I think that is a little assumptious on your part Idgit...........if a fan logically thinks we will not make the playoffs, then said fan might think the best thing for his favorite team is to pick as high as possible in the draft. Said fan can be a die hard since childhood and logically have the ability to think outside of just the one game this week to determine what is best for his team.
Case in point, the Spurs totally sucked one year when David Robinson got hurt and ended up in the draft lottery and picked Tim Duncan. Now if the Spurs won a couple more games that year, they maybe could have snuck into the playoffs but they were not good enough to beat any of the good teams without David Robinson. Ergo, in hindsight it was much better for the Spurs not make the playoffs as a wildcard and instead have the chance to draft Tim Duncan and 4 championships later proves this. So if a Spur fan was rooting for his team to lose the last couple of weeks of the season, did that make him a bad fan?
You may question the logic or decision making, but questioning somebody's fandom because they think what might be best for the team might be short term pain for long term gain is pretty bad and closed minded in my opinion. You may disagree with the logic fans use, but to question anybody's fandom is crossing the line to be quite honest.
I know your reply was not directed at me, but I thought it was important to say this.
The thing is, the only way the team can pick higher in the draft is by losing football games. That puts that fan, by definition, in a position where they're rooting against their team. And, as bad as this year has been, it's rooting against a team that has a legitimate shot to advance in a lousy NFCE. And one that's actually got a chance of having Tony Romo back in time for the games that matter. We know that's unlikely, but that's not the point.
And for what? Are you sure we're going to draft better a few slots above where we otherwise might because the picks are higher? Take a look at the draft some time a few years down the road and see how many times the team with the highest pick has the best draft overall. Quick, who you got: Cam Newton or JJ Watt?
And even if you do get a hypothetically better fit for your team than you otherwise would, at what cost does it come? Are you losing all the games and firing the staff and replacing them? Is that, plus the draft position, better for the team overall? Who's the next coach? How does the next OCs scheme fit Romo? Are we still a ZBS OL, or do we have to consider moving some personnel around there? Do we keep the 4-3, or do we have to consider moving some personnel around there? Or are we keeping Jason Garrett, after all, and just hoping the team responds better to him next season after going 4-12 than it would have after winning the division and getting eliminated early in the playoff run? They'll listen to him more closely, why? These better players we develop, they'll play harder for him than the guys a few slots lower might, why?
Or maybe, because the NFL is for the fans and the fans are supposed to find it entertaining, we should look at the implications for maximizing the overall entertainment for the next few years. How many playoff Sundays are you willing to give up for, say, 3 extra draft slots? How many regular season Sundays? How much more enjoyable would this season have been for you if we'd picked at, say, 20 instead of 27th? I'll go out on a limb here and say probably not much more at all since we'd likely be in the same boat absent a gift at QB that probably wouldn't have happened anyway.
And, for the record, I *didn't* question anybody's fanhood. I questioned their decision making. Because I think anybody wishing for losses for the team they follow as closely as we follow the Cowboys has badly misled himself. Or herself.
