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They may be “America’s Team,” but it’s been a long time since the Dallas Cowboys played in front of the country in an NFC Championship Game. In fact, no NFC team has had a longer NFC title game drought than the Cowboys by virtue of the Washington Commanders‘ shocking upset win over the Detroit Lions on Saturday night in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs. 

Dallas now owns the longest NFC title game drought of any team in the conference (h/t ESPN). Every other NFC team has played in at least one conference title game since the Cowboys’ last appearance: a 38-27 win over Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers on Jan. 14, 1996. 

Washington had the longest title game drought among NFC teams, but the franchise snapped its 33-year streak after recording a 45-31 win over the top-seeded Lions. Detroit snapped its 32-year NFC title game drought the previous season. 

Here’s a look at each NFC team’s most recent conference title game appearance. As you can see, the Cowboys are the only NFC team that has not reached a conference title game in this millennium. Outside of the NFC, only the Dolphins (1992) and Browns (1989) have longer conference title game droughts. The Texans, which played their first season in 2002, are the only NFL team that has never made it to a conference title game. 

Seven NFC teams have won at least one Super Bowl since the Cowboys defeated the Steelers in Super Bowl XXX. That includes two of their NFC East division rivals, the Eagles and Giants, who have won a combined three Super Bowls and have played in three other Super Bowls since Dallas’ last appearance in the big game. 

Ironically, Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones may turn to a star player from the Cowboys’ last Super Bowl team to get Dallas back to its glory years. Jones recently spoke to Deion Sanders — the former standout defensive back who signed with the Cowboys in 1995 — about the team’s head coaching vacancy. 

Dallas has the 11th most wins in the NFL since its most recent Super Bowl win. But the franchise has won just five playoff games over that span, including last January’s stunning loss to the seventh-seeded Packers in the wild-card round. 

The team’s ongoing run of playoff futility is a far cry from the team’s glory years that dates back to the 1970s under Hall of Fame coach Tom Landry. Under Landry’s watch, the Cowboys became the first team to appear in five Super Bowls. Dallas had a rebirth in the 1990s, becoming the first franchise to win three Super Bowls over a four-year span. 

Jones is desperate to get his team back to the top of the mountaintop, and he is determined to do it his way as he has no plans to hand over his GM duties anytime soon. 

“[When] I bought the team, I think the first thing to come out of my mouth … somebody asked, ‘Did you buy this for your kids?’ I said, ‘Hell no. I bought it for me,'” Jones told reporters earlier this month. “And I didn’t buy an investment. I bought an occupation, and I bought something I was going to do.

“I was 46 [years old]. I bought something I was going to do for the rest of my life. That’s what I’m doing. So, no. The facts are, since I have to decide where the money is spent, then you might as well cut all of the bullshit out. That’s who’s making the call anyways.”