The highlight of Garrett's playing career occurred on the 1994 Thanksgiving Day game when he started in place of backup quarterback Rodney Peete, who was out with a sprained thumb he suffered in a win against the Washington Redskins. Garrett led the Cowboys over the Green Bay Packers by completing 15 of 26 passes for 311 yards and 2 touchdowns in the second half for a comeback win of 42–31, which earned him NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. In 2008, that game was named the fourth-best moment in the history of Texas Stadium by ESPN. In 1995 he was promoted to the backup position and in the second game against the Denver Broncos, after Aikman suffered a broken clavicle, Garrett came in to finish the 23–42 loss. He would start the next five games and contribute to a 3–2 mark for a team that would go on to win the NFC East conference by one game over the Arizona Cardinals. In 1999, he started two games for a 1–1 record.