Dallas needs dominating win
by Jean-Jacques Taylor
Let's be honest, this is supposed to be a blowout. Or a beatdown. Or a rout.
You know it. I know it.
As quiet as it's kept, the two teams probably know it, too.
The winless St. Louis Rams, who scored three points last week and 32 this season, can't stay on the field with your Dallas Cowboys.
Their star running back is out with a groin injury and their starting quarterback has a couple of cracked ribs. By the way, Marc Bulger has spent the past week quibbling with the head coach about a miscommunication concerning an end zone interception he threw.
Isaac Bruce even guaranteed a victory, the surest sign of desperation in sports these days. When Joe Namath did it nearly 40 years ago, it was fascinating. These days, guarantees ring hollow.
Meanwhile, your Cowboys have been receiving praise from the four corners of the globe for their powerful offense after humiliating the Bears and finally forcing Lovie Smith to make the quarterback change he should've made last year.
Bill Parcells would say everyone is feeding the Cowboys cheese this week.
"We're not eating it," Andre Gurode said. "We're lactose intolerant."
We're about to find out.
This is a classic trap game because the Cowboys are coming off an emotional win with a home game against an inferior opponent.
Again, you know it. I know it. At least that's what everyone who's not inside the Cowboys' locker room thinks.
Pick a player, any player, and ask him if Sunday's game against the Rams is a trap game and he'll laugh. Maybe, he'll shake his head. Perhaps, he'll utter an expletive and roll his eyes.
Turn on the film, they chime, look at the Rams and then ask us how we could possibly take the Rams lightly.
Whatever.
This is a game teams with championship aspirations win. But it's no longer just about winning for the Cowboys because they've played so well that expectations have changed. They're now contenders and must be judged that way.
Winning is obviously the most important thing, but it matters how the Cowboys play. Championship games play solid football on their bad days and exceptional football when their biorhythms are in perfect harmony.
That's why another double-digit victory would be a positive for the Cowboys. It would be an indication this is a focused group ready to meet all of the challenges a 16-game schedule has in store for them.
Don't forget, no player or coach on this team has ever won a playoff game wearing a Cowboys' uniform or logo. Or an NFC East title.
The players on this team are hungry for success. They know they've underachieved the last couple of seasons. They know there isn't a dominant team in the NFC and that winning games like Sunday's contest against the Rams will help in December when teams jockey for playoff position.
So they get easily insulted when the Rams are ripped. They look at playmakers such as Bulger, Torry Holt, Bruce and Dante Hall and see a team capable of putting up huge offensive numbers.
"Of the teams we've played so far, they're the only one that's strong in all three phases," Akin Ayodele said. "They just haven't executed yet. We don't want them to start against us."
Still, this game is really more about the Cowboys and their approach than it is about the Rams. If the Cowboys play their best and the Rams play their best, then Dallas heads into its Oct. 8 game against Buffalo with a 4-0 record.
The Cowboys haven't been 4-0 since 1995, which is also the last time the Cowboys played in the Super Bowl. While it's waaaaay too early to talk about the Cowboys as a Super Bowl team, it's not too early for them to make another statement by beating a bad team.
The players received kudos for their intensity and focus last week against the Bears because several players studied on the two-hour flight to Chicago. That was easy, the Bears were the defending NFC champions with a deserved reputation for being surly at Soldier Field.
The Rams, however, are a raggedy group seemingly on the verge of imploding. Beat them badly, as they should, and it will be one more indication the Cowboys are determined to make this a special season.
Let's be honest, this is supposed to be a blowout. Or a beatdown. Or a rout.
You know it. I know it.
As quiet as it's kept, the two teams probably know it, too.
The winless St. Louis Rams, who scored three points last week and 32 this season, can't stay on the field with your Dallas Cowboys.
Their star running back is out with a groin injury and their starting quarterback has a couple of cracked ribs. By the way, Marc Bulger has spent the past week quibbling with the head coach about a miscommunication concerning an end zone interception he threw.
Isaac Bruce even guaranteed a victory, the surest sign of desperation in sports these days. When Joe Namath did it nearly 40 years ago, it was fascinating. These days, guarantees ring hollow.
Meanwhile, your Cowboys have been receiving praise from the four corners of the globe for their powerful offense after humiliating the Bears and finally forcing Lovie Smith to make the quarterback change he should've made last year.
Bill Parcells would say everyone is feeding the Cowboys cheese this week.
"We're not eating it," Andre Gurode said. "We're lactose intolerant."
We're about to find out.
This is a classic trap game because the Cowboys are coming off an emotional win with a home game against an inferior opponent.
Again, you know it. I know it. At least that's what everyone who's not inside the Cowboys' locker room thinks.
Pick a player, any player, and ask him if Sunday's game against the Rams is a trap game and he'll laugh. Maybe, he'll shake his head. Perhaps, he'll utter an expletive and roll his eyes.
Turn on the film, they chime, look at the Rams and then ask us how we could possibly take the Rams lightly.
Whatever.
This is a game teams with championship aspirations win. But it's no longer just about winning for the Cowboys because they've played so well that expectations have changed. They're now contenders and must be judged that way.
Winning is obviously the most important thing, but it matters how the Cowboys play. Championship games play solid football on their bad days and exceptional football when their biorhythms are in perfect harmony.
That's why another double-digit victory would be a positive for the Cowboys. It would be an indication this is a focused group ready to meet all of the challenges a 16-game schedule has in store for them.
Don't forget, no player or coach on this team has ever won a playoff game wearing a Cowboys' uniform or logo. Or an NFC East title.
The players on this team are hungry for success. They know they've underachieved the last couple of seasons. They know there isn't a dominant team in the NFC and that winning games like Sunday's contest against the Rams will help in December when teams jockey for playoff position.
So they get easily insulted when the Rams are ripped. They look at playmakers such as Bulger, Torry Holt, Bruce and Dante Hall and see a team capable of putting up huge offensive numbers.
"Of the teams we've played so far, they're the only one that's strong in all three phases," Akin Ayodele said. "They just haven't executed yet. We don't want them to start against us."
Still, this game is really more about the Cowboys and their approach than it is about the Rams. If the Cowboys play their best and the Rams play their best, then Dallas heads into its Oct. 8 game against Buffalo with a 4-0 record.
The Cowboys haven't been 4-0 since 1995, which is also the last time the Cowboys played in the Super Bowl. While it's waaaaay too early to talk about the Cowboys as a Super Bowl team, it's not too early for them to make another statement by beating a bad team.
The players received kudos for their intensity and focus last week against the Bears because several players studied on the two-hour flight to Chicago. That was easy, the Bears were the defending NFC champions with a deserved reputation for being surly at Soldier Field.
The Rams, however, are a raggedy group seemingly on the verge of imploding. Beat them badly, as they should, and it will be one more indication the Cowboys are determined to make this a special season.
posted by The Gryphon at 9:14 PM
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