We didn’t expect much of the SMU football team at the start of the 2008 season, but it’s safe to say we expected more than a 4-3 record from the Cowboys seven weeks in to the NFL season. Apparently, the Dallas Cowboys are not who we thought they were.
Head coach for the Cowboys, Wade Phillips, said after the St. Louis game, that was the worst game the team had played in his history of being with the program. We can only hope the remainder of the season doesn’t follow in suit.
As football season approached, fans and analysts all over the country placed their bets on who would win Super Bowl XLIII. And again, fantasy hopefuls and Vegas addicts selected the Cowboys roster to win with nothing more than three losses on the season. Three losses in four weeks doesn’t inspire much hope, though.
We weren’t expecting miracles from June Jones and the Mustangs, but one would think Tony Romo in his sixth NFL season along with Phillips’ experience could give us a few W’s. Yes, Phillips has failed to get his team to the Super Bowl, and has gone 0-4 in the post season, but at least he should have some experience and knowledge of what it takes to coach a winning team.
A perfect season was not part of the plan, but certainly an at home loss to the Washington Redskins and embarrassing performance in St. Louis was not either. Three games in, the Cowboys established themselves as top contenders for the NFC Division title. Now, fans are starting to take back their bets.
Yes, there are a multitude of injuries plaguing the Cowboy’s roster, but whether it be a broken pinky, injured hamstring or broken arm, champions aren’t supposed to provide excuses. Just for the record, the Cowboys do have 12 players listed on the DL, including Mat McBriar out for the season with a fractured foot, but only losers make excuses, right?
If the Cowboys are such an outstanding team that everyone expects to win Super Bowl XLIII, shouldn’t they have the reserves to replace an injured Romo or rehab-bound Adam “Pacman” Jones? It was a good move to pick up Roy Williams, but throwing him in a game on such short notice just created more drama on the field.
While Romo was rumored to play against the Rams last week, replacement quarterback Brad Johnson will remain as the Cowboy’s starting quarterback at least until after the team’s bye week on Nov. 9.
Fingers can be pointed in all directions, but the pressure coming from the team’s management to win now can’t possibly be helping the already stifled atmosphere. Strangling the players and coaches with threats of winning has never provided positive results, and from the looks of things it’s not going to have the desired effect with the Cowboys.
In 2007, the Cowboys finished 13-3. With nine games left in the season, there is still plenty of time to turn this team around. Dallas can’t handle another losing football team. If we don’t have the Mustangs to depend on, who else do we have if the Cowboys can’t pull themselves together and toss out a few more wins?
