Close encounters alien to 'Boys
Close encounters alien to 'Boys
By MAC ENGEL
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
IRVING -- Quarterback Tony Romo calls it a meaningless word. But it's a word and a description that has come to be a part of the Dallas Cowboys, much like the star on the helmet, for two years now.
They sure are close.
Close at Valley Ranch means one thing -- Super Bowl. Gone are the days when Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones openly spoke of the big game, but his optimism remains perpetually boundless. With Jones agreeing he is going for it all by signing offensive lineman Leonard Davis in the off-season, the Cowboys remain hopeful they are close ...even if the evidence isn't overwhelmingly in their favor.
But even in a diluted NFC, the Cowboys don't want to hear the word close until they at least prove it.
"I just think it's tough to say we're close when we haven't even played for a division championship," linebacker Bradie James said. "When we get to that point, then we'll be close. Until then, we need to get some playoff wins. It takes more than just making the playoffs."
The Colts, the most recent Super Bowl champions, can recount horror stories of close and the pain that comes with it. With quarterback Peyton Manning, the Colts qualified for the playoffs in seven of the past eight seasons before finally winning it all in February.
The Steelers were close for nearly a decade. Between 1996 and 2005, they had six 10-plus win seasons, six playoff appearances and four AFC title game appearances. They didn't win a Super Bowl until the 2005 season.
Then there are the Eagles, who played in four consecutive NFC title games before reaching the Super Bowl -- and losing -- in the 2004 season.
"The difference between us and the Eagles? They were playing for the NFC East [title] all the time. We haven't done that," James said. "We haven't made a championship game."
The Cowboys have made the playoffs three times since 1999, haven't won a playoff game since '96, have recorded one 10-win season in the past eight years and are coming off their first consecutive winning seasons since 1995-96.
"We were 9-7 two years in a row; that's not close," defensive end Chris Canty said. "We're a team that's good, we've had some winning seasons, but we're trying to get over that hump to become great."
So why do they deserve the label of "close?"
Aiding, and confusing, their stature is the fact that the Cowboys play in an NFC that has won just two of the past 10 Super Bowls and doesn't exactly boast any super powers, which allows the Cowboys to accurately claim they are close. Of course, any number of NFC teams can probably make the same claim.
But the Cowboys do have an oil tanker's worth of high draft picks on defense; a Pro Bowl tight end; a pair of proven, if older, receivers; a running back tandem that combined for almost 1,800 yards and 18 touchdowns last season; and a young quarterback who has demonstrated Pro Bowl ability.
"We are solid across the board," linebacker Akin Ayodele said, "so anything less than the ultimate game is short of what we wanted to do and what we feel we could do."
With the regular season still months away, the Cowboys can remain close. Close to another winning record. Close to the playoffs. Close to their first division title since 1998. Close to that elusive Super Bowl.
It is a word, however, the Cowboys would prefer not to use, because they admit they haven't yet supplied enough evidence to prove it.
By MAC ENGEL
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
IRVING -- Quarterback Tony Romo calls it a meaningless word. But it's a word and a description that has come to be a part of the Dallas Cowboys, much like the star on the helmet, for two years now.
They sure are close.
Close at Valley Ranch means one thing -- Super Bowl. Gone are the days when Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones openly spoke of the big game, but his optimism remains perpetually boundless. With Jones agreeing he is going for it all by signing offensive lineman Leonard Davis in the off-season, the Cowboys remain hopeful they are close ...even if the evidence isn't overwhelmingly in their favor.
But even in a diluted NFC, the Cowboys don't want to hear the word close until they at least prove it.
"I just think it's tough to say we're close when we haven't even played for a division championship," linebacker Bradie James said. "When we get to that point, then we'll be close. Until then, we need to get some playoff wins. It takes more than just making the playoffs."
The Colts, the most recent Super Bowl champions, can recount horror stories of close and the pain that comes with it. With quarterback Peyton Manning, the Colts qualified for the playoffs in seven of the past eight seasons before finally winning it all in February.
The Steelers were close for nearly a decade. Between 1996 and 2005, they had six 10-plus win seasons, six playoff appearances and four AFC title game appearances. They didn't win a Super Bowl until the 2005 season.
Then there are the Eagles, who played in four consecutive NFC title games before reaching the Super Bowl -- and losing -- in the 2004 season.
"The difference between us and the Eagles? They were playing for the NFC East [title] all the time. We haven't done that," James said. "We haven't made a championship game."
The Cowboys have made the playoffs three times since 1999, haven't won a playoff game since '96, have recorded one 10-win season in the past eight years and are coming off their first consecutive winning seasons since 1995-96.
"We were 9-7 two years in a row; that's not close," defensive end Chris Canty said. "We're a team that's good, we've had some winning seasons, but we're trying to get over that hump to become great."
So why do they deserve the label of "close?"
Aiding, and confusing, their stature is the fact that the Cowboys play in an NFC that has won just two of the past 10 Super Bowls and doesn't exactly boast any super powers, which allows the Cowboys to accurately claim they are close. Of course, any number of NFC teams can probably make the same claim.
But the Cowboys do have an oil tanker's worth of high draft picks on defense; a Pro Bowl tight end; a pair of proven, if older, receivers; a running back tandem that combined for almost 1,800 yards and 18 touchdowns last season; and a young quarterback who has demonstrated Pro Bowl ability.
"We are solid across the board," linebacker Akin Ayodele said, "so anything less than the ultimate game is short of what we wanted to do and what we feel we could do."
With the regular season still months away, the Cowboys can remain close. Close to another winning record. Close to the playoffs. Close to their first division title since 1998. Close to that elusive Super Bowl.
It is a word, however, the Cowboys would prefer not to use, because they admit they haven't yet supplied enough evidence to prove it.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:49 PM
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