For the second time in three years and the third time in eight years, the Dallas Cowboys will watch in utter distress as the hated Philadelpha Eagles play in the Super Bowl. Fortunately, they will be up against one of the greatest teams ever assembled in the Kanas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs can cement their status as the greatest team in NFL history with a win on Sunday, as they would become the first franchise to win three consecutive Super Bowls. Beyond that, this marks Kansas City's fifth Super Bowl appearance in the last six years and they've been to seven straight AFC title games.
The Cowboys put together a similar run in the 1990s. They won three Super Bowls in four years and made the NFC title game four straight years. One of the most talented teams in NFL history, that core should've won more than three championships, but Jerry Jones fired Jimmy Johnson after Dallas' second-straight title in 1993.
Another dynasty is obviously a ridiculous ask, but Cowboys fans would do anything to get back to the mountaintop. There are countless reasons to explain Dallas' near-30-year drought, but former tight end Peyton Hendershot laid out the biggest reason.
Former Cowboys TE Peyton Hendershot reveals exactly why Dallas will never be the Chiefs
R.J. Ochoa of Blogging the Boys caught up with Hendershot at Radio Row and asked about the biggest difference between the Chiefs and Cowboys.
Hendershot made sure to note he wasn't throwing strays at his former team, but he did not mince words about the culture Jerry Jones has fostered.
"I just feel like when I came to Kansas City... my first experience in the NFL was the Cowboys so that's all I knew... I just feel like here it is strictly football and winning," said Hendershot. "Nothing else but just football and winning. "And I feel like with the Cowboys it's a little bit more like the public image. The extracurriculars that come with it, too. And here it's just... let's just win football."
It's important to note that Hendershot did not speak down on the Cowboys. The 25-year-old merely compared his experience in Dallas to that of his brief time with Kansas City. The Chiefs are obviously an extreme example of a winning culture, but Hendershot's quote supports what several former Cowboys have said about the "extracurricular" taking precedence in Dallas.
Hendershot mentioned things such as signing autographs, tours, picture opportunities. While all pertinent and part of the problem, we would instruct fans to look no further than the team's search for a new coach.
Jerry Jones claims he would give anything for another Super Bowl and yet his coaching search featured just four candidates. One was an in-house candidate who ended up getting the job and one used to play and work for the team.
There is nothing wrong with passing on courted candidates like Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, but not even bringing them in for an interview? That's unserious. Dragging their feet with Mike McCarthy, which caused them to miss out on Mike Vrabel? That is the inaction of an unserious franchise.
Hendershot didn't reveal anything new, but it hurts all over again. Maybe the Cowboys will luck into a Super Bowl with their current core, but it will be in spite of the culture the Joneses have cultivated since the team's last championship 30 years ago.