The window is now open...

       Most teams don't win the superbowl after their first playoff victory in 13 years. The monkey of the playoff victory has hung heavy in everyone's head (and ears) for many years now and it's great to see it gone.

The Cowboys looked great until this week. But, really I (and I assume most of you) didn't believe this was a GREAT team this year. All I wanted was a better attitude, some cathartic mental victories and progress. I'd say certainly with the division championship, slaying their biggest oppressors this decade two weeks in a row to win the division and a first playoff game, this team has progressed.

         Reasons to be excited for next year include..Mike Jenkins, Tony Romo, Felix Jones, Miles Austin, Jason Witten, D Ware, Anthony Spencer, Jay Ratliff...etc etc etc. This team has great potential to get better again next year just as they did this year. If you need some encouragement and historical validation look to your 91 Cowboys playoffs.. 38 - 6 loss to the lions in the divisional round. Then remember what they did in 1992...

What I see in this team now is progress and upside. Long gone is the feeling that swept over me for 7 months of offseason after 44-6. Progress and upside.

         At the beginning of this year if we'd all been asked if we thought this team would be great nearly every one of us would have said no. But next year, seeing the progress of this year and know how another camp will only help young guys improve, it's got to be a reasonable conclusion that this team has the potential to be great with a few tweaks here and there.

       No we didn't win a championship. No we can't be assured of next year. But, what we can be sure of is that this team's potential for greatness has really improved from last offseason to this one. Are they champions? No. But is the possibility ripe and ready after what we've seen this year? You betcha.

Window...consider yourself opened.

Preface : This is not a post about how the Refs lost us this game. It would be extremely short sighted and moronic to blame the loss on the Refs. I don't understand this specific play call and it was pivotal in terms of getting back in the game. But, it was certainly not the only thing... injuries (yikes), poor execution, drops, blocking, Scandrick..etc etc etc..

But.. I was in a bar in San Diego and was watching the Chargers beat the Eagles (Thank god) and I couldn't hear the audio. All I saw was that the play was not reviewable..

          I like the believe I have a pretty substantial grasp on the rules, even as they change from season to season and I don't understand how that play is not reviewable.

    Could someone explain it to me for future reference WITHOUT BLAMING THE REFS.   It was a big play for our comeback hopes and for the life of me I can't understand how it wasn't reviewable.

Thanks for your input...

Good news about next week..

1. I'll be way more productive in my personal life. (Now that I'm not trying to soak up all the Cowboys love :) )

2. Washington and then oakland are a great remedy for what ails this team.

Game Day Update:

         It is reported that Eagles Running Back  Brian Westbrook (concussion) is not going to play today versus the Cowboys on Sunday night football..

The oft-injured Westbrook has been replaced in the lineup by LeShawn McCoy who has been filling it admirably in his stead and is nearly a carbon copy player running and catching the football.

However, Westbrook is a much better pass protecting QB and he has had a tendency to be a thorn in the Cowboys side. This could be a key loss to the Philadelphia offense in terms of their pass protection against an improving Dallas pass rush.

I saw this while scanning Bleeding Green Nation..the SBNation Eagles blog...


http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2009/11/3/1113770/pretty-angry-after-reading-this

*Disclaimer - I know not all Eagles fans have this mentality and am not trying to insinuate that they do. But, some of them do and this is unbelievable*

      There is no way anything like this would ever happen at Cowboys Stadium. Say what you want about the band-wagoners (which you hope would be gone after a 12 year playoff drought) and Hollywood image of the Cowboys. At least we have the ability to differentiate fanhood from manhood. This is despicable and miserable.

I know this is not necessarily a reflection on the team and I keep that in mind..but, the way Philadelphia fans identify themselves as the most rowdy and antagonistic fans in the nation has truly hit a new low. There is a great thing to be seen in supporting your team and being willing to throw out some verbal daggers in support of your home turf..that's what being a fan is all about. But that all means nothing when people lose track of their simple humanity and become vile loathsome individuals like the ones described in this post.

Before now I was hoping for a good game that Dallas would pull out in the end...now I want these newly confident Cowboys to go in there and absolutely trash the Eagles...not so much to show the team disrespect but to give these fans what they truly deserve...a good whooping behind the wood shed.

If this ever happened at Cowboys stadium I'd hope that other Cowboys fans would pummel the idiots for disgracing our team.

(Football post to follow tomorrow...but saw this and had to see others opinions)

 Very briefly here..what we've seen all week

1. Romo sucks for being timid and inaccurate and not knowing the down (lol)
   
2. Garret sucks for terrible play calling and targeting Champ all day
3. Wade sucks for not knowing what was up with Barber
4. T-New sucks for letting Marshall burn him  late in the game (and the rest of the secondary for not tackling)
5. Spencer sucks for not getting his pick
6. JJ sucks for being the head of this putrid snake
7. What we really need is a new HC, OC and QB (and i think someone even mentioned picking up Crabtree..Woops! Too late!)

So..I'm sure I've missed some things that people will gladly point out that have contributed to this teams supposed miserable failure. There is even no doubt that there are some very true and valid points mixed in amoungst this criticism...but...

IT IS THURSDAY NOW...

It's very true that it is easier to throw mud than see the light after a bad loss but it's time to let it go. People are posting things as if this is late season and we are looking towards next years improvements by only focusing on the teams flaws.It's time to let it go..even if it makes us feel better..it's just one week and they all count the same..so lets look to the next one.

I agree the sky seems to be falling (@ 2-2.. lol) ..but I hear there's another game this weekend...against the soothing Chiefs. Maybe we should be moving towards that instead of twisting the knife...

A direct quote from the post game press conference..

"They got a fumble and scored, we got a fumble and didn't score. That was basically the difference in the ball game."

Were we watching the same game? I know Wade realizes now that he is about 12 weeks away from being unemployed if he doesn't spin this like a politician; but, seriously?!?! That was the difference in the game? Not the poor offense play selection in the second half? Not abandoning the run in the second half? Not the poor throws by Romo? Not the umpteenth collapse by a team that is supposed to be among the most talented in the league?

I  know you can point to certain things that were key in the game, but saying it was about points off of turnovers isn't just coach speak..it's moronic.

I've personally lost my faith here...too many times have I believed we have a better product on the field than the world says we do and quite simply.. we don't. This is just a mediocre team now that holds more frustration than hope and Wade's attitude of "Well it's just the little things" isn't cutting it anymore..Yo Wade! The fan's that actually watched the game called...the Kool Aid ran out..

If you agree to all the pundits, the guy sitting next to you at the sports bar and even a few of your fellow Cowboy's fans...The Cowboy's are about as promising as our stock portfolios. There seems to be a lot of discussion about all the the wrong and the right has gone right out the window. Come on now, I know the Giant's game was a crushing blow to our self confidence..believe me; but all is not lost. It is very clear that the team has improved in areas of the game that matter if you are expecting to beat teams in the post season...I'll tell you why...

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