The Dallas Cowboys: America’s Joke
Have you ever had a cousin that is absolutely brilliant. Who’s mind works on literally another level then everyone else’s so they say things to make them sound smart but what they say is actually the most idiotic thing ever spoken? That’s the Dallas Cowboys. Ever had a cousin that thinks and perceive things around them in a way that no body else does so when there is a general consensus about something, that cousin has to have a differing opinion because they’re better than everyone else? That’s Mike McCarthy. Ever had a cousin that saw something out of the ordinary once when they were younger and because of it, they believe that extraordinary thing to be commonplace? That’s Cowboy fans. Notice a theme? That cousin is an idiot and everyone in the family knows it. However his mom probably has a lot of money or influence on the family so everyone just deals with it. The mom is Jerry Jones. Jones has a stranglehold on the NFL due to grandfathered deals and the fact Jones negotiates the TV deals for the NFL. That’s why the Cowboys typically play in primetime in week one, they play at home on Thanksgiving and get majority of NFL broadcasting coverage. I’m sure if you’re not a Cowboys fan and you have cable, your team’s game at one point was pushed so America could witness the Cowboys be mediocre once again.
The 2021 Cowboys bowed out of the playoffs in embarrassing style, losing 23-17 to the San Francisco 49ers. I could go over the game but it be pointless. Horrible throws by Dak, poor play by Connor Williams, terrible coaching decisions and unacceptable penalties tell the story of the game. In fact Dallas was down by 16 at the start of the fourth quarter but a Jimmy G interception gave them the ball on the Niners side of the 50. A quick score gave the Cowboys the momentum and a realistic shot at 23-17. The Cowboys got the ball back with around four minutes to operate and they were on the move. A big catch and run by Dalton Schultz put them in prime position. However poor plays and penalties brought Dallas to 4th and 11. They went for it and Prescott heaved a prayer. Cedric Wilson had an excellent shot but the pass was troubled by the Niners pass rush and Wilson slipped coming out of his cut. Incomplete. The Niners drove down, aided by Randy Gregory bear hugging a Niners offensive lineman and soon found themselves at 4th and inches with 40 seconds left. After the Niners thought Deebo Samuel achieved a game clinching first down, review reversed the call and the Niners called a QB sneak on 4th and inches. Garoppolo converted but the ball was snapped before Trent Williams was set. False start was the call. The Niners punted on 4th and 5. A poor punt through the endzone gave Dallas the ball with around 30 seconds left on their own 25. Playing soft defense, the Cowboys drove downfield quite quickly. Here’s where the Cowboys revealed who they really were. With 14 seconds on the Niners 40, the Cowboys had a shot. The Niners were playing sideline defense, prohibiting a quick pass and run out of bounce. The middle of the field was open, more importantly a path to the endzone was wide open. Yes it would be a difficult and contested catch but it was a shot and the always present DPI penalty could’ve been thrown. Instead the Cowboys called a QB draw which saw Prescott run quickly to the Niners 20. With no timeouts, the Cowboys had to spike the ball. By the time the ref spotted the ball and Dak spiked it, time had expired and just like that it was over. The refs announced that the game had ended, running to the locker rooms under the fire of Cowboy fans throwing foreign objects at them. The Niners celebrated their escape from Dallas as another disappointing season ended in heartbreak for Cowboy Nation.
At his press conference, Prescott berated fans for throwing items at Cowboy players. When told that fans attacked the refs as well, Prescott’s tone changed. He responded “A credit to them.” Everyone wants to praise Dak Prescott as a good guy, a team player, a leader especially when a story came out where he asked members of the 53 man roster to chip in $500 dollars to create a fund for practice squad players. It’s easy to be the good guy to your friends and teammates, a man’s true color is revealed when facing adversity. Perhaps Prescott was responding to the missed false starts on Trent Williams or the referees inabilty to set the ball in time for the spike. It doesn’t matter. You lost. It happens. I understand that as an athlete you take it hard but to not speak out against violence, against unacceptable behavior, to pretty much encourage it speaks volumes. Well Dak, your coaches are those moron cousins who see things differently. You ran twenty yards. By the time the ball is snapped, the blocking of the draw play is set and you take off and slide, that’s gonna be 6-8 seconds on average. By the time the players get set, another 2-3 and of course the second it takes to snap and spike the ball. Your coaches ran a play with at best, an 11 second run off with 14 seconds left to play. Dumb. I understand field position and probability but football isn’t played with numbers, it’s played by people and you all chose to do the wrong thing. Did the ref take a second to get there? Yes but as soon as the play ended, the ref full sprinted to the ball. Had to get around your lineman who blocked his path, reset the ball to where the play actually stopped and clear the area. If you expected a ref to run a sub 4.40 and swim move your offensive line, you are out of your mind. But that’s the issue, the Cowboys think they’re better then everybody. They’re the gold standard of the NFL that conveniently never makes it to February. The refs didn’t screw you and you have a responsibility to speak out against such violent acts, once against Dak Prescott fails to perform when he’s called upon.
Dak Prescott is not the only one to blame in this matter. Mike McCarthy is a horrible coach. He had two Hall of Fame quarterbacks in his 13 seasons in Green Bay and only has 1 Super Bowl to show for it. But hey, at least you have three NFC championship game losses on your belt. The HOF quarterback situation wouldn’t be that bad if he wasn’t a career QUARTERBACKS COACH AND OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR. I don’t like to yell but I feel I have to hammer that point home. This man’s specialty is offense and he failed to consistently win with two of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. This is who the Cowboys wanted, this is who Jerry Jones and sons thought yeah, he’s the guy to bring us back to greatness. But Mike McCarthy is not the one to blame either. Yes he had a horrible coaching staff in 2020, bringing in Mike Nolan as DC, who in return built the worst defense in NFL history. However in 2021, McCarthy was more of a puppet than a coach. A handclapper, a fact checker. Kellen Moore runs the offense and Dan Quinn, who many suspect may take McCarthy’s job from him runs the defense. Quinn held up his end of the deal. Yes he’s done some questionable things in his career. Yes, I don’t understand why Quinn doesn’t convert Micah Parsons to an every down pass rusher but Quinn and the Cowboys defense has been solid the whole year. One to the top teams in forcing turnover (due to Trevon Diggs), Quinn has made the defense lethal. Not world class but very good, especially considering where they were last season. Also Micah Parsons is a stud and has greatly improved under Quinn’s tutelage. Parsons will win Defensive rookie of the year.
Even in the playoff game, the Cowboys only gave up 23 points and gave Dallas the ball twice under the five minute mark in the fourth. The offense is a different story. Ezekiel Elliot played hurt but quite frankly, he hasn’t been the same since his rookie season. In fact, Tony Pollard is a more productive back at the moment. On paper, the Cowboys have the best offense in the league. Top 5 at wide receiver, running backs and tight ends. Dak is a top 15 quarterback and they have a top 20 Tight End room. On the field, they suck. When the lights shine bright, Dak overthrows everyone. Or underthrows them. Or throws an interception. Zeke has no signature performance in the playoffs and the offensive line is like a turnstile for the New York subway, everybode’s coming through. Moore who is an expected candidate for the many HC openings in the NFL proves once again why the Cowboys can never put it together, they shrink in the big moments.
The buck stops with Jerry Jones. He has more titles and responsibilities than any owner in the league. He’s been de facto GM since he bought the team and has a phenomenal draft record. I actually think Jones is one of the better front office executives in the NFL. Hall of Famers Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin and Larry Allen were all drafted by Jones. Jones acquired Hall of Famers Deion Sanders and Charles Haley in the prime of their careers without giving up much draft capitol/ players for them. He has three Super Bowls to his name. Jimmy Johnson is a Hall of Fame coach and Barry Switzer along with Jimmy Johnson became members of the small club of coaches who won a Super Bowl and a National Championship (Pete Carroll being the other). Jones is responsible for the current Cowboys, drafting majority of the players on the field. Quite frankly, the only big money player not drafted by Jones is Amari Cooper. Jones puts a winning product on the field more times than not but his inability to let go of control sinks his team every season. Jones likes a coach he can boss around, he can operate through. That’s why he hired McCarthy when no one else would go near him. That’s why Jason Garrett was around for so many years. The Cowboys greatest time was when Jimmy Johnson took the reigns and Jones managed the roster. They had a great partnership but Jones doesn’t like push back. That’s why we are where we are.
At the start of every season, Cowboys fans erupt in joy. Saying this year will be their year and guess what, it’s never their year. Do you know why? They don’t have a leader in that locker room. McCarthy? Please. Dak? He can’t even stand up for the refs. Has to blame someone else. The roster is good enough to rattle off 8-12 wins a season. Since they play in primetime, everyone sees them constantly. Cowboys fans filled with enthusiasm and media hype proclaim the Lombardi is heading to the great state of Texas because Jones builds too good of teams for them not to be at least decent. However we non-Cowboy fans see the glaring holes in the team when they get blown out by a random team every season. This year was Denver, other years it’s been the Chargers or the Chiefs. Sometimes Arizona and most times by Tom Brady. We know who they are but like I said, they don’t see things how we do. Though the general consensus is that you suck, they have a Kyrie Irvingesc level off thinking. No the world is not flat and no you are not going to the Super Bowl. You are who you’ll always be. America’s team to make fun off.
