Sunday, January 10, 2010

Vindication!

Anyone want to talk about 44-6 now?  What a difference a year makes.  The Cowboys have finally taken the next step and look like a team that can beat anyone right now.  I don't want to get into the match up next week just yet, but I do like their chances against the Vikings.

This is about celebrating a win that the die hard fans have been wanting and needing for over 13 years.  Keith Brooking was right...it feels like King Kong has been lifted off our backs.  We all deserved this one after enduring all of the ups and downs over the last few years.  The Seattle playoff loss a few years ago and the Giants game to end the 2007 season were probably the two worst losses I can ever remember.  This win doesn't erase those memories but it does ease the pain a little bit.

It is amazing to go on ESPN and watch those guys all fighting to get on the bandwagon first.  I guess the Cowboys will forever be the best team in the league or the worst team in the league based on their last game in the eyes of ESPN.  It sure feels good to see that so many of us who believed in this team and dealt with all of the mockery from the media, family and friends are being proven right about Tony Romo and the rest of the Cowboys.

Now, the key to everything here is the doors that have opened up for the Dallas Cowboys.  Not only do they have a legitimate shot at making a run to the Super Bowl this year, but now that they have gotten over the hump it looks like the Cowboys will be contenders for at least the next four or five years.  Expectations heading into this year were low and even the most optimistic fans like me were just hoping for one playoff win.  Now the stakes will be higher and nothing less than a Super Bowl is going make most people happy from this point going forward.

It is great to see that we can now raise our expectations and realize that this team has the talent, experience, and intangibles to be one of the top teams in the league.  

What went right:  Well, basically everything.  Felix Jones was unstoppable, Tony Romo was good, and the defense shut the Eagles down for the third time this season.  Patrick Crayton had several excellent punt returns and Sean Suisham even made two field goals.  The Cowboys forced turnovers and protected the ball.  They scored touchdowns when they got in the red zone and they made the big plays that the Eagles could not make.  DeSean Jackson was completely shut down again.  I wonder if he'll be sending our any Twitter messages?

What went wrong:  Marion Barber left the game early after aggravating his sore knee.  Mike Jenkins made a boneheaded play after his interception to give the ball right back to the Eagles.  The Cowboys committed way too many penalties.  And Jason Witten did not have a good game.  He committed several penalties and missed a few blocks during the game.  Roy Williams missed a perfectly thrown ball that nearly resulted in an interception for Romo.

Things to Work on for Next Week:  Reducing penalties has to be a priority.  Jason Garrett has figured out how to beat the Eagles defense, but I'm sure the wide receiver screens won't be so successful in every game.  Garrett will need to mix things up a bit more next week.  Has anyone else noticed that each week there is only one play in the wild cat arsenal?  It would be nice if they didn't line up and run the same play out of the wild cat all game long.  Kick returns for the Cowboys were not good at all and they need to get better.  

Make sure you stop and savor the feeling from this game for a few days.  It has been a long time coming.  Wins like this one help remind me why I get so emotionally invested in the Dallas Cowboys.  The bad times are terrible, but the good times make it all worth it.

10 comments:

  1. One of the best feelings I've ever had. It was over at halftime. They need to cut out all the penalties, but I'm becoming more and more confident in this team. I hate to say it, but this team reminds me of the Giants team that we lost to in the playoffs a few years ago. Next up, the Vikings!

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  2. Another thing I liked about this game, teammates picked each other up. Witten struggled, but Phillips and the rest of the line picked up his slack. Same goes for Hamlin, Jenkins, and Barber. There were other guys stepping in or helping them out. Wade deserves to stay! Not looking too far ahead but if we beat the Vikes, I hope the Saints lose so that we can have another home playoff game!

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  3. Great win it ended late in the east went to White Castle to celebrate big mistake the only bad thing that happen yesterday. Good win let's keep winning

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  4. Did anybody see our home and away games for next year? Our road games are insane. @packers,vikings,colts,cardinals,and Texans. Bullcrap

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  5. I've been on cloud 9 since Saturday. What a tremendous feeling! With the last hurdle conquered (although didn't it seem like same 'ol self-destruction in the early moments of the game?), not only can this team get to the Super Bowl this year, they're set up for quite a few years to come.

    It's a great time to be a Cowboys fan.

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  6. WOW!! All I can say right now...

    Will post later in week.

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  7. In my post on the 6th, I predicted that the Cowboys over the Eagles 30 - 17. Turns out it was an even more impressive win at 34-14.

    I think that Phillips deserves to be the number 2 TE. I think that we should try and trade Bennet because I believe that he is a good TE, but just not in our offensive structure.

    13 years is a long time. I was a Junior in Highschool. This was a couple of years after I was able to go to Super Bowl XXX when the Cowboys were able to get some revenge on the Steelers for beating us in previous Super Bowls.

    If the Defense keeps up its stingy ways, Romo continues to play near flawless football and we limit our penalties we will march into Minnesota and show Favre why he has had a tough time against the Cowboys!

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  8. This is the first playoff win I've ever seen as a fan because well I'm 14 years old and man it feels great to finally proove to all those friends who make fun of me about the cowboys. Hopefully they can go on to win the super bowl and then I'll be the one bragging.

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  9. I feel for the 14 yr old I have kids who I have made into huge cowboy fans. They take heat all day at school,college and work about the cowboys. They finally had their day. They have not taken off their cowboy jerseys since sat. We live right in the middle of Giant and eagle territory. We need more wins so our young fans can wave the cowwboy flag right in those haters faces.

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  10. It sucks that the last 8 teams in the playoffs are getting punished for having a good season. With the uncapped year coming up, those 8 teams will have restrictions on how many unrestricted free agents they can sign. Basically they can sign one unrestricted free agent, and then one for every free agent that team loses. Again, bullcrap.

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