboys to 3 more NFC Championships and victory in Super Bowl XII in the 1977 season.
The Academy retired his Number 12. The Cowboys don't retire numbers, but they haven't given 12 out since he retired after the 1979 season, and they named him to their Ring of Honor. He was named to the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, and the NFL's 1970s All-Decade Team. When The Sporting News named its 100 Greatest Football Players in 1999, Staubach was ranked 29th. When the NFL Network named its 100 Greatest Players in 2010, he was ranked 46th.
2. Bob Lilly, defensive tackle, Dallas Cowboys, 1961-74. An All-American at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, he became the 1st Cowboys star, making 11 Pro Bowls. He put the Cowboys' original "Doomsday Defense" on his back, and got them into 6 NFL or NFL Championship Games, losing Super Bowl V and winning Super Bowl VI.
"Mr. Cowboy" was named to the Cowboys Ring of Honor, the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, and the NFL's 1960s and 1970s All-Decade Team and its 75th Anniversary Team. The Cowboys do not retire numbers, but no other Cowboy has worn his Number 74.
In 1999, The Sporting News listed him 10th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking defensive lineman, and behind only Dick Butkus and Lawrence Taylor among all defensive players. In 2010, the NFL Network ranked him 26th on their list of the 100 Greatest Players.
1. Emmitt Smith, running back, Dallas Cowboys, 1990-2002. The University of Florida star was named NFL Rookie of the Year in 1990. He made 8 Pro Bowls. Before the 1992 season, no player had ever led the NFL in rushing and won the Super Bowl in the same season. With the Dallas Cowboys, Emmitt did it 3 times, winning Super Bowls XXVII, XXVIII and XXX, being named MVP in XXVIII. In the 1993 season, he became the 1st, and remains the only, player ever to win the rushing title, the Bert Bell Award as regular-season MVP, and the Super Bowl MVP in the same season.
He holds the NFL rushing records for most attempts, 4,409; yards, 18,355; and touchdowns, 164. He and Jerry Rice are the only non-kickers to have scored more than 1,000 career points. While still active, in 1999, The Sporting News listed him at 68th on their list of the 100 Greatest Football Players. In 2010, by which point he had already been named to the Florida Football and the Dallas Cowboys Rings of Honor, the NFL's 1990s All-Decade Team, and the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame, the NFL Network ranked him 28th on their 100 Greatest Players. It doesn't seem fair that the NFL's all-time leading rusher should only be 28th, but that's where they put him.
Neither UF nor the Cowboys officially retire numbers. While his Number 22 remains in circulation in Gainesville, the Cowboys have not given it out since he retired.