Here the Dallas Cowboys are embarking on their 52nd season (in their 51st year, according to last year's patches), and yet the fans cannot agree on what type of year we should call it. Some are calling it a retooling year, whereas others see it more as a rebuilding season. Whatever the case, reasonable, informed fans agree these Dallas Cowboys are going to be in every game.
We saw what Jason Garrett did with a bunch of 1-7 losers with no starting quarterback. He turned them around and went 5-3. His commitment to the "Cowboy Way" is what has fans in the rebuilding and retooling sects united in the belief that this team won't quit -- that if players quit on Garrett, they'll be off the team.
Personally, I think we're in the retooling phase. When you've still got your franchise quarterback and leaders that have been with this organization five or more years, it looks less like rebuilding to me.
The Cowboys have rolled over 15 new players onto our roster. Gone are the underachievers like Leonard Davis and Roy Williams. Gone are the has-beens like Marion Barber and Leonard Davis. Gone are dancing queens like Igor Olshansky. Gone are rookie mistakes like Chris Gronkowski. The 2011 Dallas Cowboys feature a roster that is built upon execution and what you can contribute to the team now.
NFCEFan makes a good point that we can't know how things are going to turn out this early in the season. So what? It's fun. Heck, I like to predict what the season schedules are going to look like and who is going to commentate.
Irrespective of its comments, I've seen the futility of predicting the postseason this early in the season. Truly, no one can know what Santa Claus is going to bring for the playoffs, for we have yet to see who's been bad or good. So, I'm not predicting the postseason like I have in seasons past (and as Peter King, Adam Schefter, et al continue to do). Without further ado, here is the official 2011 Imperial Predictions:
Sun. 9/11 - Dallas Cowboys at New York Jets -- 7:20 NBC
I think Admiral Ackbar would declare for the Cowboys that it's a trap. I'll probably write more on this whenever I give my Imperial Impressions, if that's something I want to do this season. I mean, I could say the same thing for my radio show. Anyway, let's not fool ourselves: we were chosen for this game because the league needed a bad guy for the Jets. If the league really wanted to honor the tenth anniversary of 9/11 and New York, then they would have the two nominal New York teams play each other instead of the Jets versus America's Team.
Don't be naive. Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth are going to make veiled insults about the Jets being the real America's Team on this night. The entire stadium is going to be fired up for this night. The referees probably already have special orders to do what they can to help the Jets win. Watch for controversial calls. We were chosen to lose.
Even if this game were played about three weeks from now, I'd have some qualms about this matchup. I don't think our defense can stop anyone at this particular time. Sure, Ware might get one sack, but our run defense will be too porous and our passing defense is still suspect. The only way I can see us winning is by not turning the ball over in a shootout against the Jets. I don't think Sanchez and company can keep up with Romo the Gaucho. You know, that's interesting. I wonder if this is the first time Hispanic or Latino quarterbacks have faced each other. Who cares. It's just a factoid; it has no bearing on reality. Jets win 27-10 in a commanding fashion. 0-1
Sun. 9/18 - Dallas Cowboys at San Fransicko 49ers -- 3:05 FOX
Our defense will still be considerably vulnerable, as I don't think we'll have figured out the complexities of the Rob Ryan 3-4 by this time. So, we can expect Frank Gore to gash us and Crabtree/Davis/Edwards to slice our secondary. The good news is the Freakshow defense won't be as good as the Jets defense. Therefore, I think our offense will be in better position to control the clock and dictate the tempo of the game. It will be a closer contest this time, and I could see it going either way. But I think the veteran experience of this club and the fact Garrett has us executing better helps the Cowboys prevail. 1-1
Mon. 9/26 - Washington Commanders at Dallas Cowboys -- 7:30 BSPN
Given how inept I expect our defense to still be at this point, I think the Commanders offense will be able to move the ball against us. The Commanders defense seems pretty intimidating, but their secondary doesn't impress me. O.J. Atogwe is the same safety that let Mike Williams and the Seahawks torch him when the NFC West crown was on the line last year. Just imagine what Dez and Miles will do to him, and just imagine what seams and spots Witten will find. Frankly, I'd like to pound the rock against the Commanders and control the clock. It will probably be another close contest for our Cowboys, but I don't think we finally stake our claim to a primetime victory in the Garrett era. 1-2
Sun. 10/2 - Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys -- 12:00 FOX
This is another tough defense that the Cowboys have to face in the first four weeks of the season. I don't imagine we'll be able to run well against Suh and Fairley. Frankly, if we do run the ball, we should try some misdirections, sweeps, and stretch plays to run away from those two. If our offensive line can give Romo the time, I think he can easily pick apart their secondary. There is no one there that impresses me. On the defensive side of the ball, I think our secondary will once again struggle. I can see Calvin Johnson getting two touchdowns against us, especially if Matthew Stafford is still healthy. If he's not, they'll be the same old Lions. I think Dallas is ready to bounce back from the loss and delivers a win. 2-2
Sun. 10/9 - BYE WEEK -
It's possible to win a bye week. No, really. Remember in 2009 when the Eagles lost to the Raiders, the Commanders lost to the Chiefs, and the Giants got blown out by the Saints? Even though we were sitting at 3-2, those three losses helped give us better position in the NFC East. I don't see it happening this year. The Eagles have the Bills, and the Giants have the Seahawks. The Commanders are off too. We don't win the bye week.
Sun. 10/16 - Dallas Cowboys at New England Cheatriots -- 3:15 FOX
The last time the Dallas Cowboys played in Foxboro, we were shutout 12-0. Now, I don't think the Cheatriots defense is good enough to shut out our offense, and I don't think our defense is good enough to keep the Cheatriots kicking field goals. But I do think it's going to be equally challenging. Aside from Vince Wilfork and and Shaun Ellis up front, there is no one on that defense that makes me anxious. This isn't the old Cheatriots defense. The brains are still there with Bellicheat, and I think he'll take Witten out of the game. That's what he does. He takes what you do best and makes sure you can't do it. This will be a challenge for Jason Garrett. Can he go into Foxboro and outsmart Bellicheat? I don't think he can. I think we lose by ten points. 2-3
Sun. 10/23 - St. Louis Rams at Dallas Cowboys -- 3:15 FOX
I think the Rams are a good, young team and they'll be coming off of a tough game against the Packers with either a 3-2 or 2-3 record. Either way, they are going to feel real good about the direction of their season. They're going to have confidence. And I think Spagnoulo will know how to disrupt Romo and make him play a bad game. Plus, Spagnoulo has been there long enough he has the pieces to do it again. Danny Amendola and Steven Jackson will want to play their best to demonstrate that we were wrong to ever forsake them. However, I think this is when it all comes together for the Rob Ryan 3-4. I think this is the game where it starts to click for our defense. Remember the Bucs game from 2008? I imagine it will be like that. It will come down to a final play for our defense, and they make the stop. They'll protect our fragile lead and carry us to victory. 3-3
Sun. 10/30 - Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles -- 7:20 NBC
America's Team versus the Dream Team -- you can't imagine how unbearable NFCEFan will be by this point. They could very easily be 4-2 at a minimum by this point because they have teams like the Giants, Rams, 49ers, and Bills. If they beat either the Falcons or Commanders, they could be 5-1. Heck, let's take the worst case scenario and say they're 6-0. It's the undefeated Eagles versus the .500 Cowboys. Unlike in 2009 when we went up there for the division lead, this time, the Cowboys go up to the (Missing) Linc just to get a winning record for the first time in two seasons. I think Vick and the offense make some plays against us. But I also think Romo and the offense will make plays against Juan Castillo's defense. Whoever forces the turnover wins the game. I think our Cowboys do it and go to 4-3.
Sun. 11/6 - Seattle Seahawks at Dallas Cowboys -- 12:00 FOX
This is when it starts to unrealistic for Cowboys fans. Due to the fact we've got two relatively average teams coming into our house back to back, we will get to go on a little winning streak. I don't think the Seahawks have anything to frighten us with. We will only lose if we don't execute properly. I think we win convincingly and move our record to 5-3.
Sun. 11/13 - Buffalo Bills at Dallas Cowboys -- 12:00 CBS
I love it when the Cowboys are playing on CBS. It reminds me of the old days when the NFC used to play on CBS. Someday, I hope that happens again, and Joe Buck does not make the switch. Anyway, the Bills are worse than the Seahawks. There is nothing amongst them that frightens me. I think Dallas wins another easy game and the fans will start talking playoff byes and winning the division. You know, we'll sweep the rest of our games and go 13-3 -- that kind of talk. Frankly, I'm not that convinced. We've got a lot of ball left to play and we're only 6-3.
Sun. 11/20 - Dallas Cowboys at Washington Commanders -- 3:15 FOX
This is something Jason Garrett has rarely had to face in his 11 seasons with the Cowboys organization: playing on the road before the short Thanksgiving week. I think he realizes how critical it is to win this week in order to win next week. In a similar vein, it's what Jimmy Johnson believed in 1991. After a string of tough losses and an even tougher schedule ahead, the Cowboys had to win in Washington the week before Thanksgiving because it could get ugly after that. I see the same mentality. Jason Garrett prepares the team and has them do all that they can to win this week. I don't think it holds up and our offense executes poorly. For the first time since 2005, the Commanders sweep us. 6-4
Thu. 11/24 - Miami Dolphins at Dallas Cowboys -- 3:15 CBS
The Dolphins will be about 4-6 with their playoff hopes clinging for dear life. Tony Sparano and other ex-Cowboys will want to show up Jason Garrett and Jerry Jones, so I expect things to start off favorably for the Dolphins. However, as the game wears on, I think Romo and the offense will easily exploit the Dolphins' anemic secondary. The Cowboys will comfortably win this game. 7-4
Sun. 12/4 - Dallas Cowboys at Arizona Cardinals -- 3:15 FOX
The Rams and the Cardinals will both compete heavily for the NFC West crown. Both will be good enough that by this point, a win over Dallas for the Cardinals helps due to wild card positioning, which I expect the Cowboys to be in at this point. We're going to need the run the table to win the division, as are the Cardinals. I think Kolb to Fitzgerald is a dangerous combination that our secondary can't stop. I think the Cardinals defense will be pretty stiff this year, so our offense is going to have a challenging time. I think it's going to be very tight like it was in 2008, and as usual, the Cardinals will pull it out. Cue the "December curse" talk. 7-5
Sun. 12/11 - New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys -- 7:20 NBC
I don't think the Giants will have anything to play for at this point in the season. I think they'll actually be fourth in the NFC East. But that doesn't mean they won't want to spoil our season. Like the Dolphins, they're going to give it everything they've got. But I think our team will be far and away better than theirs at this point in the season, so we'll come out on top. Be careful if you have a drinking game for every time NBC pans to Tom Coughlin shaking his head. 8-5
Sat. 12/17 - Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers -- 7:30 NFL Network
The Buccaneers get to face the AFC South this year, which will be much easier now that I think the Colts are out of contention. However, they have to play the Packers and the Bears. Furthermore, there will be a lot of tape on the 10-6 Buccaneers who only beat two teams that were playoff bound last year. Their season will be on the rocks, but they'll still be in the wild card hunt with us. It will be a tough game, but I think our offense will take care of their defense. Furthermore, Rob Ryan figures ways to give Josh Freeman looks that work against him. 9-5 -- can't call them losers anymore
Sat. 12/24 - Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys -- 3:15 FOX
Assuming the Eagles were undefeated when we last met them, according to my projections, they would be 11-3 coming into this game. It would be an important game for them. With this win, they could win the NFC East and secure a first round bye. For us, we could begin another late-season wresting of NFC East control from the Eagles. All it takes is a win today and a win next week against the Giants. It will be another tough game, but I think the Eagles defense makes the difference. Even though they have the pieces, they don't have the coaching talent to make them work effectively. The Cowboys grind out the clock in the fourth quarter to win the game and clinch a playoff berth. 10-5
Sun. 1/1 - Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants -- 3:15 FOX
Cowboys fans will talk about how easy this game will be. Garrett will be telling our Cowboys how hard Emmitt Smith played in a similar season finale against the Giants in the 1993 season. The Commanders-Eagles game will be flexed to Sunday Night Football because A) the Eagles will have a chance to win the East and B) the Commanders will have a chance to clinch the playoffs with a win. So, the Cowboys won't know if their work in the New Meadowlands will pay off until later that night. Still, they fight hard against the Giants, who want to give their fans consolation for their terrible 2011 season. It's a close game until the fourth quarter when the Giants run away with the game. Garrett pulls the starters to save them for the playoffs. 10-6
NFC EAST
Eagles -- 12-4
Cowboys -- 10-6
Commanders -- 8-8
Giants -- 6-10
NFC SOUTH
Saints -- 12-4
Buccaneers -- 9-7
Falcons -- 8-8
Panthers -- 5-11
NFC WEST
Cardinals -- 10-6
Rams -- 8-8
Seahawks -- 6-10
49ers -- 4-12
NFC NORTH
Packers -- 12-4
Vikings -- 9-7
Lions -- 7-9
Bears -- 5-11
AFC EAST
Cheatriots -- 13-3
Jets -- 11-5
Dolphins -- 8-8
Bills -- 4-12
AFC SOUTH
Texans -- 11-5
Jaguars -- 9-7
Titans -- 6-10
Colts -- 3-13
AFC WEST
Chargers -- 12-4
Chiefs -- 9-7
Raiders -- 6-10
Broncos -- 5-11
AFC NORTH
Ravens -- 11-5
Steelers -- 11-5
Browns -- 5-11
Bengals -- 2-14
NFC PLAYOFFS:
1. Packers
2. Saints
3. Eagles
4. Cardinals
5. Cowboys
6. Vikings
AFC PLAYOFFS:
1. Cheatriots
2. Chargers
3. Ravens
4. Texans
5. Steelers
6. Jaguars
