Lone Star Struck

  Well after what has seemed to be an eternity, I have decided to crawl out of my off-season hole and get back into the real world. I apologize to my co-writers and to our Lone Star Struck fans for not blogging about our Cowboys. Ever since that loss to the Vikings, I have been in, what I did not want to believe, a depressed state of mind. I have finally realized that loss affected me more than I thought it did. I said right after the loss, just like most of us did, its ok we got our first playoff win in 12 years. We had a great season and this season was a step forward. While all of that is true, that loss devastated me. Not because it was such a great season and I know we have the team to go all the way, but because the way we lost that game.

 We were the better team going into that game and EVERYONE knew it. The Cowboys were FINALLY getting the credit they deserved. A stout defense, an offensive line that protected and made holes for 3 GREAT running backs. A TRUE CONTENDER! I do not know what happened that dreadful day but I am now admitting it is eating me apart from the inside out. That is all I can think about and the only way to get back to myself is to write about it.

 As for the upcoming season. Free agency has just started and what an active season it is. The SECOND and maybe even third best defensive end in the league, Julius Peppers, has gone to Chicago. Of course the first being Demarcus Ware and second Anthony Spencer. Although I think we might all agree that Spencer needs a year or two more experience! With all the free agents out there and all the teams that need help in their areas, I have not heard much talk about the Cowboys needs. To me, that means we don’t have any real “needs”. We have what we need to take this team to the next level. We are a championship team.

Well, 3 days later and I am finally writing an article. It was hard to take in that loss. Not because we got beat 34 – 3 but because, just like James said, we did not choke. We got beat by a team that just simply wanted it more. I am still confused because going into that game, not only did I believe we were the better team but it was being said everywhere I watched and read. NFL.com writers and analysts were saying Dallas is a better team, Broadcasters on Sports center were saying Dallas was a better team. They were playing “together” just like a championship team should. But watching the game, we simply got outplayed.

Romo did not have his best game by far but this loss was not even close to being his fault. The offensive line fell apart, the defensive line got played, simply put the Dallas Cowboys got outplayed. Don’t get me wrong I am just as much of a fan today as I have been my whole life. I stuck by them when they went 1-16. I was there with them when Tom Landry got treated like a red headed step child and DID NOT deserve it. I was there when they won 3 out of 4 super bowls in the 90’s. I will be with the Cowboys until the day I die.

Looking back at this game if I did not see the score I would never think that they got beat that bad. Let me prove my point.

Time of possession in the game was extremely close. Dallas had the ball for 30:34 and Minnesota had it for 29:26. Dallas had 16 first downs in the game with Minnesota only have 15. Dallas had only 2 penalties all game for a minimal 10 yards. Minnesota had 8 penalties for 50 yards. Minnesota only had 17 more rushing yards than Dallas but the average yards per rush was Dallas 3.7 Minnesota 3.3. Minnesota only converted one more third down that Dallas did.

Looking at those stats makes me feel better about the loss. Do I feel good about it, of course not who does or would feel good about a loss. But I know that Dallas did not choke, as a matter of fact they played a half way decent game.

This year Dallas got a HUGE monkey off their backs. After a 13 year drought, they finally won a playoff game. No we did not advance to the super bowl like we all had hoped but we made a huge step forward in our progress to becoming a championship team once again. We will learn from our mistakes and come back next year stronger faster and more hungry. Thank you Dallas Cowboys for a great season. Let’s do what we have to do this off season to keep our star players and draft some soon to be pro bowlers, and come back next year ready and raring to take on the world.

I thought that this blog would be a little different than the last one I have written. I feel I have let my fellow writers down since I started writing for Lone Stay Struck. I never did “officially” introduce myself.

Well, I feel that there is no better time than now to tell you a little about me and my desire, passion and love for the Dallas Cowboys. Here is just a small example of what I go through each and every week as I prepare for the next game.

MONDAY: As I slowly make my way out of bed and into the shower I reflect on the game and a smile comes to my face I think to myself, WOW, The Cowboys just beat the Eagles for the third time this season, second time in a row. After a long day a work and a lot of trash talking back and forth, I finally collect my debts owed to me from the “haters” that bet against the Cowboys. I get home from work and immediately turn on sports center to catch up on the sports news of the day, and of course watch more highlights of the game. Monday is also poker night, and more trash talking and reflecting on a great game.

TUESDSAY: Out of bed and into the shower and on my way to work. Now the talk shifts to the following week’s game. I hear, Cowboys can not beat the Vikings, Favre is too good, and the Eagles don’t have Adrian Peterson. No the Eagles do not have Peterson, but the Boys still have Ware and Spencer, a comeback that causes silence.

WEDNESDAY: Had to work overnight and get home just in time to get the kids up for school and my son asks me, “Dad, do the Cowboys play today?” I feel proud as I now know I am raising my son the right way. Starting to get hyped up and excited, only a few more days until the big game. I make sure my jersey, beanie and jacket are clean and ready to be worn. Once again, poker night, and more trash talking and reflecting on a great game.

THURSDAY: Again had to work overnight, wife get kids off to school and I get to rest. Cowboy’s slippers, pajamas, cup and Sports Center to start my day. I make my arrangements on where I am going to be watching the game. Unfortunately, this time I know I have to work on Sunday so I am going to record the game and come home from work and watch it.

FRIDAY: I jump out of bed grab the phone and start calling my dad, brother and friends to talk about the game. I double check to make sure I have what I need on Sunday and make more phone calls. Hyped up and ready to go, cant’ wait for Sunday, GO COWBOYS!!!!!!!

This is just a small version of what I go through week in and week out throughout the football season. As you can imagine it can be hectic and fun all in one. Hopefully I did not bore you too much while telling you a little about me and how I make it week to week while our Cowboys make their run to the Super Bowl.

As the final seconds of the game tick away, and I watch Tony Romo walk off the field I notice something very interesting. The monkey is gone! The Dallas Cowboys have finally ended their prolonged 13 year playoff drought. Not only did they end this drought with a win over a rival team in the NFC East, They ended it with one of the most dominating performances ever put on in the playoffs.

Tony Romo was once again at the top of his game putting on a clinic for the fans to see. Picking apart the eagles defense, converting 3rd long like it was 3rd and inches. Throwing 23/35 passes for 244 yards 2 touchdowns and no interceptions, thanks to Wade Phillips for what could be considered the best coaching move he has made as a head coach for the Dallas Cowboys and challenging what at first seemed to be an amazing interception. Romo proved once again, give him time in the pocket and he will pick apart a defense.

Just as the last 2 meetings in the regular season against the Eagles, the Dallas running game was unstoppable. Dallas rushed for a total 198 yards on 35 carries between our 3 top running backs. With Felix Jones leading the way with a 73 yard touchdown run in the 3rd quarter and putting the final nail in the coffin of the Eagles.

I wrote an article a couple months back about when the game was fun and how if we could get back to remembering it was fun to play the game, and then the wins would come. I mention that previous article because the way that the defense is playing and not letting the opponents come anywhere close to clicking and getting any kind of rhythm, The offense has fun while on the field. Think back to when Romo threw that little 6 yard screen touchdown pass to Miles Austin. When they showed Romo running down to congratulate Austin, Romo reached over and gave the Ref a “man” pat as he ran by him. Romo had the biggest smile on his face he has had all season. THAT is having fun. THAT is what we need.

What to say about our defense. I could mention what this player and that player did. How this player got a sack or that player made a great deflection. However, it was a total team defense that made this game possible. It was whole defense that made plays; it was every player on the field at any time doing exactly what they had to do to make things happen. Did any one player “stand” out? Of course they did, matter of fact a couple of different players stood out. But that does not mean the other players did not “play their roll”. It was a total TEAM effort.

Congratulations to the Dallas Cowboys for ending their playoff drought. Let’s go out and get another win next week against the Minnesota Vikings and continue our run to the Super Bowl!!!!!

GO COWBOYS!!!!!!!

As I sit here Friday night watching Sportscenter, NFL Network and Sportsnation I am getting more and more frustrated. For some reason NO ONE is giving the Cowboys any kind of a chance to win this game against the Eagles Saturday night. Have they not seen what the Cowboys have been doing the last few weeks. Have they not seen how the defense has been DOMINATING the line of scrimmage. I am so tired of not getting respect that is deserved.

To me this has got to be the biggest game Dallas has played in the last few years. They need to go out and show the critics, no wait, go out and SHUT THE CRITICS UP!!!!!!!!!!!  I am so sick and tired of no one believing in what the Cowboys are doing right now. They posted BACK TO BACK shut outs for the first time in the history of their existence.

Everyone keeps saying again and again DeSean Jackson is the better receiver and will have a better game. Well not only do I say otherwise but here are a few stats to back me up:

DeSean Jackson has started EVERY game this season for the Eagles and Miles Austin only started after sitting the first 4 games of the season.

Jackson has 63 receptions with 9 touchdowns for a total of 1,167 yards

Austin has 81 receptions with 11 touchdowns for a total of 1,320 yards

Now to me, numbers tell the truth, Miles Austin is a MUCH better reciever than DeSean Jackson. So, let’s go Boys. Lets show everyone out there that this year is not like the past, we mean business and we are making a statement. Bring it home Dallas!

First of all I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and want to wish you all a very happy new year. I hope you all have a great 2010. Sorry I have not been writing but every family needs a vacation once in a while and ours was wonderful.  Like almost everyone else I have more than 1 new year’s resolution. My main resolution this year is to go to a Super Bowl party for the Cowboys next month. The way they are playing right now, that is one new year’s resolution that will NOT be broken.

As for the game what an outstanding performance our Boys have been putting up the last few weeks. Tony Romo is playing to the top of his potential shutting all the critics up each and every week. Yes he had one interception against the Eagles, but I feel that if a ball is tipped at the line of scrimmage and then caught, that should not be counted against the quarterback. Not his fault just a great defensive play.

The defense played great but I do have one small concern: the wide receivers for the Eagles were pretty wide open a lot during the game. We really need to tighten up that defense because they will not be dropping those passes every week.

I love to go hang out at the local sports lounge where the “haters” have hounded me all year long saying the Boys suck, Romo is sorry, they will not win anything, won’t even make the playoffs. I walked into the SAME place Sunday night after the Cowboys shut out the Eagles and those SAME people were high-fiving me and giving our Cowboys props, and one of them even said they actually have a chance of making it through the playoffs this year. Yes, I made him say that 4 more times haha.

So to all the bandwagon fans out there, who were criticizing the Cowboys week in and week out, who never gave them a chance to do anything, I simply have one thing to say:

HOW BOUT DEM COWBOYS BABY!!!!!!!!!

Before I get into my thoughts on the game and what it means for us, I want to make one small point.  FIRE NICK FOLK!!!!!!!!!!!. I am so sick and tired of them making excuses for him. He has lost his edge. They showed footage of pre game warm-ups by Nick Folk. If I am correct I believe they showed 7 attempts WITHOUT a holder. How many of those attempts did he make? NONE!!!!!!! How can you sit back and watch your “struggling” kicker  miss several warm-ups before game and then when the game is on the line, put him in??  That makes absolutely no sense to me. I am also totally against Romo holding kicks. What other team in the NFL, NCAA, High school or any other league you want to bring up has their starting QB holding kicks? None!!! When Kris Brown of the Texans missed those critical field goals for the Texans this year, did Kubiak think, hey I have an idea; let’s put Matt Schaub back there to hold the kicks so that Kris Brown can make them, no he did not. Again, FIRE NICK FOLK!!!!!

As for what this game means for us this season, we are one step closer to the playoffs. We need help from SF this weekend by taking down the Eagles. Also, being the die hard Cowboys fan that I am, it makes me sick to my stomach to even think about saying this, but we really need the Redskins to beat the Giants. Wow admitting that I want the skins to win is even hard to type but it has to be said.

Now for the game. YEAH BABY!! WOOOHOOOO!!! WAY TO GO BOYS!!!! Ok got that out of the way. We finally got to see the FULL potential that the cowboys have on the field each and every week. Romo and the offense looked flawless. The defense was brutal. The game was AMAZING. On the field Romo was the better of the 2 quarterbacks going 22/34 for a total of 333 yards and 1 touchdown with ZERO interceptions or fumbles and his ability to avoid the rush was able to get him 4 rushes for 21 yards. Our #1 receiver Miles Austin once again showed us why letting T.O. go was the best option for the team with 7 receptions for 139 yards and a touchdown. Jason Whitten had a good game with clutch catches when it mattered most, as he usually does, going for 44 yards on just 5 catches. Romo also distributed the ball well to several other options, giving the rest of our receivers and our running backs a total of 10 catches for 129 yards. Once again proving that the Dallas passing game is a force to be recon with.

Rushing rushing rushing. There is not much more to say about our ground game than, MARION BARBER!!!!!!! That man is a beast and was not going to be denied. Although he only had 17 rushing attempts he went for a hard fought 62 yards and 2 touchdowns. Felix Jones made his presence known not only on his 14 carries for 58 yards but also in the return game averaging 30 yards with one return of 41 yards. Let just say this is one ground game that was not going to be denied.

Ok, say it with me, DEFENSE!!! DEFENSE!!! DEFENSE!!! Wow what a performance our defense put up. Anthony Spencer is coming into his own and making all teams account for him. Our secondary is making other teams passing games quiver. Our linebackers are making running backs think maybe we should pass the ball more often. And then there is the man. The best defensive player in the league. The man that gets thru double teams to force QB’s to make errant throws, picks and run for their lives. Of course, you know I am talking about Demarcus Ware. After last week when all of our hearts stopped and the city of Dallas came to a complete stop and everyone was holding their breath, while Ware was being carted off the field, no one knew if he would play this week. Well, as we all know he did play and once again he dominated. He had a total of 2 sacks with 2 forced fumbles, and of course the key forced fumble at the end of the game with ten seconds left in the game to seal the victory for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys as a whole during the game Dominated every aspect of the game We had more first downs, 24 to 23, more total net yards, 436 to 336.  Rushing yards were to our advantage 145 to 65. Our defense held the high powered offense of the Saints to only 3 points in the first half and 17 points in the game with Drew Brees passing for under 300 yards and only touchdown. A very big key to the game was third down efficiency.  While Dallas went for 8 of 15 attempts on third down with a 53% efficiency rate the Saints only converted 1 third down during the game with an efficiency rate of only 14%. Once again proving that our defense is one of the best defenses in the league. Let’s take this win and this momentum that we know have, and bring it to the next game when we go to Washington and show them that the December curse is now OVER and we are making our run to the SUPERBOWL!!!

Mad, Frustrated, Depressed you name it that’s how I am feeling.  I am so sick and tired of watching a different team every week.  This is a frustration blog and I NEED to get it out.  Week in and week out the Cowboys play different.  One week, a GREAT game, flawless and the next they look like my old high school team could beat them.

What is the problem you may ask?  Well ya know what, I am asking that same question.  WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?????  The Cowboys have 3 of the best running backs in the league, the BEST tight end in the league, and a top 10 quarterback in the league.  Why can’t they move the ball down the field like they should?

This last Sunday Romo sat down with hall of famer Michael Irvin for a one on one conversation. Unfortunately, due to work, I was only able to catch bits and pieces of it.  One thing I did hear Michael Irvin ask Romo was:

“What makes the team this year different from last year?”

Romo said, “When we lose, no one points the finger at one person or another, they look at themselves and say, what can I do to make this team better?”

Yes that is the answer that every fan out there wants to hear. But on top of that, we all want to SEE that happen.  We want to see this team IMPROVE from week to week.  Honestly, I think discipline is a major factor in the locker room, on the practice field and during games.  While I am watching a game and lets say a penalty happens, heads hang down.  No one gets mad and screams and hollers at anyone for causing the team 5, 10, 15 or more yards. COME ON!!!! Someone get mad, someone scream, someone put fire into this team, IT IS EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED!!!!!!

I have been a Cowboys fan ever since I was a little boy sitting in front of the TV with my dad.  Over 30 years and I am not ever going to change that, but it is about time the team changes how they play before other fans out there decide that “Amercia’s Team” is not so hot afterall. Screw the December hex, screw the critics, screw the haters, PLAY SOME SERIOUS BALL!!!!!!!!!!

First of all I want to wish everyone out there a very happy Thanksgiving. Hope everyone had a great day with family and watching some Dallas Cowboys football. Just like Kelly said, thanks to all of our troops out there serving our country, we all thank you very much.

As for the game, the Cowboys got back to the way they should be playing. They had a decent game and pulled out a vicory. Was it an astounding victory, no but they did look so much better this week than they have in the past 2 weeks. One question that has to be addressed. Is Nick Folk a concern? In the past, Especially last year when we played Buffalo, Nick was a sure thing we could count on every time. This year is not the same story, and watching the Texans go down like they did due to Kris Brown missing those field goals twice in 3 weeks, we HAVE to keep an eye on him.

As for the rest of the game Romo was back to his self going 18/29 for 309 yards 2 touchdowns and NO turnovers. Miles Austin once again showed he is the number 1 reciever with 7 receptions for 145 yards and a touchdown. Jason Whitten had his best game of the year with 5 receptions for 105 yards. Roy Williams had another touchdown in his 2 catches totalling 15 yards. Our running backs had a really great day with Barber and Jones having a combined 4 catches for a total of 42 yards.

Our rushing attack was once again proven to be one of the best in the league. Felix Jones carried the ball only 7 times but had 68 yards, including a 46 yard run for a touchdown. Tashard Choice took a wild cat snap and ran it for 66 yards. And our Beast of a running back Marion Barber had 14 carries for 61 yards.

Our defense did not look their best, especially against the run. They allowed a total of 124 yards on 24 carries for the Raiders. Gradkowski went 18/35 but only had 200 yards passing and 1 touchdown but scrambled for 30 yards on the ground. Demarcus Ware was making his presence known all game long, and even though he only had 1 tackle with 1 sack, the Raiders offensive line had to double team him allowing Anthony Spencer to have a good game with 6 tackes 2 assists and 2 sacks.

In total Dallas had a total of 494 yards in the game with 195 of those yards coming on the ground with a total of 25 rushing plays. Penalties once again were a concern but down a bit from recent games with 6 penalties for 48 yards. Better but not good enough. We had a total of 18 first downs to Oaklands only 14 first downs. Time of possession was also in our favor 31:14 to 28:46.

All in all it was a good game on a great day. Once again I would like to say to all the fans out there happy thanksgiving and hope you all had have and continue to have a great holiday season.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING MOM!!!!!

Unfortunately, I have not been able to get to my blog this week until now. But I feel with the win we had last week, I have to write something. I am on cloud 9 right now. Our Dallas Cowboys are finally looking like they care. Like they know they have the pieces in place to win a championship. Yes, you and I have all known this for a few years now, but I really believe it is starting to sink in to them. With that said, what a great game it was last Sunday.

Once again Tony Romo had a great performance going 21/34 for 307 yards 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Even with all the talk about Roy Williams and how his chemistry with Romo was not there yet, in my opinion he had his best game yet catching 5 passes for 75 total yards. Patrick Crayton stepped up and had 2 receptions for 74 yards. Jason Whitten had the biggest catch of the game in the fourth quarter with 2 minutes to go giving Dallas a first down and solidifying the win, but finishing the day with 7 catches for 43 yards. Miles Austin once again made a strong statement as to who the real number one receiver is by catching only one pass but taking it 49 yards for what turned out to be a game winning touchdown. Ogletree, Barber and Choice all combined for a total of 6 catches for 66 total yards. Once again proving that the chemistry is not only there with Roy; but with the whole team.

We did not have our best running game with only 23 rushes for a total of 76 yards and one touchdown (by Tashard Choice)  averaging only 3.3 yards per carry and 2 tackles lost for 5 yards. Our 3rd down efficiency was not our best but not our worst going 7/15 at 46%. We finished the day with 61 total plays (including the 4 sacks for 25 yards) averaging 5.9 yards per play for a total of 358 net yards. In my opinion, an all in all a good performance.

Once again our defense stepped up and had an outstanding performance. I wrote an article a few weeks back about our defense and the plan that our head coach Wade Phillips had for them and how he would give his expert opinion on things that needed to be done to improve the defense. Well, it turns out that Wade Phillips might actually know a thing or 2 about defense in the NFL. Although Demarcus Ware did not get a sack in this game, his presence alone made the Eagles think twice about what they wanted to do. He had 3 tackles and assisted on another. Jay Ratliff lead the team with 2 sacks and 5 tackles while Victor Butler had a sack and tackle himself.

Everyone talked about last season how our corners and safety’s always got beat deep and if anyone wanted to beat the Cowboys just go deep. Well our secondary has proven to everyone, THAT IS NOT TRUE!!!!!!! Terence Newman was once again a shut down CB that had a total of 4 tackles. On the other side of the field Mike Jenkins stepped up and had 2 tackles and one interception.  But the defensive performer of the day was our SS Gerald Sensabaugh with a total of 6 tackles and an interception.

Our defense held the Eagles to 4/12 3rd down attempts keeping it at only 33%. Stopping them on a critical 4th and inches play and taking over on downs. Our defends held them to 3.7 yards per rushing attempt and only 5.2 average yards per offensive play keeping them under 300 total yards of offense on the day.  Time of possession was pretty close throughout the game with the Cowboys having the edge at 31:44 to the Eagles 28:16. At the end of the day, the better team won. What do you say we go into Green Bay this week and continue our winning streak and come back home on a high note!

Yes there was only 1 football on the field at a time, but from the way Dallas looked this week and the way Tony Romo spread the ball around it sure didn’t look like it. Dallas had Seattle confused from the very beginning on what their game plan was and that was to dominate.

Tony Romo went 21/36 for 256 yards and 3 touchdowns with NO interceptions. Miles Austin had 5 receptions for 61 yards rushed for 11 yards and had a touchdown. Sam Hurd had just one reception but it went for 35 yards and a touchdown. Roy Williams finally had his first touchdown as a Dallas Cowboy with 2 receptions for 19 yards. Patrick Crayton had 39 yards receiving and returned a punt for a touchdown for the second week in a row. Jason Witten, Felix Jones, Kevin Ogletree and Martellus Bennett all had receptions for over 100 total yards.

Marion “The Beast” Barber had only 14 rushing attempts but went for 53 yards and a touchdown. Felix Jones had 8 attempts and pounded out 39 yards. Tashard Choice got in on the action with 4 rushes for 11 yards. The offense went for a total of 26 first downs in the game, with 17 of those coming in the first half alone. 15 of those first downs by passing and 7 of them by rushing. Our third down efficiency was at 53% with a total of 362 net yards. Time of possession was an astounding 34:45

Keith Brooking continued to make his statement towards defensive player of the year with 8 tackles and forcing 1 sack. Demarcus Ware once again had a strong game with 2 tackles and a sack and Bobby Carpenter refused to be overlooked and got in with 3 tackles and a sack. Terence Newman and Bradie James both had good games each forcing a fumble that was recovered by Dallas. With a total of 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and only allowing 79 rushing yards by previous Dallas Cowboys RB Julius Jones, holding the Seattle offensive possession time to 25:15 and only 17 points, the defense made a statement once again.

You hear all this talk about what division is the toughest in the league. If you look at the numbers it is an easy decision to make. the NFC east is the only division in the league to have 3 teams with at least 5 wins on the season. With 5 out of the next 4 games being on the road you could make the argument that Dallas has the toughest schedule to finish out the season but with the way they are coming together on both offense and defense, bring on the competition.

Sunday night is going to be a true test for Dallas when we play Philly for first place in our division. After we win that game and silence all the critics we make our way north to Lambeau field for a battle against the Green Bay Packers before we come back home against our long time rivals (I cringe every time I even say their name) the STRUGGLING Washington Redskins.

Although we are looking very strong at home, we need to prove to not only ourselves but all the critics out there that we can win on the road. Once we win Sunday night and take over first place, then come home after winning in Green Bay with a 3 game winning streak, maybe, JUST MAYBE, everyone will see that this year DALLAS IS ON A MISSION!!!!!

LET’S GO BOYS!!!!!!!

I was sitting at my house earlier in the week watching ESPN Classic featuring the 1991 Cowboys vs Falcons. Although Troy Aikman was not in the game due to an injury, I saw Emmit Smith, Michael Irvin and “MOOSE” Johnston and the way they moved up and down the field and the way the defense took over and controlled every aspect of the game.

Sunday as I was sitting there watching the Cowboys DESTROY the Falcons on defense, I had to remind myself that I was not still watching that same game on ESPN Classic. This was the 2009 Cowboys playing a great game. We dominated on the line and got to the quarterback several times during the game. Yes, it was a rocky start giving them that first drive and touchdown, but when Phillips challenged the defense they stepped up and performed like we knew they could. It was all over but the crying for the Falcons at that point.

As for the offense, T. whO.??? Miles Austin is the name we are and SHOULD be talking about. Jerry Jones said himself, “He has the big play making abilities”. Well that has been proven 2 weeks in a row. Tony Romo is looking like he did last couple of years and seems to be having fun again. Yes once again they looked great, but that has happened before this season.

Don’t get me wrong, I am just as much of a die hard fan as all of us out there. Sitting next to my dad on the couch screaming together as the Cowboys scored. Or even better, when the Cowboys score you pick up your phone, call your dad and when he answers, you both just start screaming then hang up. NO WORDS NECESSARY!! Those are the great phone calls we all love to make. But just like Kelly said, we have to be truthful, and realize there are kinks that need to be worked out.

Penalties are obviously our biggest concern. One thing that needs to be brought to the field, locker room, practice field and everywhere else is discipline. Once that is established and they stop making all the mistakes, I really believe they will have a strong chance at making a very strong push this year. LETS GO COWBOYS!!!!!!!

As we huddle up behind the green car our star quarterback calls out the plays. You go to the fire hydrant and stop, you go to the driveway and then cut 5 yards in and you just go straight for the touchdown.  That was the play calling we used to make as kids standing in the streets for hours and hours in front of our houses. Calling out as we run down the street to pass the stop sign for a touchdown, he’s at the 15 the 10 the 5 TOUCHDOWN COWBOYS!!!!

Remember those days? I sure do. Back when football was fun for everyone. That was when nothing else mattered. Then you make it to high school. The dream of playing in the NFL is out there for the taking. Standing on the field and looking over to see your family cheering you on in the bleachers. Going out after the game and celebrating a great win. Hearing the horns honking at you as you sit outside the local burger joint. Cheers come from passing cars, smiles and laughfter everywhere.

Next thing you know your standing at the mailbox, waiting for the mailman to bring that “letter”.  As you see him round the corner, you glance back into your house, seeing your parents watching you thru the front window. You are handed an envelope, You stand there for what seems like forever just staring at it. As you open it, tears fill your eyes. Then it hits you, YOU GOT IN!!!! You jump for joy and go screaming into the house.  Jumping into your dads arms, screaming I DID IT I DID IT, I GOT IN. That letter from college saying, you have been given a scholorship. You are now going to play college football. STILL HAVING FUN?

What happened to those days? If we go back and look down the street, we will still see those kids in the street, those horns honking by the local burger joints and that kid standing by the mailbox. So why not think back to then and realize how much fun the game was. How we used to dream to be where we are now, playing football in the NFL.  Take this bye week to reflect back to the days growing up and dreaming to be here and realize it was fun. Start having fun again, and the sky is the limit on where we could be standing next season.

As I watch the Dallas Cowboys travel around the football nation, playing different venues. I notice something. No matter where we are playing, NY, TB, Denver, Kansas City, Philadelphia and even Washington, what do you ALWAYS see? You see a Dallas Cowboys fan. WE ARE EVERYWHERE!!! They can hate us all they want, they can talk down about our team all they want, but one thing they can never take away from the Dallas Cowboys are the fans.

All the ups and downs that we have gone thru so far this season, and yet, here we are, defending our QB till the very end. Telling everyone our defense IS one of the best. Willing our team to victory and wiping the tears from our eyes when we lose. Taking the heat of all of the “Cowboy Haters” out there, telling us it’s just another losing season for us, but not believing that. Knowing that we have what it takes to win. We stand behind our team rain or shine, hot or cold, WIN OR LOSE!!!

No matter what happens on the field, in the locker room, or what you see in the media.  We will always be here, we will be everywhere. We will never go away. We have been with our team thru the hardest of times and thru the best of times. We have stood behind the decision making process of the owner Jerry Jones. We may disagree with him, but we stand behind him. Not because “the owner says so” or because we have too, but because we WANT too.

With all that said, let it be known that no matter what happens, we will defend our team, our honor as a fan. We will make noise in the NFL world, letting all the other fans out there know, that the Dallas Cowboys fans are here for life. We are not going anywhere, we will stand. When all is said and done, and the Dallas Cowboys are on top of the NFL world, all the other fans out there can eat their hearts out and then THEY can think, well maybe next year!!!