December is a Rorschach Test for Cowboys Fans
by Rafael Vela on Dec 8, 2009 12:00 PM CST
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PrintWhat does this look like to you:
Is it:
- A. a sign of a team in 1st place?
- B. A wolf wearing Patrick Crayton's number?
- C. a black hole consuming the Dallas Cowboys?
- D. A beef and cheese burrito?
- E. something else?
From what I see on site, and hear in the Metroplex, the answer depends on your state of mind. And a lot of people are in a dead panic. Situational backups are being offered as sacrifices to the football gods. Coaches and QBs on other teams are openly coveted.
All because Dallas has lost one game in New York, in December. Funny, but I recall Tom Landry losing in the Meadowlands in December to some awful Giants teams. (Joe Danelo anyone?) Jimmy Johnson's guys lost at the Meadowlands in late '91, when all the penalties went New York's way. He lost at RFK in December '92 when Emmitt Smith tried throwing a pass out of his own end zone in the final two minutes and fumbled the game away.
Barry's guys went 2-2 in December '94, one of them a loss at the Meadowlands. His guys went 2-2 the following season, with the second loss the infamous "4th and 1" game at the thankfully-demolished Veterans' Stadium. His '96 team had their season put on temporary life-support by a 20-6 late-season loss in New York.
Chan Gailey's two playoff teams were 2-2 and 2-3 in December. Bill Parcells '03 playoff team was 2-2 in December.
Tom Landry's December record his last nine years as head coach ('79-'87) a period which saw six playoff teams and three NFC Championship Game appearances, was a lukewarm 16-15. That's right, 16-15. I don't recall any talk of December meltdowns back then, or cries for Tom to rush into retirement.
Every Cowboys coach has seen good teams, ones that won Super Bowls and went to NFC Championships, lose games in December. But I see some fans falling for the myth of a "December curse." Former Cowboys CB and current post-game radio show host Larry Brown gets my Kneejerker of the Week award for his amazing Sunday screed, where he said Wade Phillips should be fired at the end of the season, no matter what happens the rest of the way, because the team lost the Giants game. Ponder that: even if Dallas gets back on course and perhaps wins a playoff game or two, Wade should be instantly terminated because he lost to New York on December 6th!
Proof that announcers probably need the same 10 minute cooling down period after the final gun that the players and coaches receive.
The team has lost one game. It has lost four this season. It has responded to the other three with wins or winning streaks. The reasons for each loss have been different. The Denver loss was not the same as the Packers loss, and neither bore much resemblance to this one. There is no recurring breakdown which suggests a glaring personnel problem the team cannot overcome, though a Flozell Adams suspension would throw the offensive line into chaos this week.
There's a poll sitting in the right hand column of this site. It asks what people think the Cowboys' record would be over the final five games. Only 5% said 5-0. The overwhelming majority , nearly 50%, said 3-2. Well, they've lost one of the two games YOU PREDICTED. So why the instability?
Don't be spooked by press-fed ghosts, especially those which lack all context. If the team loses to San Diego, and looks awful in the process, okay, go nuts. In the meantime, remember where the Cowboys sit in the standings, because some of you are scaring me far more than any shortcomings I see on the roster.
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Two fairies mugging the devil.
Last night I lay in bed looking up at the stars in the sky and I thought to myself, "where the heck is the ceiling?"
WTH who let the Eagles fan post first?
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
At least he didn't brag about it.
He acted like he’s been there before.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 12:22 PM CST up reply actions
Water, Tomato, Sodiumchloride...
Looks like BUTTERFLY!
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
Good points Raf.
But untill Dallas has a winning Dec and wins a playoff game this will haunt the team, coaches GM/owner and fans. Plus it good fodder for the haters.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
true
but none of the coaches and players have been here for that span. Well, maybe Flozell. He’s been around a long time.
It's history and it has almost been a Cowboys hallmark.
Kind of like the curse of the “Blue Jerseys” in the 70’s. Either way, I don’t like seeing the Cowboys not take care of teams that they should. We had the chance to snuff any chance the Giants had for playoff hope. Granted that is difficult to beat the Giants at any time, but I believe a championship caliber team should be able to do that. As for the December meltdowns I could care less, not taking care of business against a division rival and giving them new life and the possibility of not only tying you, but the possibility of gaining back the division lead is not the hallmark of a team going places.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
Even championship teams struggled
Lets not forget that it took a one armed Emmit playing his heart out and a final field goal
by Eddie Murray to beat the Giants during one of the Cowboys Super Bowl years.
NFC East team matchups always are unpredicatble. Yes I’d like to see easy blowouts, but history tells us that’s not going to happen, even when you look at some of greatest teams……
I remember, but also those teams played hard in all games.
Very few times did those teams go out an lose a game as important as the last one was. They might have had some close division wins/losses, but you always had the feeling that they had the intestinal fortitude to do it. I remember thinking of ways that team could win the games, where with this team I seem to be thinking of ways they can blow them. I don’t like thinking of my beloved Cowboys that way and I pray they do something to change my mindset.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
this team played hard against the GMen
they just didn’t play well. You do know it’s possible that teams can play hard and lose.
In Romo we Trust
indeed...
…but the better ones still find a way to win, and certainly avoid being swept in most cases.
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
I don't mind being swept.
I do mind the ineptitude and lackluster play of our team. If they get beat, they get beat. It happens. What I saw was a lacsidaisical attitude and no committment to winning the game and putting the Giants out of their misery. Letting a rabid dog live only invites it to bite you at a later date. Expecting some other team in the NFL to help you out will not get you far in the league.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
I agree but it is a stigmat that hangs around
the necks of all Cowboys and fans.Right or wrong.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
stigmata = understood as more than simply a plural
Has tighter connotation to the words religious/ceremonial roots.
by alanTdot. on Dec 9, 2009 8:31 AM CST via mobile up reply actions
cut Flozell!!
That knee is jerking again…
"Where's Woody? - We need another Darren Woodson
by BoyfromOz on Dec 9, 2009 10:25 PM CST via mobile up reply actions
The problem is that the haters are the Dallas media
I don’t mean the guys on this site (you guys have this strange habit of putting things into context) but did you watch the press conference with Wade? The questions that the coaches and players have to endure from the Dallas “reporters” (instigaters) is ridiculous. Why would someone ask Wade how he can call this team winners? On First Take this morning, Skip blasted Wade’s answer, and for a while I agreed whole-heartedly. At first I liked his idea of a coach who would get upset with the questions and bring up how Romo had a career game, despite the predicted choke job. And while that answer really would have been nice, I kind of like how Wade went with.. we have 8 wins, I’m not guna call them losers.
Both the question and the answer are right. What have they won? What have they lost? What did Peyton win before he owned a SB trophy? What did the Patriots lose through 18 games of the ‘07 season? How can they ask these kinds of questions when Dallas is 8-4 and going into one of the toughest 4 game stretches imaginable? This is the problem in Dallas, and Raf, while I respect your opinions and writing, aren’t you just feeding the fire, even though you are taking the right angle on it?
Wouldn’t the best course of action for the Dallas media to not ever say the word December? What’s the point of it? This is what makes me so frustrated to be a Cowboy fan, and is one of the reasons I love Roy Williams so much. His answers to questions seem kind of weird at times, but he legitimately doesn’t understand how these types of things could be asked. I love his attitude. He comes from the Lions. Right now he’s having the best team-wise season of his career.
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
agree 100%
The media isn’t creative enough to come up with anything else to write about and this December angle is so easy.
Lazy journalism at it’s finest.
In Romo we Trust
Disagree
They are known more for what they have lost than what they have won over the last decade+.
Winnie is almost as clueless on how to manage the media as he is his team.
A bona fide leader of men would say nothing about being “winners”. He’d lament the poor play and be 100% focused on what needs to be done to right the ship.
I feel sorry for him. He’s overmatched when he’s at the podium.
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I think he did say that
but when the press is hounding you about the December curse, what’s he supposed to say?? Yeah, we suck in December, give me a break.
In Romo we Trust
Riddle me this
Why is a Wade Phillips post-practice press conference a lead story when the defending champion, 6-6 steelers barely even get mentioned after losing to the Raiders at home, 10 days after the Cowboys disgraced that very same Raiders team. This is the problem. Of course Wade is overmatched, how couldn’t he be? It’s like watching the T.O. press conference earlier this year when he was being hit with question after question trying to get him to say something bad about his QB. As Terry pointed out, can they not come up with a unique angle? How about a story about Romo, who quietly just played out of his mind. How about a story on Demarcus Ware, who because of injury was essentially a no show. How about a story about the emergance of Spencer, who was once described as being a few weeks away from being a bust?
My point is that the local media has created a negative environment, and seemingly everyone in the state, if not the country, is waiting for them to lose at least 3 of the last 4 games. And it has passed over to the fans. At the end of the Giants game on the open discussion forum, how many different people said, “game over season over”? I saw more of the press conference and love Wade’s answers as he asked how can you talk about success in December with four games left? And I agree. Two years ago they were 2-2 in December with the starters pulled in the second loss and lost in the playoffs to the eventual superbowl champs. How is that a collapse?
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
at least Tiger is smart enough to stay away for a while
I’d like to see Wade say no comment for two minutes then walk out lol
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
I'm not worried about December
I’m worried about the schedule. NO, SD, Phily, even the Skins are looking better. YIKES! We needed that Giants game.
+1000
That is a tough schedule no matter how you look at it. Not that we can’t win those, but it will be tough.
"Coaches who can outline plays on a black board are a dime a dozen. The ones who win get inside their player and motivate." Vince Lombardi
good commentary, Raf
let’s see how this all plays out. seems to me like the game turned on three or four plays, plays which this team has made in every other game this season.
just get into the playoffs and see what happens!
Yes, if they get in and win then this game becomes a forgotten footnote to the end of a good season.
If they pee their pants again, then this becomes another begining of the end December backslide story.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
For exactly these reasons
I am keeping the faith until it can no longer be kept.
But the Cowboys keep finding new ways to lose, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. At least in recent years, one scapegoat — Romo, secondary, etc. — was usually obvious. Now, there’s quite a few little things that keep this team from taking the next step, and I don’t know whose head deserves to go on a platter. Looks more and more like it will be Wade’s.
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by accidental innuendo on Dec 8, 2009 12:18 PM CST reply actions
Wile E Coyote
That’s what it looks like to me. Meep Meep
by StillHateTheGiants on Dec 8, 2009 12:19 PM CST reply actions
I think
the instability is that the loss was against the Giants. If it was against the Chargers or Saints, I don’t think it’s as big of a deal.
I agree.
In all likelihood, wins against the Giants and Eagles would have clinched the division, even if we lost the other 3.
However! If the Giants beat the Eagles this weekend, wins over the Redskins and Eagles will be enough to secure a wild card.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 12:26 PM CST up reply actions
so do we want the Giants to beat the Eagles?
I mean you can look at it two ways. If the Eagles beat the Giants then we would have a two game cushion over the Giants if we run the table. However, we would still be tied with the Eagles. if the Giants beat the Eagles, then of course, we’d have a 1 game lead on both of them. All this scenario is assuming a Cowboys win. Is there any way that both teams (Giants and Eagles could lose this weekend?-LOL)
There's still a lot of games to be played, but I think that's the best scenario.
Right now, there are 4 teams with realistic shots at the playoffs, and there are 3 open spots. Someone is going to win the NFC East. If the Cowboys win out, that would obviously be ideal. But, if all the teams finish at 10-6, the Packers and Giants have tiebreakers over us, so we need to maintain our tiebreaker over the Eagles. I could be wrong, though, that’s just how it looks to me.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 12:44 PM CST up reply actions
we have to beat the Eagles week 17 regardless
so really it would be better if the Eagles beat the GMen because we still can get the tie breaker over Philly but the GMen already have it over us.
Bottom line, we can be tied with Philly at the end of the year and win the division, but if we are tied with NY, we’re out.
In Romo we Trust
wrong, if we are tied with philly and they beat us at the end of the year, phillly has the tie
breakers, GB, NG, PE all have tie breakers over us, unless we sweep the eagles
so you're saying it's better for the Giants to beat the Eagles......
I think that’s what I’m leaning towards too.
I always hope they kill each other. I used to hope for a tie but that bit us in the ass last year.
KICK ASS every day!!!
yeah, unfortunately.
I’ve been trying to figure out how they could both lose to each other this weekend but I can’t come up with a mathematical logical way-LOL
Why is everyone
just giving GB a pass in this deal? They’ve got 3 road games against the Bears, Arizona, and the Steelers and a home game against Seattle. I’ll give them a gimme with Seattle but those other three on the road could be a real problem.
oh, not me........
this is very hard to say, but, I will be rooting for the Steelers (now that I said it, it wasn’t too bad-LOL) against the Packers. I don’t know if the Ravens are just really bad but the Packers kinda scare me a little. Rodgers is one of those unpredictable type of QB’s that scare you.
The Bears are awful, the Steelers have dropped 4 straight including one at home to (throwing up in my mouth a little) Oakland, and as you noted Seattle is a gimme.
That’s a pretty far cry from the Chargers, Saints, Redskins, and Eagles.
Let me preface this by saying “Power Rankings” are just for fun, but at the same time they still are usually a decent indication of how the teams stack up. And based upon ESPN’s Power Rankings…
The Packers have #’s 15, 21, 24, and 25 left on their schedule.
The Cowboys have #’s 1, 4, 8, and 27.
Oops... Correction...
The Packers have #’s 15, 21, 24, and 25 left on their schedule.
The Cowboys have #’s 1, 4, 8, and 27.
That should be…
The Packers have #’s 6, 15, 21, and 24 left on their schedule.
The Cowboys have #’s 1, 4, 8, and 27.
Well
Chicago is just putrid. At Ari should be a great game (remember, Ari got whooped at home against Carolina; they’re capable of putting up a stinker once in a while). Playing Pit at their place will be tough, but Rodgers can feast on that secondary minus Palamolu, and GB plays in similar weather.
I think Dallas may have the hardest December schedule of the possible playoff teams. No gimmies.
Yep
although Dallas had a struggling Carolina last year with Delhomme out that they almost lost.
very interesting........
both Baked Potato and Terry took different teams to win. This could get interesting down the stretch. Best case scenario would be to win all of our games and then we won’t be doing this trying to figure out who we want to win?
or 3 out of 4
that definitely gets us in so long as one of the wins is against Philly.
In Romo we Trust
+1
The better chance is against SD (IMO), PHI, WAS
I don’t feel like Dallas will win that NO game. If it was in Dallas, I’d say it was 50/50, but they seem unbeatable in the Dome.
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
by APerfectStar on Dec 8, 2009 10:38 PM CST up reply actions
the doom and gloom is about the record of the teams we're playing as much as it is about
Wade’s record at the end of seasons. this team is 1-3 against winning teams, and three of the four left have winning records. The next two are against the two hottest teams in the NFL (SD is on a 7 game winning streak). Dallas won’t be favored in the next two games, most likely. If those two games are losses, as they are expected to be, that’s a 3 game losing streak.
It’s not the fact that they lost a hard fought game on the road to a division opponent. It’s that they gave away a game to a division opponent. Lack of focus, stupid mistakes.
Now that I think about it.........
this can be the season for these players to show us that they are different than the past. We’ll get to see what they are really made of. They can either climb into a hole and lose their remaining games-which is very possible, or they can show what they are truly capable of doing which is win out. I kinda like this stretch because it will show us how good they really are. IF, and that’s a big if, they are as good as promoted, then they will make the playoffs on a winning streak and not limp into the playoffs and be done one and out.
I'm with you 100%.
I felt the same way last year, too. This is it. The time is now. I think we all knew where Dallas would be at this time of the year. In the preseason fanpost where people predicted their record, I guessed 8-3 going into December and hopefully 11-5 to end the year. 12-4 would be even better. If they want to end all the talk about them being soft, not being leaders, not being good coaches, etc., the path is right there for them. They let me down last year, but I think they can do it this time.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 2:38 PM CST up reply actions
Exactly.........
because if they can’t beat these teams in the regular season, then they don’t deserve to go to the playoffs. Why limp into the playoffs because somebody else gift wraps it for you only to be one and done? That’s not a victory imo. That’s a failure.
Which is worse?
Not making the playoffs or making the playoffs and getting their ass kicked in 1st round.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
Dec-jan record of wade phillips not including this season
Den 2-4
Den 1-3
Buf 3-2 (team won AFC previous year under marv levy)
Buf 3-2
Buf 1-3
Dal2-4
Dal 1-3
that the player said SOS as in same old stuff..........
sounds like this player doesn’t buy into turning this thing around-a defeatest attitude.
yeah, and what if it's Romo?
How would you feel about that?
I think that is why the word "doubt" is used instead of "know"....
Seriously, him saying he doesn’t think they all feel that way is no different than you thinking the situation may be different. If you are going to be all uptight, at least read well.
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
What's really funny about this article is.....
they mention Wade taking over a supremely talented team built by 34-32 (Tuna)…. can someone remind me how well Parcells’ did in December with the supremely talented team? They didn’t mention that.
I think the key is that this version of the Cowboys hasn't shown the ability to overcome.
It’s one thing to not post a winning December if you make the playoffs and win some games once you get there. That hasn’t been the case for this team, though. If something has happened 3 times in a row to largely the same cast of characters, I don’t think it’s that drastic to think “here we go again” when they start out the same way on the 4th try.
That said, 1 win in any of the next 3 and a win over the Eagles combined with an Eagles loss in the next 3 will get us in. Then these guys will have the opportunity to write whatever ending they like to this season.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 12:32 PM CST reply actions
When Wade coached the BIlls..
he went 3-1, 3-1 and 1-3 in December.
wrong, he wint 3-1,2-1,1-3
with a team that had just went to the superbowl several years in a row. Not much coaching is needed in the first couple years after the Superbowl coach leaves (see Barry Switzer as another example). His record in DEC and january for those teams was 3-2,3-2,1-3. And those those are the only two winning dec-jan records in his coaching career. With Denver (Elway at qb) he went 2-4, 1-3. That’s with Elway at qb.
Who cares if he had players from Super Bowl years...
the point is he knows how to win in December. He’s done it before, so it is very possible he can do it again.
by TheCowboyFan on Dec 8, 2009 12:50 PM CST up reply actions
he needs a veteran superbowl quality team to barely have a winning record in dec-jan
and with other playoff quality teams he has a losing record. And in denver he went 2-4, 1-3 then shanahan took over and won two superbowls. His record indicates he has no idea how to win late in the season. His comments indicate he is still clueless about it, and trys to fix it by being in denial.
Buffalo was old and they were done as far as a SB contender much like us in 96 and NE now.
I cant comment on the Bronchos because I really dont know if they had reloaded some good players during Wades run but I do know Elway was still in his prime and an all world 2000 yard rusher showed up.
KICK ASS every day!!!
not following the Broncos that closely.......
I do find it kinda interestingly similar. Dan Reeves built the Broncos into a pretty good team-in fact, they went to the SB with him. Wade couldn’t get them to the next step and so they bring in Shanahan. If you compare Dallas to the Broncos, it’s very similar. Wade takes a team that Parcells starts and has some success with it but can’t seem to get it to the next level. The final chapter has not been written yet, but it’s eerily similar.
I bet if you compare the rosters it a lot different. Dont get me wrong, Shanahan can coach but did
Wade get their at the wrong or did Shanahan get right time. Its about having talent but its also about having no big holes.
KICK ASS every day!!!
I've been wondering the same thing........
ya gotta admit it is very strange. What I don’t know is, did Shanahan bring in new players to complement Elway or were a lot of those players already on the team and Shanahan was just a continuation of what Reeves/Wade had built.
Phillips took over the Bills
after they had a losing season in 1997, and they hadn’t made the Super Bowl in 5 years. That was a team in decline. I’ll give him credit for temporarily resurrecting that team. Well, him and Flutie.
i stand corrected, i don't follow the bills that closely, the temporary resurection probably
had more to do with the change from todd collins (who?) at qb to doug flutie. Phillips then probably got himself fired when he changed qb’s again to Rob Johnson.
Gotta love when people are confronted with a truth they dislike and make up a
cop-out like “not much coaching is needed.”
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
Well considering you were talking about December (or at least the poster you responded to was)
I hardly see how I must now show you that Wade is capable of winning a playoff game.
Regardless, to say Wade is incapable of winning a playoff game is a pretty interesting take. I guess that would be like me saying that Drew Brees is incapable of winning a Super Bowl since he hasn’t done it before. The logic of using past performance as a key indicator to future success can certainly be justified in an opinionated forum, but to imply so strongly that Wade is “incapable” is not really a legitimate factual point. If you wish to feel that way, by all means continue, but I will continue to believe that each year is different from the past one and that anything can happen.
Also, just for the record, it should be remembered that the coach you are so heavily implying to be “incapable” of winning a playoff game was a “Music City Miracle” and a questionable no-call on a forward lateral away from doing just that.
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
by Cowboyfan729 on Dec 9, 2009 12:02 AM CST up reply actions
Maybe Wade is just a jinx.
Maybe he is a great coach, but he is paying pennance for a former life. Either way his innability to maintain excellence all season long is starting to grind.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
Hahahaha... Maybe that's it...
Still though, I think many here would hire Mike Tomlin in a heartbeat, and look at how his team has lost four in a row. I am not excusing Wade, but isn’t it slightly ridiculous that every time we lose everyone talks about firing him? No other coach in the league is remotely held to such a high standard. And I know that I am going to get the whole “we are the Cowboys, we don’t expect anything less than Super Bowls,” argument, but for so many fans to get on here and claim to be realists, isn’t it funny that we hold our current coach to a much higher standard than any other coach in the NFL (Super Bowl winning and non-Super Bowl winning coaches included)?
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
agree
Wade is a much better HC than a lot of fans give him credit for, they think that only fiery, intense HCs are any good and that simply isn’t true.
In Romo we Trust
I don't think every coach has to be a firebrand.
Payton in NO is not a firebrand and his players love him, but he doesn’t come accross as a bumbling idiot either. Maybe, that is just my perception, but my perception has been borne out by lackluster performance on the field. The players can love him all they want, but the fact remains that wins put butts in the seats and from what I hear “JerrageMahal” has a lot of seats to fill.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
another thing about Payton
He doesn’t play Bush much, despite his huge contract, because doign so would hurt his team
Lifetime Cowboys Fan from the Swamps of Jersey
very well said Raf, you've echoed my thoughts exactly
The loss to the Ginats was just that, one loss. This team has shown an ability to overcome bad games by playing well the next game and I fully expect the Cowboys to play well and beat the Chargers as a result.
We just need 3 more wins, one of which has to be the season finale against the filthy birds from Philly and I highly anticipate that we will.
I still believe in this team while many others have lost hope because of the silly December curse.
In Romo we Trust
by Terry on Dec 8, 2009 12:40 PM CST reply actions 1 recs
Count me in as a believer as well!
Going into the season, I said 11-5 at the worst. That means Dallas still has a loss to give (shudder), but would likely win the division, granted one of those three final wins is against Philly. After the first Atlanta game, when Dallas was 4-2, I predicted a 7-3 run. I stand by that.
I also said that going into December that this felt like a different team, and I got this weird instinct that this would be the year to prove the naysayers (Cowboys fans or otherwise) wrong with a winning Dec/Jan record and one or two playoff wins. Now it’s time for Dallas to pull it off and prove the naysayers wrong.
An early-December loss IS a cause for concern, given the rest of the schedule. It is NOT a cause for doom-and-gloom. Given the history, it’s understandable, but it is also jumping way over the gun right now.
+1 My motto is win the home games and steal one on the road.
Too many people look at the schedule and start predicting wins and losses. Then when we lose one they thought we should win we suddenly suck. At the end of the year if you look back you always win some you thought you would lose and lose some you thought you would win.
I like this team and Im stoke about Romo protecting the ball and RW and him finally hooking up. I hope this last game is a catalyst for them syncing up. Giants won at home, big deal they are suppose too.
KICK ASS every day!!!
You're right, Terry.
It is a different season, and the team just seems different, better, like they’ve actually learned some lessons and replaced flawed players with better players. And we only have one more cold game this season…unless we get into the playoffs. Even then, Minnesota and New Orleans are domes.
Here’s the one thing. The schedule. We play a tough one. Now so do the Giants and Eagles. They’re gonna lose again, I guarantee it. So what do we do? We have to put the wood to the Chargers. We can’t do anything beyond that right now. So we need to be game-planning, we need to be studying, we need to be going over special teams concerns, we need to figure out how to run against the Chargers, and come Sunday, we need to spread the ball around and tackle.
Once we have done these things, and hopefully have a positive result to show for it, we need to come right back and do the same thing again to prepare for the Saints. etc, etc, etc. It IS a different team. It IS a different year. And we have the opportunity right in front of us to prove it right now.
Last night I lay in bed looking up at the stars in the sky and I thought to myself, "where the heck is the ceiling?"
Just Win!
Thats all that matters. Period. If we can’t beat these teams ( NO, SD, Phi, Was,), then we don’t deserve to be in the playoffs anyway. The loss to the giants meant alot in my eyes. The cowboys have to find ways to close out games and keep their opposition in the rearview mirror. if they play the way they did against the giants, it could easily be 8-8 and goodbye Wade.
Beat the Chargers and I'll be ok
But right now, opening December with a loss after the team has been saying all season that it’s gonna be different (and me leaning towards believing them) is causing me to freak out.
2009 Dallas Cowboys: 10-6
2009 New York Jets: not 11-5 :(
2009-2010 Dallas Mavericks: 57-25
step away form the ledge, it will be okay
you can always get back on if we lose this Sunday.
In Romo we Trust
the Saints looked unstoppable against the Pats
then laid an egg against the Skins and really got lucky in the OT win. I’m glad we face SD on a roll, it means they are due for a bad game.
Any time we have faced a team coming off of a bad loss, they always play well. It’s time to reverse the roles.
In Romo we Trust
no it means SD is playing well, why are they "due" for a bad game, that makes no sense
I’m sure NO was due for a bad game when they were 7-0, well, they’ve won 4 games sense then. And NO found a way to win. We found a way to lose.
it does make perfect sense
You think the Chargers will run the table?? Give me a break, they are due to have a bad day and it might as well be Sunday.
In Romo we Trust
Check the winning percentages...
of the teams he’s played against in December and you’ll find that the majority are below the .500 mark.
by TheCowboyFan on Dec 8, 2009 12:55 PM CST up reply actions
true.....but.....
like some others like to say whenever we beat an inferior team, you can only play who is on your schedule. It’s still a Win
True...
however it is easier to beat inferior teams in December than it is to beat your equal or some team that is better than you.
They've barely beaten the giants and given up a bunch of points to philly
I like our chances.
15-0 is very impressive no matter who they played
They were NFL teams weren’t they
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
very true.........
just ask Philly,Cinn and Pitt about the Raiders
did SD have a healthy run game last year?
I know LT didn’t have that great a year but I don’t remember. Seems like Rivers stepped up last year for the Chargers. I gained some respect for the guy when he played against the Pats with a torn ACL.
what's strange......
my curiosity got the best of me so I looked it up. LT rushed for over 1100 yds last year and only 561 this year. Sproles rushed for 330 yds last year and is down to around 250 yds this year. That is surprising to me because I thought LT didn’t have that great a year. Goes to show, how short our memories are sometimes
The chargers are a much better team than the giants. Probably better than Indy right now
beating them would definitely right the ship. but that’s gonna be tough, even if everybody has their best game.
on paper we're just as good
we just have to play like we’re capable and we’ll win, it’s not as if they are just flat out better than us. If they were, they would be favored to win the game.
In Romo we Trust
they have a better over all record 9-3 versus 8-4
and their record against winning teams is 3-0 versus 1—3
no they're not, don't kid yourself
If they were, they’d be favored to win this game, plain and simple. Cowboys are better than you’re giving them credit for. The defense and ST had a bad game, and I say an aberration.
They will play well against SD.
In Romo we Trust
Special Teams was not an aberration
The coverage units and the kicking game have been in decline for a few weeks now.
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
the ST units have been good all year
they had one bad game, I know you love to embellish on the side of bad, but your statement is not true.
In Romo we Trust
The kicking game has certainly been poor lately
but I don’t think the coverage units had been doing too badly until this past weekend.
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
YPR is going up, not down
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I am not arguing stats...
Just saying I thought even with a slightly increasing YPR that they were doing a solid job.
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
main thing that concerns me a little......
their receivers are tall physical type guys plus they have Gates(6’04" 260 lbs). I just hope our corners/safeties match up okay with them because Vincent Jackson is 6’05" 230 lbs. and Malcolm Floyd is 6’05" 225 lbs.
True...
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
by Cowboyfan729 on Dec 9, 2009 12:02 AM CST up reply actions
But our personnel matched up well against a similar style team in Atlanta...
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
by Cowboyfan729 on Dec 9, 2009 12:03 AM CST up reply actions
I don't agree that SD is any better than Dallas
I think they are very evenly matched up, assuming our ST’s gets back on track.
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
by APerfectStar on Dec 8, 2009 10:43 PM CST up reply actions
That was my whole point. What area(not person) would you trade. QB, RBs, Pass rush, Run D, Pass D,
Im not saying we are better, Im just saying I wouldnt trade one set for another.
KICK ASS every day!!!
Cowboys and Chargers are a lot more evenly matched
than most fans realize, which is why it should be a great game
In Romo we Trust
I don't see that happening.
Even if the Giants are lousy in December as they have been the last few years.
~Texas Massacre '09~
If Dallas beats Philly and any other two teams
they are The NFC East champs most likely.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
A lot of football left to be played...
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
what is baffeling is that the D and ST lost the game for us
and in our winning streak they were the constant that can be relyied on. Before the Giants game I was constantly wondering if the offence will find its groove (and as a matter of fact they did), but now in the back of my mind is the other two phases of the game.
Not sure...
but i don’t think they played a complete game this year that could be considered a statement game. Hopefully it can happen this month, preferably this Sunday.
I just don’t think the Cowboys have looked very good…
…since beating the Eagles; at that point they had capped off a 4-game winning streak but have since then gone 2-2 (0-2 on the road).
When the defense plays great the offense does not. Finally the offense has one of their most efficient and effective games of the season and the defense and ST completely disappear. I just have not seen an all around complete game from this team in a long time.
Honestly, I’m not sure they’re smart enough to win down the stretch. This schedule is brutal the rest of the way and the stupid mistakes this team has made in EVERY GAME, thus far, will not be surmountable against these higher quality opponents.
All of this concerns me more than the calendar reading December.
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
So we've not put together a "complete" game and we're still tied for first?
"We'll see." --Bill Parcells
Yes it is possible to win w/out playing a "complete" game...
…but not against the better competition, you know like the teams they’ll be playing in the next few games?
I don’t know maybe I’m wrong and the offense producing back to back games of only 7 points is an example of excellent play. Or the defense & special teams from this past Sunday was an exemplary display of how a "first place" team typically performs.
For me a "complete game" is one where you dominant the completion is all 3 phases of the game; the scoreboard might read 31-3 when it’s all said and done for example. Dallas has had some nice wins but none that have looked like that. They also haven’t really beaten anybody all the impressive outside of Philadelphia (who is the only team they’ve won against this year that currently possesses a winning record).
The combined records are 35-61 of the teams they’ve beaten thus far with a winning percentage of .365. Meanwhile the teams they’ve lost to boast a winning percentage of .639. These stats spell middle of the road to me. It says 8-8 or maybe 9-7 (which is exactly what they’ve been 3 out the prior 4 seasons).
This team has let me down every year since this new era began and so I have no intention of celebrating a tie for first place on December 10th. Especially considering that they could very easily be out of the playoff picture in just a few weeks time. Until I see them beat a San Diego, or a New Orleans, a sweep someone like Philadelphia I’m not going to be all that be impressed; good news is they have an opportunity to do all of those things.
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
I don't think the offense played well
The passing game yes, but the running game was terrible.
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
by APerfectStar on Dec 8, 2009 10:48 PM CST up reply actions
It was a case of take what they give you.
If the defense and not so special teams had stepped up then we wouldn’t be having these conversations. We tried to run with 9 in the box and got stuffed. There is no secret to why it happened. You put 9 in the box the offense is going to throw the ball.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
I think we want Philly to beat the Giants
and Dallas would control their own destiny. Right?
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
then that means Philly sweeps the Giants
it would make it tougher because we’d have to win all of our games leading up to the Philly game show-down in Dallas. It’s pretty hard to sweep a team but we did get swept by the Giants so it’s possible.
Philly took the Giants to the woodshed
in the last game, but I also know that doesn’t mean anything this time. The Giants really got up for Dallas and I don’t think the Giants are as good right now as Philly.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
I wonder if the NFL gets it's kicks...
by scheduling hard games for the Cowboys at the end of the schedule, knowing full well that they have problems in December?
They absolutely look to make the year-end schedule hard for Dallas.
It keeps this fascinating story of the "December swoon" going. If the late season failures continue for the Cowboys they‘ve still got their story and if the Cowboys overcome it then they have an even better story. It’s a win, win proposition.
November is typically padded with light games and a middle of the road team, like Dallas, (which is what they’ve been over the past 5 years) will typically get on a roll which helps generate interest in America’s team as they head into the meat of their schedule. Conversely December is loaded with tough matchups to help propagate the annual December collapse.
For example, last year they faced the 4 toughest defenses in the league in December and this year-end schedule pits them against 3 of the toughest offenses. Granted the schedulers don’t honestly know in advance how good each team will truly be by December but those teams last year were at the very least consistently excellent on defense heading into ’08. Heading into 2009, the Saints and Chargers at the very least had been consistently good offensive units.
Why make the Chargers game take place on 12/13? Why not schedule it for Thanksgiving and make the Raiders take place this Sunday instead? Did they really need to play in New Orleans on 12/19? Why not open up the season on 9/13 there and have the boys travel to Tampa on 12/19 instead?
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
San Diego and New Orleans were 8-8 last year, and the other 3 games are against their 3 division rivals, and it’s fairly normal to play 3 division rivals in your last 5-6 games – The schedule makers can’t help it if you play in a good division.
I’m too lazy to go look it up, but my hunch is that if you were to go back to when the schedule was released, most BTB people would have chalked up a 4-1 or 3-2 December/January.
I find your ideas intriguing and would like to subscribe to your newsletter
Maybe the Smoking Man from the X-Files makes up the schedule
Lifetime Cowboys Fan from the Swamps of Jersey
Our last 4 games are against 3 teams that were 8-8 and one that was 9-6-1 last year.
New Orleans and Washington were in last place in their divisions last year.
by Baked Potato Soup on Dec 8, 2009 2:55 PM CST up reply actions
if you'll remember right.......
everyone thought we had a cupcake Dec. last year before Dec. actually happened. Then everyone cried that we had such a tough schedule blah blah blah. As the old saying goes, you play who is on your schedule. Unfortunately, you don’t know who will be good or bad when they make up the schedule.
Off the subject
I could not make myself pull for the Ravens last night. After what Harbaugh said about Dallas I will never pull for a team he coaches.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
You know what sucks about Romo having a good December?
Not having a receiver to cry for him to the media lol I kind of miss Owens sometimes. He was pretty funny. Sit ups in the driveway? You bet.
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
dont be jealous
that you dont have his abs..
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
lol yeah and i guess anyone with a personal trainer and nutritionist
could probably shape them up like him as well
"I’m ready to go here, all right? It’s like R. Kelly at recess."
"You will come back stronger then ever. Like Lance Armstrong. But with two balls."
-Ari Gold
the Giant loss...
was, as said above a few times, just a loss…
a loss to a division opponent with their season at stake, on the road, helped by a costly turnover…
not TOO big of a deal.
I fully expect to come out swinging, and swining hard, against the Chargers and WIN
Play well vs the Saints (probably LOSE, but at that point the Saints might be poised to lose one, and if our passing game is an A+ that day we might steal one)
Go to DC and WIN a tough gamee vs a Redskin team who just want to get the season over with
And then play the Eagles at home for the division, and if we want it bad enough and are coached well enough we will WIN, but if we lose we go on the road to play the Pack again…
This current group of players with this schedule coming up...
doesn’t give me a warm, fuzzy feeling. There is NO way on God’s green earth short of a miracle that they win three of the last games, much less string together 4. Wish I was wrong, but this group has reaffirmed my doubts time after time.
I don't have that
warm, fuzzy feeling either, but i look at it like we can win two games at home, one against a team who is ready to pack it in and go home, and the 4th is one we COULD steal.
from the beginning of the year...
i thought this team could have won the superbowl just as easlily as going 6 and 10.
so i guess the ‘confidence’ in the team is not there but the talent gives me hope anything can happen…
Thats a picture of My Brain after reading this blog following a loss.
Enjoy the ride! It doesnt matter if your optimistic or pessimistic, its going to hurt the same if we fail. Starting the misery 4-5 weeks earlier doesnt somehow make you feel better.
KICK ASS every day!!!
I find it interesting that the redskins canned suisham
and had a few decent kickers in for tryouts.
i wonder if the cowboys have thought of doing anything similar
I don't think Dallas is to the point of
throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Folk was a very good kicker I don’t think he just all of a sudden lost the ability to kick FGs. There is more to it than that. Maybe the boys need to bring a kicking specialest to help Folk. Anyway it’s too late to change this season.
How bout dem Frogs!!!!
Rec'd.
The other night when my ‘Horns were playing, ppl were bettin’ me that Nebraska would pull it off… I looked around the room, found my ‘Horns fans, and asked "do y’all believe?"…. well what do ya know… well, we pulled it off and I made a ton of money! lol
I feel really good about the rest of the way in…including the Saints. It’s been said many times before – we control our own destiny.
Do ya’ll believe, or fold under pressure…
Superbowl, or BUST.
Texas should have lost that game
I was rooting for BCS chaos.
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
by APerfectStar on Dec 8, 2009 10:51 PM CST up reply actions
Pass Rush
Dallas’ single most effective way to get through December with a .500 or better record is to dial up a consistent, stifling pass rush.
Thus far, this team has failed to deliver with Ware and Spencer alone and has had to bring Brooking into the A-gap when it has needed pressure.
This team is 20th in passing yards per game allowed and (in case you haven’t noticed) isn’t getting Troy Polamalu-like play from Sensei and Ham.
The only way to turn the tide is to heat up the front 7 and get them putting more heat on Rivers, Brees, Campbell and McInjury.
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
ha! Mark it down on the calendar folks
For once I agree with bling, how often does that happen?
In Romo we Trust
We also agree Jerry won't give up his GM job until death (and who knows? maybe not even then!)
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Agreed as well...
Our reluctance to blitz anyone other than with the traditional five is baffling. We had a lot of great pressures last year with James and it seems that we blitzed up the middle more often.
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
Paging Jason Williams
I would like to see him come in for designed blitzes in the A gaps.
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
by APerfectStar on Dec 8, 2009 10:54 PM CST up reply actions
Especially going up against Rivers and Brees...
give those guys time to throw to their mulitple weapons, and we’re screwed. As up and down as he’s been after his first year here, we’re really going to miss Hamlin if he can’t play the next 2 weeks. Teams will be going after Ball like Gmen did.
We cannot cover their receivers
VJ, Floyd, Gates, Sproles, LT…
They have way too much size and speed for us to not bring the house against Rivers and his so-so O-line.
The one thing I am banking on a bit here is that Wade has some familiarity with Rivers and may be able to help design some schemes that put them at a disadvantage.
I am not sure their run defense can stand up to our run game if we commit to it in practice this week.
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
That will help as far as Rivers and maybe LT's tendencies
but I think Cam Cameron was the OC when Wade was there. I’m not sure if they run a similar offense.
Would have been interesting to see what Norv could have done with our playmakers as HC if Jerry had hired him instead of Wade. Of course, our defense probably would have suffered like his did when he first got to SD.
I think so, as well they should
Kickers are a strange breed, they like to have the ball placed in a certain way and if a new holder messes that up, there’s going to be problems like we’re encountering now.
In Romo we Trust
Actually
I like the fire…
I’m okay with some nastiness. They needed some pop with Colombo out.
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
What I wouldn't do to get an Erik Williams right about now...
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
LOL
We got a loooooooooong way into this thread before it veered in that direction.
Thanks to all.
Here's a contrast for you. After NO win against NE Sean Peyton said "we haven't won anything yet"
After laying a egg against NG Wade Phillips says “We’re winners”
I would tend to think that that would have little to no effect on how the players practice and prepare....
If I had a nickel for every Super Bowl the Eagles have won, I would have zero nickels.
the head coaches attitude does affect how they practice. and if he thinks this team is a bunch
of winners that just have to show up to win (see brookings comments on practicing hard earlier in the year) then the team will nose dive. like last sunday
3-2 poll
It’s just that I was predicting one of the losses would be to the Saints, and the other would be to either the Chargers or the Eagles. Having lost one that I figured they would win, I’m not too confident in a 3-1 finish now.
Having said that, your words are a much needed perspective to a fan base that tends to over-react too much in both directions.
Flozell Adams will not be suspended
According to multiple sources, Flozell Adams will not be suspended by the NFL for his personal foul penalty Sunday against the New York Giants, however, he is likely to be fined for the fourth time this sea
I don't think what Flozell did..
Deserves a suspension..but a hefty fine and sitting down with the coaches to get him under control would help..He has a target on his back across the entire league..Players are really keen on making sure some foul player doesn’t end their careers..So if I was him I would take serious note of that fact..Players don’t need the league, they take care of their business on the field of play..right now that dirt-bag is walking on a tight-rope..If he can’t play clean, he should be benched..He will be the Cowboys December jinx (even though I don’t believe there is a jinx)..but he will cost that team dearly..and don’t think for a second that the Referees have not been issued strict instructions to watch that bum..He’s going to draw alot of flags at a time when you can least afford them.
OVERREACT?!?!?
ARE YOU NUTS?!?!?
WHO OVERREACTS ON BTB?!?!?
OH MY GOSH, ARE YOU CRAZY?!?!?
"Emotion is highly overrated in football. My wife Corky is emotional as hell but can't play football worth a damn."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
I have a feeling we win 1 out of 2 vs NO and SD. Wash and Phili are both 50-50. If we lose to Philly the last game to miss the the playoffs again! Expect this whole ship to get blown up.
"On a journey to anywhere you can draw your own map."
whole ship?
No.
Offensive line?
Yes.
Coaches,
More than likely.
Lots more on that later.
Now there's a story I can't miss.
Not that I want to see the carnage, but if we don’t pull it out, watching what happens with the coaching staff will be as riveting as watching a game.
Last night I lay in bed looking up at the stars in the sky and I thought to myself, "where the heck is the ceiling?"
I am better than that and so are the Cowboys........
It gets frustrating wathcing ex Cowboys coaches……….assistant coaches I might add have success with less talent.
You lamented when Payton left that it is hard to find young solid offensive minds………I thnk you compared Payton to Gruden. You conveniently left out his first year Playoff team………with a rag tag bunch of Cowboys cast aways on the Defensive side of the ball………Fujita and Shanle???
Sparano Parcells and Ireland go to Miami and have been on the winning track with a team that was pretty bare in cupboard.
Dallas has all this potential……….all this talent………..but they only seem to play with any fire or passion when they get down by two touchdowns with 2 minutes left.
Wade has not done a good job against the Giants or Eagles…………
Hey maybe Witten and some others are right……….maybe the locker room is better……..maybe the Defense and special teams just had an off day……….Cowboys on ten day breaks after Turkey day used to be a W. The conditions in NY for Dec were as nice as you are going to see…………
It is incredibly frustrating………..the O Line is getting older and Romo isn’t a spring chicken either…………..Aikman said after he won his last Super Bowl he just thought it would go on like that every year and they never got close again………….I wish some of the guys under helmet and headsets took that to heart and closed out the FIRST HALF against the Giants…………
Payton ROASTED our D and exposed our secondary and ran Parcells off as much as TO did…………he showed our SS for what he was a slow undersized linebacker playing Safety……….and our coverage never recovered til perhaps this year when the two starters are healthy………….I am no Todd Haley fan………but he sure got a pretty hot hand last year with Warner………..and Sparano and the Dolphins are making the AFC East competitive again………..has anybody beat the PATS as much as Sparano and his Dolphins?
I don’t know that we have the best available Coach as our Head Coach……….we might have the best available 3-4 Defensive Coordinator………….or not wasnt Capers available?
How often have the Cowboys lost to NORV TURNER………….he had our number while with the REDSKINs and Raiders…………remember his bags were packed and he was ready to go he was leaving on a Jet plane bound for HC in BIG D………and a funny thing happened on the way to the Terminal…………Jerry gave his compadre the Job…………good ole lovable Wade………….funny thing is they are very similar……….great Coordinators……perhaps two of the best………..Leaders of a team of professional men……….not sure I want to enlist in either or their missions. I do remember Payton wanting ROMO……….but why did Parcells stick with Bledsoe who had become statuesque in the pocket and was a sack friendly hold the ball too long immobile Parcells guy………Bill had let it be known Romo was a possible starter yet he stuck with Bledsoe………….
whatever became of Eric R……….he was calling for Wade to go from day one………..
Hey I hope things are different this December……….there were good things to take away from the giants game………still it is a loss…….just like GB, Denver at least we didnt get bit by the Raiders……….
OK, looks like a RABID DOG to me...
And that’s what I’m hoping for this weekend. Time to get serious boys, it’s shit or get off the damn pot. I hope they snarl and drool and tear them from limb to limb. That snotty little Rivers guy needs to be taken down a notch, I can’t believe the way he talks crap to anybody who will listen. Made me ill to see him interviewed on EWTN last year. Can’t understand why anybody on that Catholic channel would care what he has to say, I don’t care if goes to Mass every day, he’s such a punk
Just becuz you put yer boots in the oven don't make it bread
by dcfansinceiwasababy on Dec 8, 2009 6:23 PM CST reply actions
Well, let me put it this way: I still have hope. Yes, the past is just that...the past. But
a strong finish would be all kinds of awesome. Right now, I’m all about the Charger game, or I’m trying to be. Can’t help being a little bitter that one of the best games of Romo’s career was a loss.
Bean and cheese burrito
After it’s been eaten
You can't stop Patrick Crayton, you can only hope to contain him.
You are in Denial
Raf,
With all due respect, I think you are way off base with this one. The mounting pressure of these last few Decembers have caused the team to play increasingly poorly in these situations. The problem is not that we lost the game. The problem is HOW we lost the game. This has been an eerily familiar theme the last few seasons, this time of year. Defensive breakdowns, terrible tackling, missed assignments, giving up ridiculously huge plays that should have never happened…penalties, turnovers, poor decisions……
You can’t dominate a game like Dallas did on Sunday in a huge situation and lose. You just can’t. This is just getting so old. The team has no discipline, no sense of ball security, no sense of urgency and no confidence in these situations. Gregg Easterbrook yesterday denounced the Brandon Jacobs play as the Single Worst play of the year, and outlined how THREE Cowboys defensive backs never even bothered to chase down the ballcarrier as BIG SLOW Brandon Freaking Jacobs turned a simple screen pass up the sideline for 74 yards! This was not Barry Sanders we are talking about. That play and the punt return for a TD were just so eerily similar to thr Ravens game last year, where they gave up those two ridiculous long TD runs that killed us.
This team can dominate the trenches at times, has a franchise QB and talented skill players. There are explosive players on both sides of the ball. They are able to control the line of scrimmage and play at a high level with anybody. And when push comes to shove, and it’s time to make a playoff run……when the real contenders are raising their game…..when the cream rises to the top, this team consistently craps the bed. And it’s always the same breakdowns every year. There is absolutely no way we can lose that game. Not the way we controlled the action. Until this team develops that killer instinct, the criticism is justified. San Diego is a team that kills December every year. They’ve gone something like 11-1 in the last three Decembers. This is Dallas’ one shot to turn this thing around, or it’s going to be a 3 game losing streak in the making, and will come down to the Eagles game to back into the playoffs again, leaking oil like an old jalopy.
As much as I hate what you are saying,
I get the same sensation. Once is an accident, twice is coincidence and three times is a pattern. Which one are we at now?
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
Agreed on the WAY they lose is disconcerting
I posted somewhere else that the game was lost on Barber’s fumble (inexscusable since the guy came from the front and didn’t seem to knock the ball away that hard. Watch the replay as Leonard Davis had a running start at the tackler yet totally whiffed), Jacobs TD (how do you let a power runner rumble that far for a score?), and the punt return score (should have had him before he changed directions). Plus we had a lead before the first 2 gaffes!
What I’ve noticed is that they don’t seem to respond when they get hit in the mouth (last year late against Pit, Bal last year, Giants this year). Hopefully they’ll rise to the occaision this year.
The fact that the Giants have done that to us twice
is why I don’t think its right (yet) to call it a december problem.
Funny no one in the media has mentioned...
that the year Giants won the SB and upset us in the playoffs, we swept them that year. Although both those Giants losses hurt this year (controlling both games in the stats, opener at new stadium, etc), it’s not a season ender.
And this “needing to roll in December” is total BS. The year Indy won the SB, their defense struggled mightily down the December stretch (defense giving up around 200+ yds on the ground in multiple games). The year Cowher won Pit was a 6 seed that got hot in the playoffs. Besides blowing us out, I don’t think Philly was tearing it up late last year before reaching the championship game. Giants were a 6 seed and played well only in their last game (loss against NE) before the playoffs. I think what’s more important is just to get to the Big Dance and get hot in the playoffs.
But Indy got Bob Sanders back from injury during the playoffs
And he was an absolute game-changer for their defense.
Forever and ever with the 2007 Giants. :-/
This is becoming such a broken record example of how, "the Cowboys can still win a Super Bowl." What the Giants did that year has happened TWICE in 43 examples of Super Bowl winners. Sighting the Giants from 2007 as an example of a team that got swept and later avenged it or as a team that struggled for awhile and found their stride late is the same things as saying, "anything can happen." Well sure, anything can happen but the likelihood of it still remains slim. I could just as easily reference the 2008 Jets as an example of a team that was in 1st place heading into December and completely fell apart.
I’m not trying to single you out here Selke 99; it honestly has more to do with seeing this Giants’ team referenced for 2 straight seasons now by so many.
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
You're absolutely right.
That Giants team was an abberation from the norm. Most teams that go all the way were prett hot going into the playoffs. The only times they aren’t hot going in is if they have it all wrapped up and are guarding against injury. Teams that back in to the playoffs generally don’t go very far.
"Help, it's hot and dark in here and someone is laughing." Taco Bell
I know exactly what you mean...
I’m sick of people talking about that team too. I wasn’t trying to put that Giants team up on a pedestal. I was just trying to say that, even though being swept by the Giants that in both games we should have won, there’s still 4 games (very tough ones) left to play.
Now if they get beat by SD, it will be knee jerk Monday!! But if this team claims they are different than last years (and I think they are), they will prove it this Sunday at home, against a good team, in an almost-but-not-quite-must-win game and get a win.
I certainly hope so...
:-)
The 2009 Dallas Cowboys: Talk to me in December.
The NFC East has won 11 Super Bowls; oddly none of those have come courtesy of the Eagles.
If your hc is going to give a default hug to a player or in this latest case, a team, despite their repeated mistakes, we may continue to see brilliant individual but inadequate team efforts. There seems to be a lack of accountability. Heart, Guts AND Head. It aint rocket surgery.
I’d like to just once hear Wade say mistakes are dumb and sometimes turn a game. They have consequences. Peace.
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