TrueBlueCowboy, I also live in Jacksonville. Nice to see another die-hard Cowboys fan from this neck of the woods on this board. Our fellow Cowboy forum brothers probably aren't aware that there is a sizable community of Cowboy fans in this area despite this town gaining the Jaguars around a decade ago.
The Jaguars are a team I love to see lose because of all the needling I endure thanks to my annoying Jaguar fan neighbors, co-workers and even close friends.
That stated, unlike some other posters in here I do not believe the Jaguars are a paper tiger with an undeserving 2005 12-4 record. This is a franchise that has been very successful in its short existence and they have repeatedly competed against quality opponents. And their team has been honed by always being scheduled with an unfair successions of road games. This team is battle tough and has a tendency to come back from behind.
I too am optimistic about our Cowboys this year and I believe we can beat the Jaguars. But the Jaguars are still good enough without Stroud and a gimpy Peterson to beat us as well. When you look at last year's stats for both teams it is interesting how similar our teams are.
I hope some of our fellow Cowboy fans read a little further about this opponent they know very little about. Even in football articles today it has been emphasized that the Jaguars had a +11 turnover ratio last year compared to our -5. EACH of their front line defenders have had multiple sacks last season. No other team's defense has achieved that in recent history. They also are only one of seven teams to have posted a winning record over the last 2 years.
When protected Leftwich can be nearly as deadly as Bledsoe. Their 3 receivers are all tall, fast and physical. Fred Taylor when healthy can be more explosive than Julius Jones. When I watched Julius Jones in his first season I immediately thought he was another Fred Taylor, albeit unproven.
All I am stating is that the Jaguars are a pretty good team. They have proven that particularly over the last several years. Did we prove we were a good team last year, or the year before?
Now I do believe we are more talented now than most teams, and we will fully establish our defenses and offense this year. If our line holds up and the defense effectively exerts pressure, I believe we can win 24-10 today.
Go Cowboys.
