I'm in the minority, but I still think we can do something here...

[EMMITTnROY]

Cowboys fans are funny.. We seem to be the only fans that are anti-homeristic.. Maybe it is because we are spoiled by the likes of Emmitt, Staubach, Lily, and Landry.. We won't accept anything except for excellence, anything less than a Lombardi trophy is a failure.. Even when we win, I see as many negative comments on here as I do positive ones.. And when we lose.. Oh my gosh, when we lose.. It's like World War III meets One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest meets a teenage girl who just had her heart broken meets a slug that just got a tablespoon of salt poured on it..

Guys, we are 3-3.. .500.. we have won as many as we lost.. and we have been in every single game that we lost and we have blown out the three teams that we beat.. and I don't care the quality of the teams we blew out.. it's hard enough getting a victory against any team in today's NFL, much less a blowout.. you could make a good case that we actually outplayed Jacksonville and Philly and that we should have beat them if not for stupid mistakes.. and who made those stupid mistakes? Drew Bledsoe.. think about it: Drew cost us the Jacksonville game.. Drew cost us the Philly game.. we have eliminated that part of the equation.. say what you want about the defense, but it has played well enough to win all of these games if the offense would help them out.. even last night.. just think what will happen if the offense gives them some rest and doesnt give away points and doesnt give the ball to the other offense at their own 20 yard line..

I think Tony Romo is gonna be the real deal folks.. it wouldnt be the first time that a no name QB has come on in the middle of the season and led his team to greatness..

So call me a homer.. Call me stupid.. Say I'm looking through silver and blue shaded glasses.. I don't care.. I still believe this is a great team.. Sunday night at Carolina is the first step.. It will be a winning step.. We will come out of these road trip 6-3.. This is a new team.. There will be more swagger, there will be more confidence, and there will be more wins..

:starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin

 

[Dale]

Here's my concern: We basically have to go 7-3 the rest of the way to make the playoffs. Now, that's not impossible.

But with a three-game road trip and an ensuing home game against Indianapolis on the horizon, it's hard to imagine that happening -- especially after what we saw Monday.

Impossible? Nope. Nothing is in this league.

If we were 4-2 in need of going 6-4 the rest of the way, yeah, I'd pretty much think this is a playoff team. One might say it's just one loss difference, but it amounts to one more win we have to make up later this season -- a win I'm not sure we can get?

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

Cowboys fans are funny.. We seem to be the only fans that are anti-homeristic.. Maybe it is because we are spoiled by the likes of Emmitt, Staubach, Lily, and Landry.. We won't accept anything except for excellence, anything less than a Lombardi trophy is a failure.. Even when we win, I see as many negative comments on here as I do positive ones.. And when we lose.. Oh my gosh, when we lose.. It's like World War III meets One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest meets a teenage girl who just had her heart broken meets a slug that just got a tablespoon of salt poured on it..

Guys, we are 3-3.. .500.. we have won as many as we lost.. and we have been in every single game that we lost and we have blown out the three teams that we beat.. and I don't care the quality of the teams we blew out.. it's hard enough getting a victory against any team in today's NFL, much less a blowout.. you could make a good case that we actually outplayed Jacksonville and Philly and that we should have beat them if not for stupid mistakes.. and who made those stupid mistakes? Drew Bledsoe.. think about it: Drew cost us the Jacksonville game.. Drew cost us the Philly game.. we have eliminated that part of the equation.. say what you want about the defense, but it has played well enough to win all of these games if the offense would help them out.. even last night.. just think what will happen if the offense gives them some rest and doesnt give away points and doesnt give the ball to the other offense at their own 20 yard line..

I think Tony Romo is gonna be the real deal folks.. it wouldnt be the first time that a no name QB has come on in the middle of the season and led his team to greatness..

So call me a homer.. Call me stupid.. Say I'm looking through silver and blue shaded glasses.. I don't care.. I still believe this is a great team.. Sunday night at Carolina is the first step.. It will be a winning step.. We will come out of these road trip 6-3.. This is a new team.. There will be more swagger, there will be more confidence, and there will be more wins..

:starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin

I think we can do either the same or maybe even a little more with Romo(than with Drew). Drew was flat out giving games away and yet we had a chance to win everyone. Maybe Romo can close that deal.

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

Here's my concern: We basically have to go 7-3 the rest of the way to make the playoffs. Now, that's not impossible.

But with a three-game road trip and an ensuing home game against Indianapolis on the horizon, it's hard to imagine that happening -- especially after what we saw Monday.

Impossible? Nope. Nothing is in this league.

If we were 4-2 in need of going 6-4 the rest of the way, yeah, I'd pretty much think this is a playoff team. One might say it's just one loss difference, but it amounts to one more win we have to make up later this season -- a win I'm not sure we can get?

Yeah I hear ya... but being that the division is so close... We need to definitely do the following... beat Philly 2nd time, beat Giants 2nd time and beat Skins 2nd time.

The way the 4 teams in the NFC east have been playing from week to week(seesaw). Who knows.. maybe 9-7 wins the division

 

[ddh33]

There are still a few of us who believe...

 

[DipChit]

Eh I'm with ya.. which is kinda strange because I'm usually a pessimist.

What it's gonna take is winning a few in a row at some point. Maybe we can do that with Romo down the road (like when the games are weighted more towards home games) and maybe we cant.

I'm already convinced we couldnt have done it with DB.. we hadnt won more than 2 in a row with him up til this point. Hadnt with Vinnie for that matter either. Gotta go back to '03 to find that. But the flip side is, if that team could do it, so could this team.. with some breaks.

 

[chinch]

i agree overall with the OP.

If we win this weekend - very possible - to make the playoffs we'd need to essentially win out our East games (3 wins) Philly at home and NYG in tuna's old stomping ground and beat the bad teams. Very possible but also not an easy task (see Jax/Philly games we handed away).

All the doom/gloom yet we're a few bad breaks from 5-1.

 

[Knauftd]

This is how i see us making a run at the playoffs:
We have to win 2 of our 3 road games coming up, then its just a matter of winning our home games. Obviously Philly, New Orleans and Indy are not gimmes, but if we lose one of those we could make up for it by beating the Giants(who we might have to beat to win the division) or Atlanta on the road. This would put us at 10-6, and probably would put Dallas in the playoffs.

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

This is how i see us making a run at the playoffs:
We have to win 2 of our 3 road games coming up, then its just a matter of winning our home games. Obviously Philly, New Orleans and Indy are not gimmes, but if we lose one of those we could make up for it by beating the Giants(who we might have to beat to win the division) or Atlanta on the road. This would put us at 10-6, and probably would put Dallas in the playoffs.

Its quite possible that 9-7 could win division the way the NFC east teams are playing

 

[thekavorka]

If we can just get to 5-4, anything can happen.

 

[mmohican29]

Here's the thing. Win one game at a time. Play for THIS week. Manage the game against itself and not against expectations. FORGET who we are playing. The Cowboys WILL be competitve with whatever QB they have in there. We are not a team that can get really, really blown out.

Coach #9 up. Dissect the game plan to his strengths. Punt the ball at the opponents 40 in a close game. Use the running backs. Use the TE's. Make TO the a-1 option. Throw it deep to Terry and Patrick here and again. Play smart, opportunistic, conservative football. Capitalize on turnovers. Use Vanderjagt for field goals between 40-50yds vs going for it on 4th and 1.

This IS doable. I think Romo has more ability and will make less mistakes then we all think he will. He needs to be coached. He will falter. But we CAN win.

I think he has the team's unified support. Anyone notice Owens standing by Romo after the interception. That's one hell of a good sign. We're not dead. We're down but NOT out. Either way, it's going to be one awesome ride. Watch and see.

 

[Sarge]

Here's the thing. Win one game at a time. Play for THIS week. .

Exactly. Enough of this we HAVE to go 7-3 crap or this week is a MUST win week. One at a time. If you are good enough to make the playoffs, you'll find a way to get in.

 

[Zaxor]

Exactly. Enough of this we HAVE to go 7-3 crap or this week is a MUST win week. One at a time. If you are good enough to make the playoffs, you'll find a way to get in.

agreed

 

[THUMPER]

I am definitely not ready to give up on this team, unless of course Parcells goes back to Bledsoe. I believe we will have a much better chance of winning games with Romo at QB. He will make some costly mistakes but so did Bledsoe but the difference is that Romo will get better while Bledsoe seems to be getting worse and is extremely limited while Romo gives us some additional options.

I am convinced that if Parcells would have listened to me (LOL) and replaced Bledsoe with Romo before the end of the 3rd quarter of the Jags game we would be sitting at 5-1 instead of 3-3.

Bledsoe was very limited in what he could/would do. He pretty much looked for Glenn or Owens on every pass play while Romo spread it around much more and was able to get Witten and the RBs involved in the passing game. The difference I see is that Romo can buy time for the receivers to get into their routes. He also has the time, and is quicker, to go through his reads and progressions. I saw him go to his 3rd and 4th options more than once Monday night, while Drew rarely gets to his 2nd.

IMO Romo is quicker in every aspect of the QB position than Bledsoe. Also, and this surprised me, his passes were crisper and had more zip on them than Drew's did. Bledsoe's passes have not looked as good this year as they have in the past. He is not stepping through and looks to be afraid to step into his throws because he is expecting the passrush even when there isn't one.

I feel bad for Bledsoe because he is a nice guy and has played hard for us. He is a tough guy and gave it all he had. We didn't do him right by putting a haphazard O-Line in front of him. Given good protection he has been very effective over the course of his career but we didn't make the O-Line a priority this offseason and it shows.

I would much rather have seen the money we spent on Owens used on Steve Hutchinson and the draft pick used on Carpenter on an OT but that is just me. Owens hasn't helped us nearly as much as people were hoping he would and certainly nowhere near as much as a top-quality OG would have.

Parcells has shown that he has no clue how to select OLs either in FA or through the draft (maybe it's a good thing we didn't draft one in the 1st round then). Kosier is the only guy I can think of that has been brought in under him that is worth squat. None of his OL draft picks have panned out, although McQuistan might be a surprise for us but that remains to be seen in actual games.

I am excited to see how Romo does against Carolina this week and how the team responds to his leadership. They certaily responded on Monday night when he came in and I am hopeful that it will carry over this week.

 

[Bleu Star]

Cowboys fans are funny.. We seem to be the only fans that are anti-homeristic.. Maybe it is because we are spoiled by the likes of Emmitt, Staubach, Lily, and Landry.. We won't accept anything except for excellence, anything less than a Lombardi trophy is a failure.. Even when we win, I see as many negative comments on here as I do positive ones.. And when we lose.. Oh my gosh, when we lose.. It's like World War III meets One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest meets a teenage girl who just had her heart broken meets a slug that just got a tablespoon of salt poured on it..

Guys, we are 3-3.. .500.. we have won as many as we lost.. and we have been in every single game that we lost and we have blown out the three teams that we beat.. and I don't care the quality of the teams we blew out.. it's hard enough getting a victory against any team in today's NFL, much less a blowout.. you could make a good case that we actually outplayed Jacksonville and Philly and that we should have beat them if not for stupid mistakes.. and who made those stupid mistakes? Drew Bledsoe.. think about it: Drew cost us the Jacksonville game.. Drew cost us the Philly game.. we have eliminated that part of the equation.. say what you want about the defense, but it has played well enough to win all of these games if the offense would help them out.. even last night.. just think what will happen if the offense gives them some rest and doesnt give away points and doesnt give the ball to the other offense at their own 20 yard line..

I think Tony Romo is gonna be the real deal folks.. it wouldnt be the first time that a no name QB has come on in the middle of the season and led his team to greatness..

So call me a homer.. Call me stupid.. Say I'm looking through silver and blue shaded glasses.. I don't care.. I still believe this is a great team.. Sunday night at Carolina is the first step.. It will be a winning step.. We will come out of these road trip 6-3.. This is a new team.. There will be more swagger, there will be more confidence, and there will be more wins..

:starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin

If you're in the minority I am right there with you buddy!

 

[CrazyCowboy]

I just wish BP would have decided on Romo right after the loss to the beagles, then he would be ready by now

 

[BLEU3ASY]

Cowboys fans are funny.. We seem to be the only fans that are anti-homeristic.. Maybe it is because we are spoiled by the likes of Emmitt, Staubach, Lily, and Landry.. We won't accept anything except for excellence, anything less than a Lombardi trophy is a failure.. Even when we win, I see as many negative comments on here as I do positive ones.. And when we lose.. Oh my gosh, when we lose.. It's like World War III meets One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest meets a teenage girl who just had her heart broken meets a slug that just got a tablespoon of salt poured on it..

Guys, we are 3-3.. .500.. we have won as many as we lost.. and we have been in every single game that we lost and we have blown out the three teams that we beat.. and I don't care the quality of the teams we blew out.. it's hard enough getting a victory against any team in today's NFL, much less a blowout.. you could make a good case that we actually outplayed Jacksonville and Philly and that we should have beat them if not for stupid mistakes.. and who made those stupid mistakes? Drew Bledsoe.. think about it: Drew cost us the Jacksonville game.. Drew cost us the Philly game.. we have eliminated that part of the equation.. say what you want about the defense, but it has played well enough to win all of these games if the offense would help them out.. even last night.. just think what will happen if the offense gives them some rest and doesnt give away points and doesnt give the ball to the other offense at their own 20 yard line..

I think Tony Romo is gonna be the real deal folks.. it wouldnt be the first time that a no name QB has come on in the middle of the season and led his team to greatness..

So call me a homer.. Call me stupid.. Say I'm looking through silver and blue shaded glasses.. I don't care.. I still believe this is a great team.. Sunday night at Carolina is the first step.. It will be a winning step.. We will come out of these road trip 6-3.. This is a new team.. There will be more swagger, there will be more confidence, and there will be more wins..

:starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin :starspin

very nice read......i needed this going into carolina....me and my friend were there last year when we needed a win...hopefully it will be the same this year!!

 

[superpunk]

I am an eternal optimist, but I expected this defense to be dominant this year. Instead, they've played small against big-time competition. I thought this team was legitimately the best, most talented team in the NFC, and they just let me down every time I expect them to show up.

So from here on out I have zero expectations. I've got no reason to. Whatever happens happens.

 

[SultanOfSix]

I am an eternal optimist, but I expected this defense to be dominant this year. Instead, they've played small against big-time competition. I thought this team was legitimately the best, most talented team in the NFC, and they just let me down every time I expect them to show up.

So from here on out I have zero expectations. I've got no reason to. Whatever happens happens.

As much as you think apathy and indifference is the way to go, I'm telling you right now, it doesn't relieve any pain whatsoever, whether we win or lose.

 

[superpunk]

As much as you think apathy and indifference is the way to go, I'm telling you right now, it doesn't relieve any pain whatsoever, whether we win or lose.

It really does. When they put Romo in, even though I was happy, the game was just fun to watch since I no longer expected anything. After he threw that third exciting interception, to kill the team off completely, I just shook my head and moved on. No big deal.

I'd love to care more, but this bunch of underachievers hasn't really given me any reason to - aside from rolling the mighty Titans.