Cowboys-Packers is an old-school showdown for NFC supremacy
By TODD ARCHER / The Dallas Morning News
tarcher@dallasnews.com
IRVING – History oozes from the Cowboys and Green Bay Packers, from Tom Landry and Vince Lombardi to Roger Staubach and Bart Starr to Bob Lilly and Ray Nitschke to Troy Aikman and Brett Favre.
On Thursday, the teams that brought us the Ice Bowl in 1967 and an NFC Championship Game in 1995 bring us the most meaningful matchup in 21 regular-season meetings.
The Cowboys are 10-1 for the first time in the history of a franchise that has won five Super Bowls. The Packers have been better than 10-1 after 11 games only once, when the only blemish for Curly Lambeau's 1929 team was a 0-0 tie against the Frankford Yellow Jackets.
"People love football, but when you see two organizations with great history, old-school football teams with great records that are going to play each other," linebacker Greg Ellis said after the Cowboys' 34-3 win against the New York Jets on Thanksgiving Day, "that is a great thing."
There are plenty of similarities between the 2007 teams, and it's more than just quarterbacks Tony Romo and Favre, the two top-rated passers in the NFC.
The Cowboys have wide receiver Terrell Owens, who has 64 catches for 1,093 yards. The Packers have wide receiver Donald Driver, who has 63 catches for 832 yards.
The Cowboys have tight end Jason Witten, who has six touchdown catches. The Packers have tight end Donald Lee, who has four touchdown catches.
The Cowboys have pass rushers DeMarcus Ware and Ellis, who have combined for 17 ½ sacks. The Packers have pass rushers Aaron Kampman and Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, who have combined for 201/2 sacks.
The Cowboys have a set of excellent cover cornerbacks – when healthy – in Terence Newman and Anthony Henry. The Packers have a set of excellent cover cornerbacks – when healthy – in Charles Woodson and Al Harris.
Both teams even rely on rookie kickers. Green Bay's Mason Crosby leads all NFL kickers with 98 points, followed by the Cowboys' Nick Folk, who has 94.
"We know this next game is, at this point in the season, certainly the biggest game in the NFC so far," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said, "and we know the challenges, Brett Favre and all those things. But we're looking forward to it."
Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, the final five games are about playoff positioning.
The Cowboys have a nearly insurmountable lead in the NFC East, having swept the 7-3 New York Giants. The Packers have an even bigger lead over the 6-5 Lions in the NFC North.
Unless either team has a December collapse, the loser of Thursday's game should still get a first-round bye in the playoffs.
But neither team would like to travel to a potential NFC Championship Game rematch on Jan. 20, despite both teams' success away from home. The Cowboys have won eight consecutive regular-season games away from Texas Stadium, and the Packers have won seven straight road games.
Whoever wins Thursday would essentially have a two-game advantage in the race for home-field advantage in the playoffs with four games to play.
Why is that important?
Green Bay has lost two playoff games at home – Phillips was Atlanta's defensive coordinator in 2002 when the Falcons became the first to leave Lambeau Field with a win – in its history.
Then there's the weather. The average high temperature on Jan. 20 in Green Bay, Wisc., is 24 degrees. The average low is 7. The average high in Irving is 55 degrees, and the low is 36.
"If it's bad weather up there and they can't throw it and they have to go with their running game, that wouldn't be too bad," Phillips said. "But, yeah, you'd rather play at home. That's the big thing. The crowd, the motivation factor."
After Thursday, three of the Cowboys' final four games are away from home. After playing the Cowboys, the Packers have one more game against a team with a winning record – 6-5 Detroit.
tarcher@dallasnews.com
IRVING – History oozes from the Cowboys and Green Bay Packers, from Tom Landry and Vince Lombardi to Roger Staubach and Bart Starr to Bob Lilly and Ray Nitschke to Troy Aikman and Brett Favre.
On Thursday, the teams that brought us the Ice Bowl in 1967 and an NFC Championship Game in 1995 bring us the most meaningful matchup in 21 regular-season meetings.
The Cowboys are 10-1 for the first time in the history of a franchise that has won five Super Bowls. The Packers have been better than 10-1 after 11 games only once, when the only blemish for Curly Lambeau's 1929 team was a 0-0 tie against the Frankford Yellow Jackets.
"People love football, but when you see two organizations with great history, old-school football teams with great records that are going to play each other," linebacker Greg Ellis said after the Cowboys' 34-3 win against the New York Jets on Thanksgiving Day, "that is a great thing."
There are plenty of similarities between the 2007 teams, and it's more than just quarterbacks Tony Romo and Favre, the two top-rated passers in the NFC.
The Cowboys have wide receiver Terrell Owens, who has 64 catches for 1,093 yards. The Packers have wide receiver Donald Driver, who has 63 catches for 832 yards.
The Cowboys have tight end Jason Witten, who has six touchdown catches. The Packers have tight end Donald Lee, who has four touchdown catches.
The Cowboys have pass rushers DeMarcus Ware and Ellis, who have combined for 17 ½ sacks. The Packers have pass rushers Aaron Kampman and Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, who have combined for 201/2 sacks.
The Cowboys have a set of excellent cover cornerbacks – when healthy – in Terence Newman and Anthony Henry. The Packers have a set of excellent cover cornerbacks – when healthy – in Charles Woodson and Al Harris.
Both teams even rely on rookie kickers. Green Bay's Mason Crosby leads all NFL kickers with 98 points, followed by the Cowboys' Nick Folk, who has 94.
"We know this next game is, at this point in the season, certainly the biggest game in the NFC so far," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said, "and we know the challenges, Brett Favre and all those things. But we're looking forward to it."
Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, the final five games are about playoff positioning.
The Cowboys have a nearly insurmountable lead in the NFC East, having swept the 7-3 New York Giants. The Packers have an even bigger lead over the 6-5 Lions in the NFC North.
Unless either team has a December collapse, the loser of Thursday's game should still get a first-round bye in the playoffs.
But neither team would like to travel to a potential NFC Championship Game rematch on Jan. 20, despite both teams' success away from home. The Cowboys have won eight consecutive regular-season games away from Texas Stadium, and the Packers have won seven straight road games.
Whoever wins Thursday would essentially have a two-game advantage in the race for home-field advantage in the playoffs with four games to play.
Why is that important?
Green Bay has lost two playoff games at home – Phillips was Atlanta's defensive coordinator in 2002 when the Falcons became the first to leave Lambeau Field with a win – in its history.
Then there's the weather. The average high temperature on Jan. 20 in Green Bay, Wisc., is 24 degrees. The average low is 7. The average high in Irving is 55 degrees, and the low is 36.
"If it's bad weather up there and they can't throw it and they have to go with their running game, that wouldn't be too bad," Phillips said. "But, yeah, you'd rather play at home. That's the big thing. The crowd, the motivation factor."
After Thursday, three of the Cowboys' final four games are away from home. After playing the Cowboys, the Packers have one more game against a team with a winning record – 6-5 Detroit.
posted by The Gryphon at 10:50 AM
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