CFZ That sound you're hearing is the hype machine warming up

[cald0d30s0]

I find it sad when people call other members bandwagon fans simply because they are unhappy with the current state of the team despite the fact they have been fans their entire lives and are here, on a Cowboys forum site of all places, posting day after day.

Bandwagon fans are people who become fans when a team wins big games and disappear when teams lose or miss those games.

Since the Cowboys have not won a big game in 29 years, I think every Cowboys fan who posts on this forum week after week, month after month, etc. has more than proven they are not bandwagon fans.

I understand that you hate when people criticize the team, but after 29 years of failured seasons, I think Cowboys fans .. all of them .. deserve the right to be upset, disappointed, disillusioned and/or frustrated about the current state of the team.

Just because you "believe" every year does not make you a better fan nor does questioning the team's decisions and directions make other fans bad fans.

We love the team, but we also like to win from time to time. This post is 100% accurate.

 

[DallasEast]

A cautionary tale about the personal perception of someone else as a fan. I greatly enjoy visits to my favorite barbershop, which I settled upon many moons ago. Talking about football is one of those fun things to do there.

A new guy showed up during one of my visits. Never saw him before. He asked one of the barbers if he needed an appointment. One said they could fit him in that time but to reserve a spot from then on.

We both sat in chairs next to each other when it was our turn. One of the barbers asked, as he always did, what I thought about the Cowboys' last game. I gave my two cents, which sparked all the barbers and almost all the other customers into giving their two cents as well. One thing is seemingly true about a Cowboys football conversation. It gets lively no matter what.

The new guy's barber asked him who his favorite team was. He said he was a Cowboys fan. That perked up my ears, so I started peppering him about key points during the game. All of his answers were deadpanned. Half of those were pretty dismissal.

I saw him at least twice (I think) at the barbershop afterwards. He was pretty static in discussing what happened in other games as well. My best friend was getting a haircut on last occasion too. He is a 49er fan. It was then that I learned the new guy was a friend of his from work. My friend likes to constantly jab me about my team. For whatever reason, he asked both the new guy and me to come over for a Cowboys game that Sunday. We both accepted.

Long story short, the sedated, didn't care, new guy turned into Dr. Ric Flair and Mr. Hulk during the game. The whole game, including some of halftime, was constant "WOOOOOOs!" or "<EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE>! He jumped off the sofa a good ten times at the least. He almost picked up and through my friend's television remote twice. He sulked after drives ending in punts. Suffice it to say, the guy was extremely animated while watching his team.

Did I mention he said he did not drink alcohol? lol.

We met at the barbershop again about a month later. As usual, the Cowboys surfaced as the topic. He acted like he had before, AT the barbershop. Not the fan WATCHING a game.

Every member here has only two things to size up another member as fan: typed words and an avatar. And too many members have default Rowdy avatars (shut up DE!) That is all anyone has to go on. Everyone knows basically squat about another member's team allegiance or how strongly they actually feel about the team beyond their words typed out on a fan board. That's it.

We can all be judgmental about who is or is not a fan. I have certainly passed judgement in the past myself. However. Is anyone's judgement, of people we know practically nothing about, the right one?



"WOOOOOOO! How about dem Cowboys!" <new guy actual quote>

 

[DallasEast]

Please don't insult Ali and Foreman like that. Those were clash of the titans. CowboysZone posters battling it out are like clash of the guys in Revenge of the Nerds or something. Lol.

"heh HEH heh HEH heheheheheheh!"

 

[KJJ]

The fan base was about as low as I’ve seen it after the playoff debacle to Green Bay. I lost track of how many fans posted they were done with the team. Our lackluster off-season that saw a number of players leave and few free agents signings added to the misery causing more fans to bail on the team. We see the same routine every year. The emotions get the better of some and they vent their frustrations and claim they’re moving on. But as soon as training camp is approaching many start trickling back to the board with optimism and a few bold predictions. Never fails. lol

 

[Londonboy]

The sound I'm hearing is wind chimes (which, to Me, are just an external form of tinnitus) as We twist slowly in the breeze.

 

[fivetwos]

Problem is they bite on the hype too much.

Randy White said what drove him was fear of failure....
With contracts nowdays....these kids dont fear failure, they get $$$, they get pro bowls, all pro, tv commercials.....team hype...
Brings complacency when in playoffs.

I fully agree….BUT….

Doesn’t every team have to deal with the same thing? Yes they do, and it’s up to the head coach to keep these guys motivated and headed down the right path over a season.

In Dallas, the HC isn’t the man, and all the players know it, so the message has to fall at least a little flat, if it gets through at all.

Jerry wanting to be the clear boss and face of the franchise, while at the same time out there hawking his product, makes for a very bad combo, and absolutely clips the wings of his staff….either he cannot understand that or doesn’t care. My guess is the latter. ‘We can win MY way.’ Really?

 

[Praxit]

..as we get older and seen this play out over and over. Its all humor, now.

We see young men, in thier primes. Go up against fate and face conundrums that life, always holds the winning hand.

 

[KJJ]

I really don’t think we’re going to see the hype we’ve seen in previous seasons from the fan base even if we were to get off to a real good start. However, if we were to go up to San Francisco and get a win that could change. Beating the 49ers would definitely revive a lot of fans, but it still always comes down to December and January. We always seem to peak too early and begin to fade. That’s been one of our big downfalls.

 

[Streifenkarl]

Beating the Niners would be huge for me.

 

[KJJ]

Beating the Niners would be huge for me.

It would be huge for the entire fan base. San Francisco has beaten us the last three times. However, if we lose that game, even if we were 6-0 heading in the fanbase will lose faith in the team. If we can’t get past San Francisco, then nothing has changed and we’re not going to get far.

 

[Rockport]

We are just a few weeks away from Cowboys 2024 training camp and everything that it implies. NFL Football is just around the corner and after a mostly disappointing and head scratching off-season, the Cowboys will once again head to Oxnard, California to begin preparations for this storied franchise’s 65th season. And the best hype and sales machine in all of professional sports is about to gear up again.

Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with fans getting excited and hopeful about another season. I fault no one who gets excited about TC, pre-season games and the daily reports we get from camp about which unheralded players are looking great. I’m looking forward to having some real football to get excited about myself.

But count me among those who don't get too excited about training camp, ps games or reports of players who are having a “great camp” this summer. I take most of that hype with a huge grain of salt until the real bullets fly in games that count in the standings starting in September.

So here are some typical “hype” statements I’m almost guaranteeing we will hear in the coming weeks:

• “__________ is having a great camp.” (Generic statement usually made about a young player who if he makes the team will probably only be on STs)
• ”__________ is in the best shape of his life.” (Translation: It means nothing)
• Some beat writer who covers practices will mention a “spectacular catch” or other great play made by some unheralded player who more than likely won’t make the team. (Remember the great catches made by the likes of TE Rico Gathers or WR TJ Vasher? Gathers had 3 career catches in a season and a half of NFL football, and Vasher never played a down of a regular season game. But they had great camps!)
• ”________ is just out there making plays“. (Translation: We don’t have anything specific to say but we want you to get excited anyway)

Again, if you are a fan who gets exited about training camp or pre-season games, I support you enjoying all of it. I understand why many love it. I hope you will also understand why I just wait until September to get excited because to me so much of TC and preseason games are just hype.

So in a few weeks training camp opens and the hype machine begins its messaging. Hope we can all have fun with it however we choose.

As it is with every team.

 

[TwentyOne]

We are just a few weeks away from Cowboys 2024 training camp and everything that it implies. NFL Football is just around the corner and after a mostly disappointing and head scratching off-season, the Cowboys will once again head to Oxnard, California to begin preparations for this storied franchise’s 65th season. And the best hype and sales machine in all of professional sports is about to gear up again.

Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with fans getting excited and hopeful about another season. I fault no one who gets excited about TC, pre-season games and the daily reports we get from camp about which unheralded players are looking great. I’m looking forward to having some real football to get excited about myself.

But count me among those who don't get too excited about training camp, ps games or reports of players who are having a “great camp” this summer. I take most of that hype with a huge grain of salt until the real bullets fly in games that count in the standings starting in September.

So here are some typical “hype” statements I’m almost guaranteeing we will hear in the coming weeks:

• “__________ is having a great camp.” (Generic statement usually made about a young player who if he makes the team will probably only be on STs)
• ”__________ is in the best shape of his life.” (Translation: It means nothing)
• Some beat writer who covers practices will mention a “spectacular catch” or other great play made by some unheralded player who more than likely won’t make the team. (Remember the great catches made by the likes of TE Rico Gathers or WR TJ Vasher? Gathers had 3 career catches in a season and a half of NFL football, and Vasher never played a down of a regular season game. But they had great camps!)
• ”________ is just out there making plays“. (Translation: We don’t have anything specific to say but we want you to get excited anyway)

Again, if you are a fan who gets exited about training camp or pre-season games, I support you enjoying all of it. I understand why many love it. I hope you will also understand why I just wait until September to get excited because to me so much of TC and preseason games are just hype.

So in a few weeks training camp opens and the hype machine begins its messaging. Hope we can all have fun with it however we choose.

I am waiting for Ranchings or Rockports obligatory "Hater" answer to your post.

 

[Rockport]

I find it sad when people call other members bandwagon fans simply because they are unhappy with the current state of the team despite the fact they have been fans their entire lives and are here, on a Cowboys forum site of all places, posting day after day.

Bandwagon fans are people who become fans when a team wins big games and disappear when teams lose or miss those games.

Since the Cowboys have not won a big game in 29 years, I think every Cowboys fan who posts on this forum week after week, month after month, etc. has more than proven they are not bandwagon fans.

I understand that you hate when people criticize the team, but after 29 years of failured seasons, I think Cowboys fans .. all of them .. deserve the right to be upset, disappointed, disillusioned and/or frustrated about the current state of the team.

Just because you "believe" every year does not make you a better fan nor does questioning the team's decisions and directions make other fans bad fans.

Get off your high horse. I have never said I’m a better fan than anyone else and I don’t hate people who criticize the team. I‘m disgusted with people who post their hate for the team daily in every thread.

 

[JoeKing]

I’m really sorry Bob that you’ve become a hopeless fan who can’t get excited about the new season. That’s unfortunate. You sound like a band wagon fan waiting until the games start to “possibly” get on the train. If they do bad, then you have an out. To each his own but please don’t try and take the pleasure out of those of us who do appreciate and enjoy everything about training camp with your “I’m not onboard until they prove it” declaration.

I'm with you, Rocky. Bob's inability to get excited about a new Cowboys season sounds like a personal problem that does not include me.

 

[Rockport]

There is no such thing as "better" fanatics.

You are mistakingly ignoring the fact that nowhere in there does it say "only thinks positive".

All fans who visit and post regularly on this or other Cowboys sites have "excessive and single-minded zeal" regardless of their opinions.

Excessive and single-minded hate is where the problem lies.

 

[JoeKing]

Get off your high horse. I have never said I’m a better fan than anyone else and I don’t hate people who criticize the team. I‘m disgusted with people who post their hate for the team daily in every thread.

Once again, Rocky, I'm with you even though you frequently accuse me of being negative on the team.

 

[DallasEast]

Get off your high horse.

Yoda say, "Is thick, the irony."

 

[InPhiltraitor]

A cautionary tale about the personal perception of someone else as a fan. I greatly enjoy visits to my favorite barbershop, which I settled upon many moons ago. Talking about football is one of those fun things to do there.

A new guy showed up during one of my visits. Never saw him before. He asked one of the barbers if he needed an appointment. One said they could fit him in that time but to reserve a spot from then on.

We both sat in chairs next to each other when it was our turn. One of the barbers asked, as he always did, what I thought about the Cowboys' last game. I gave my two cents, which sparked all the barbers and almost all the other customers into giving their two cents as well. One thing is seemingly true about a Cowboys football conversation. It gets lively no matter what.

The new guy's barber asked him who his favorite team was. He said he was a Cowboys fan. That perked up my ears, so I started peppering him about key points during the game. All of his answers were deadpanned. Half of those were pretty dismissal.

I saw him at least twice (I think) at the barbershop afterwards. He was pretty static in discussing what happened in other games as well. My best friend was getting a haircut on last occasion too. He is a 49er fan. It was then that I learned the new guy was a friend of his from work. My friend likes to constantly jab me about my team. For whatever reason, he asked both the new guy and me to come over for a Cowboys game that Sunday. We both accepted.

Long story short, the sedated, didn't care, new guy turned into Dr. Ric Flair and Mr. Hulk during the game. The whole game, including some of halftime, was constant "WOOOOOOs!" or "<EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE EXPLETIVE>! He jumped off the sofa a good ten times at the least. He almost picked up and through my friend's television remote twice. He sulked after drives ending in punts. Suffice it to say, the guy was extremely animated while watching his team.

Did I mention he said he did not drink alcohol? lol.

We met at the barbershop again about a month later. As usual, the Cowboys surfaced as the topic. He acted like he had before, AT the barbershop. Not the fan WATCHING a game.

Every member here has only two things to size up another member as fan: typed words and an avatar. And too many members have default Rowdy avatars (shut up DE!) That is all anyone has to go on. Everyone knows basically squat about another member's team allegiance or how strongly they actually feel about the team beyond their words typed out on a fan board. That's it.

We can all be judgmental about who is or is not a fan. I have certainly passed judgement in the past myself. However. Is anyone's judgement, of people we know practically nothing about, the right one?



"WOOOOOOO! How about dem Cowboys!" <new guy actual quote>

Good story and great perspective on your part. Nicely played.

We’re all prone to forgetting we’re on the same team here. At least I believe we are. If you’re not a Cowboys fan and you’re just here to troll then you’re just an idiot with nothing going on in your life.

BTW, in regard to your comment to only having our words and avatars as a snapsht of who we are, could you offer an instant analysis of me based on my avatar? Since I asked I cant be offended - I promise.

 

[MoistMayonnaise]

Man, I'm really having a hard time getting pumped this year. I started following the cowboys , oh geesh, 50 years ago. I've never had the mental block I'm having this year.

Agreed. I am in more of a shut up and play mode. No more talking.

 

[DallasEast]

BTW, in regard to your comment to only having our words and avatars as a snapsht of who we are, could you offer an instant analysis of me based on my avatar? Since I asked I cant be offended - I promise.

That is Ryan Leaf, right? If so, hmm... I would say you might be brass and cocky in nature but are usually quiet until you think you should say anything with emphasis. My pseudo-psychological two cents.