http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHPOzQzk9Qo

Lots of positives could come from this game!

1)  I'm about to get a lot of free time this Fall as I refuse to dedicate hours to these games.  I'll just DVR them and maybe watch, maybe not.  I've learned how to effectively apply this technique from my many years as a Cubs fan!

2)  A Lockout/Holdout is probably going to happen next year anyways!   So no way do I have to spend the off-season wondering how the Cowboys are going to "improve"!

     Well, that does screw up our odd year / positive year trend, though.   Darn.

3)  Jerry still gets to host the Super Bowl, doesn't he??

4)  We lost the real game but kicked their Butts in stats!  Do we get a "Fantasy Win" for that??

5)  Unless there's a huge turnaround a new coach might be coming in!  Can't wait!   I'm sure that will make a difference.

6) And the coach is going to "get" to work with "one of the most talented rosters in the NFL."   Who wouldn't want that?

7)  Wade Philips has a great career coming in humorous, self-referential constipation ads!  Like Polamalu and his hair, Philips and that look on his face will go perfectly with Ex-Lax.   He'll finally let it all out!

  ("Ya know, I used to hold it all in {shot of him on sideline as team racks up 16th penalty, making that face}, but I learned that's not healthy.  Every now and then you need to "slam a headphone to the ground," as my Pappy used to say.  So now I use Ex-Lax, and just let it all out! " )

Well, seriously , all I can say is that today I figured out why it's so frustrating rooting for this team the last few years.  It's not the boneheaded plays and penalties, actually.  It's the scariness of never knowing what team is going to show up!   The complete lack of consistency, from coaching on down.

   There are a few players you can count on, although whether it's injury or age you can take Witten off the list.   But the team as a whole can look so good at times, then so bad at others. The defense can be dominating, like  at the end of last season, or struggle.  The offense can be explosive, or barely move the ball.

   Jason Garret can have his head up his, or he can......wait, never mind.  Because he doesn't change.

And neither does Phillips, which is why I'm now officially in the waiting for him to go crowd.  I've tried to give these guys a chance, but what does Phillips actually do during the game besides talk to someone up in the booth?

         But this is not a "Blame" post-let's just share it between Jerry, the coaches, and the players, shall we?  I mean, there is plenty to go around, right?   From another Monty Python movie, "Let's not bicker and argue about who killed who..."       http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=466sYeHC8dA&feature=related

Anyways, even when they WIN, it's just not enjoyable, because in the back of my mind I'm wondering if they'll be able to do it again, consistently.  It almost seems like an aberration when they actually play well, as in a  complete game in all phases.    It's more a feeling of relief than excitement at a win.

I'll say this-their season is NOT over, because they have 5 Division games left, and they could certainly pull off wins in maybe 6 out of the next 7 and get back into it.  But even if they do, I just can't get as invested, because every week seems like a crapshoot.

Today may be the day, for me, that Parity  - I hate that word  -  finally caught up to and overtook my 38 years as a fan, and following the NFL is just not fun anymore.  It seems to be more like playing slot machines than having a team with a "personality" to root for.   And you know, some people like slots.  But I find casinos creepy and boring and depressing.  Younger fans have known nothing else, and w/Fantasy football treat it more like a video game than a sport, but I can't get into that.

Good for them, but while I'll still watch, even though this team is pretty good and stilll has an outside chance, I'll be paying attention peripherally-like I did in the late 80's , when they were an embarrassment, but I watched like it was a carwreck  more than a football game.