Editing Mark Stepnoski (section)

===Dallas Cowboys (first stint)===
Stepnoski was selected by the [[Dallas Cowboys]] in the third round of the [[1989 NFL draft]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=1989 NFL Draft Listing |url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1989/draft.htm |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=Pro-Football-Reference.com |language=en}}</ref> He dropped in the draft because the scouts thought he was undersized for the [[National Football League]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://insidethestar.com/countdown-to-kickoff-mark-stepnoski-takes-center-stage-at-53/ |title=Countdown To Kickoff: Mark Stepnoski Takes "Center" Stage At #53 |date=July 21, 2022 |access-date=November 16, 2022}}</ref>

The Cowboys switched him to [[Center (American football)|center]], although he had never played that position. During his rookie year he was tutored by [[Tom Rafferty]], who was playing his last season in the NFL. He became a starter for the last four games of the season. Stepnoski used his athletic ability, leverage and balance to outmaneuver bigger defensive players and become one of the league's best centers of his era. By the end of the [[1991 Dallas Cowboys season|1991 season]] he was selected to the first of five straight [[Pro Bowl]]s.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Eatman |first1=Nick |title=The 53: Stepnoski To Anchor The Middle |url=https://www.dallascowboys.com/news/the-53-stepnoski-to-anchor-the-middle-286191 |access-date=July 5, 2012 |work=dallascowboys.com |date=July 3, 2012}}</ref> From [[1992 Dallas Cowboys season|1992]] to [[1994 Dallas Cowboys season|1994]], together with [[Erik Williams]], [[Mark Tuinei]], [[Nate Newton]] and [[Kevin Gogan]], he was part of some of the best offensive lines to play in NFL history,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2679032-cowboys-offensive-line-shaping-up-as-perhaps-greatest-in-nfl-history |title=Cowboys Offensive Line Shaping Up as Perhaps Greatest in NFL History |website=[[Bleacher Report]] |access-date=November 16, 2022}}</ref> that also helped pave the way for [[Emmitt Smith]] to become the NFL's all-time leading rusher. In [[1993 Dallas Cowboys season|1993]], he suffered a knee injury that required surgery while playing against the [[Minnesota Vikings]] in the 13th game of the season. He was replaced by [[John Gesek]] and couldn't play during the [[playoffs]] and [[Super Bowl XXVIII]]. He became a [[free agent]] at the end of the season, but the Cowboys could only sign him to a one-year contract ($1.2 million and a $500,000 signing bonus).

Stepnoski was one of the team's first big-name players to leave the Cowboys following the 1994 season via [[free agent|unrestricted free agency]], leaving with three Pro Bowls and back-to-back [[Super Bowl]] victories.