How would you feel about an 11-5 no playoffs season?

[JD_KaPow]

I'm not much of a thread starter but I really am interested in the responses.

Obviously nobody is going to be happy about missing the playoffs. That's not the point of this thread. I'm talking about how you would feel about the state of the team and it's immediate future.

Let's say the Cowboys win 2 of the next 3 games. Beat the Eagles, lose to the Colts, beat the Commanders. Or whatever way you want to do it. But they lose the tiebreakers for the division and wild card. They sit at home at 11-5. This is a pretty rare happening in the NFL.

What's your reaction? Is this the same team that can't close the deal and just misses the playoffs? Like every other year in recent memory? The record doesn't matter, all that matters is they came up short again?

Or was it just a flukey season, the team went 5-2 down the stretch, clear progress has been made and this is merely a case of some bad luck? No 11-5 team should ever be sitting at home watching a 7-9 division winner? This was a clear step forward towards 2015?

I say 11-5 and no playoffs. You say?

I ask because I really don't know.

I would have given you a like if it weren't for that awful "it's" up there.

As far as the question, I suppose I'll get knocked for being a 'pessimist' or a 'realist', but I think the Cowboys are more of a 9-7, 10-6 team that played over its head early on, particularly on defense, than they are a true contender. Percy kept posting all that stuff about why we were doing so well on defense--3rd down stops and timely turnovers--and they were things that aren't usually sustainable. And sure enough, we haven't sustained them.

So while I'll be bummed if they miss the playoffs (less Cowboys football), I won't be too upset overall. Good season, some progress made, fluky results.

I'm more concerned about how the front office responds. I'm fairly happy with the team-building they've been doing the last few years, so I'm afraid that an 11-5 season may push them to make a big short-term "we're one player away" type acquisition when that's not really where they are (IMHO). I think they sort of did that last season with the move to get Lawrence (which I hated). I hope we don't see more of the same.

 

[bark]

Good thread Risen!
They definitely would have exceeded my expectations for this yr by finishing 11-5.
Would be terrible luck to miss the playoffs with that record.
I had felt going into the yr that the defense would take at least a two yr re build . ( actually still feel that way), so I had my hopes pinned on next yr.
How bout we just beat the crap out of the eagles and go ahead and finish this surprising season on a high note

 

[SDCowboy]

It would suck royally, but it would indicate progress and Garrett would deserve to be extended. A coach who can win 11 games consistently is going to be in the playoffs a lot.

We're a long way off from seeing if we can win 11 games consistently...or even this season. lol

 

[Wheeltax]

It would be disappointing, but on the other hand, if you had been promised an 11-5 season when we were all ruing the winless preseason, would you have taken that bet? I would have without a thought.

I think even now this season has gone better than anyone really expected it would, save for the most homer of homers. The team's arrow is pointing up (to use a Jerry phrase), and while the Offensive Line is only going to get better, now Dallas can start working on that horrendous defense. It was only a few years ago that the O-Line was a goat in the same way, and look where it is now. There is plenty of reason to be optimistic.

Overall, I would be disappointed to not be in the playoffs, but it's not like we're looking at a 3 win season and a sea of problems like one of our division rivals. We have a QB, we have a good coaching staff, we have a very important aspect of our team playing at the highest level.

How can you be upset about that? Beats the hell out of 8-8.

 

[Stash]

I would feel a lot more 'good' than 'bad'.

Would I be frustrated watching my team sit at home at 11-5 while an undeserving loser from the NFC South hosts a game? Most definitely!

But that said, I would focus on all of the positives achieved along the way throughout this season. And I would continue to be amazed how well what I perceived to be a 5-11 team exceeded my expectations.

And I would look forward to adding some more defensive talent while hopefully keeping a winning nucleus in place and being even better and an undeniable playoff contender in 2015.

 

[ScipioCowboy]

We're a long way off from seeing if we can win 11 games consistently...or even this season. lol

That's why the thread is a hypothetical.

 

[visionary]

It all depends on your agenda. If you're a Garrett hater, we could be the first 14-2 team to miss the playoffs and they would chalk it up to some deficiency. The responses will be fairly predictable along those lines.

I googled the word "agenda" and I got your post

 

[visionary]

I would feel a lot more 'good' than 'bad'.

Would I be frustrated watching my team sit at home at 11-5 while an undeserving loser from the NFC South hosts a game? Most definitely!

But that said, I would focus on all of the positives achieved along the way throughout this season. And I would continue to be amazed how well what I perceived to be a 5-11 team exceeded my expectations.

And I would look forward to adding some more defensive talent while hopefully keeping a winning nucleus in place and being even better and an undeniable playoff contender in 2015.

This

I will hate if because who knows what happens next year but at 11-5, you keep the coaching staff and build the defense

If we at least beat up on the eagles this Sunday it would be nice

 

[ScipioCowboy]

Does one season indicate progress? Wade Phillips went 13-3 his first year hear. What happened in 2008? We have only 1 win against a winning opponent. We have had a cupcake schedule this year.

It would be awesome if we could see into the future, but we can't. Ergo, progress always starts with one season.

 

[Pessimist_cowboy]

I

I'm not much of a thread starter but I really am interested in the responses.

Obviously nobody is going to be happy about missing the playoffs. That's not the point of this thread. I'm talking about how you would feel about the state of the team and it's immediate future.

Let's say the Cowboys win 2 of the next 3 games. Beat the Eagles, lose to the Colts, beat the Commanders. Or whatever way you want to do it. But they lose the tiebreakers for the division and wild card. They sit at home at 11-5. This is a pretty rare happening in the NFL.

What's your reaction? Is this the same team that can't close the deal and just misses the playoffs? Like every other year in recent memory? The record doesn't matter, all that matters is they came up short again?

Or was it just a flukey season, the team went 5-2 down the stretch, clear progress has been made and this is merely a case of some bad luck? No 11-5 team should ever be sitting at home watching a 7-9 division winner? This was a clear step forward towards 2015?

I say 11-5 and no playoffs. You say?

I ask because I really don't know.

Would be satisfied with it . I think we'd be able to win a game or two in the playoffs this year ( if we made it) . But in hindsight , we are a good defensive line away from being a legit contender . If they go 11-5 I'd be happy either way.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

Let me qualify my statement here. If we go 11-5, we are in the playoffs, no question in my mind. However, if we went 11-5 and we didn't get to the playoffs, then I think that's something to be celebrated by the fan base. The last time this franchise posted an 11-5 record was 2009. We haven't been able to post a season better then .500 in 4 years. As a fan, you have to be happy about 11-5 regardless.

The real question would be extension. I'd be more concerned with keeping the staff together after an 11-5 season and less frantic about not making the playoffs.

 

[slick325]

Good topic...I would have mixed emotions. I would feel the disappointment of yet another season without a playoff appearance but would also see this as a flukey deal. 11-5 seasons usually will get a team in the tourney.

I think Dallas is a year away with a good draft for defensive line so this season would be ultimately viewed as a step in a positive direction by the 4th youngest team in the League.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

It would be progress for sure and I would be confident going forward because we know where our weaknesses are and we can address them in free agency and the draft. I hope we can resign our own and get a dominant pass rusher in here, but I don't know if that's possible with the cap situation. But even though Romo only has 2 or 3 years left, I would be confident that we will be in contention for Lombardi # 6 during those years.

And, oh yeah, I would be pissed as hell about missing the playoffs.

 

[TrailBlazer]

I'd be pissed. But no doubt they played well, easily good enough to be in the playoffs. I just think the romo window is closing fast. Some people think we're gonna get better the next 2 years. I think Tony only has 1 more good year before injuries catch up to him. We need a qb if we're going to continue to win 2-3 years from now.

 

[Hostile]

I'm not much of a thread starter but I really am interested in the responses.

Obviously nobody is going to be happy about missing the playoffs. That's not the point of this thread. I'm talking about how you would feel about the state of the team and it's immediate future.

Let's say the Cowboys win 2 of the next 3 games. Beat the Eagles, lose to the Colts, beat the Commanders. Or whatever way you want to do it. But they lose the tiebreakers for the division and wild card. They sit at home at 11-5. This is a pretty rare happening in the NFL.

What's your reaction? Is this the same team that can't close the deal and just misses the playoffs? Like every other year in recent memory? The record doesn't matter, all that matters is they came up short again?

Or was it just a flukey season, the team went 5-2 down the stretch, clear progress has been made and this is merely a case of some bad luck? No 11-5 team should ever be sitting at home watching a 7-9 division winner? This was a clear step forward towards 2015?

I say 11-5 and no playoffs. You say?

I ask because I really don't know.

11-5 isn't a team that can't close a deal, but missing the playoffs sucks no matter what. I want to go a long way in the post season and start winning those games again.

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

I wouldn't like it but that's a successful season especially for this young team. It would hurt though. You want the post season but everyone had us going 8-8 or worse. you exceed that by 3 games? That's a successful season.

 

[CyberB0b]

For me, it depends on how it plays out. If we don't get into the playoffs because we couldn't beat the Eagles or the Skins, then that is a failure, as we weren't even competitive in our own division. This means we were able to beat up bad teams, but couldn't win division games or beat good teams. We have had a cupcake schedule this year, and been pretty healthy overall.

If they beat the Eagles and Commanders and somehow don't get in, then I will be disappointed, but still happy with the overall result.

 

[Red Dragon]

11-5 and no playoffs would feel worse than 8-8 and no playoffs.

 

[jgboys1]

We will be lucky to finish 11-5 with this defense.

 

[adamknite]

Unless we just tank every game from here on out this season has been a lot better than most gave us credit for coming into the year. A lot of people on this site and in the media had us finishing last in the division and said we'd struggle to win 6 games.

For me to call this season a success, playoffs or not, we have to win 2 of these last three games. It's a tad bit infuriating that an NFC South team that at best is going to be 8-8 (and must likely much worse) is going to jump us in that scenario, but that's just how it is some times. Would it be frustrating knowing that Washington loss kept us from the playoffs.... yes, but in a year when we were written off by a lot of people it would still be nice to have something to build on.

The question is, can we build on this season wherever it ends? I don't really see us winning a Super Bowl if we make the playoffs, but I just want us to build on this and not for it to just be a flash in the pan season.