Tom Brady's perfect record vs. Cowboys: How the GOAT has owned Dallas during NFL career

Bill Bender

Tom Brady's perfect record vs. Cowboys: How the GOAT has owned Dallas during NFL career image

Tom Brady has never lost to the Dallas Cowboys. 

That's the headline-stat heading into Monday's NFC wild card matchup. Brady, 45, is making his 48th playoff start and chasing an eighth Super Bowl championship. The Buccaneers went 8-9 in the regular season, and they are underdogs against the Cowboys despite home-field advantage. 

Yet Dallas fans have every reason to be anxious against Brady. The Cowboys have yet to beat the future Hall of Fame quarterback through his stints with the Patriots and Buccaneers. Brady has a knack for being at his best at Dallas' expense. 

Will that trend continue Monday? 

Here is a look at Brady's history against the Cowboys. 

MORE: Oldest players in the 2023 NFL playoffs

Tom Brady's record vs. Cowboys 

Brady is 7-0 against the Cowboys during his career. Dallas is one of four teams Brady has never lost against, and that list includes the Vikings (5-0), Buccaneers (4-0) and Patriots (1-0). 

Brady won five starts against the Cowboys with the Patriots. He won the other two the last two seasons with Tampa Bay. In those seven games, Brady averaged 277.9 passing yards per game with 15 TDs and five interceptions. 

Tom Brady's stats vs. Cowboys

Here is a look at Brady's seven starts against the Dallas Cowboys heading into Monday's NFC wild card matchup. 

DATE SCORE BRADY STATS
Nov. 16, 2003 NE 12-0 15 of 34, 212 yards
Oct. 14, 2007 NE 48-27 31 of 46, 398 yards, 5 TDs
Oct. 16, 2011 NE 20-16 27 of 41, 289 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
Oct. 11, 2015 NE 30-6 20 of 27, 275 yards, 2 TDs
Nov. 24, 2019 NE 13-9 17 of 37, 190 yards, TD
Sept. 9, 2021 TB 31-29 32 of 50, 379 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INTs
Sept. 11, 2022 TB 19-3 18 of 27, 212 yards, TD, INT

Tom Brady's first game vs. Cowboys

You have to go all the way back to Nov. 16, 2003 for Brady's first matchup against the Cowboys. The Patriots were 8-2 and the Cowboys were 7-3. Brady passed for 212 yards. The defense picked off Quincy Carter three times, and New England won a 12-0 shutout. The was part of Brady's second Super Bowl run with the Patriots. 

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Tom Brady's best game vs. Cowboys 

On Oct. 14, 2007, Brady led the unbeaten Patriots to Texas Stadium for a showdown with Dallas, which was 5-1. This was part of New England's 16-0 season, and it was one of Brady's finest performances. 

Brady hit 31 of 46 passes for 388 yards and five TDs. Dallas took a 24-21 lead with 10:20 left in the third quarter, but the Patriots responded by scoring 27 of the next 30 points in the game. Brady's 69-yard touchdown pass to Donte' Stallworth was part of that run. 

Tom Brady's game-winning drives vs. Cowboys

Brady has knocked off Dallas with clutch drives in the fourth quarter twice in his career. 

On Oct. 16, 2011, the Cowboys took a 16-13 lead in the fourth quarter at Gillette Stadium before Brady led the game-winning drive with an 8-yard TD pass to Aaron Hernandez with 22 seconds remaining. 

The other happened in the Week 1 opener on Sept. 9, 2021. The Buccaneers were the defending Super Bowl champions, but Dallas pushed Tampa Bay to the limit in a back-and-forth shootout between Dak Prescott and Brady. 

Prescott passed for 403 yards, and Dallas' Greg Zuerlein kicked the go-ahead field goal with 1:24 remaining. Brady, however, led a game-winning drive capped by a Ryan Succop's 36-yard field goal for a 31-29 victory. 

Tom Brady's last game vs. Cowboys

The Cowboys and Buccaneers met in Week 1, and Brady surprised by coming out of retirement. Brady had 212 yards, a TD and an interception in an ugly 19-3 victory, and Prescott fractured his thumb in the loss. 

Tom Brady vs. Cowboys in NFC wild card 

Brady is 35-12 in playoff games and 7-3 in Super Bowls, and he's looking for one more this season. This is Brady's first playoff matchup against the Cowboys. 

Dallas finished 11-5 this season, and Prescott returned from the thumb injury to lead the run to the postseason. Prescott is 1-3 in playoff starts, and the Cowboys are 3-point favorites to advance to the NFC divisional round. 

Tampa Bay will have home-field advantage by virtue of winning the NFC South, and Brady is 5-1 in the playoffs with the Buccaneers. 

Bill Bender

Bill Bender Photo

Bill Bender graduated from Ohio University in 2002 and started at The Sporting News as a fantasy football writer in 2007. He has covered the College Football Playoff, NBA Finals and World Series for SN. Bender enjoys story-telling, awesomely-bad 80s movies and coaching youth sports.