Inside the Star: The Ultimate Dallas Cowboys Fan Guide
Vikings defensive end Jim Marshall a member of the Purple People Eaters tackles Staubach
Facing second-and-10 with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game Staubach dropped back to pass against the Purple People Eaters That was the nickname for the tough Vikings defense which had allowed an average of only 13 points per game during the regular season Along with a fierce pass rush the Vikings also had a future Hall of Fame safety in Paul Krause Staubach knew he had to keep Krause from double-covering Pearson I pumped and looked Krause off Staubach explained He really should have helped Instead covered Cowboys receiver Golden Richards while Pearson Krause
sprinted down the right sideline against cornerback Nate Wright The fans in Minnesota may have been cold but they weren’t too frozen to cheer loudly as Staubach heaved the ball in desperation After all what chance did Dallas have for a miracle finish against that awesome defense Plenty it turned out even on a slippery field at the end of a tiring contest I had one more gear left Pearson said If Roger had thrown it to the back of the end zone I could have shifted into that last gear done the toe dance in the back of the end zone and walked away untouched But the pass was a few yards short of the end zone Pearson slowed as did Wright
They bumped into each other and Wright stumbled as Pearson grabbed the pass As I looked back and saw the ball coming Pearson said I saw it was going to be short and then I did that swim move to get inside position In doing that I made contact with Nate but there was no deliberate push With that contact he went down and I was able to swing my arms around
