The Cowboys Were Awful

I make that assessment solely on what I saw in the second half, as I completely missed the first. Interceptions and penalties were the order of the day (as has become typical of this team.) But two consecutive running plays for touchdowns in the 4th to seal the game...I don't even know what to say about that. The Cowboys, on two consecutive series, inexplicably gave up first a 75-yard running TD, and then an 82-yard running TD, two of the longest running plays that have been given up in team history, completely negating the effect of two late-game scores by T.O. and Witten that (both times) put the Cowboys within two points of the Ravens. These runs came AFTER an otherwise solid defensive effort (five sacks in the first half) that held the Ravens to 16 points. Amazingly, thanks to a Tampa Bay loss, the Cowboys can actually get into the playoffs with a win over Philadelphia on Sunday, though why we would want that to happen and thus have ourselves tortured by the possibility that the Cowboys could have some success in the playoffs only to have our hopes shattered, is beyond me. Unbelievable.

Incidentally, the game was broadcast on Saturday night (??) on the NFL Network. First of all, call me old-school but pro football doesn't belong on Saturday night television. Second, the NFL Network broadcast was terrible. I've written about this twice before, and although it's better than it was last year, I don't honestly understand why they can't find better color announcers than Deion Sanders and Marshall Faulk. It just goes to show that you can't take guys who played the game for years, and ostensibly understand it's nuances, and stick them in a booth and expect them to have anything remotely intelligent to say about the game. If you are the kind of person who likes to hear men loudly scream "This is what football on the NFL Network on Saturday night is all about!" after a good play, then you will enjoy the NFL Network. If not, then you are sane and normal human being.

Also, Saturday night was the last time the Dallas Cowboys played a game at Texas Stadium. The Cowboys loss in stunning fashion probably didn't help set the mood, but nonetheless the team forged on with a closing ceremony to say goodbye to the stadium with the big hole in the roof. By all accounts the ceremony was great live. On TV...not so much. Oh well.