What Is and What It Takes To Change

[Hostile]

The thread title keeps this song stuck in my head every time I notice it.

Led Zeppelin, What Is and What Should Never Be

And if I say to you tomorrow. Take my hand, child, come with me.
It's to a castle I will take you, where what's to be, they say will be.

Catch the wind, see us spin, sail away, leave today, way up high in the sky.
But the wind won't blow, you really shouldn't go, it only goes to show
That you will be mine, by takin' our time.

And if you say to me tomorrow, oh what fun it all would be.
Then what's to stop us, pretty baby. But What Is And What Should Never Be.

Catch the wind, see us spin, sail away, leave today, way up high in the sky.
But the wind won't blow, you really shouldn't go, it only goes to show
That you will be mine, by takin' our time.

So if you wake up with the sunrise, and all your dreams are still as new,
And happiness is what you need so bad, girl, the answer lies with you.

Catch the wind, see us spin, sail away, leave today, way up high in the sky.
But the wind won't blow, you really shouldn't go, it only goes to show
That you will be mine, by takin' our time.

Oh the wind wont blow and we really shouldn't go and it only goes to show.
Catch the wind, we're gonna see it spin, we're gonna...sail, leave today
do do do, bop bop a do-oh, my my my my my my yeah.
Everybody I know seems to know me well
but they're never gonna know that I move like hell.

*****

Just like the song says, if happiness is what you need so bad, it lies with you. If you can only be happy when this team wins Super Bowls then the vast majority of your life is going to be miserable. I guess thank the stars you aren't a Lions fan.

I don't really understand that mentality at all. That tells me that I can only be proud of 5 seasons in my 42 years of enjoying this team, and only 2 of Landry's 29 years.

Well, that isn't reality. The reality is I am very proud to be a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. I think it is the signature franchise in all of sports. Yes, the America's Team nickname means other teams want to beat us worse than any other team. Makes it all the sweeter when they can't and don't.

I find happiness in the players on our team that I can admire. Guys that I don't mind telling a child they can look up to. Football for me is a pleasant distraction from the stress of life. Win or lose I am a football fan because I enjoy the game. I'd rather win same as anyone who is a fan, but I refuse to let wins or losses affect those round me and that includes on the forums I haunt.

I don't believe my wife can tell you whether Dallas won or lost when I emerge from the shadows on game day. If your loved ones have to avoid you after a bad game then I feel very sorry for them, and you. That's not healthy.

Perhaps I am spoiled by our past success in a different way. Some are spoiled into thinking there is a birthright to success for the Cowboys. I am spoiled in that I have so much rich History to enjoy. I do enjoy this team. I enjoy our past. I enjoy looking forward to the future of this team with some improvements and returns from injury. And I enjoy where they are and what they are doing right now.

I am proud to wear Dallas Cowboys stuff and to show the world this is my team. I was proud to do it in 1989 when we were 1-15, proud to do it when we won Super Bowls, and everything in between those 2 extremes.

Yep, the answer lies with you. I don't owe you happiness. You don't owe me happiness. If you want to be happy, you will be. If you want to be miserable, you will be. If that's what you choose to be, good for you. Just don't expect me to come along for your journey. I got a better horse to ride on a better trail with a better view and I'm going to enjoy the ride.

Merry Christmas Cowboys fans.

[junk]

Originally Posted by Dodger12

If this team wins the next 2 games, it may not change the fact that we're too flawed to win in the playoffs. But I think it brings a bit of validation to the "direction" this team may be headed.

I never bought into the theory that we're in some type of mystical rebuilding mode. You have a franchise QB and one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. You have an up and coming LT and two quality CB's. That should be a very solid foundation and you should be competitive.

[View Full Quote]I never thought we'd win the SB every year. But in our hey days, we had as good a shot as anyone. Making the playoffs was really not in question. We were in the hunt and there's not a whole lot more you can ask. The game sometimes hangs on luck/great play (the catch, botched Romo hold, etc.), the right call under the right set of circumstances (Troy to Harper, the Hail Mary, etc.). Way too many variables that can affect the outcome of any game, let alone a one and done playoff game. BUT, we always had next year and I was confident we'd be right back in it. I always had faith that the issues would be identified, addressed and fixed. That's the one thing I've lost faith in outside of when Jimmy and BP were here during Jerry's ownership.

I've seen this same scenario play out under Jerry in recent years. This HC and meddling owner need to show me. They need to show me that they won't fold again under another win and you're in scenario. They need to show me that they can fix the OL and bring in youth and re-stock, via the draft. They need to show me that JG's philosophy works because right now, I'm skeptical. I've been teased before only to be let down in recent years. Show me....talk is cheap.

I firmly believe that anything can happen in the playoffs, both good and bad (see 13 and 3 season). But we need to get there to have a shot and after starting 3 and 5, that would be a monumental accomplishment, especially if we finish 10 and 6 and especially after all the injuries and OL play. 10 and 6 should also prove to all of us just how valuable Romo is to this franchise.

This is a great post.

You aren't going to win year in and year out. However, you need to put yourself in the best position you can to try to win year in and year out. That's why I harp on the Dallas front office. I don't believe that it is structured to do that.

I still don't know what to think about this team. The last two games will tell us a lot. If they fall on their face, like they have in past years, it will be pretty frustrating. But this team is playing hard and scraping through some wins in the face of a lot of adversity. I like that and I hope it continues.

There is still a lot of work to do in the offseason, but the team is 3-0 in December and playing hard. I just hope this little win streak doesn't make the front office think the team is closer than it is and gives them excuse to not make the moves that need to be made.

[Omegasupreme]

Originally Posted by junk

This is a great post.

You aren't going to win year in and year out. However, you need to put yourself in the best position you can to try to win year in and year out. That's why I harp on the Dallas front office. I don't believe that it is structured to do that.

I still don't know what to think about this team. The last two games will tell us a lot. If they fall on their face, like they have in past years, it will be pretty frustrating. But this team is playing hard and scraping through some wins in the face of a lot of adversity. I like that and I hope it continues.

There is still a lot of work to do in the offseason, but the team is 3-0 in December and playing hard. I just hope this little win streak doesn't make the front office think the team is closer than it is and gives them excuse to not make the moves that need to be made.

I agree with you Junk, that post by Dodger12 was a realistic view of empirical optimism. The last two games showed a push but we have to see if the results were more circumstantial or volitional (the Cincy game seems circumstantial). Maybe the Pitt game was something Copernican for JG: he had an urgency and an attack in his offense to get the ball out quickly on passing plays and lateral stampedes on running plays.

Sometimes teams find their identities during a season and a certain chemistry begins to redefine the team. For me, if this quick, short pass offense that happened in the Steeler game is the new identity, then even if Dallas loses the last few games, I see momentum that could be carried into next year. But with Garrett there is tendency to regress into a rigid repeating of failing plays as if he is determined to prove that his playcalling is justified. The second Giant game, the Falcon game, and the Redskin game come to mind. Even the second Eagle game, the Browns, Carolina, and Bucs games were not close to the obvious relentless strategy in the Pitt game.

I think back to the post-game interview with Don Shula after he put Dan Marino in for the first time. He just said to the press "Woooooooooooooo. Did you see that?". The funny thing is the Dolphins lost the game but something new happened with that offense to produce optimism for Shula. Hoping the Steeler game was our "Wooooooooooooooooo. Did you see that?"

[Gameover]

Signing 30+ Wes Welker would be all time dumb.

Cowboys have as much talent as any team in the league.

This fact will become evident over the next month!

[Misanthrope]

TD3 is still as long winded as ever.

This team lost half of its defense to injuries. The fact they're still in contention is remarkable.