No. 37 doesn’t exactly jump off the page when you run through the Dallas Cowboys’ jersey history, but James Washington made sure it mattered when the stakes were highest.
That’s the story here: not a number packed with iconic names, not a jersey that carries a towering legacy, but one worn by a safety who delivered twice on Super Bowl Sunday for America’s Team. Among everyone who has suited up in No. 37, Washington stands alone.
The list of players who have worn it is a long one: Phil Clark, Perry Lee Dunn, Abram Elam, JaQuan Hardy, Jim Jensen, Phil Mafah, Bryan McCann, Dennis Morgan, Trayvon Mullen, C.J. Spillman, Ike Thomas, James Washington, Gerald White, Tyrone Williams and Donovan Wilson.
By the numbers, the jersey hasn’t produced much lasting impact overall. Only two players using Pro Football Reference’s Approximate Value metric have reached double digits, and only two have even gotten above five.
Phil Clark was one of them, a dependable and flexible defensive back for Tom Landry from 1967 through 1969 before moving on to the Chicago Bears. But the easy choice for the best to wear No. 37 is Washington.
Washington’s path to Dallas wasn’t a straight line. At UCLA, he earned Second-Team All-Pac-10 honors in 1985 as a sophomore and Third-Team All-American honors in 1986 as a junior. A knee injury affected his 1987 senior season, and that helped push him down to the fifth round of the 1988 NFL Draft, where the Los Angeles Rams took him with the 137th overall pick.
He didn’t crack the starting lineup in either of his first two seasons with the Rams, and after they let him leave in free agency, Washington signed with the Cowboys before the 1990 season. That year, he started 10 games at strong safety, played in 15 total, tied for the team lead with three interceptions and added a team-high four forced fumbles.
He kept starting over the next two seasons and piled up 208 total tackles along with five interceptions from 1991 through 1992. Then came Super Bowl 27 against the Buffalo Bills, and Washington helped turn the game into a runaway.
Buffalo led 7-0 in the first quarter and was moving again after Jim Kelly hit Andre Reed for 21 yards to reach midfield. Kelly then tried to find tight end Pete Metzelaars, but Washington got there first, intercepting the pass and returning it 13 yards to put Dallas in Buffalo territory. The Cowboys scored shortly after, tied the game, and the Bills went on to commit a Super Bowl-record nine turnovers in a 52-17 Dallas win.
Even after those strong seasons, Washington lost his starting job before the 1993 campaign because Darren Woodson was simply too good to keep off the field. But when the Cowboys met the Bills again in the Super Bowl at the end of that season, Washington delivered another huge night.
Dallas was down 13-6 early in the third quarter when Thurman Thomas fumbled after taking a hit from Leon Lett. Washington scooped it up and raced 46 yards for a touchdown.
Then, on the first play of the fourth quarter with the Cowboys ahead 20-13, he intercepted Kelly and returned it 12 yards to the Buffalo 34-yard line. Dallas scored again soon after and finished off a 30-13 victory.
Washington finished that game with a touchdown, an interception and a team-high 11 tackles, putting himself firmly in the Super Bowl MVP conversation. The award, though, went to Emmitt Smith, who ran for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
He was back in the starting lineup in 1994 after Thomas Everett was gone, this time at free safety, and he produced a career-best, team-high five interceptions. That season ended up being his last with the Cowboys. He signed with the team now known as the Commanders before the 1995 season, which also became the final year of his career.
Across five seasons in Dallas, Washington totaled 398 tackles, seven forced fumbles and 14 interceptions in 77 regular-season games. He wasn’t an all-time Cowboys legend in the broadest sense, but his Super Bowl work was exceptional, especially that second title-game performance. For No. 37, that’s enough to make him the clear pick.
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