Troy Aikman Names ‘Problem’ Holding Back Cowboys in Recent Years

The ESPN analyst believes one thing has held Dallas back in recent years.

With a massive international fan base, the Cowboys are always one of the most scrutinized teams in the NFL. However, despite many talented rosters in recent years, they haven’t reached the NFC championship game since the 1995 season.

The last time Dallas won the Super Bowl, current ESPN analyst Troy Aikman was the quarterback, so the Hall of Famer has a relevant perspective on the team’s performance. When it comes to why the Cowboys have continued to stumble in the playoffs, the Monday Night Football personality says the answer is simple.

“The problem for them, and they don’t need me to tell them this, they just have not played their best football when the games have mattered the most,” Aikman said, via Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

• Get your seats to Dallas Cowboys games at SI Tickets

Aikman said he believes the Cowboys have good players, coaches and front office members, but they need to find a way to improve their play in big games.

“You say, ‘How do you change that?’ No one has the answer to that,” Aikman said. “I don’t have the answer to that. For our teams [in the ’90s], the reason we succeeded and did what we were able to do, the reason teams all win Super Bowls, is they play their best football in the biggest games.”

Since their last Super Bowl title, the Cowboys are 5-13 in the playoffs with just one road postseason win, and that mark includes two divisional-round losses despite having a bye week to prepare.

Dallas has finished in either first or second place in the NFC East eight times in the past 10 seasons, but as Aikman points out, that success hasn’t followed in the playoffs.