He also received Small College All-American honors and was named, along with teammate Wilbert Montgomery, to the 1973 NAIA football All Star team, whose backfield included Walter Payton.
As a result of leaving college with eligibility still remaining to be completed (three hours away from a degree), he entered the supplemental draft in 1974, where he was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals.
[3] He was named the backup quarterback to Roger Staubach, after having a strong training camp and Craig Morton being traded to the New York Giants.
Longley, then a rookie, came into the game for an injured Roger Staubach with the Cowboys trailing 16–3 in the third quarter, and facing elimination from the playoffs.
[4][5] Because Longley had no expectation of playing in that game and was completely unprepared, Cowboys lineman Blaine Nye sarcastically called his winning effort "the triumph of the uncluttered mind.
Less than two years after his Thanksgiving Day heroics, Longley, under pressure from Danny White for the back-up QB role, left the Cowboys after he punched Staubach during training camp in Thousand Oaks, California.
[13] The infamous "sucker punch" occurred after a negative remark Longley made about Staubach to Cowboy teammates.
Longley was immediately traded to the San Diego Chargers[13] where he finished his NFL career undefeated as a starter.