Dallas Cowboys: Ranking the Top 5 Quarterbacks in Franchise History

The Dallas Cowboys have a storied history, and their quarterback position is no different.

There have been many players who have lined up under center for "America's Team," but there are five that stand in a class all their own.

There are some high-profile names on this shortlist, with all making a case to be considered in the top two spots. That being said, here are the top five best quarterbacks in Cowboys history.

5. Don Meredith

The late great Don Meredith was the one of the first quarterbacks ever for the Dallas Cowboys, grabbing the starting job in just the franchise's second year of existence in 1962. To this day, he's one of the best to ever represent the star.

He may have only played nine seasons, but all were spent in Dallas, and if not for his ability to make plays out of nothing, the Cowboys would have struggled even more so than they did during the 1960s.

"Dandy Don" was one of, if not the only bright spot for the Cowboys during the early years, constantly finding ways to mount a little offense while often under pressure from the opposing pass rush.

Meredith was selected to the Pro Bowl three times from 1967-1969, proving that No.17 only got better with age.

4. Danny White

People may not approve of Danny White coming in fourth on the list considering he's got a Super Bowl ring, but he earned that one about as much as Chad Ochocinco earned his if the Patriots win tomorrow.

Like a fellow No. 11 in Drew Bledsoe, White has always been a sympathetic figure in my mind, as neither quarterback seems to garner the respect they deserve from both fan bases.

The Arizona State alum continued to deliver playoff appearances to Dallas despite the retirement of the great Roger Staubach. You don't often see franchises continue to stay in the postseason picture once they lose their franchise quarterback, just as the Miami Dolphins after Dan Marino retired.

White always put up some gaudy numbers during his time with the Cowboys, with some of his season records for passing yards and touchdowns only falling recently thanks to Tony Romo.

3. Tony Romo

It's a bit poetic to put Danny White and Tony Romo back-to-back on this list, considering many have called No. 9 this generation's version of the ASU product.

Like White, Romo has been great statistically speaking, with four seasons with 3,000 or more passing yards since becoming a starter. He also recently passed No. 11 on the Cowboys list for most touchdowns in a season and most career games with three or more touchdowns.

Whether you love or hate the Cowboys' current franchise quarterback, he's brought America's Team back from irrelevancy after the years following Troy Aikman's retirement.

Romo has been on the cusp of breaking into that upper echelon of quarterbacks for the past few seasons, and someday soon, he'll reach that inner circle when he delivers the first Super Bowl championship for the Cowboys in the new millennium.

2. Troy Aikman

Spending your No.1 draft pick on a quarterback has proven to be hit or miss over the years for many NFL teams, but boy did Dallas' selection of Troy Aikman in 1989 ever pay off?

Paired with the other "Triplets" in Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith, Aikman brought the Cowboys out of some of the darkest years in the franchise's history. With his pinpoint precision and ability to pull games out in the clutch, Aikman easily slides into the second place spot on this list.

The UCLA product is an Hall of Famer, six-time Pro Bowl selection and helped deliver three Super Bowl championships over a four-year span. Many forget that the Dallas Cowboys were the first team to ever accomplish that feat.

The Cowboys dominated the 1990s, something they might not have been able to do without Aikman at the helm of that dynamic offense.

1. Roger Staubach

There have been plenty of players who have donned the famous Cowboys star, but none have made it shine quite the way Roger Staubach did.

The first real taste of success this franchise enjoyed was when head coach Tom Landry got to work with Staubach, and together, they helped Dallas rise from mediocrity and into the NFL limelight for the very first time.

The Navy product brought the Cowboys to their first five Super Bowl appearances, and while he didn't bring home as many Lombardi trophies as Troy Aikman, his contributions to the team go far behind hardware.

The man known as "Roger the Dodger" was one of the first to really excel as a scrambling quarterback, and thanks to his ability to extend plays, the Cowboys were able to pull out some big plays, none bigger than the "Hail Mary" play to Drew Pearson against the Minnesota Vikings all those years ago.

Landry and Staubach helped build the Cowboys' allure that earned them the title of "America's Team" and really began creating the image that the franchise still projects to this very day. The two Hall of Famers were the first to place the main spotlight on this team, and it's been fixated on Big D ever since.