Life would be much less stressful if I didn’t care about sports. The Cowboys making the playoffs and the Skins sucking pretty hardcore made for a sweet regular season. It sucked that the Cowboys didn’t win the division like they should have but I wasn’t greedy since they still made it. I was cautiously hopeful they could pull off a win this weekend and after that it would be much easier to swallow a loss. I’m not going to say I would okay with them losing next week but I’d consider winning a bonus. I really had no delusions of them going to the Super Bowl but one win in the post-season would be a good step towards making it there in the next year or two. That didn’t happen.
Not only did they lose, they lost in the gut-wrenching fashion that Cowboys fans have become all too accustomed to lately. Lets count the improbable plays/ways that contributed to the empty feeling all the fans undoubtedly have today.
- The Pass Interference call in end zone – It was a penalty by definition but it was hard to swallow given it wasn’t flagrant and the grab wasn’t necessary.
- Glenn fumbling on the 2 yard line for a Safety – I was actually nervous about a safety when the Cowboys held Seattle to no points after 1st/goal on the 1. I thought maybe a sack or a botched snap but Glenn fumbling into the end zone? Ugh. I almost think the Cowboys would have been better off with giving up the TD. The would have been tied and gotten the ball back instead of giving it to Seattle and allowing them to go ahead by a point.
- Cowboys 1st/goal on the 1 reversed by Instant Replay – Hate to say it but the refs got this right. Going from 1st/goal to 4th and inches by way of replay is a tease in every sense of the word.
- Romo botches the FG try – What’s there to say about this? I actually didn’t want them to try because the Cowboys have managed to mess up FGs all season. There’s the Vanderjagt inconsistency and then the debacle against the Skins during the season. It was clear they wanted the FG from 1st down and that really made me nervous. It seems my fears were not completely unfounded.
- Romo comes up a yard shy of the 1st – I really thought he was going to make it. Gramatica actually got a chip block on the guy who chased Romo down from behind but his 5′ 8″ frame just couldn’t do enough. This is where I think “Holy shit, they blew this effin’ game and I hate being right.”
- Possible safety after turnover – You can’t get the 2 points if you let the guy run for 20 yards. This was the last best shot at saving the game and the defense didn’t step up.
- Hail Mary falls incomplete – Glenn was actually in a good place to make a play but the ball was just far away. I had a small shread of hope here but it evaporated quickly.
I don’t blame Romo. I mean I do blame Romo but so much more went into making that play even matter. Had there been no PI, had Glenn not fumbled, had Witten gotten the first down or had there even been “inconclusive evidence” to spot the ball shy of the 1st down that play wouldn’t have happened. The silver lining is that Romo realizes he’s very human and should focus on becoming a better player. He will remember that play for the rest of his life but hopefully it won’t define his career.
I want Parcells and Owens to come back next year. Either of them leaving is a step backward in my opinion. Time will tell.