Hate to Rain on Your Cowboys Parade Before It Starts…
Cowboys fans, bring it in. It’s time we talk. I know you have been lying to yourselves lately. I know you’re hurt. I know the other fans have been picking on you. I know everyone loves to point out your every mistake even though they don’t do that for anyone else. I know your pride is hurt, Cowboys fans. But it’s time to stop lying to yourselves.
Your team is not Super Bowl-ready. Your team is not a few bad plays away from a 6-1/5-2 record. Your defense is not a top defense. Your offensive line is horribly young and playing horribly because of it. Your wide receivers are fast to take credit and quicker to disappear. Your inside linebackers are old and slow. Your defensive line is filled with push-overs. Your secondary is still one of the worst in the league. Mike Jenkins is as fragile as a flower and as heartless as a coward. Cowboys fans, believe what your eyes tell you.
Why am I telling you this? Because today (and for the next 4 weeks following) your Cowboys are going to look like a playoff team. They will run the ball well and will play shutdown defense. They may not win every single one of the next five games, but they probably will and they certainly will have a good chance in each 4th quarter. Tony Romo will throw for many touchdowns and few interceptions, DeMarco Murray will rush for 100 yards per game and DeMarcus Ware will lead the defense to some incredible highlights on the way to barely giving up 10 points per game and possibly breaking the sack record.
But it will all be a fraud. The Cowboys next 5 opponents are a combined 11-24. They play 3 of those games at Cowboys Stadium. Nearly half of those 11 wins are from one team, the Buffalo Bills. It is entirely possible that Dallas could be 8-4/7-5 after this stretch, headed into the final 4 games of the season. Everyone will be praising Tony Romo, Rob Ryan and Jason Garrett and pondering if we can find a way to get into Cowboys Stadium for the playoffs. But I’m warning you now, on November 6th, that it will all be a deceptive stretch of football. After those five games, the final four will read like they have for the past 14 of 15 seasons. All the fans and media will blame some “December swoon curse” or some crap-o-la like that, and they will blame Tony Romo for not being clutch enough in December. Rob Ryan will be blamed for poor defense performances, and Jason Garrett will have Cowboys Nation calling for his head.
Remember this article during that time; bookmark it if you must. I am here to calm you down before the rollercoaster even starts. Consider this your shot of Pepto Bismol because after last Sunday, you should not be suffering from nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach or… anything else because of this team. They have proved EXACTLY what they are. Do not let their upcoming soft schedule let your hopes fly ridiculously high again. Those final four games will produce one win, maybe. Your Dallas Cowboys will finish with 8-9 wins and miss the playoffs again. The future is bright because we have a good head coach, but don’t confuse that for immediate success.
I believe Tony Romo. I believe this team can win it all… someday. But it won’t be this year. Cheer with every first down, rejoice with every touchdown and thank God for every win. But don’t be surprised when they lose because they are simply not there yet. Last Sunday should be all the proof you need. You can take solace in the fact that you are probably watching the very beginnings of a run back to glory. But it won’t happen this year, Cowboys fans.
Keep the faith, keep enjoying your team, enjoy the Ring of Honor ceremony and keep the Pepto close after Thanksgiving… you will need it.