Dallas Cowboys: Why Dak can join Emmitt Smith in the record books.

Embed from Getty Images

By now we've all heard the phrase that records are meant to be broken, and in the case of the 2016 Dallas Cowboys it is certainly no cliché.

Dallas is the first team in NFL history to increase their win total by nine games in just one season. The Cowboys' 4-12 campaign in 2015 feels like decades ago now, thanks in large part to the breakout rookie season of quarterback Dak Prescott.

As a resident of Dallas I can attest that the buzz in the city surrounding this team is unlike anything I've seen in my eight years here, with lifelong fans from eight to eighty believing that the glory days of the early 90's are finally within their grasp again.

A 13-3 record and home field advantage throughout the playoffs can certainly do that to a fan base.

Even in the midst of a stellar regular season there are still detractors, or haters as they are affectionately called in these parts, that refuse to believe that a rookie quarterback can lead a team to the Super Bowl.

After all, it has never been done, right?

While the naysayers are correct, Cowboy Nation should be encouraged by the fact that their team has heard this before...and scoffed at the notion.

In fact, it is starting to feel like 1992 all over again in Big D.

The 92 Cowboys entered the season as a team on the rise, but not expected to do much damage in January. The team was led by a young trio on offense...quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, and wide receiver Michael Irving.

After years of playoff futility, the buzz surrounding this team grew with each win. As they entered the playoffs the "detractors" pointed to the fact that no NFL rushing champion had ever won a Super Bowl.

Smith finished the 92 season as the league's leading rusher with 1,713 yards.

And as we all know, the Cowboys steamrolled the Buffalo Bills in Pasadena to capture the first Lombardi Trophy in 15 years.

Prescott, who is set to start in his first playoff game Sunday, should keep that reference close to heart because he has a golden opportunity to join Smith in the record books.

Their teams are eerily similar.

Both teams were anchored by the best offensive line and running back in football. Both teams had a play making receiver on the outside donning the number 88.

Both teams had a reliable tight end and opportunistic defense, and both teams could beat you on the ground and through the air if need be.

Both teams endured excruciating playoff losses on the road prior to their Super Bowl runs. The 92 Cowboys were blown out in Detroit in the divisional round of the 1991 playoffs, and the phrase "Dez caught it" still haunts Cowboys fans after their controversial loss in Lambeau Field in the divisional round two years ago.

Most importantly, both teams have a closeness and confidence about them. A swagger if you will, that this is the year to get over the hump.

Dak Prescott has the temperament and talent around him to do what Smith did in 1992, to write his own history instead of falling victim to it.

follow @plcolter