You Call Yourself a Dallas Cowboys Fan?
By Joshua Huff
As we countdown the days to the September 5th season opener, this seems like an opportune time to discuss something that has grated on my nerves the last several years.
The Cowboys always seem to have more than their share of fair weather fans. I know one, we probably all do. They watch every Cowboys game. They wear the Jerseys, hats, shirts, and everything else you would associate with a fan. They follow the draft and training camp. They keep up with the cuts and trades. They speak with confidence and a certain amount of knowledge about what the upcoming season holds, what has been corrected over the offseason, and what needs have yet to be addressed. They do and say everything you would expect from a true fan. Then the regular season starts.
This particular friend of mine spews more hatred and anti-Cowboys rhetoric in the regular season than the Giants, Eagles, and Redskins biggest fans combined. He shouts homophobic slurs and expletives not at the situation, but at the individual players themselves.
He violently screams at every penalty, loss of yards, incomplete pass, and punt (you know, the kind of things that happen to every team in every game). He curses every corner that allows a completed pass (apparently any secondary that permits a single completion all season is pathetic). He yells at every player that comes within 5 feet of the quarterback but doesn’t sack him (we all know how easy and frequent sacks are). He throws an outright fit every time the offensive play call doesn’t work (obviously a 30 year old man who played a couple of years in high school has a much more profound understanding of the game than Jason Garrett).
I would dismiss this behavior as the emotionally eccentric actions of a man who very possibly needs anger management classes if not for his complete lack of reaction to success. After the child like tantrums with every single misstep, he doesn’t celebrate a single touchdown or turnover. I see his Facebook posts the day after a 3 point loss where he referred to the entire team as a bunch of pathetic losers. I check it the day after a 37 point victory, not a single comment.
My question to people like this is “Are you sure you are a Cowboys fan?” Anyone who generally seems more pleased cursing our team for their mistakes than cheering them for their success doesn’t fit my definition.
My wife and I usually go to the grocery store every Sunday morning in our Cowboys jerseys to pick up what we will need for the day, based on any guests we may have coming over. I can’t help but notice the number of other Cowboys jerseys I see is directly related to the current season’s record. Do people just stick jerseys in the back of their closet, dusting them off only when the win column holds the greater number? Do they feel no shame in only supporting a team during a good season?
As fans we should be better than this. We should be proud to wear our Cowboy colors regardless of recent performances. We shouldn’t give up on or curse our team for going through a bad run, we’re not Philadelphia fans.
This is the most excited I’ve been about a Cowboys season in years. But regardless of what happens I will not retire my jerseys half way through the season. I will continue to proudly fly my Cowboys flag every game day regardless of what this season holds. After all, if you can’t stand by your team when they are 0-16, then you don’t deserve to call yourself a fan when they are 16-0 heading into the playoffs.