Dallas Cowboys – On field victory, or Off field defeat?
The Dallas Cowboys are again considered the class of the NFC and possibly the entire NFL. This year’s team has already seen some bumps and bruises (like a loss to the Redskins) but it is still a very talented team. In my opinion, the Cowboys have more potential than any other team in the league. However, Jerry Jones has created a virtual three-ring circus with his players.
Off the field incidents might actually make the difference in this season. On paper, the Cowboys should roll all the way to a Super Bowl victory. In reality, they might be derailed by non-football issues. When it comes to the good things about the Cowboys, there is a lot to like. Without Tom Brady around, they have possibly the best quarterback in the league in Tony Romo. Romo has a poise about him that you don’t often find in quarterbacks.
It is especially rare when it comes to undrafted college free agents from Eastern Illinois. While Romo currently has thrown an interception in every game dating back to last year, he will usually make up for it. He’s usually good for at least two or three touchdown passes and 300 yards. He can be a little sporadic, but overall he’s pretty solid. It doesn’t exactly hurt to have an average of 5 minutes to throw the ball every time he drops back. The Cowboys offensive line is so good, Romo doesn’t even know what it’s like to face pressure. Even if he does occasionally get pressured, he scrambles around and has good poise in the pocket.
The running game has actually improved this year as well. Marion Barber has emerged as one of the top 5 backs in the league this year. In addition to that, the Boys used their first round pick on another running back, Felix Jones, from Jerry Jones’ alma mater. Felix is the big play threat that the Cowboys have been lacking and is a welcome addition to the offense. Already this year he has scored on a kickoff return as well as a few long runs. Look for his role to increase as the year goes on. The wide receiver group is led by the ultimate showman T.O. In my opinion, he’s the best wide receiver in the game today.
Randy Moss might give him some competition if he didn’t have Matt “I haven’t started a game since high school” Cassell throwing him the ball. T.O. likes to talk a lot of trash, but the difference between him and other wide receivers is that he actually backs it up on the field. The rest of the wide receiver core is nothing to write home about but they have solid options in Patrick Crayton and Miles Austin. Jason Witten is one of the best tight ends in the game and he has some wide receiver-like ability. He is Romo’s most reliable option when they get in the red zone.
The defense is solid but unspectacular. They are a little banged up at the moment, but they do feature some talent with newcomers Mike Jenkins and Adam “Pacman” Jones. Demarcus Ware is still a force to be reckoned with in the 3-4 defense and I like him a lot. Overall, their defense isn’t going to dominate anyone, but it’s solid enough to get the win most of the time. With a high-octane offense like the Cowboys boast, they really don’t have to be perfect. With all of that said, the Cowboys have a lot of drama off the field.
Last week, T.O. actually cried on the sidelines during the game. We later found out that he was emotional due to the loss of a family member. But still, T.O. always has something going on. The week before he was thrown to 18 times and didn’t think he got involved enough. The Cowboys also employ two former criminals in Tank Johnson and Pacman Jones. 
Tank has kept his business under control, but Pacman is another story. He earlier requested not to be called Pacman anymore, but to me, he’ll always be Pacman. His off-the-field issues have followed him everywhere he goes. Jerry Jones realized when he signed him that he had been involved in 12 different incidents with the law. This prompted him to hire a full-time bodyguard to watch Pacman wherever he goes.
Apparently even this isn’t enough to calm down Pacman because he recently had the police called on him for getting in a fight with his own bodyguard. If this isn’t ridiculous, I don’t know what is. As if having a man paralyzed wasn’t enough, Pacman is still going to cause trouble. Although Tony Romo is the golden boy on this team, he still contributes his share of distractions. That will happen when you are dating one of the most beautiful girls in the world, Jessica Simpson. Her presence at the games has coincided with a definite decline in Romo’s game. Last year they jaunted off to Mexico before a playoff game and Romo didn’t exactly play his best when they got back.
Whether or not Romo can keep his mind on the game long enough to win a Super Bowl remains to be seen. The Cowboys overall, are a very volatile team. They tend to play to the level of the competition a lot. One week they put up a ton of points on the Eagles on Monday Night Football. Another week, they barely squeak by the winless Bengals.
For all of the things that the Cowboys have going for them, they seem to have just as many obstacles to get over. Can they keep Pacman and T.O. under control long enough to not disrupt the team? Will Romo keep his mind on the game for the entire season? These questions remain to be seen. Ultimately, everything will be decided on the field and in my opinion, they are still the team to beat in the NFL.
They do have some great competition even in their own division, but ultimately, I think they’ll pull it out.
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