Three former Dallas Cowboys players have been named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2023.
DeMarcus Ware, Chuck Howley, and Zach Thomas were announced as three of the nine players going into the Canton, Ohio, shrine in July.
Another former Cowboys player, Darren Woodson, was a finalist but did not make the ultimate cut.
Twenty-nine other former Cowboys players, coaches, and contributors have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, including quarterback Roger Staubach and running backs Tony Dorsett and Emmitt Smith.
Six others were announced on Thursday night’s “NFL Honors” program as future inductees. They include Ronde Barber, Darrelle Revis, Joe Thomas, Don Coryell, Joe Klecko, and Ken Riley.
Ware played for the Cowboys for nine seasons (2005-2013). The nine-time All-Pro selection finished as the franchise’s all-time sack leader with 117. He had 138.5 career sacks, ninth in the NFL all-time, playing his last four seasons with the Denver Broncos.
The defensive end/outside linebacker was a Super Bowl champion with the Broncos in 2016, Hall of Fame Denver quarterback Peyton Manning’s last season.
“It feels good knowing that the sacrifices we went through to be the best we know can say all those sacrifices will be enshrined forever,” Ware was quoted as saying by Broncos.com.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones introduced Ware on Thursday night and released a statement on his achievement.
“I couldn’t be more proud of — and happy for — DeMarcus Ware for this well-deserved recognition,” Jones said in his statement to Cowboys.com.
“His approach to the game, on and off the field, embodied all the traits it takes to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.”
Howley was a Super Bowl MVP and spent 13 seasons with the Cowboys (1961-1973). He was a first-round draft pick of the Chicago Bears in 1958 and finally made it into the Hall of Fame.
Now 86, Howley was one of the Cowboys’ first star players as a linebacker. He was MVP of Super V in 1970, in which the Cowboys lost to the Baltimore Colts, 16-13. The Cowboys won Super Bowl VI the next season, defeating the Miami Dolphins, 24-3.
“As a key member of the feared ‘Doomsday Defense’ and one of the best linebackers to ever play this game, this is an honor long overdue for Chuck Howley,” Jones said in a statement.
“There never was, and may never be, another player who is at his best in the biggest games like Chuck was. His speed and athletic ability made him one of the most versatile defenders in his time.”
Thomas played one season for the Cowboys in 2008. He played most of his career with the Miami Dolphins.