A Cowboys Fan’s Guide on to Rooting Interests in Super Bowl XLV

Next week, the NFL wraps up the most boring, uninspired regular season of my lifetime. The following weeks will feature playoff football, which will end on February 6, 2011 in Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. As a Cowboys fan, it will be tough to watch any team lift the Lombardi Trophy in our stadium, but some will definitely hurt more than others (i.e. Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, or New England).

With the Cowboys out of contention, I thought I would put together a list of possible playoff teams Cowboys fans should be rooting for to make it to Arlington.

1.) Atlanta Falcons – The Falcons are the least offensive of the possible playoff teams (and the team on the list with the most realistic shot of winning it all). They have never won a Super Bowl, so the Cowboys legacy factor is not at stake. They have no natural rivalry with the Cowboys like the Eagles or Packers. Most importantly, the team’s low profile makes them extremely likeable.

2.) Kansas City Chiefs – Yes, this pick is wishful thinking. The Chiefs have a tough road if they plan on making it to Arlington. In the AFC, all roads go through New England and history shows this is an almost impossible place to win in the post-season. BUT, the Chiefs began as the Dallas Texans and there are still a lot of fans of the franchise in the D/FW area.  It would be fitting for the Chiefs to raise the Lombardi Trophy in the Metroplex.

3.) Chicago Bears – It seems the Bears and Cowboys are never “good” at the same time. This has prevented any real rivalry forming between the two teams. Plus, Bears’ head coach Lovie Smith is from nearby Big Sandy, Texas. When in doubt, always root for the Texan.

The NFC East bubble

Greetings from Jacksonville, Florida.  This is my first vacation in almost 6 years and I am enjoying myself thoroughly. We had a weird flight schedule that took us through New Orleans, Tampa and finally on in to Jacksonville. Along the way, I had the opportunity to pick up several local newspapers and scope our their training camp coverage for their local pro teams.

In Tampa, I picked up a copy of both the St. Petersburg Time and The Tampa Tribune. One thing that caught my eye was a blurb for Buccaneer fans wanting to attend practices.  It mentioned that the Buc’s practice facility could accomodate up to 4,000 fans.  Seriously? The Cowboys travel out of town and pull in three times as many fans at their training camp work outs.

Tonight, I watched the Jacksonville news, expecting to find some great coverage of Jaguars’ camp. Instead, the Jacksonville news seemed to be more fascinated with the University of Florida’s first practice.  Texans love college football, but unless you live in Austin, College Station or Lubbock, the Cowboys will always get more coverage than Texas’ big 3 college programs.

I began to wonder if the Cowboys were the only NFL team to draw such excitement with their training camp program, but then I remembered the crowds I have seen at Redskins’ camp, at Giants’ camp and at Eagles’ camp. I began to wonder if my football world exists inside and NFC East bubble, a land where college football is fine, but the NFL reigns supreme.

The AFC and NFC South divisions seemed to be composed of regions where college football takes priority over the professional game. It’s so weird! It reminded me of a recent conversation I heard on a Dallas sports talk radio program. SEC fans have a great product in their football programs. No one can dispute the quality of athletes and coaches within the conference. However, fans of SEC programs often treat these programs as equals, both in importance and talent, than their NFL counterparts. In a sense, they act as if college football is all they have. The Gators get the special segments, beat reporters, etc. While the Jaguars and Buccaneers get whatever is left over.While I’m sure Florida will have no problem selling out all of their home games, the Jaguars struggle selling out just one of their home games.

We do things a bit different in Texas. Yes, Colt McCoy is a household name. Depending on where you are raised, you grow up wanting to play for Tech, UT or A&M.  Going to a game at Kyle Field (especially in 1990′s), can be just as energizing as going to a game at “The Swamp.” There are more D-1, or FBS, level schools in the state of Texas than in any other state.  Texans earn more D-1 football scholarships than athletes from any other state. We get college football and we love it.

However, we realize the quality of the NFL game, both on a technical and athletic level, is greater than that of the collegiate game.  Do Floridians not understand that? Why is so little interest in Jaguar and Buccaneer football?

The professional athlete as a fan…

A local talk radio program conducted an interview with Quinton Ross this morning. Now that he is officially a Dallas Maverick, Ross has the opportunity to do something very few athletes get to do–play ball in the same city for high school, colleges and the pros. Udonis Haslem is the only current athlete whose name I can think of off the top of my head, but I’m sure Miami, L.A. and Houston have had a few in the past.

I began to think about what it means for an athlete to play professionally for his hometown. Does it mean anything at all? Is there any emotional attachment between a pro-athlete and their hometown team or does a professional athlete automatically shed all childhood allegiances?

For better or worse, I am emotionally invested in the Cowboys, Mavericks and Rangers. I’ve followed these teams my entire life. As a kid, I collected the trading cards, autographs, the Starting Lineup action figures, and any other type of memorabilia you can possibly imagine associated with the guys on my team.

Throughout the years, Ive devoted my time to watching their games in person and/or on TV. Consider the fact that since 1990, I have missed only two Cowboys’ games (1.) a December 28, 2003 game against the New Orleans Saints 2.) a September 30, 2001 game against the Philadelphia Eagles). Similarly, I saw all 82 Dallas Maverick regular season games, either in person or on TV, in 2006-2007 and I have missed only 24 Mavericks regular season games since the 2005-2006 season.

As I grow older, I find that my devotion to these teams grows only stronger.  I invest countless hours each year to reading about my teams, writing about my teams, talking about my teams and listening to others talk about my teams. For what? So I can impress friends at a cocktail party by naming every Cowboys’ kicker since 1985? No, I do it out of love, love of and for my teams.

I was about a .230 hitter in youth league baseball (although I knew how to work a walk and had a .800% OBP one summer) and at 6 feet, 160 pounds, I was a back-up center and defensive tackle on my high school’s JV football team before I decided to quit.  Needless to say, I knew from an early age that professional sports were not part of my future.

Not only do I lack the set of physical skills necessary to be a pro-athlete, I lack the mindset as well.  You see, even if I had Tom Brady’s skill set and contract, I could not bring myself to, either directly or indirectly, compete with the Dallas Cowboys.

How does a professional athlete deal with this emotional schism? Let’s say a kid grows up in New England, idolizing the Sox. He’s a five tool player and he gets drafted in first round right out of high school and singed to a million dollar contract. The only catch is that the team that drafted and signed him is the New York Yankees.

I’m sure situations like this must arise in the professional sports world and when they do, I’m interested to find out how the athletes deal with it.

I realize that many professional athletes may grow up as a fan of a particular player or sport and not necessarily loyal to their local team, but I know there are some athletes with passions like mine. Would a multi-million dollar contract and the promise of a championship give me the motivation necessary to temporarily set these this emotional investment aside? I tend to think not.

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Now playing: David Paich, Don Henley & Jeff Porcaro – New York Minute
via FoxyTunes

Bad day for Cowboys?

The Dallas Cowboys are rolling. Tony Romo is back and has led the ‘Boys to three straight wins, throwing for 300+ yards in the past two games. On top of that, T.O. has looked more like the T.O. we know and love the past couple of weeks and the defense, in spite of the obscenely soft coverage, has given up only two touchdowns, both in garbage time, over the past three games. Indeed, the Cowboys look more like the team that began the season with Super Bowl aspirations than the shit we saw against the Cardinals, Rams and Giants.

Leave it to the Dallas media to piss on our “blue star” blankets.

The Cowboys are the only NFL team to post a 25 point  victory and still get charged with a loss in the eyes of the local media. The theory is that since the Cowboys got little help today from the Packers, Saints and Chargers, they are doomed to miss the playoffs.

I choose to look at the situation from a different perspective. My mother always taught me, “if you want something done right, do it yourself.” The Cowboys would be wise to take these words under advisement. If they go out and take care of their own business, winning the remaining games on their schedule, they will finish 12-4–one game off their 13-3 record last season–and be assured of a Wild Card slot in the playoffs.

Sure, the road will not be easy. The Steelers rolled over a good Patriots teams in B.F.E., Massachusetts today and next week we must travel to their home. The Steelers have always been envious of the Cowboys (sorry Brian) and the “Terrible Towels” will be out in full effect. In addition, we must play on a grass surface in a city that the NFL should not allow a grass surface. We’ve all seen how Heinz Field plays in Decemeber, like a swamp. The temperature will be low; water in some form will probably soak the field and the Cowboys will start with a definite disadvantage, but we have a (healthy)Romo–the Great Equalizer.

Next, we have the Giants. Yes, they possess the best record in the NFL, but whose to say they can stay away from gun related accidents in the next two weeks? Plus, it’s the second to last game at Texas Stadium. There’s no way Brandon Jacobs leaves this game happy.

The Ravens? Yeah, they’re hot, but this is the last game at Texas Stadium.

Philly is Philly. They’re fans are far more dangerous than their football team. Before playing in Philly, you need to be up to date on all your shots and just tune out the obnoxious drunks. McNabb will eventually beat himself.

The Cowboys are more talented than any team left on their schedule and far more talented than the Falcons, Panters or Buccs.  Now, it’s a matter of mental toughness and how much they want the playoffs. If the Cowboys, don’t win out, it will be because of a lack of effort, in which case they don’t deserve to be in the playoffs.

On Turning 30…

As many of you probably know, I celebrated my 30th birthday on Tuesday. Actually, the celebrations began Monday night as the Cowboys throttled the Eagles 41-37 in the last Monday night game ever to be played at Texas Stadium.

Opportunity presents itself for me to quote “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys,” and tie in Monday night’s victory with my life long devotion to the team and its’ personalities. However, I think I’m going to take this in a different direction.

A couple of my co-workers decided to take me out to Pei Wei to celebrate my birthday with lunch. I’ve never been one for fortune cookies, I seldom find them entertaining and I sure as hell don’t believe in them, but I decided to get one prior to leaving.

“You are a lover of words, someday you should write a book.”

Like many people with a degree in English, I dream of being published one day. I seriously doubt that getting this strip of paper in a cookie will aide me in accomplishing that goal, but it does serve as an a gentle reminder to follow through with goals I have set for myself.

While I’m far from an old man, I have reached a numeric milestone. It’s time to take stock and set out a list of goals that I hope to accomplish over the next 30 years.

• Get published
• Start a family
• Attend a Super Bowl, in person, that the Cowboys win
• Finish some form of graduate school
• Be my own boss
• Own my home
• Be interviewed by NPR
• Run a marathon
• Play a round at Augusta National
• Laugh at myself daily
• Laugh at others daily
• Rediscover the piano
• Learn what people mean by “post-modern” Christianity
• Attend every Dallas Mavericks’ home opener
• Teach at least one college level course
• Live in a town that understands Friday Night Lights

Week 1 – Cowboys 28 Browns 10

As a Cowboys’ fan, you can’t really complain about much from Sunday’s 28-10 victory over the Cleveland Browns, yet I find myself thinking about missed scoring opportunities and I hear other fans wanting more intensity from the team. 

Are we spoiled fans? Probably, but it also means we have plenty to talk about regarding the game.

Let’s start with the good. I’ve always contended that football games are won in the trenches. Unfortunately, many are oblivious to the nuances involved with the offensive and defensive lines, but even the most casual of football fans knew the Cowboys offensive line dominated the Browns defensive line. We knew this line was special, but we saw shades of the early 90′s yesterday with that offensive performance. Many fans worried that the loss of Kyle Kosier would hinder the performance of the line; however, Cory Procter stepped in and filled in nicely. The offensive line not only gave Tony Romo time to read the Brown’s defense, but gave him enough time to read the newspaper as well.

Romo took full advantage of the time, picking the Browns secondary apart.  Going into the game, many pundits expressed their concern about the Cowboys’ depleted receiving corps, but Romo even managed to get Tony Curtis and an injured Isaiah Stanback, in addition to Terrell Owens, Patrick Crayton and Jason Witten.

A wise man once said that if you run the ball and stop the run, you will win the game. A dominant line and dynamic backs make running the ball look easy. Marion Barber showed that he’s ready to step into the starting role. When bruised ribs sidelined him in the 3rd quarter, rookie Felix Jones stepped in and showed why the Cowboys chose him over Rashard Mendenhall, scoring on his first touch. Fourth round draft pick, Tashard Choice, showed he can carry the rock as well, effectively running the clock out in what some backs would have considered “junk time.”

Defensively, nothing during the game really screamed, “dominance,” but in the end, we limited that averaged 351 yards in offense and 25 points a game, to roughly 200 yards and 10 points, a serviceable performance any night. Zach Thomas looks like he will make a seamless transition to the 3-4 defense and Marcus Spears showed signes that his impressive pre-season was not a fluke.

However, I think I am not alone in saying that I would have liked to see some more pressure from our front 7. While we didn’t look nearly as bad as Cleveland’s front 7, we managed only one sack and forced no turnovers, though Adam Jones was close to having a couple of interceptions. In addition, penalties hurt our defense far more than our offense. If it weren’t for penalties, the Browns very could have only put 3 points on the board.

All in all, the Cowboys proved worthy of the pre-season hype. I look forward to Monday night’s showdown with the Eagles where Terence Newman should make his season debut. Additionally, it appears that both Miles Austin and Anthony Spencer will return to practice this week and Sam Hurd is out of his walking boot. In a few short weeks, we could be at full strength.  I hope the Cowboys can give me a big victory for my 30th birthday.

Until next week, Phuck Philly!

2008-2009 NFL Predictions

OK kids, here you go, Geoausch’s predictions for the upcoming NFL Season.

Let’s start with the division champions.

AFC East -    New England Patriots (11-5) The Patriot take a giant step back, after a giant let down to finish last season. Brady is gimpy and the Patriots in-game scouting has taken a big hit. They’ll still have enough to win the AFC East, but don’t be surprised if the Patriots do not get a first round bye this season.

AFC North - Pittsburgh Steelers (11-5) The Steelers play in a favorable division and should have no problem with division opponents. Where the Steelers will run into trouble is the NFC East portion of their schedule.

AFC South - Indianapolis Colts (12-4) Once Manning returns and is healthy, the Colts should be able to return to dominance. Another division title, another first round bye and another home playoff loss to end the season.

AFC West -  San Diego Chargers (13-3)  Though Oakland will be improved, Denver is the only team in the division anywhere near the level of the Chargers. Chargers should have home field throughout the playoffs and they will take full advantage of it.

Wild Card -  New Jersey Jets  (10-6)  Favre has an immediate impact on already improving team.

                   Jacksonville Jaguars (10-6) The best 2^nd place team in the NFL.

 

NFC East -  Dallas Cowboys (14-2)  You’re damn right I’m biased.

NFC North – Minnesota Vikings (10-6) Packers slip after losing Favre. Vikings defense should be one of the best in the NFL. If you run the ball and stop the run, you will win a lot  of games. At some point, you do have to throw  and that will be the downfall of the Vikings.

NFC South -  New Orleans Saints (8-8) Weak conference produces the weakest of conference champions.

NFC West -  San Francisco 49ers (9-7)  49ers will finish tied with the Seahawks for the West title. However, the 49ers will win the division on tie breakers.

Wild Card -  Philadelphia Eagles (11-5) Philly will be improved with McNabb healthy.  Phans will be as sorry as ever. Phuck Philly!

                     New York Giants (9-7)    Giants get in as a wild-car again, but cannot repeat the magic of last year’s post-season.

 

AFC Championship -  Chargers over Jets – Favre performs a miracle and leads Jets to AFC Championship game. However, the Jets are no match for the Chargers.

NFC Championship -   Cowboys over Eagles – Phuck Philly!

 

Super Bowl XLIII -   Cowboys over Chargers – Sure, it’s a fashionable pick, but I did pick the 49ers to win their division.