Portal:American football/Selected biography/April, 2008

Troy Aikman is a former American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League, and currently a television sportscaster for the Fox network. He is also a joint owner of the NASCAR Nextel Cup racing team, Hall of Fame Racing, along with fellow former Cowboys quarterback, Roger Staubach. He is among the best NFL quarterbacks of all time, and was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006. He is referred to as one of "The Triplets" with Cowboys teammates Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith.

Aikman was the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 1989 NFL Draft, held by the Cowboys. The franchise had fallen on hard times, going a woeful 3-13 in 1988. On February 25, 1989, new owner Jerry Jones shocked the sports world by firing the beloved Tom Landry—the only head coach the Cowboys ever had—and replacing him with Jimmy Johnson, who, to no one's surprise, took Aikman in the draft. A few months later, in the NFL's supplemental draft, Johnson surprisingly selected quarterback Steve Walsh, who had played for Johnson (and most of the new Cowboys' coaching staff) the previous two years at the University of Miami (going 23-1 as a starter and winning a national championship). However, Aikman won the job over Walsh in training camp and never relinquished it (although Walsh played while Aikman was injured). Walsh was traded early in the 1990 season.

Johnson did not develop Aikman slowly but instead threw him into action immediately. Meanwhile, Johnson spent the entire season shuffling the depth chart trying to find players talented enough to build a winning team. As a result, Aikman was constantly trying to adjust to the styles of different players. Then, in middle of the season, the team's only Pro Bowl player, running back Herschel Walker, was traded for several veteran players and draft choices. Although the trade turned out to be successful in the long run, it was devastating to the team in the 1989 season.

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