NFL Live Segment: What If?

[DallasEast]

I remember sitting at the dinner table watching the game with my family.

THIS, caused me to jump out of my seat and almost spill the table over in the process. I'll never get it out of my head.

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-videos/09000d5d823b0423/Pick-six-Jackie-Smith-drop

^This. It's crazy how often my mind has replayed that event over the years. The link attaches an unavailable video. Doesn't matter to me. My mind replays it forwards, backwards, sped up, slo-mo, different angles... It's maddening.

 

[Alexander]

Just thinking of the butterfly effect and how things might have changed for the better.

Or worse. The Ice Bowl loss then the Colts SB lost built a little character, I think. They suffered and then were finally able to kill the monkey by squashing the Dolphins. Makes you wonder if they had not had that adversity if they would have remained as consistent as they became going into the 1970s.

 

[Alexander]

The no-call pass interference on Deion in the 94 NFCC. Dallas would have won 4 straight super bowls.

To me, that game is very magnified because of the stakes in three consecutive titles, but to me it just was a heroic loss, not a missed opportunity. The game was pretty much lost on the first couple of series. We just were not focused and prepared to beat them up like we were the two previous seasons, and you can hang that loss of edge on Switzer.

As for the play itself, we still would have trailed. It was a horrible call but it isn't even close to being as bad as even the Bryant play in terms of "what if" things had gone the other way.

 

[Alexander]

I'm not an old fart so I wasn't old enough to actually remember most of the good years

So, I'll just go with Murray holding onto the football in the Packers game. There's a good chance he takes it to the house there and completely changes the game.

I saw a lot more angst over Crayton's plays in the Giant game around here than that, which was bigger to me. A play that can pretty much ice a game is just as bad if not worse than making some big play in a comeback. Murray busts that run, it was probably over.

Funny how you remember the little things in painful losses. What if Peppers doesn't get the strip, what if Hanna falls on the ball like he's supposed to, what if the bad call with Cobb didn't happen. That game will stick with me for a while, which surprises even me as I have seen most of these bad moments live.

 

[KJJ]

Or worse. The Ice Bowl loss then the Colts SB lost built a little character, I think. They suffered and then were finally able to kill the monkey by squashing the Dolphins. Makes you wonder if they had not had that adversity if they would have remained as consistent as they became going into the 1970s.

All the adversity the Cowboys endured was prior to Staubach taking over once he became the QB everything changed. Once he started performing his magic the team rallied around him and the Cowboys became a confident team. He made believers out of the fans and the players around him.

 

[KJJ]

The 94 pi or the Romo fg fumble. Either one would result in a Sb win. Can't think of any others that wouldve meant a sb win.

The Cowboys would have won the SB in 94 had they got past SF but they weren't going to win the SB in 06. lol They didn't have a very good defense and Romo was going through growing pains. Even had Romo not bobbled the snap and the Cowboys converted the FG Seattle still had 1:14 left and all 3 of their time outs to move in position for the game winning FG.

 

[StarBoyz83]

The Cowboys would have won the SB in 94 had they got past SF but they weren't going to win the SB in 06. lol They didn't have a very good defense and Romo was going through growing pains. Even had Romo not bobbled the snap and the Cowboys converted the FG Seattle still had 1:14 left and all 3 of their time outs to move in position for the game winning FG.

Weren't they 13-3 that year? Well I guess the record doesn't matter in the playoffs. They were 12-4 last year and didn't play very well in the playoffs. They were dominant at times that year.

 

[KJJ]

Crayton stopping on his route against the Giants in the divisional playoff.

Can't understand why so many are picking that play even had the Cowboys got past the Giants they wouldn't have gone on to win the SB. They weren't a very good team entering the playoffs which is why they lost to the Giants and they didn't match up well with NE which was proven during the regular season when the Pats blew out the Cowboys.

 

[KJJ]

Weren't they 13-3 that year? Well I guess the record doesn't matter in the playoffs. They were 12-4 last year and didn't play very well in the playoffs. They were dominant at times that year.

You're thinking of the 07 team that went 13-13 the 06 team went 9-7 and that team wasn't a SB caliber team.

 

[StarBoyz83]

You're thinking of the 07 team that went 13-13 the 06 team went 9-7 and that team wasn't a SB caliber team.

Was the 13-3 year where the Vikings made dallas look dumb like 44-6. Now I'm confused lol.

 

[KJJ]

Danny White's fumble in the NFC Championship game against the 9ers.

If you change the play prior to that and Pearson doesn't suffer that finger tip jersey tackle he takes it to the house and that fumble never happens.

 

[KJJ]

Was the 13-3 year where the Vikings made dallas look dumb like 44-6. Now I'm confused lol.

Yeah you are confused you have your years and games all mixed up. lol The 44-6 debacle was in the regular season finale vs Philly during the 08 season. The playoff loss to the Vikings happened during the 09 season the Cowboys were thumped 34-14. The 13-3 season was in 07 the Cowboys lost to the Giants 21-17 in the playoffs.

 

[Plankton]

There are a lot of plays that can be redone for the Cowboys.

The one I would pick is the Drew Pearson catch on the deep post from Danny White following The Catch. If his jersey tears away, the Cowboys likely score a touchdown to take the lead, and they win the game. That win could have helped stem the absolute collapse of the team in the late 1980s. An Eric Wright finger prevented a Cowboy Super Bowl berth.

 

[Plankton]

I started following the Cowboys a year after that game. From watching the highlights as many times as I have if you wanted to change one play this might be the one although there were several plays that went against the Cowboys that could have changed the outcome.

The Duane Thomas fumble at the Colt 1 yard line that was recovered by Dave Manders, but incorrectly awarded to the Colts was a bigger play. If the Cowboys score a touchdown there, they go up 20-6, and the Colts would have been dead.

 

[AzorAhai]

I saw a lot more angst over Crayton's plays in the Giant game around here than that, which was bigger to me. A play that can pretty much ice a game is just as bad if not worse than making some big play in a comeback. Murray busts that run, it was probably over.

Funny how you remember the little things in painful losses. What if Peppers doesn't get the strip, what if Hanna falls on the ball like he's supposed to, what if the bad call with Cobb didn't happen. That game will stick with me for a while, which surprises even me as I have seen most of these bad moments live.

That game has so many what if moments its kind of crazy to think about. So many plays decided by an inch here, a bounce there. What if the snap isn't bobbled before halftime? What if the Cobb catch at halftime is incomplete? What if Hannah doesn't have his arm knocked off the ball by his own teammate? What if Peppers doesn't get a finger on the ball? What if Dez doesn't get his foot tangled up? What if the tipped pass doesn't float right to Cobb?

I don't remember seeing a game with that many weird plays in it. The Cowboys were probably better than GB with Rodgers being hurt, but sometimes things like that just don't go your way. Lady luck didn't exactly balance the scales that game, but sometimes it just happens like that.

 

[Plankton]

Just thinking of the butterfly effect and how things might have changed for the better.

Between that and the complete clusterfork inside the five yard line in the 1966 NFC Championship Game, Don Meredith's legacy would have been a lot different.

 

[AzorAhai]

Yeah you are confused you have your years and games all mixed up. lol The 44-6 debacle was in the regular season finale vs Philly during the 08 season. The playoff loss to the Vikings happened during the 09 season the Cowboys were thumped 34-14. The 13-3 season was in 07 the Cowboys lost to the Giants 21-17 in the playoffs.

That game was painful. Once F. Adams went out, Romo was under duress almost every snap. That game sucked.

 

[KJJ]

The Duane Thomas fumble at the Colt 1 yard line that was recovered by Dave Manders, but incorrectly awarded to the Colts was a bigger play. If the Cowboys score a touchdown there, they go up 20-6, and the Colts would have been dead.

Yeah, that's another play that could have changed the outcome. They dubbed that SB the "blunder bowl" the game was full turnovers and poor calls. The Mackey TD should have been disallowed due to two Colts illegally touching the ball.

 

[Plankton]

Yeah, that's another play that could have changed the outcome. They dubbed that SB the "blunder bowl" the game was full turnovers and poor calls. The Mackey TD should have been disallowed due to two Colts illegally touching the ball.

The Mackey play was a legal play - the rule at the time stated that the ball couldn't be deflected from one offensive player to another player directly. On that play, the ball was tipped by Eddie Hinton, then deflected by Mel Renfro before Mackey caught it. Perfectly legal play.

 

[KJJ]

That game was painful. Once F. Adams went out, Romo was under duress almost every snap. That game sucked.

Appeared to me the Cowboys still hadn't come down from the high of winning their first playoff game in 13 years the previous week vs Philly. They didn't look prepared to play that game Wade was too busy patting his players on the back all week to properly prepare them.