Cowboys not as good as advertised - and not nearly good enough
By Jean-Jacques Taylor
IRVING, Texas - Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells sold you a bill of goods when training camp began in July, so you have every right to be mad, frustrated or disappointed.
Jerry told you, in so many words, that the Cowboys had Super Bowl potential. So did Parcells, though he told the players they had a chance to be special, coachspeak for going to the Super Bowl. That way, he had plausible deniability down the road.
But these Cowboys aren't contenders.
There's no need to check the flight schedules from Dallas to Miami in early February or contact a scalper in hopes of getting tickets to the game.
Maybe the Cowboys will win enough games to sneak into the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Maybe they'll even win a postseason game for the first time since the 1996 season, ending the longest drought in franchise history.
But they're not going to play in Super Bowl XLI, which means they're not a contender.
Contenders don't allow seven sacks in a game. Contenders don't give up three completions of 40 yards or more. Contenders don't have a quarterback who throws three of the ugliest interceptions in recorded history.
Contenders don't commit five turnovers. Contenders don't have their punter drop a snap. Contenders don't give up an 87-yard touchdown when the coach says the defensive coordinator called a perfect play.
Contenders don't have an offensive line that remains consistently inconsistent. Contenders don't have a quarterback controversy every other week. Contenders don't turn a five-time Pro Bowl receiver into a role player.
Parcells wants you to know that losing to Philadelphia doesn't mean the season is over. The players concur. Cowboys optimists will tell you only a really good team could make as many mistakes as Dallas made and have an opportunity to tie the score in the final minute.
Whatever.
A contender wins the games it's supposed to win, even if they're not aesthetically pleasing, and figures out a way to win a game or two it has no business winning. The Cowboys have won the two games they should have won, but they found creative ways to lose at Jacksonville and Philadelphia.
Clearly, those are quality opponents but the Cowboys positioned themselves to win each game before losing.
Already, Dallas trails Philadelphia by 1 1/2 games in the NFC East. After home games against Houston and the New York Giants, Dallas embarks on a three-game road trip to Carolina, Washington and Arizona. This stretch will ultimately define the Cowboys' season.
Dallas has some fundamental issues that will eventually wreck its season unless significant changes occur.
Is there any tangible reason to believe Drew Bledsoe isn't going to have a few more games where he looks hesitant and overwhelmed because the offensive line can't protect him? And, trust me, the specter of a quarterback controversy is going to beat him down sooner or later.
And when is the defense, purportedly one of the league's best, going to shut down a good offense?
Jacksonville and Philadelphia each had their way with Dallas' defense.
Again, is there any tangible reason to think Eli Manning, Peyton Manning and McNabb aren't going to have their way with the Dallas defense based on the first four games?
A lot of the season remains to be played, and the eternal optimists will talk about how Pittsburgh was 7-5 last year before winning eight straight games, including Super Bowl XLI. A few old-timers might point out how Dallas was 5-4 in 1970 before advancing to Super Bowl V and 6-4 in 1978 before playing in Super Bowl XIII.
There is no indication this team can find the consistency it needs to make a sustained run in the playoffs. This team is erratic from play to play, quarter to quarter and game to game.
They must exasperate Jerry, who has spent more than $50 million in signing bonuses the last two seasons to upgrade the roster, and Parcells, whose 27-25 record in four seasons, makes you occasionally ponder whether the game has passed him by
This much is clear: The Cowboys aren't contenders. Maybe they never were.
IRVING, Texas - Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells sold you a bill of goods when training camp began in July, so you have every right to be mad, frustrated or disappointed.
Jerry told you, in so many words, that the Cowboys had Super Bowl potential. So did Parcells, though he told the players they had a chance to be special, coachspeak for going to the Super Bowl. That way, he had plausible deniability down the road.
But these Cowboys aren't contenders.
There's no need to check the flight schedules from Dallas to Miami in early February or contact a scalper in hopes of getting tickets to the game.
Maybe the Cowboys will win enough games to sneak into the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Maybe they'll even win a postseason game for the first time since the 1996 season, ending the longest drought in franchise history.
But they're not going to play in Super Bowl XLI, which means they're not a contender.
Contenders don't allow seven sacks in a game. Contenders don't give up three completions of 40 yards or more. Contenders don't have a quarterback who throws three of the ugliest interceptions in recorded history.
Contenders don't commit five turnovers. Contenders don't have their punter drop a snap. Contenders don't give up an 87-yard touchdown when the coach says the defensive coordinator called a perfect play.
Contenders don't have an offensive line that remains consistently inconsistent. Contenders don't have a quarterback controversy every other week. Contenders don't turn a five-time Pro Bowl receiver into a role player.
Parcells wants you to know that losing to Philadelphia doesn't mean the season is over. The players concur. Cowboys optimists will tell you only a really good team could make as many mistakes as Dallas made and have an opportunity to tie the score in the final minute.
Whatever.
A contender wins the games it's supposed to win, even if they're not aesthetically pleasing, and figures out a way to win a game or two it has no business winning. The Cowboys have won the two games they should have won, but they found creative ways to lose at Jacksonville and Philadelphia.
Clearly, those are quality opponents but the Cowboys positioned themselves to win each game before losing.
Already, Dallas trails Philadelphia by 1 1/2 games in the NFC East. After home games against Houston and the New York Giants, Dallas embarks on a three-game road trip to Carolina, Washington and Arizona. This stretch will ultimately define the Cowboys' season.
Dallas has some fundamental issues that will eventually wreck its season unless significant changes occur.
Is there any tangible reason to believe Drew Bledsoe isn't going to have a few more games where he looks hesitant and overwhelmed because the offensive line can't protect him? And, trust me, the specter of a quarterback controversy is going to beat him down sooner or later.
And when is the defense, purportedly one of the league's best, going to shut down a good offense?
Jacksonville and Philadelphia each had their way with Dallas' defense.
Again, is there any tangible reason to think Eli Manning, Peyton Manning and McNabb aren't going to have their way with the Dallas defense based on the first four games?
A lot of the season remains to be played, and the eternal optimists will talk about how Pittsburgh was 7-5 last year before winning eight straight games, including Super Bowl XLI. A few old-timers might point out how Dallas was 5-4 in 1970 before advancing to Super Bowl V and 6-4 in 1978 before playing in Super Bowl XIII.
There is no indication this team can find the consistency it needs to make a sustained run in the playoffs. This team is erratic from play to play, quarter to quarter and game to game.
They must exasperate Jerry, who has spent more than $50 million in signing bonuses the last two seasons to upgrade the roster, and Parcells, whose 27-25 record in four seasons, makes you occasionally ponder whether the game has passed him by
This much is clear: The Cowboys aren't contenders. Maybe they never were.
posted by The Gryphon at 6:48 PM
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