Having been born outside of Philadelphia (go Birds), I was raised to despise the Dallas Cowboys, and it stuck. While I can’t say that the Cowboys haven’t won a Super Bowl in my lifetime — they’ve actually won three in 1992, 1993 and 1995 — I can happily say that I have no recollection of any of those victories. But honestly, that’s probably what intrigues me about the upcoming Netflix docuseries, America’s Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys, which premieres on August 19 and debuted its first trailer on July 14.
Chapman and Maclain Way, the directors of Emmy-winning docuseries Wild Wild Country, director/producers of the Untold sports docuseries and directors of a personal favorite sports documentary, The Battered Bastards of Baseball (all of which are on Netflix), are the directors/producers of this new docuseries. Here they will talk with all the key figures from the Cowboys' heyday under owner Jerry Jones — including Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Deion Sanders, Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer — to get an inside look at the team that helped define the 90s in the NFL.
Why would an Eagles fan want to watch a docuseries that potentially puts the Cowboys on a pedestal? I’m a fan of sports history, and while I love to see the Cowboys lose, I can’t help but be curious to learn about what put the Cowboys up on the pedestal in the early/mid 90s and the characters (most notably Jones) that keeps them in the media spotlight even today.
It’s the same reason that I enjoyed watching the Apple TV Plus docuseries on the Patriots, The Dynasty: New England Patriots. It’s first-hand accounts of all that happened from such a defining team in sports history. Basically, if you’re an NFL fan that cares about the history of the game, regardless of whether you’re a fan of the Eagles, Giants, Commanders or whatever team, this could be a fascinating watch.
This also feels like Netflix’s attempt at a The Last Dance type of hit. The 2020 docuseries that aired on ESPN detailed Michael Jordan, tracing his rise to being arguably the greatest basketball player of all time while also focusing on his final season with the Chicago Bulls. Now, nothing may be able to top the cultural impact that The Last Dance had as an early pandemic favorite, but America’s Team looks like it is aiming for that same type of vibe. (Funnily enough, The Last Dance is currently streaming on Netflix.)
This is just the latest example of Netflix’s push into the NFL. They recently premiered Quarterback season 2, which chronicles the 2024 seasons of Joe Burrow, Kirk Cousins and Jared Goff, and is part of a docuseries franchise from the streamer. Plus, Netflix is scheduled to be the exclusive home for a pair of Christmas Day NFL games for the second straight year.
To watch America’s Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys when it premieres on August 19, and any of the other Netflix NFL content, you must be a Netflix subscriber.
Watch the America’s Team trailer right here:
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