It has been 16 years since the Dallas Cowboys beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX. In those sixteen years, the Cowboys have made the playoffs just seven times. In those seven playoff appearances, they have managed to win but two games.

On January 1, 2012, the Cowboys needed to get one win at home against the New York Giants. Just one win and they would be NFC East champions and playoff bound. Of course, the Giants clobbered the Cowboys 31–14 and took the first step towards the unlikeliest Super Bowl triumph since the last time the G-men won the Super Bowl.

The game that catapulted the Giants into history relegated the Cowboys to ancient history. The team that was once considered the shining star, the flagship franchise of America’s greatest professional sports league is now all but irrelevant.

During the sixteen years since their last taste of glory, the Cowboys have wandered aimlessly through the Wilderness of Mediocrity. They have employed six head coaches and been led by seven different quarterbacks. But the man with the compass, the fearless leader of this ill-fated expedition is the only general manager the team has ever had under owner Jerry Jones.

That would be GM Jerry Jones.

Jones and those in his deluded company may console themselves by saying, “Look! The team that beat us to get into the playoffs won the Super Bowl.”

Bitter fans, however, will be incensed and say, “Look! The team that beat us to get into the playoffs won the Super Bowl.”

What Jerry sees as hopeful, the discouraged, disheartened, distrustful fan will see as hopeless.

Ah, Jerry Jones.

Here is a fellow that says, “Come with me. I know the way.”

But he keeps changing the map, altering the direction and getting nowhere. Long ago, it became painfully apparent to anyone paying attention that Jerry Jones does not know the way, he cannot read a map and when it comes to building and guiding a successful NFL franchise, he is as lost as a goose in the desert.

Meanwhile the Roman numerals keep rolling. Each passing Super Bowl is another mile marker along the Lost Highway for the driver that has no idea how to get there and is too stubborn to ask directions of anyone that does.

Somewhere a coyote howls, a tumbleweed ambles aimlessly across the lonesome prairie and Jerry Jones studies his map.

Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. That said, let’s review my wildcard week predictions and brace ourselves for another fearless safari in the NFL playoff jungle.

Here is how we did last week:

New Orleans Saints @ Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks upset the Super Bowl-defending Saints, 41–36. I had the Saints winning. (Who didn’t?) I also had the Seahawks covering the ten-point spread. And I took the over on the 44.5 total points. I was right on two of the three categories.

Using a simple point system that subtracts one point for guessing wrong and adds one point for getting it right, my score on this game: One point.

New York Jets @ Indianapolis Colts

The Jets won the game, 17–16. With just a three-point spread, it was not much of an upset.

I had the Colts winning and covering the spread. Wrong, wrong. I did take the under on the 44.5 total points. Got that one right.

My score on this game: -1.

Baltimore Colts @ Kansas City Chiefs

The Ravens spanked the Chiefs, 30–7. I didn’t see that one coming. I had the Chiefs, three-point underdogs, winning the game outright. I did take the under on the 40.5 points scored, so there was some redemption.

My score: -1

Green Bay Packer @ Philadelphia Eagles

The Packers won the game, 21–16. They were 2.5 point underdogs. I had Green Bay winning. Yay, me. I did, unfortunately take the over on the 46.5. (Insert buzzer sound here.)

My score: 1

I ended up dead even for the week. Plenty ventured, nothing gained. (Not that I actually had any money on the outcomes. I am not that foolish.)

Now for this week’s match-ups. Once again, the winner is highlighted in bold. My pick against the line is underlined. (For example, I like New Orleans to win, but Seattle to cover, thus New Orleans is bold and Seattle is underlined.) The over/under is indicated by the ↑ and ↓ arrow. If you cannot figure out which arrow means which, please stay away from all sharp objects.

As you can see, I took the favorites in each game. I expect that week off to pay off. Seattle’s fairy tale ends today. We will have to wait another year for Rex Ryan’s verbal assaults on his next opponent. Pittsburgh will manage enough offense to send the Ravens home. And Atlanta always wins at home with quarterback Matt Ryan, who is 20–2 in the home dome.

The best games of the weekend promise to be in Pittsburgh and Atlanta, with the Ravens and Packers vying for the weekend upsets.

I welcome your predictions and I caution you making too much of mine. I have been fooled before.

Never mind that. Rush in.

The time has come to make our picks for the NFL playoffs. Some do this at the beginning of a season, which is dicey and mostly an exercise in futility and tomfoolery. (That doesn’t keep me from joining them occasionally, of course.)

Now that we know who the participants in the 2010 NFL Playoffs are, and where the odds-makers have set the odds, we can make an intelligent, informed prediction as to each game’s outcome. I would tell you to step right up and place your bets, but I advise you to keep your money in your pocket or invest it in your family. That way, you can enjoy the games, cheer for the team you like best, and enjoy the pure thrill of competition.

Still, the odds are in and the verdict is still out. So, here goes nothing. (“Nothing” is pretty much what predictions amount to…or nothing much, anyway.)

In the table below, I am making my picks. The winner is highlighted in bold. My pick against the line is underlined. (for example, I like New Orleans to win, but Seattle to cover, thus New Orleans is bold and Seattle is underlined.) The over/under is indicated by the ↑ and ↓ arrow. If you cannot figure out which arrow means which, please stay away from all sharp objects.

These are my picks for the wild card round of the NFL playoffs. Next week, we will revisit the picks to see how I did. I will also make my picks for the divisional round at that time.

If you have a different idea about how things will come out, use the comments section of this article, and let’s hear your thoughts on the matter.

Happy football!

Get ready for an understatement or two, starting…now.

Sports betting is big business. Super Bowl betting is the biggest of that very big business. It is also risky business: more so now because of free agency and because of the way the NFL schedules the toughest teams from the prior year against one another, giving the teams with poor records an easier path to contention because their non-divisional games are played against other weaker teams.

2011 Super Bowl betting has been made precarious by the unexpected implosion of favorites like the Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings and the unforeseen meteoric rise of the Atlanta Falcons.

But you know what they say: No risk, no reward.

Who could have guessed 16 weeks ago that the current favorite to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XLV would be the Atlanta Falcons while the Cowboys would have fallen to 5–10 and in contention for a top ten draft pick, but not in contention to play in the Super Bowl they will host in a few weeks?

A quick check of the odds this morning shows Tom Brady’s New England Patriots leading the pack at 5/2 odds. The Falcons come in at 11/2, while the Philadelphia Eagles (the NFC East team that was supposed to be in a bit of a rebuilding season) come in at 6/1, followed by the Pittsburgh Steelers at 7/1.

Besides going 2–6 in their billion-dollar home stadium, what do you suppose is the worst nightmare for Cowboys fans? How about waiting 45 years to host their first Super Bowl and, when it finally arrives, it features two of their most hated rivals over the years? Imagine how irksome to Jerry Jones and all of north Texas if the Philadelphia Eagles should face off against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Jerry World!

It is not very far-fetched, is it?

(I just threw up a little in my mouth.)

Back to 2011 Super bowl betting. As of this writing, the current AFC divisional leaders are as follows: The New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Indianapolis Colts, and the Kansas City Chiefs. Jacksonville is tied with the Colts, record-wise and San Diego is only a game back of the Chiefs. The Baltimore Ravens are 1/2 game back of the Steelers in the standings in the AFC North.

The NFC shakes out like this. The divisional leaders are the Philadelphia Eagles, the Chicago Bears, the Atlanta Falcons, and the St. Louis Rams. The Bears have clinched their division, while their bunk mates, the Packers and the Vikings—the two teams that were supposed to duke it out for the Black and Blue Division—are slumping toward elimination altogether.

The ridiculous West Division is lead by two 6–8 teams, the Rams and the Seattle Seahawks. This may well be the first time in NFL history that a team in a non-strike season wins a division with a losing record.

The New Orleans Saints and the New York Giants seem to be the best bet to secure wild card spots in the NFC.

So, who will win Super Bowl XLV?

I do not know. Check back with me after week 17, when the playoffs are set and I will give you my fool-proof predictions. Not one minute sooner.

Sorry. This Super Bowl prediction business is tougher than it looks. Odds are the current odds will be different before this day is done.

I like to hedge my bet by at least knowing who the contestants will be; therefore, I will give my predictions when the playoff picture is set, thank you very much.

The one sad thing I know with absolute certainty is this: it will not be the Dallas Cowboys. To the heart that pumps silver and blue blood, that is a tough pill to swallow.

No. This is not a crack pipe in my hand. No. I am not delusional, deranged or mentally deficient, despite any testimony to the contrary by anyone who knows me well.

I know that, since the NFL went to the current playoff formula, only five in 1,345,277 one-and-four teams have made the playoffs. (OK, so the second half of that formula is a bit exaggerated, but the first half is accurate. Only five teams have done it.) The Dallas Cowboys ought to make it six just because they can.

Yes, they can. Moreover, they can win the NFC East outright. Here is why. And here is how.

Why the Cowboys can still win their division:

1. Because the division is weak. No one is poised to run away with the NFC East. Philadelphia is still trying to figure out whether Michael Vick or Kevin Kolb gives them the best chance to win. Just yesterday, they blew a comfortable eight-point lead against the Tennessee Titans and were ultimately blown out, 37-19. Washington is trending upward, but that team needs a year to marinade in the Shanahan success sauce. The New New York Giants remain unconvincing.
2. Because the NFC is a mess of middle-of-the-road teams. No one but no one in the NFC has asserted themselves through the first seven weeks of league play. Some thought to be the strongest contenders, like Dallas and the Minnesota Vikings, have suffered massive implosions, while others, like the New Orleans Saints, have just stumbled along with a win here and a loss there. Did the Cleveland Browns really dismantle the defending champs in the Super Dome yesterday?
3. Because the only thing this Dallas Cowboys team seems to respond to is desperation. Witness their one win in Houston. After an 0-2 start, the Boys felt like they were on the ropes. So, what did they do? They went to Houston, a place where the fans and the football team hate them with the kind of hatred only jealousy can produce, hate them for being to Texas everything neither of their franchises ever could, and tanned their hides.
4. Because, if they don’t, Jerry Jones will be forced to fire the coach who acts more like a favorite uncle than a football coach, and they will have to actually work for a living.

How the Cowboys can still win the NFC East:

1. Romo! Romo! Wherefore art thou, Romo? While some people who may well be crack-smokers think Romo is more on the problem side of the equation than  the answer side, football minds know better. This guy can do things few others can. He has the skill set and the mindset to be a champion, if he is put in a position  to succeed by his offensive coordinator and his offensive line. While Romo remains a lightening rod for heated debate among fans, he is widely recognized by NFL players and analysts as a rare talent, a franchise quarterback. If ever there were a time for him to step up to the challenge, that time is now.
2. Beat your bunkmates. The Cowboys have lost four games they could— and probably should— have won. Lucky for them, only one of those games was against a division opponent. They lost in week one in Washington. They still have the Redskins at home, and they still have two games each against the Eagles and the Giants. To win the division at this point, the Boys need to sweep these games.
3. Stop the tom-foolery. The penalties and turn-overs have to stop now. A serious championship contender cannot lead the league in penalties. Nor will they be careless with the ball. Self-destruction has put you where you are. It will keep you there, if you don’t stop now.
4. Begin tonight. The Monday Night Football stage is set. You face a hated-but-vulnerable division opponent on a national stage. Come out and play solid football, dominate the Giants, score a big division win, put yourself just a game and a half out of the division lead, and regain your confidence. (Leave the swagger to someone else. 2-4 teams are still closer to “stagger” than “swagger.” Just do your business.)

We keep hearing that there are 1-4 teams and then there are the the Dallas Cowboys. A win tonight against the New York Giants will go a long way toward substantiating the general feeling that this Dallas team is better than their record.

A loss, on the other hand, may bring Dandy Don Meredith out of retirement just long enough to sing a bar or two of “Turn out the lights, the party’s over.”

Next Year's Champs?

Before the wild card round, I wrote an article predicting Super Bowl XLIV would feature the San Diego Chargers and the Dallas Cowboys. After the wild card round, with San Diego home cooling their heels and the Cowboys summarily dismissing the Philadelphia Eagles 34-14, my prognostication skills were looking quite strong.

Then came the divisional round of the NFL playoffs.

It wasn’t really surprising that the Minnesota Vikings beat the Cowboys. They do, after all, have a very strong team featuring two of the best offensive players in the entire league and a defense that led the league in sacks. The game figured to be a great match up—perhaps the best of the entire playoffs. As the number three seed, The Cowboys’ road to the Super Bowl was sure to be fraught with difficulty…and nowhere would that be more apparent than in the Mall of America Dome, where the home team had been a perfect 8-0 during the regular season.

I said as much, even as I made my bold prediction.

I wasn’t surprised when I turned out to be wrong about the Cowboys beating the Vikings. I was surprised—mortified, even—when the game ceased to even be competitive somewhere in the third quarter. A 34-3 pasting I did not see coming. Did anyone whose face wasn’t painted purple last Sunday make that call?

Okay. So, my home team Cowboys didn’t hold up their end of the bargain. It would not be a Cowboys – Chargers Super Bowl. I could still be half right. Right?

Wrong. The Chargers lost in a stunning upset to a Jets’ team that features one of the league’s best defenses and one of its most predictable, vanilla, close-to-the-vest offenses, not to mention a rookie quarterback. The 17-14 setback marked the second time in three years under Turner the Chargers had plowed through the regular season (they were 14-2 in 2007 and 13-3 this year) only to lose at the first opportunity in the playoffs.

Cowboys fans and Chargers fans are left with very similar circumstances. Norv Turner is 32-16 with three division titles  in his three seasons at the helm in San Diego. His team has won three playoff games, but has been unable to climb to the top of Mount Victory and claim a Super Bowl spot. The Cowboys, meanwhile, are 33-15 during those same three years under coach Wade Phillips. They have won two division titles…and exactly one playoff game.

Norv Turner was rewarded a three-year contract extension before Chargers’ fans could even get down a bottle of Pepto Bismol to settle their stomachs. After making a questionable decision to onside kick, leaving his team with their backs against the wall and the clock tick-tocking away, Chargers’ management wasted no time rubber-stamping him.

Lee “Hacksaw” Hamilton, San Diego radio personality and columnist for the San Diego News Network, wrote in a column for the SDNN,

It may be as appalling a loss as there is in franchise history. Yes, Steve Young threw six touchdown passes in the 49ers Super Bowl rout in 1995.

But this may surpass that and possibly equal a horrific loss during the Dan Fouts-Air Coryell era, when Vernon Perry picked off four passes in a 1979 home playoff loss to the Houston Oilers by the same 17-14 margin.

Across the Blogosphere, San Diego fans have been incredulous over Turner’s extension. He had a year left on his contract, but ownership sent a “we are satisfied” message by inking him to a new deal.

Meanwhile, back on the ranch, Jerry Jones has taken his sweet time doing the inevitable; namely, picking up the option on Phillips’ contract. Cowboys Nation is holding its collective breath, hoping it is just that and not some new, long-term deal that will keep the the Pillsbury Cowboy here into perpetuity.

Opinions vary sharply on the wisdom of keeping Phillips, but there seems to be a hefty majority in the Dallas media that takes the view that he probably gives the team the best chance to make a run next year. It is the old, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” adage. (Of course, even if it is broken, Wade calls himself “Mr. Fix-It.)

The wisdom of keeping Turner and Phillips will not be known until we have the benefit of hindsight. Are they like the hot high school cheerleader that gave you just enough hope to keep you carrying her lunch tray? Are they Super Bowl teases? Or, are they the real thing?

Whatever they are, Turner and Phillips must each be drunk with delight over the confidence their respective owners have shown in them.

The teams’ fans, on the other hand, are just drunk. Less than a week ago, the Cowboys and Chargers were hot picks to make a run to Super Bowl XLIV. By Sunday evening, Dallas fans were stunned, having helplessly witnessed  a Little Big Horn type massacre in Minnesota. San Diego fans were stung by another unexpected upset playoff loss. In Sunny Southern California and in Big D,  Super Bowl Fever has given way to a slumped-shouldered stupor. Glazed-over eyes. Blank stares. Slack jaws. Wrenching guts.

Maybe next year.

Random addendum: How strong would a coaching staff be that featured, say, a Jimmy Johnson as head coach and Norv and Wade as the team’s coordinators? Just day-dreaming.

Old School still schooling the Kid

Just when I am reluctantly purchasing my ticket for the Keep-Wade Phillips-Around-Another-Year bandwagon, he reminds me why I hate myself for even thinking such a thing.

With the game still young, the offense moving the ball rather effectively, and the scoreboard clear of points, Ol’ Wade coached scared and stupid, sending in Sean Suisham to attempt a 48 yard field goal with the ball on the Vikings’ 31 yard line and only a yard shy of a crucial first down. Remember, this same Suisham is a former Cowboys’ castoff, a 2009 Redskins’ castoff, and a late-season addition to the team. He is not Mr. Clutch. Heck, I doubt whether he could even find the clutch in a standard-shift car.

Predictably, the oft-traveled, never-money kicker sent the ball wide of the upright and, consequently, sent Minnesota onto the field with excellent field position and a little wind in their sails.

On a day when you are playing against Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson, Sidney Rice, a disruptive defense, and one million (at least that is how it sounds in that tiny dome) rabid purple-bleeding fans, touchdowns are sure to be at a premium. Momentum and sustained drives are sure to be important elements of success.

At the moment Phillips sent the kicker out, I angrily changed my FaceBook status to, “Completely retarded decision by Phillips to kick a field goal. A fireable offense.”

I stand by that status.

Jerry Jones won’t make it official until tomorrow, but all indications are that he will pick up the option on Phillips’ contract for next season. Maybe that is the best available option. Even if it is, that doesn’t change the fact that the man remains a world-class underachiever who takes refuge in his successes and shirks all responsibility for his failure. If he ever said, “This one is on me,” after a loss, I am sure it would immediately bring on a nuclear winter or some other post-apocalyptic state.

The Cowboys will enter next season with a good team, a great defense (and thank you, Wade, for that), two good coordinators (counting the head coach, of course)…and Wade Phillips still trying to prove he can do more than put up impressive regular season numbers followed by a wilting postseason showing.

I am not saying the Cowboys win the game if Wade makes the proper call on that fourth and one. I am not even saying the Cowboys definitely get that yard. Recent history suggests maybe they don’t.

I am just saying that it is one more minute piece of evidence that some men are meant to be outstanding Sergeants, because they make little more than mediocre Generals.

High Noon. Be there!

Everyone knows that long before he packed his bags and took that boyish grin to Dallas, Tony Romo was a Wisconsin boy, a cheese head. Everyone knows he idolized the Green Bay Packers great, Brett Favre. Everyone knows that, in today’s NFL, there is no other quarterback whose game more closely resembles Favre’s than Tony Romo’s.

Everyone knows that Favre is the master and Romo is the pupil.

Now, in the divisional round of the 2010 NFL playoffs, generations clash. The old gunslinger comes face to face with the young gun. One has more than a few notches in his gun belt; the other is gunnin’ for him. The two meet at high noon (Central time) to settle once and for all (or at least for now) who gets to wear the stetson to the NFC championship.

The perception is that Favre has the upper hand based on all of his postseason success compared to what is perceived to be Romo’s inept playoff performances prior to last Saturday.

Perception, however, is one thing. Fact is quite often another thing entirely.

Post-Super Bowl MVP Favre isn’t all that in the playoffs.

Bob Sturm of KTCK (the Ticket) in Dallas shared a rather eye-opening look at Favre’s postseason play. There is a distinct difference in Favre’s postseason performances—and record—leading up to the Super Bowl loss to the Denver Broncos in 1998 and his playoff performances thereafter.

Early Favre,as we will call it, had a postseason record of 7-3. He was the Super Bowl MVP in ’97, when his Packers trounced the New England Patriots, 35-21. During the early Favre period, he threw 23 touchdowns and only nine interceptions in postseason play. He had a quarterback rating of 94.1.

Beginning with the Super Bowl loss to New England, we enter the period we will call Vintage Favre. It is hard to believe that you can cut the man’s career in two parts and either part would be a nice long run for a human playing the position. However, this man is hardly human.

So, how does the wizened veteran playoff Favre compare to the young and coming Favre? Not that well. Beginning with that Super Bowl loss in 1998, Favre’s postseason record is a paltry 3-7, meaning his team has won just 30 percent of those games. Moreover, Favra has thrown 19 touchdowns and 19 interceptions during this period. His quarterback rating has averaged 84.0.

Strictly by the numbers, it is certainly preferred to play Vintage Favre rather than Early Favre is you want to beat him.

That said, the 2009 season has been nothing short of miraculous. Brett has shattered all the preconceptions about the effects of age on a quarterback’s skills. At age 40, he has posted perhaps the best year of his career. Never has he thrown fewer interceptions in a season (seven). Only three times has he thrown more touchdowns than the thirty-three he posted this season. And for the first time in his career, he finished with a quarterback rating over 100 (107.2 for the season).

His team started off 6-0 and finished 12-4, good enough for the second seed, a first-week bye in the playoffs, and the privilege of hosting the match against the Sensei’s understudy.

Tony Romo is better in the playoffs than you think.

Obviously, Romo doesn’t have anywhere close to the history of a Favre to unravel. Who does?

Romo only just completed his third full season at the helm. In these three years and change, he has guided his team to the playoffs three times and won the tough NFC East division title twice.

With so few playoff games under his belt, it is not much trouble to break down each to see how Romo performed.

In 2006, against Seattle, in a very hostile environment (remember the 12th man), Romo completed 17 of 29 passes for 189 yards. He threw for one touchdown and had no interceptions. He posted a quarterback rating of 89.6. Additionally, Romo drove his team down the field in the waning moments of the fourth quarter, setting them up for a chip shot field goal that would have won the game.

Everyone remembers the mishandled snap. Everyone remembers Romo dropping the ball, picking it up, scrambling for the end zone, and being tackled just short. It is the play most associated with Tony Romo in the playoffs, and the reason so many want to apply the choker tag to him.

That’s fine. Just don’t forget that Romo the quarterback played well enough to win a tough game in hostile conditions. Romo the holder let him down. Seattle won 21-20.

In 2008, against the Giants, Romo completed 18 of 36 passes for 201 yards. He threw one touchdown and one interception. His quarterback rating was a pedestrian 64.7. Still, at game’s end, he was throwing into the end zone for the win. It didn’t work out. He was picked off, his team lost 21-17, and the choke collar was tightened.

Now, we come to 2010 and the wild card round of the playoffs. This one is fresh in our memories, isn’t it? The Cowboys thrashed their division nemesis the Philadelphia Eagles 34-14. Romo was 23 of 35 for 244 yards. He threw for two touchdowns, no interceptions and had a 104.9 QB rating.

Through his first three playoff games, Romo has a 1-2 record (33%). He has thrown four touchdowns against just one interception. And he has posted an average rating of 86.4.

This showdown could be one for the ages.

If you compare Vintage favre with Early Romo, a slight edge goes to the kid in winning percentage, quarterback rating, and touchdown-to-interception ratio.

What does all of this mean?

Come Sunday, not much.

If one of these guys has a meltdown, his team loses. Both of them, however, have the hot hand. So, let’s say they each continue to play well. They keep their mistakes to a minimum and finish with similar numbers. What then is the deciding factor?

The answer: The running game, defense, and special teams.

Neither the master nor the pupil seems to have a distinct upper hand going into this contest. Neither will be able to win the game by himself. But one of them will win. If it is the master, then his legend is furthered. If it is the pupil, perhaps a legend is born.

The matter will be settled, like all such matters should, at high noon, with guns a-blazin’.

Choice run

I am sure NBC’s stellar broadcast crew hoped for a better game to close out Chris Collinsworth’s inaugural season in the catbird seat. They would have loved a nail-biter, a classic, one for the ages.

They didn’t get a nail-biter or a classic. They did get one for the ages. They got the game that finally put an end to so many sorry moments and haunting memories for the Dallas Cowboys, their coach, their quarterback, their owner, and their fans. They got the game that made the D in Dallas big again.

So, welcome to Big D, where the D stands for…

Determination

All year, there was a different look and feel about this team. Stung by his post-game comments a year ago, after his team suffered one of the most humiliating losses in team history— a 44-6 rout at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles— when he said, “If this is the worst thing that ever happens to me, I have had a pretty good life,” Tony Romo changed his tune.

Apparently, Romo went to the Troy Aikman school of athlete-speak. Remember how vanilla and bland Aikman’s responses to media questions were when he was a player? It was one cliche after another. It was enough to make you wonder at Fox giving him a color analyst job, once he retired. Then, we learned, after his playing days were done and he no longer shouldered the burden of the highest profile position in professional football, Aikman actually does have a personality…and opinions…and poignant observations.

Romo kept his focus on the team, its improvement, and its march toward excellence. If he used the word “improve” once this year, he used it seventy-five billion times. No matter what the question, his answer was, “We just need to keep improving, keep getting better, and we will be alright.”

“Hey, Tony, what is your favorite color?”

“We just have to execute. Continue to improve.”

“Hey, Tony, how is the love life since you dumped Jessica Simpson?”

“We just have to execute. Continue to improve.”

“Hey Tony, what did you get for Christmas?”

“We just have to execute. Continue to improve.”

That single-minded purpose was echoed throughout the locker room, and on both sides of the ball. This team had something to prove, and they were determined to prove it.

They were also determined to stick together. None of the “me-ness” that permeated the Terrell Owens infected locker room of a year ago. No sniping. No whining about playing time or ball distribution or play-calling. No pointing fingers. Even the NFL’s emerging star at the wide receiver position, Miles Austin, resisted the selfishness so commonly associated with his position and kept it all about the team.

Desperation

When the Cowboys reached that 8-5 mark, after losing consecutively to the San Diego Chargers and New York Giants, faced with the ominous task of going to New Orleans to play an undefeated Saints’ team, they could have folded. Many in the Dallas media predicted they would not win another game. They would fall to 8-8 and miss the playoffs. Wade Phillips would be fired, and rightfully so. Romo would be fitted with the choke collar. Jerry Jones would be brutalized in the media. And Cowher or Shanahan or Gruden or somebody would mount the white steed and ride in to save the day.

That could have happened. But it didn’t. It didn’t because this team became urgent, desperate even. They were not ready to be counted down, let alone out. They set their jaws, defied the odds, baffled the pundits, and man-handled the Saints. Then they shut out the Redskins. Then they zip-locked the Eagles.

Then they donned the celebratory NFC East Champions ball caps on the sideline, and some said, “Uh oh. They are celebrating too soon. They think this is Mission Accomplished. They are setting themselves up for disaster.”

Nope! That desperation hit the field again on Saturday night. Like the Bubonic Plague it spread its fever through the team and into the stands. The team played like their hair was on fire. The fans screamed, yelled, taunted, cheered, jeered, and foamed at the mouth. They had the fever, but it was only lethal to the Eagles, who remained cold and lifeless in the face of…

Domination

If it weren’t for the Cowboys, the Eagles would have been at home this week, resting and game-planning for their first postseason contest next week. If it weren’t for the Cowboys, the Eagles would be the second seed in the NFC. If it weren’t for the Cowboys, the Eagles would be flying high right now, rather than soul-searching and arguing over whether McNabb should be finished in Philly.

The Eagles were a high-flying, scoring machine in 2009. They were ranked fifth in the league, and would have ranked much higher, if it wasn’t for the nasty little detail of having to play their division nemesis the Dallas Cowboys twice. Against the Cowboys, the Eagles scored a grand total of 30 points in three games. That is ten points per game, or 2.5 points per quarter. They were shut out once. They were dominated thrice.

In the Cowboys 34-14 whipping of the Eagles, they dominated McNabb, holding him to a passer rating of 68.5, sacking him four times, and confusing him all night long. They dominated the Eagles’ running game, holding it to 56 yards on 13 carries. They dominated the prolific Tweeter and game-breaker DeSean Jackson, shutting him down in the first half and holding him to a grand total of 14 yards on three catches, including one meaningless, too-little-too-late  touchdown. They dominated Philly’s blitz-happy defense, gashing it for 198 yards on the ground, another 244 through the air, and four touchdowns.

The Cowboys also dominated the Eagles in one other area: coaching. I know it seems unlikely, but three out of three times, Wade Phillips and his staff outmaneuvered, out-flanked, and flat out-coached the venerable Andy Reid and his staff of geniuses.

Yep. The “D” is big in Dallas again. For years, it stood for “doubt,” “disappointment,” “delusion,” and “damn.” Now it stands for “defense,” “delight,” and (Dare I say it?)…DESTINY.

Big is the way the “D” is meant to be.

Welcome home, Big D.

A Father-Son Moment

Raise your hand if you have ever dog-cussed Jason Garrett or said Wade Phillips should be fired (or worse).

God bless you. I see that hand. Yes, and yours too. Oh, and yours, way back in the corner. And yes…my hand is raised, as well. Guilty. All over the vast expanse of Jerry’s magnificent, shiny football Mecca, hands are raised.

Four weeks ago, when the Cowboys were fresh off stumbling into December with back-to-back losses to the San Diego Chargers and the New York Giants, most who bleed silver and blue were sighing, cussing, cramping, complaining, puking, bleeding out the ears…and convinced this team was going nowhere as long as Jerry Jones was the General Manager, Wade Phillips was the head coach, and Jason Garrett was the offensive coordinator.

My, how our tune has changed. Now, we have this 11-5 team that has, for the first time in the illustrious history of the franchise, shut out opponents in back-to-back games. Division opponents, no less. We have this team that is roaring into the playoffs by winning the final three games of the season, clinching a division title, and serving notice to the rest of the NFC that the Dallas Cowboys are a team you just don’t want any part of, thank you very much.

We know the what. But do we know why? Why did this team do what last year’s team could not? Why is the feeling around this team even better than in 2007, when they were 13-3? We always know who to blame for the failures around here. But whom do we credit for the success?

Glad you asked. I have some candidates. In fact, I have the top twelve people most responsible for this team’s turn-around. We could call them the Twelve Apostles of the About Face, or the Not-So-Dirty Dozen.

Here they are…

Number Twelve: Jason Witten

It isn’t that Witten wasn’t great last year. He was. He always is. But never has he been more clutch than this year. Whenever you absolutely, positively must have a first down, throw it to Witten. It usually works out. Just ask Tony Romo. When has a receiver only scored two touchdowns in a season and had a more positive impact on his team?

Number Eleven: Mike Jenkins

By the first week in the regular season, Wade Phillips had not been able to decide between Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick as to which one would start opposite Terrence Newman. Newman, it was assumed, was the best corner on the team, and one of these young guys would have to step up and claim that second spot. By season’s end, Jenkins had asserted himself as a Pro Bowl-caliber corner, the best on the team, and one of the better corners in the league.

Number Ten: DeMarcus Ware

Sure, Ware was phenomenal a year ago and probably should have been named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year. But what about this year? What about being carted off the field one week on a stretcher and coming back the next to get two sacks, force two turnovers, and seal the victory over the previously undefeated Saints? DeMarcus on the field makes every other Cowboys defender’s job easier.

Number Nine: Jay Ratliff

He is too small to be a nose tackle. He is also too quick, too tenacious, and too talented to be handled by most centers or guards or centers plus guards. The Ratliff motor is always humming. He creates havoc and helps set a tone for Phillips’ aggressive 3-4 defense.

Number Eight: The Offensive Line

They play so well as a unit, may as well treat them as one. From tackle to tackle, the Cowboys’ line has done a superb job of protecting the quarterback and gashing defenses for one of the league’s most potent ground attacks. Even when Marc Colombo, who was playing lights out, went down, the line never missed a beat. They plugged in Doug Free, and he has been more than serviceable as a replacement. (Witness the block Free threw forty yards downfield on Felix Jones’ 49-yard scamper last Sunday.)

Number Seven: Anthony Spencer

Did anyone else notice that Peter King selected both Spencer and DeMarcus Ware for his All-Pro team? And why not? Spencer has been a force, a monster, a whirling dervish, disrupting plays, harassing passers, corralling runners, and complementing Ware so well that no one misses Greg Ellis for a minute. Spencer had 50 tackles, 17 assists, six sacks, two forced fumbles, and an interception during the 2009 regular season.

But numbers only tell part of the story. Anyone watching the Cowboys this year saw how Spencer influenced plays on almost every series.

Number Six: Keith Brooking

Brooking did not crack the Pro Bowl lineup in 2009, but he became the heart and soul of the Dallas Cowboys defense. He was the spiritual leader. His on-field play was as effective and impressive as the leadership he provided. Without Brooking, the Cowboys defense is a very different unit altogether.

Number Five: Miles Austin

Roy Williams was supposed to be the guy here. He got the fat contract. He cost the team all those draft picks. He was going to pick up the slack for the departed Terrell Owens. Right?

Wrong.

Miles Austin began the season as the number three receiver. But in Kansas City, with Williams hurt, he asserted himself, had one of the best days ever for a Cowboys receiver and began his dash to the Pro Bowl. He has been the big-time receiver, making the big plays at crunch time, torching defenses, snatching balls from the grasp of defensive backs, shaking off would-be tacklers, running past people, running over people.

Austin has done everything Owens did and managed to remain a team player. Imagine that.

Number Four: Jason Garrett

Granted, third down or fourth down and a yard to go has been a bit of a sticky wicket. Sure, the point production (ranked 14th in the league)  isn’t on par with the yardage this team racks up (second most in the NFL). But have you not seen steady—and marked—improvement in this offense over the course of the year?

No longer saddled with the burden of getting the ball to T.O., whether it makes sense to do so or not, Garrett has devised a sophisticated offense that features a dynamite running game and a lethal passing attack. If he could just make those catches for Roy Williams and Martellus Bennett, he would be the genius he was touted to be a couple years ago.

Number Three: Wade Phillips

Yes. You read that right. I said Wade Phillips. I know I have been a rather vocal critic of the man. I dislike plenty of things about his leadership style. But you cannot argue with the results. The man has won 68% of the games he has coached in Dallas (record: 33-15). He has now won two division titles in three years. He has put together a defense that is on the best roll of any team going into the postseason.

And his players believe in him. They genuinely like him. They want to win for him. (Of course, if they really like him and want to keep him around, they might try winning at least one more game, just to be safe.)

Number Two: Tony Romo

From the first time he stepped on the field as the team’s starter, Romo has shown flashes of utter brilliance. He has made plays few others could have made. Unfortunately, he was also prone to making the worst possible mistakes at the worst possible times, costing his team scoring chances, giving up points to opposing defenses, and contributing to the team’s failure to achieve postseason success.

But Tony has turned a corner. He has gotten his gun-slinger propensity under control, and he has done so without diminishing his play-making prowess. Consider that in 2009, he threw for more yards—4,483—than ever before. He threw just nine interceptions, after having thrown 13, 19, and 14 the previous three seasons.  He threw 26 touchdown passes this year and finished with a quarterback rating of 97.6, his highest ever.

More importantly, he has asserted himself as the undisputed leader of the offense.

Number one: Jerry and Stephen Jones

I picked Jerry Jones number one because this season’s success was predicated on his off-season moves. It was, far and away, Jerry’s best off-season for signing the right players and cutting the right ones loose.

I include Stephen because word has it that it was Stephen Jones who convinced daddy to cut ties with T.O. It was not an easy decision for Jerry Jones to make, not an easy thing to do. Not just because of his own ego, but because, I believe, he genuinely had a warm feeling for the receiver.

Jones did it. he pulled the trigger and Terrell Owens, PacMan Jones, and Tank Johnson were— *poof* —gone. Equally important, he let Greg  Ellis, the so-called team leader who had become a broken record for whining about his contract and generally sowing discord on the team, go.

Then, Jones set about signing key people. He got Igor Olshansky to replace Christ Canty, the departed defensive end overpaid by the Giants. He signed Gerald Sensabaugh to shore up the defensive backfield, which had long been vulnerable due to the diminishing skills of safety Roy Williams. Best of all, he signed Keith Brooking, the five-time Pro Bowler who still had plenty in his tank…and the kind of salt and savvy this team so desperately needed in a locker room leader.

Sure, there is the whole Roy Williams (the receiver) debacle. But wasn’t it Jones who first told us that Miles Austin would be the deep threat the team needed in Terrell Owens’ absence? Didn’t we giggle…or snicker…or roll our collective eyes?

Wasn’t he right?

He’s been right about a good many things lately. And that is a good thing for a team that has been all wrong for way too long.