The Cowboys can boast of having 22 members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame who spent most of their careers playing with the Star on their helmet, or in the case of Jerry Jones, Jimmy Johnson, Tex Schramm, Gil Brandt and Tom Landry, working for the team. The first of the 17 players to be inducted was defensive tackle Bob Lilly back in 1980 with DeMarcus Ware and Chuck Howley being the latest, both having been enshrined in 2023.
But there are 10 additional players in the Hall of Fame who spent most of their NFL tenures with other teams, but did suit up for the Cowboys as well. That includes a handful who also saw time with Sunday's opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles.
Some were impactful during their short stint in Dallas while others were just around for the proverbial cup of coffee. But here are the 10 other Hall of Famers, listed alphabetically, who have ties to the Cowboys.
Here are the 10 'other' Hall of Famers who have ties to the Cowboys.
Herb Adderley • Cornerback • Cowboys (1970-72)
Born and raised in Philadelphia, Adderley earned five trips to the Pro Bowl and four first-team All-Pro nods in his nine seasons with the Packers. Acquired by Dallas in 1970 to provide some veteran leadership, he then played three seasons with the Cowboys, helping the team reach Super Bowl V in his first year and then bring home the Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl VI. Adderley was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1980.
Lance Alworth • Wide Receiver • Cowboys (1971-72)
Despite being a first-round pick of the NFL's 49ers in 1962, and a second-round choice of the AFL's Raiders that same year, Alworth signed with the upstart league. His rights having been traded to San Diego, he would go on to record 81 touchdown catches and 9,584 receiving yards, totals that still rank second and third, respectively, in Chargers history. Brought to Dallas in 1971, Alworth immediately played a part in the Cowboys' Super Bowl VI championship squad. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1978.
Harold Carmichael • Wide Receiver • Cowboys (1984)
Carmichael's time with the Cowboys was ever-so brief as he played just two games in 1984 with only a single 7-yard catch before being cut and retiring. But prior to his Dallas stint, Carmichael starred for 14 seasons with Philadelphia. He led the NFL in receiving yards in 1973 (1,116), which earned him his first of four career Pro Bowl honors, and he is still the Eagles' all-time leader in receiving yards (8,978) and touchdown catches (79). Carmichael was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2020.
Mike Ditka • Tight End • Cowboys Player (1969-72) • Cowboys Coach (1973-81)
Ditka spent the first six years of his NFL tenure starring in Chicago, 1961-66, where he was named a Pro Bowler five times and earned first-team All-Pro honors twice. He later returned as head coach in 1982 and led the Bears for 11 seasons, winning a Super Bowl in 1985. But before hanging up his cleats, he spent two seasons in Philadelphia and then four more in Dallas, where he also won the Lombardi Trophy in 1971. After retiring as a player, he then served nine years as an assistant on Tom Landry's coaching staff. Ditka was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988.
Forrest Gregg • Guard • Cowboys (1971)
Gregg was a part of the Packers' championship teams of the 1960s, playing a total of 14 seasons in Green Bay. Over that span, he was named to the Pro Bowl nine times while also earning seven All-Pro awards. But not only was Gregg well known to the Cowboys due to their championship game clashes, he also starred at nearby SMU during his college days. So needing a little depth, Dallas added Gregg to the roster in the 1971 season, but he wound up only playing six games before officially retiring. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1977.
Tommy McDonald • Wide Receiver • Cowboys (1964)
Selected in the third round by the Eagles in the 1957 draft, McDonald played seven years in Philadelphia and still ranks second in franchise history for touchdown catches (66) and seventh in receiving yards (5,499) despite also sitting just 17th in receptions (287). He then bounced around the NFL over his final five NFL campaigns, which included a one-year stop with the Cowboys in 1964. He finished second on the team that year in both catches (46) and receiving yards (612) before moving on. McDonald was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998.
Terrell Owens • Wide Receiver • Cowboys (2006-08),
Identifying Owens with one particular team is a little difficult as he saw success with the 49ers, Eagles and Cowboys before ending his career in Buffalo and then Cincinnati. But his longest tenure was in San Francisco, where he earned four Pro Bowl trips and three first-team All-Pro nods during his time there. After two volatile years in Philadelphia, he came to Dallas for a three-year stretch, one that saw him top 1,000 receiving yards in each. Owens was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018.
Bill Parcells • Head Coach • Cowboys (2003-06)
Parcells graduated high school in Oradell, N.J., only a couple of hours north of Philadelphia, although the majority of his coaching career would see him battling the Eagles as division rivals. He first manned the sidelines for the Giants from 1983 to 1990, winning a pair of Super Bowls. Following successful stops with the Patriots and Jets, Parcells left the TV studio to lead the Cowboys. Over his four years in Dallas, Parcells posted a 64-34 record with two playoff appearances. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013.
Jackie Smith • Tight End • Cowboys (1978)
Unfortunately, Smith is involved in one of the most heartbreaking moments in Cowboys history. He had already spent 15 years with the Cardinals, where he remains third in that club's history for receiving yards (7,918) and is sixth in both catches (480) and touchdown grabs (40). With Dallas needing depth at tight end in 1978, he was talked out of retirement by Tom Landry, and despite not recording a reception during the regular season, Smith caught a touchdown pass in the divisional round of the playoffs. Then in Super Bowl XIII, he was wide open in the end zone for what would have been a game-tying touchdown. Instead, he dropped a ball that hit him right in the chest and Dallas would go on to lose. The Cowboys wanted him to return in 1979, but he'd had enough. Smith was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994.
Zach Thomas • Linebacker • Cowboys (2008)
Like many on this Hall of Fame list, Thomas only spent one season in Dallas, closing out his 13-year career in 2008. He spent all 12 of his previous years in Miami, picking up seven Pro Bowls and five first-team All-Pros. A native of Texas and a former star at Texas Tech, he then signed on with the Cowboys in 2008 and was a key contributor, playing in every game, starting 14 and finishing second on the club with 94 tackles. Thomas still ranks fifth in NFL history with 1,734 tackles. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2023.
