9. November 8, 1998: Emmitt’s takeover of T.D.
The notion that anyone would ever replace Tony Dorsett atop the pantheon of Dallas running backs was downright unthinkable to a generation of Cowboys fans. But 1998 was the year it happened, in more ways than one.
The squad that had won three Super Bowls in a four-year span was a shell of its former self. They had finished fourth in the division the year prior. Chan Gailey was now the coach.
But the Triplets were still in place, and Smith was still pulling his usual weight in the backfield, continuing to average four-plus yards per carry and busting off 100-yard days more often than not. Gailey, in fact, re-established an emphasis on the run game; after a two-year absence, Smith was back on track toward a Pro Bowl season in 1998.
In Week 10, the stats that had been piling up gave an otherwise lackluster 16-6 win over the Giants extra significance, at least within the annals of the Cowboys franchise.
Emmitt’s 163 rushing yards at Texas Stadium that afternoon made him the club’s all-time leading rusher, in 10 fewer games than Dorsett, a Hall of Famer and the 1976 Heisman Trophy winner. With this outing, Smith also became the eighth player to top 12,000 career rushing yards.
Perhaps even more impressive than Smith’s ascension to the top of the club’s leaderboard was how he still looked after all that mileage. The eight and a half seasons Smith had under his belt at that point were actually only part of the story; Smith had also played in 15 postseason games- basically, an extra season- by the middle of 1998. Yet tape from the game still shows noticeable burst, elusiveness in traffic, and an aggressive style that has waned in most runners on the cusp of 30.