It’s now or never for the Dallas
Cowboys this week as they head to the Georgia Dome to fight for a
playoff dream or break out their vacation plans against the
undefeated Atlanta Falcons. After once again being hyped up during
the off-season and vowing to stop being the same old Cowboys, they
have not changed one bit. Well they have actually gotten worse.
Instead of usually finding out on the last week of the season that
the Cowboys didn't make the playoffs, we get to find out in Week 8.
Barley halfway into the season, Dallas
is already in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. Since 2002 only
three teams have made it into the playoffs after starting 3-5. Of
course the last team to do it, was last year’s Denver Broncos who
actually started 2-5. They went on to win six straight games with
long forgotten Tim Tebow.
Are Cowboy fans really going to believe
they’ll find tremendous luck like the Broncos had, to do that?
Don’t count on it because they've had the worst luck in the NFL,
blowing winnable games, making the poorest choices at the severest
time, coming back inches short or should I say fingertips.
 |
| Fingertips?! Worst Luck! |
It’s been a train wreck so far for
Dallas; Tony Romo is having the worst season of his career so far,
throwing the ball to the wrong jersey colors and trying to force too
much. Injuries have set back the running game. After a strong start
to the season by DeMarco Murray, a sprained ankle has taken him out
of playing the last three games and his replacement, Felix Jones, has
had his own problems staying on the field with his own injury woes.
Dallas also lost their captain,
defensive linebacker Sean Lee for the season, who was their play
caller, leading tackler and turnover play-maker. Dez Bryant has been
wildly inconsistent, showing flashes of huge good plays but always
getting overtaken by vast frustrating plays.
The only kick Dan Bailey has missed
this season was a 51-yard field goal attempt that could have won
Dallas a game against Baltimore. No luck on this team.
Heck the Cowboys are 1-7 in their last
eight games when Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth call their games.
Guess whose calling Sunday night's game? They have no luck with
sportscasting either!
The stat line that is in Dallas’s
favor is, since 1991 the Cowboys have a 3-0 record against teams that
were 7-0 or better. Romo has two of those wins. Their latest was in
2009 against the 13-0 New Orleans Saints.
Even with all the
Cowboy's have to overcome, nothing says mediocre more than a 4-4
record and that's what I think the Cowboy's will be after Sundays
game. Of course I'm not saying anything good will come out of it as
they'll probably lose to a team their not suppose to lose to in the
upcoming weeks, but Atlanta's offense has a bit of what the Giants
have and do. Dallas' defense is built exactly to contain just that.
You just replace Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz with Julio Jones and
Roddy White. (It'll be more explosive though but that's why Morris
Claiborne and Brandon Carr are there.) Bradshaw and Turner are
basically the same player. And Ryan and Eli like to fling it.
Not just because I'm a Cowboys fan, but
this is the last hope I have for them. I didn't even budge or get
caught up when they came back after being down 23 points. They were
not pulling me back in because I knew they would eventually blow it
again. (Which they did) But this is the game where I think they'll
be at their best and make fans wonder why haven't they played like
this all year.
Final Score: Cowboys 31 Falcons 27
