IRVING, Texas – While the focus remains heavily on the draft and free agency, it won't be too long before the Cowboys report to training camp in Oxnard, Calif.
It'll be a longer camp and preseason this year with the Cowboys playing five exhibition games, including the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. That pushes up the start date to camp, meaning the pads will be coming on before too long.
So as we count down the days to camp, let's take a light-hearted look at the significance of each number as we stroll through the years of Cowboys football, continuing today with No. 85:
- The 1985 draft brought running back Herschel Walker and offensive lineman Crawford Ker to the Cowboys. Walker rushed for 1,514 yards in 1988 and may have been even more valuable later in his career, getting traded for player and picks in 1989, which would land Emmitt Smith and Kevin Smith, among others, in Dallas. Walker's the eighth all-time leading rusher in team history.
- Only two players went with the 85th overall picks of the draft to the Cowboys. In 1989, the Cowboys got defensive end Tony Tolbert in the fourth round. In 1999, the Cowboys grabbed Texas A&M's Dat Nguyen in the third round with the 85th pick. Tolbert played nine seasons with Dallas and was named to a Pro Bowl. Nguyen played seven seasons in Dallas and led the team in tackles three times.
- The No. 85 belonged to Cowboys' Ring of Honor member Rayfield Wright, who went through that number and the No. 70 from 1967-79. Since then, the number's bounced around, and no player has worn it for more than four seasons. Receiver Kevin Williams donned the No. 85 from 1993-96. More recently, tight end Jeff Robinson wore the number from 2002-04 and Kevin Ogletree took the number from 2009-12.
- The Cowboys set a team record in 1985 with 62 sacks.
- Dallas had a 1,000-yard rusher in Tony Dorsett and a 1,000-yard receiver in Tony Hill in 1985. Dorsett finished with 1,307 yards rushing, while Hill had 1,113 yards receiving. Dorsett also passed the 10,000-yard mark that season in a 27-13 victory against Pittsburgh.
- Quarterback Roger Staubach was inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1985. He was enshrined along with Pete Rozelle, Joe Namath, O.J. Simpson and Frank Gatski.
- Valley Ranch opened its doors in 1985 as the new headquarters and training facility for the Cowboys.
