My heroes have always been cowboys, country music star Waylon Jennings once sang.

In all likelihood, a 12th-round draft pick out of Texas Christian University may not have been what Jennings had in mind when he wrote the ballad, but, Larry Brown of the Dallas Cowboys definitely meets the standards of a hero.

If ever a player was deserving of the title it’s Brown, who will long be remembered as Super Bowl XXX’s Most Valuable Player, and only the fifth defensive player in Super Bowl history to garner the award.

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Brown, a seemingly unheard of cornerback prior to Dallas’ 27-17 triumph over the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday, rose to the occasion by picking off two Neil O’Donnell passes, helping pace the Cowboys to their third Super Bowl victory in four years.

However, Sunday’s performance is not the only event which qualifies Brown as a hero prospect. For most, two interceptions during the NFL’s biggest game is hardly enough to qualify him as a hero, but overcoming personal tragedy off the field, while at the same time facing criticism on it, does make Brown a likely candidate for the award.

Earlier in the season, life as a Cowboy looked anything but good for Brown. In fact, the future looked very bleak for Brown. In his fifth year as a Cowboy, Brown was being criticized for pass interference penalties, poor defensive skills and simply not measuring up to Cowboy standards.

To add insult to injury, Brown was beaten twice last year by the San Francisco 49ers’ Jerry Rice once for a 57-yard touchdown in a regular season game and then on a 28-yard touchdown in the playoffs. Because of that, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones hired another cornerback by the name of Deion Sanders. Brown’s days as a starter seemed numbered.

Then on Nov. 16, as if there weren’t enough turmoil in Brown’s life, he and his wife suffered the worst tragedy possible. They lost his infant son Kristopher, who was born 10 weeks premature nearly three weeks earlier. Kristopher, who weighed only one pound at birth, was taken off life-support systems and died.

Just one day after his son’s funeral, Brown was back on the field playing against the Oakland Raiders, stunning players and coaches alike. It was his way of dealing with his family’s loss.

Criticism on the field is one thing all professional athletes must face during their career. Coping with the death of a loved one while continuing to play the game is yet another.

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It’s for those reasons Brown is so deserving of the title hero, not for picking off two interceptions in a game surrounded in hype and the almighty dollar. Brown could have easily given in to all the pressure he was undoubtedly under at the time. He would have been justified had he chosen to do so.

On a team known for its stars, Brown could have easily sat idly by and let Sanders, Aikman, Smith and Irvin lead the team to victory as is often the case. After all, would anyone really notice.

But, Brown did not sit idly by, nor did he succumb to the pressure. Instead he took what life has to offer, turning tragedy into triumph. His personal achievement on the football field will not erase the tragedy his family has suffered. Nor will it ease their suffering. However, it does say something about Larry Brown’s will to overcome personal tragedy and prove to everyone he can play with the best of them.

In a sport ruled by the almighty dollar, governed by greedy owners and played by overrated players, it’s nice to know unlikely heroes with simple names like Brown still exist.