It is Day 73 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff. We are looking back at the 100 most iconic games in Dallas Cowboys history. The countdown will leads us right up to the opening game of 2026. Our look back doesn’t depend on just one criteria for our rankings. We take into consideration things like how big the game was for the organization, how memorable the game was, games that had unusual events take place, games that are a part of NFL lore, Cowboys firsts, and games where the Cowboys just plain dominated. Variety is the spice of life and we have all different kind of Cowboys games to review. At the bottom, we’ll link each day of the countdown so you can go back and check out any you missed.
Welcome to Day 73 of our 100-day countdown to kickoff, where we revisit the game that made the 2014 Cowboys impossible to dismiss. Dallas entered Week 6 at 4-1, but there was still skepticism about whether Jason Garrett’s team was truly a contender or just enjoying a nice early run. Then the Cowboys went to Seattle, beat the defending Super Bowl champions in their building, and produced one of the defining regular-season wins of the Tony Romo era.
Sunday, October 12, 2014 — 4:25 p.m. ET
CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington
Final Score: Dallas Cowboys 30, Seattle Seahawks 23
It started like the kind of day Seattle usually controlled at home. The Seahawks took a 3-0 lead on a Steven Hauschka field goal, then a Chris Jones blocked punt got returned by Mike Morgan for a touchdown to go up 10-0. In that building, against the Legion of Boom, a 10-point hole was dangerous. But Dallas answered with a long drive capped by Romo’s two-yard touchdown pass to Gavin Escobar, then added a Dan Bailey field goal and a late first-half touchdown to Jason Witten to take a 17-10 lead into halftime.
The third quarter got messy. Russell Wilson tied the game with a nine-yard touchdown run after a Dallas special-teams mistake, and Seattle later took a 20-17 lead after a Romo fumbled snap gave the Seahawks a short field. Bailey answered with a 56-yard field goal, but Hauschka hit from 48 early in the fourth quarter to put Seattle ahead 23-20. That set the stage for the play everyone remembers.
Facing third-and-20 with less than five minutes left, Romo spun away from pressure and found Terrance Williams on the far sideline. Williams dragged his toes for a 23-yard catch, extending the drive with one of the most spectacular plays of the season.Three plays later, DeMarco Murray finished it. Murray burst through for a 15-yard touchdown with 3:16 remaining, giving Dallas a 27-23 lead. The defense then delivered the clincher when Rolando McClain intercepted Wilson, and Bailey added a 31-yard field goal with 1:09 left to stretch the lead to seven. Seattle had one final chance, but Dallas held on for a 30-23 win that felt like a real arrival.
This game belongs on the countdown because it changed how the 2014 Cowboys were viewed. They were no longer just a hot team leaning on the run game. They were a legitimate NFC contender that had gone into the league’s loudest environment, absorbed early punches, dominated the defending champs statistically, and won late with Romo, Murray, the offensive line, and a defense that was far better than expected. It was the moment the season became real.
Interesting Facts About the Game
Seattle had lost only one home game since Russell Wilson became its starting quarterback in 2012 before Dallas won this one. The Cowboys became the first non-NFC West team to win in Seattle since 2011.
Countdown To Kickoff by day:
100, 99, 98, 97, 96, 95, 94, 93, 92, 91, 90, 89, 88, 87, 86, 85, 84, 83, 82, 81, 80, 79, 78, 77, 76, 75, 74
