Dallas Cowboys 09...vs...Dallas Cowboys...08

Seem every December the Cowboys swoon and it kills their playoff chances or seeding..Although I might remind you in the 2007 season of 13-3 the Cowboys went 2-2 in December and didn't play any starters in the final game..

Here is a comparison between the 08 Cowboys and the 09 Cowboys...



Current Position............Leading Division..............08......2nd...................Big Edge 09

Current Record.............09.....8-3........................08......7-4................... Big Edge 09

Home/Road...................09....2-3........................08.......3-2....................Big Edge 08

Opponents Records.......09....32-19.....................08......36-23-1..............Slight Edge 08

Offense Rankings..........09...23.2 ppg/14th..........08.....22.6 ppg/18th.......Slight Edge 09

Defense Rankings..........09...16.5 ppg/3rd...........08.....22.8 ppg/20th........Big Edge 09

Point Differential...........09...+6.6 ppg/6th............08.....-0.2 ppg/19th........Big Edge 09

Take Aways.................09....-3/19th....................08.....-11/30th...............Big Edge 09

Their is a clear edge in three areas for the 09 team..

One...The Cowboys of 09 have a one game lead on last years 9-7 team..On game last season would have been the difference in making and missing the playoffs..

Two...The Cowboys of 09 are a statistally better team than last season..They are healthier,scoring a little more,giving up a lot less and have one of the best special teams in the league..

Three...The Cowboys of 09 have a one game lead in the division..The 08 version was three games behind the NYG and were playing for a wild card berth..This team is playing for a division title and a home game in the playoffs..

Go Cowboys..

Dallas..24 hours later..

Just some observations on the team:..Some mine, some stolen..

Dallas beat Dallas...
I just watched the replay and the Cowboys had 9 possessions..Eight of those possessions the Cowboys committed severe mistakes to stop their drives..

The Defense is Really Good...
The D has went from..not being able to stop teams to a force..They are now the number one scoring defense in the NFC..number 8 total..but best in the NFC..The only time the Packers did anything was when someone was injured..In the second half they D allowed 120 yards and 80 came on one drive..Jenkins was injured and Scandrick was in..the result was two miscues on Orlando resulting in first downs and a td..

Maybe too many days off...
For the third or maybe fourth week in a row Wade gave the team an extra day off..The offense looked like they hadn't practiced in a month..Once was a nice touch..but this week after a big win it seemed strange..Don't believe me..Jimmy Johnson is where I got the idea..


Get a new Holder...
Earlier in the season Folk missed a field goal when McBriar..the holder didn't turn the laces away from the kicker..Sunday on the Cowboys first drive McBriar admitted after the game he didn't get the ball down vertical..he took the blame..I do wonder if that three points would have made a difference?

Maybe we should rush more..
Eleven rushes..that's it..Need I say more..

Injuries...
Mark Columbo..out 4 to 6 weeks...Ken Hamlin..out 2 to 4 weeks...Yea Pat Watkins and Doug Free..Time to earn that money..

Roy Williams...
Anyone else think it is strange that his best day as a Cowboy was also his worst?

Next Week...
The great thing about football is the Cowboys are tied with Arizona with the 3rd best record in the NFC..It is still there for them..The good is the defense is playing at championship level and the offense can't be stopped except by the offense..Go Gowboys..

Longhorns Are Moving Toward BCS Championship Game

With the dominating win against Oklahoma State, Texas is on track for a game in Rose Bowl. The Longhorns moved up to number two in the BCS standings. Their destiny is assured if they continue to win.

Mack Brown has used the loss to Texas Tech, last season, as a motivator. He reminds his team that putting their fate in the hands of voters is not an option. Instead of win and we are in, he uses win and we are out. The team seems to have responded. They are playing their best football since the OU game.

Having a healthy Colt McCoy helps. He was ill with flu like symptoms the week of the Sooner game. Every game he seems to look a little more like the quarter back who led the nation in passing proficiency. He was very accurate against the Cowboys. He completed 76% of his passes and had several dropped.

The real star of the season is the defense. Zac Robinson was leading the nation in passing proficiency until he ran into this defense. He was held to 143 yards, with a completion percentage of 53% and threw 4 picks. The Longhorns did allow 134 yards but the Cowboys had to rush 43 times to get them, for an average of 3 yards per carry.

With four games remaining it seems the only potential road block may well be a rejuvinated Texas A&M on Thanksgiving day. The Aggies drubbed Texas Tech and Iowa St while scoring over 80 points. The game is also at College Station, making it even more of a potential threat. With no appreciable threat from the Big 12 North, it may well be on to Pasedena.