sir, i must take exception to your denigration of dd lewis
from his wiki (edited for data that's no longer current)
Although he was a great college player, Lewis was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the sixth round (159th overall) of the 1968 NFL draft, because teams thought that he was too small to play in the NFL. As a rookie at training camp, the team tried him at center, before moving him to outside linebacker.
In 1969, he spent what would have been his second season doing military service. In 1973 after serving as a backup for four seasons, Lewis took over the weakside linebacker position, when Chuck Howley retired, and held this position for nine straight years.
His best game was in the 1975 NFC Championship Game, when he intercepted two passes in a 37–7 victory against the Los Angeles Rams, helping the Cowboys become the first wild-card team to make it to the Super Bowl.
To this day, he holds the Cowboys playoff record with 27 games played. During his NFL career, Lewis played in 12 NFC divisional-round contests, one NFC wild-card contest and nine NFC Championship Games. He made five Super Bowl appearances while winning Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XII. During the 1980 season, he became along with Larry Cole, the first three-decade players in franchise history.[2]
Lewis played for 13 years and started 135 consecutive games until his retirement after the 1981 season.
Although he was never selected to a Pro Bowl or All-Pro squad, he served as defensive co-captain in 1977 and 1978. In 1984, he was named to the Cowboys Silver Anniversary Team.