On Monday morning of this week, when I was thinking who could possibly deserve a Game Ball of the Week after the debacle in Green Bay, I was having a tough time. I figured it would go to Dez Bryant, or even Mat McBriar who had a great game.
Then Wade Phillips was shown the door, Jason Garrett was promoted and the Sunday game seemed like an era ago - and it was, the end of the Wade Phillips Era. So in honor of the two main characters in this week drama, I'm giving half a Game Ball to Wade Phillips, and half a Game Ball to Jerry Jones.
They only get half-a-ball each, because they were partially the cause of this week's events. Wade Phillips lost his football team, and he had to take the fall for that. And Jerry Jones is Jerry Jones, he's all things Cowboys, so he's all things blame when the bottom falls out.
But I give half-a-ball to Wade Phillips for winning two NFC East titles during his stay in Dallas. And he did win our first playoff game in over a decade. And for going out with class. Regardless of what we think of his coaching abilities, and those opinions vary widely, no one really has anything bad to say about Wade Phillips as a person. He had a long career in the NFL, and a mostly successful one, except for those dang playoffs. He had an enormous influence on the 3-4 defense and its popularity in the NFL today. The guy leaves a behind something he can be proud of, so half-a-ball to Wade Phillips.
Jerry, you're getting half-a-ball for doing the right thing, even after you promised and promised us you wouldn't. Nobody likes to change coaches mid-season, it's an admission that your team has hit absolute rock-bottom. Nobody likes that. Unless Jason Garrett pulls off a successful turnaround, it probably won't matter in the long run. But, it had to be done. The fanbase had turned, the media had turned, the players were getting embarrassed on the field. Status quo just couldn't go on. So you reversed your most recent proclamations, and did the right thing.
Together, you guys can share a game ball. And they're nicely halved for you, since you won't seeing much of each other anymore.