The shelf life of this franchise's fame

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Interesting article from Buck Harvey in San Antonio yesterday questioning just how long this mediocre team can remain popular. I know many people wanted the Niners to lose due to the Super Bowl count, but I'm not sure how anyone can reasonably expect Dallas to be bad for close to 20 years and other teams just to pause and wait on us to get better in the meantime. Here are some highlights from the article:

How many years of losing will it take, after all, for the Cowboys to lose this kind of nationwide devotion?

The Cowboys should be nearing that already, since they have won just one postseason game in the past 16 seasons. The Ravens, in contrast, have now won nine in the last five.

The 49ers also put a dent in the Cowboys' stature. They didn't win Sunday and break their tie with Dallas and join the Steelers with six titles. But San Francisco became the 11th different NFC franchise to get to the Super Bowl since the Cowboys last did it.

Dallas' chief rival of the early '90s, the 49ers had gone away, too. They missed the playoffs from 2003-10. But they are back, and it appears they will stay back. Only five of the 49ers who started Sunday are in their 30s.

[View Full Quote]Then there's the NFC East. Isn't every team in their division more interesting than the Cowboys now? The Giants won the previous Super Bowl, the Eagles are starting over with Chip Kelly, and the Redskins merely have the league's newest sensation.

Despite all of that, however, the Cowboys remain a brand that consistently ranks behind only Manchester United as the world's most valuable sports property. Other various measures — from television ratings to fan polls — insist they are still the NFL's most popular team.

An example: Last season, the Harris Poll said the Cowboys ranked first in popularity for the fifth consecutive year.

Jones has propped up the aura with his stadium. But mostly, the Cowboys have become the Kardashians of the NFL — with no discernable talent, famous for being famous.

Watching along was the nation, and here's what should concern Jones and his Kardashian empire: Anyone younger than LeBron is wondering what the fuss is about the Cowboys.

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