and Rayfield Wright anchored the offensive line. Like the Colts, the Cowboys' main strength was their defense. Nicknamed the "Doomsday Defense", they allowed just one touchdown in their last six games prior to the Super Bowl. Their line was anchored by future Hall of Fame defensive tackle Bob Lilly. Behind him, linebackers Lee Roy Jordan, Dave Edwards, and Chuck Howley excelled at stopping the run and pass coverage. The Cowboys had an outstanding secondary, led by Mel Renfro and Herb Adderley, who combined for seven interceptions. Dallas also had two rookie safeties: Cliff Harris and Charlie Waters, who led the team with five interceptions, while Harris recorded two. Dallas finished the regular season winning the NFC East with a record, winning their final five regular season games to overcome the St. Louis Cardinals (who lost their final three games and fell to third place in the final standings) and New York Giants (who lost their finale to the Los Angeles Rams; a Giants victory would have given New York the NFC East title based upon a better division record and forced a coin toss between the Cowboys and Detroit Lions for the wild card playoff spot). Playoffs In the playoffs, Dallas defeated Detroit in sunny weather at the Cotton Bowl, with a field goal and a safety. Then the Cowboys overcame the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game, aided by Thomas' 143 rushing yards, along with interceptions by Renfro and Jordan late in the third quarter that were both converted into touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Colts advanced to the Super Bowl by beating the Cincinnati Bengals and the Oakland Raiders in the playoffs at Memorial Stadium. Super Bowl pregame news and notes For the Colts, Super Bowl V represented a chance to redeem themselves for their humiliating loss to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. Volk commented, "Going to the game a second time took away some of the awe. I think we were able to focus better. There was no way we were going to let ourselves get beat again." Meanwhile, the game was a chance for the Cowboys to lose their nickname of "next year's champions" and their reputation of "not being able to win the big games". In the past five seasons, Dallas had won more games, 52 of 68, than any other professional football team, but they had yet to win a league