49ers–Cowboys rivalry


The 49ers–Cowboys rivalry is a National Football League rivalry between the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys.
As the Cowboys play in NFC East and the 49ers in the NFC West, they do not play every year; instead, they play at least once every three years and at least once every six seasons at each team's home stadium due to the NFL's rotating division schedules when their respective divisions are paired up. Additionally, not only both teams could meet in the playoffs, but also if they finish in the same place in their respective divisions, they would play the ensuing season.
It is one of the greatest inter-division rivalries in the NFL. Sports Illustrated ranked it as the eighth best rivalry while the NFL Top 10 ranked this rivalry to be the tenth best in the NFL. In 2020, CBS ranked it as the No. 1 NFL rivalry of the 1990s. The rivalry was also the subject of two 2015 episodes of NFL Network's The Timeline entitled "A Tale of Two Cities" with actors Sam Elliott and Jeremy Renner as narrators.
The 49ers lead the overall series, 21–19–1. The two teams have met nine times in the playoffs, with the Cowboys holding a 5–4 record.

History

The Cowboys and 49ers have faced each other in the postseason nine times, the second most between any two NFL teams. The rivalry between the Cowboys and 49ers started gaining traction in the 1970s. The Cowboys defeated the 49ers in the 1970 and 1971 NFC Championship games, and again in the 1972 Divisional playoff game. The 1981 NFC Championship game in San Francisco, which saw the 49ers' Joe Montana complete a game-winning pass to Dwight Clark in the final minute is one of the most famous games in NFL history.
The rivalry became even more intense from 1992 to 1994 when the two teams faced each other in the NFC Championship game during all three seasons. Dallas won the first two match-ups while San Francisco won the third, and in each of these pivotal match-ups, the game's victor went on to win the Super Bowl. With the Cowboys winning the Super Bowl following the 1995 season, from 1992 to 1995, either the Cowboys or the 49ers were Super Bowl champions, giving both teams five each – which, at the time, was tied for the most by any NFL team and later NFC team.
The rivalry went cold for many years due to the two teams’ inability to make the postseason in the same year after and until, when both teams made the playoffs and were matched against each other in the Wild Card round in Dallas. The 49ers won that game 23–17. The two teams would meet each other in the 2022 playoff divisional round, which saw the 49ers take a 19–12 win. Both teams qualified for the 2023 postseason. However, the teams' fellow rival, the Green Bay Packers, defeated the Cowboys, becoming the first 7 seed to win a playoff game against the 2 seed. The loss not only prevented a third straight matchup with the 49ers, but also allowed the Packers and 49ers to play in a record 10th playoff game.
Players who have won championships with both teams include defensive end Charles Haley, linebacker Ken Norton Jr., and cornerback Deion Sanders.
As of the 2024 season, the 49ers are one of two NFC teams that the Cowboys have a losing record against, along with the Green Bay Packers.

Season-by-season results

! 1970 playoffs
! style="| Cowboys
17–10
! Kezar Stadium
! 49ers
3–2–1
! NFC Championship Game. First postseason meeting in the series. Last meeting in Kezar Stadium. Cowboys lose Super Bowl V.
! 1971 playoffs
! style="| Cowboys
14–3
! Texas Stadium
! Tie
3–3–1
! Second straight NFC Championship Game meeting. First start in series for Roger Staubach. First meeting in Texas Stadium. Cowboys win Super Bowl VI.
! 1972 playoffs
! style="| Cowboys
30–28
! Candlestick Park
! Tie
4–4–1
! NFC Divisional playoffs. First meeting at Candlestick Park. With Roger Staubach coming off the bench to replace an ineffective Craig Morton; Cowboys overcome 21–3 deficit and a 28–13 deficit in the fourth quarter to win. Last 49ers post-season game until 1981.
! 1981 playoffs
! style="| 49ers
28–27
! Candlestick Park
! Cowboys
8–6–1
! NFC Championship Game. First postseason win for the 49ers over the Cowboys. Wide receiver Dwight Clark makes a leaping catch in the back of the end zone on a pass from Joe Montana with 51 seconds left, best referred to as "The Catch". 49ers win Super Bowl XVI.
! 1992 playoffs
! style="| Cowboys
30–20
! Candlestick Park
! 49ers
10–9–1
! NFC Championship Game. Cowboys win Super Bowl XXVII. After the game, Cowboys' head coach Jimmy Johnson was caught saying "How Bout Them Cowboys" in their postgame locker room.
! 1993 playoffs
! style="| Cowboys
38–21
! Texas Stadium
! Cowboys
11–10–1
! Second straight NFC Championship Game meeting. Cowboys win Super Bowl XXVIII. Troy Aikman was knocked out of the game with a concussion after the knee of rookie 49er defensive tackle Dana Stubblefield struck his head.
! 1994 playoffs
! style="| 49ers
38–28
! Candlestick Park
! 49ers
12–11–1
! Third straight NFC Championship Game meeting. 49ers win Super Bowl XXIX.
! 2021 playoffs
! style="| 49ers
23–17
! AT&T Stadium
! Cowboys
19–18–1
! NFC Wild Card playoffs. First playoff meeting since 1994.
! 2022 playoffs
! style="| 49ers
19–12
! Levi's Stadium
! Tie
19–19–1
! NFC Divisional playoffs. Ninth postseason meeting.
! style="| 49ers
42–10
! style="| '''49ers
30–24'''