7 military lessons that made Roger Staubach a Hall of Fame football player

Roger Staubach considers it one of the best performances ever on a football field.

It did not come during any of the 131 regular-season games that Staubach played during 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. Nor was Staubach thinking about his NFL postseason career, which included 20 total games and two Super Bowl victories.

No, Staubach referenced the 1962 Army-Navy Game in Philadelphia. The Midshipmen’s 34-14 triumph against the Black Knights served as Staubach’s national coming-out party. With President John F. Kennedy in attendance, he completed 10 of 12 passes for 204 yards and also rushed for two touchdowns. The game provided a suitable springboard for Staubach’s Heisman Trophy-winning season in 1963.

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“We got used to seeing Roger doing unbelievable things on the field,” former Navy offensive lineman Bob Wittenberg recalled to Navy’s athletic department in 2023.

Knowing Staubach had to fulfill his military commitment, the Dallas Cowboys selected the quarterback in the 10th round of the 1964 draft. Staubach served four years in the U.S. Navy, including one in Vietnam.

When Staubach left the military, he carried with him the principles it instilled in him. He applied those on the football field to establish himself as an all-time great. Here are seven ideals that worked for Staubach both in the Navy and NFL.

1. Embrace Your Role as a Leader

The Cowboys were a relatively young franchise when a then-27-year-old Staubach joined the roster in 1969. Staubach was of a similar mindset with coach Tom Landry, who served as a bomber pilot in the Army Air Forces during World War II. They believed that leaders accept responsibility, never assign blame, and spread credit to others. Sound familiar?

“In sports, there are the ‘what’s in it for me’ people, and they can be effective and win, but they’re not going to be your leaders,” Staubach once told Athletes Quarterly magazine.

Staubach wasn’t one of those people. For all of his success, Staubach also learned early on when to keep his mouth shut. He never talked trash or boasted about his accomplishments. As all good leaders know, that level of conceit was not necessary.

2. Focus on the Mission

Staubach became the Cowboys’ full-time starting QB in 1971. During that decade, Dallas reached the playoffs in all but one season and brandished its image as “America’s Team.” Staubach became the face of the Cowboys, and with his all-American looks and military background, he was easy to like (unless you hated the Cowboys).

Staubach’s outward appearance belied a tremendous competitive streak. Always believing there was a right way (and a wrong one) to play football, Staubach became a stickler for precision. Winning was all that mattered on the playing field, just like a mission’s success is paramount in the military.

3. Trust in Your Troops

No officer rises in the military unless they have excellent men and women serving under them. It’s no different in the NFL. Some might say that it was easy for Staubach to trust his teammates when he played alongside men such as Tony Dorsett, Drew Pearson, Randy White, etc. But not every Cowboy of that era was destined for the Hall of Fame.

Sowing doubt in the ranks is no recipe for achieving the ultimate goal, whatever that is. Staubach learned that during his time at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, and later in the Navy. He never forgot those lessons. Staubach always displayed an unerring belief in his abilities, and he showed the same faith in the other players around him.

“I was able to transfer my confidence to my teammates,” Staubach told longtime journalist Dave Krieger in 2012. “The quarterback is more than just the physical. It’s the confidence, it’s the leadership, [and] it’s being able to get your teammates to believe, ‘Hey, we’re going to figure out how to win this game.’”

4. Set Expectations

Staubach knew more than anyone that not every season was going to end with the Cowboys hoisting the Super Bowl trophy. But Landry established a standard, and it was Staubach’s job as his signal-caller to enforce it.

This is where the military man in him came out. Staubach wasn’t a yeller, but a lackadaisical effort was not allowed. Attention to detail was mandatory. Working as a cohesive unit was expected. Ever since he was a three-sport high school standout in Ohio, Staubach won at a high level. That wasn’t by accident. When you set high expectations, sometimes you actually reach them.

5. Never Give Up

Staubach didn’t become “Captain Comeback” by accident. The website Pro Football Reference credits him with 13 fourth-quarter comebacks and 21 game-winning drives during the regular season. Staubach possessed an incredible ability to excite a crowd at home (or silence one on the road) with one of the Cowboys’ miracle rallies.

During the 1975 postseason, the Cowboys trailed the Vikings 14-10 in Minnesota when Staubach threw a long pass. Pearson hauled it in for a 50-yard touchdown, giving Dallas an improbable victory. “I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary,” Staubach said after that game, according to an ESPN.com article. Thus the Hail Mary pass was born.

The military is no stranger to Hail Marys, either. Sometimes, they are answered; other times, they are not. It doesn’t mean you don’t try. Just ask Staubach.

6. Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Practice

A mission has little to no chance of success without the proper training. From the time they’re in basic training or boot camp, service members drill incessantly so certain actions become second nature.

Football teams do the same thing. It’s not to the same degree that it was during the 1970s, when grueling two-a-day practices were the norm. Thankfully, teams have evolved in their thinking, but the bottom line remains the same: Poor practice habits tend to lead to subpar performances on game day.

“He was a winner; he never felt like the team was out of a game,” said Tom McCracken, who played with Staubach on the Pensacola, Florida, Goshawks in the Navy. “We practiced together throughout the offseason, and no matter what we were doing, he had to do at least one more than me.”

7. Know How to Outthink Your Opponent

At 6 feet 3 and weighing slightly less than 200 pounds, Staubach wasn’t the most physically imposing player. He didn’t have to be. Staubach’s mind was next level. If his play always appeared as though he was a step ahead of his opponents, it probably was because he was.

Staubach thought of most contingencies ahead of time, another trait that he developed while serving in the Navy. He wasn’t the faster runner, but he was so elusive that he acquired another nickname: Roger the Dodger. He also didn’t possess the strongest arm, but he managed to throw for 22,700 yards during his career.

A difference-maker for Staubach was that his intelligence became a force multiplier for his other skills. The result was a legendary career that ended with Staubach’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.

“Life is so short, and there are only so many chances to be in pressure situations,” Staubach once said. “There are only a certain amount of opportunities to take your talent and ability and gets things accomplished.”

Staubach wouldn’t have been as accomplished without his time at the Naval Academy and in the service.

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