An Ugly Win For Sure

Well, it was a “W” but it wasn’t pretty. The Cowboys, in my mind, needed to go out yesterday and prove that the divisional home game they experienced last week, in which they were manhandled, beat up, out coached and out played in just about every way, was a fluke. In my mind, I assumed Dallas would have been pissed off enough to come out yesterday and do the same thing to the Bengals that the Deadskins did to them last week. I would have though they would have taken this opportunity to pummel a winless team and show everyone that last week’s loss was just an off week. I knew the Bengals would score some points but figured would whip Cincinnati despite the margin of victory (kind of like they did to Green Bay). However, that’s not how the game went.

Even though Dallas won yesterday 31-22, I think the biggest positive that can be taken, other than the “W” is the fact that the running game got back on track. I know I’m probably going to sound like the proverbial “the sky is falling” Dallas fan but I’m really not. Dallas started off, at home, with a 17-0 lead against a winless team and it seemed as if they would dominate Cincinnati into oblivion. However, that 17-point lead shriveled to one, and then Dallas had to break up a 2-point conversion that could’ve tied it midway through the fourth quarter. Dallas got the breathing room they needed only when a fluke play happened and a pass went through the hands of the intended receiver, Miles Austin, and landed in the hands of nearby Patrick Crayton, who was in the end zone. So, the ball bounced Dallas’ way, literally, and they got the win.

The thing I am concerned about is the way Dallas has played the last two weeks. I’m concerned because their play the past two weeks is eerily reminiscent of how they have played in December the past few years. The month of December the past several years has not been kind to the Cowboys. It has been characterized by unfocused, shoddy, lackluster play, mistakes, turnovers and a lack of urgency…all of which we have seen the past two weeks. There is no doubt in my mind that Dallas should be 5-0 if they played to the level they are capable of. They played that way when they played Cleveland, Filthadelphia and Green Bay. But where has that play gone the last two weeks? Yesterday, the Giants absolutely dismantled Seattle to the tune of 44-6. That is they type of performance Dallas needs to put up against the Cincinnati’s, Arizona’s and St. Louis’s of the world. That is the type of performance a Super Bowl contender will bring against obvious inferior teams.

The bottom line is that the team didn’t play well but still got the win, which is good. And who knows...maybe Dallas ran into a team that, while not as bad as their record would indicate, was absolutely desperate to get a win while the Cowboys were just trying to pace themselves through their long season. However, if Dallas plays the way they did yesterday in Arizona next week, they WILL get beat...there’s not a doubt in my mind. In fact, I thought Dallas was going to get beat yesterday. I sent a text message to a friend of mine, who is a Bengals fan, late in the 3rd quarter saying I wasn’t holding out much hope for Dallas winning the game because it looked like Cincinnati wanted the game more. They need to put these last two weeks in their rearview mirror, forget about them and move forward. I know there is a lot of teams, and fans (Cincinnati being one) that would love to be in Dallas position, 4-1. But the bar has been raised for the Cowboys and simply winning doesn’t make up for poor performance.

***I have several observations of this team over the past few weeks but instead of making this one really long post noting them all, I’ve decided to break this up over the next few days with a new observation for each day.