Vikings Destroy Dallas

Well, the Cowboys’ 2009 – 2010 season is in the books. Painful though it is to say, Dallas was absolutely destroyed by the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC’s divisional playoffs. 

The shellacking was enough to making one question the future of head coach Wade Phillips, and the whole lot of Cowboys’ coaches. Of course, this is true after every Cowboys’ loss so consider the source. 

Still, this loss, in particular, had to be more than a bit demoralizing.  Dallas gave up six sacks in its highest stakes game of the season. The rushing game was anemic at best.  And the ‘Boys stellar defense couldn’t muster a turnover on a day that saw aged  Vikings QB Brett Favre throw for four touchdowns, and 234 yards. To top it off, the Vikings even ran up the score, provoking Dallas linebacker Keith Brookings to call the Minnesota hordes ‘classless.’ Which they were (go Saints!).

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I played the cynic toward the end of the season, and all but called for regime change at Valley Ranch this past December. Maybe that assessment wasn’t too far off. But then again, it’s hard to say.  And that’s really what makes this season so disappointing - from the extreme outside looking in it is difficult to see the obvious places to make headway in the off-season. (Alas, The Pax has no ‘insiders’ tucked away in the Cowboys organization).

The fact is, at one point in the season or another, it seemed like all of the pieces were in place for this to be an extra-special team.  In truth, for Dallas, making the playoffs and winning a game was probably indicative of a special season.  But this is Dallas.  You don’t build a $1 Billion stadium, and remain satisfied with a second round exit from the playoffs.

Sure, their offense could use a re-tooling.  I haven’t heard too many people calling the Cowboys’ offensive scheme among the most novel in football. Aside from run-up-the-middle, it was difficult to see what exactly the Cowboys’ offensive aim was this season. But even that seemed more a function of planning, than personnel. Romo was Romo: some weeks he looked brilliant; other weeks (ahem, today), he looked buffoonish. Mile Austin was a tremendous bright-spot for the entire season – except for today when it mattered most. 

The one obvious area needing improvement is the kicking game.  Dallas went through two kickers this season, and both were about as accurate as Dick Cheney on a quail hunt.

So, would a coaching change help?  Perhaps.  When pressed on the matter, Double J had this to say:

Double J’s saying that this game will not ‘impact’ his decision, is kind of like saying that Barack is a great President. It just isn’t true.

And, most importantly, it is a far cry from saying ‘Wade Phillips is safe for another season,’ which he could have easily said.  Suffice it to say, Jones left himself plenty of wiggle room to evaluate the totality of the Cowboys’ season, and conclude that it is, indeed, time for a regime change.

Of course, Double J probably appreciates how receptive Phillips is to the front office’s involvement with the team. Moreover, I’m not as convinced that the Cowboys’ woes are Phillips’s fault. Romo, Jason Garrett, and the Cowboy's’ secondary deserve as much of the blame for this loss as Phillips does – although his defensive squad played notably flat this afternoon. 

But the glaring obstacle to regime change in Dallas is that the biggest-named, unemployed head coach out there was Mike Shanahan who, as luck would have it, is now the head coach of the Cowboys’ rivals, the Washington Redskins.

Bottom line: I’m not sure that Double J has a better alternative than ole’ Bum Phillips’s boy, Wade.

So, for now, it remains to be seen just exactly where the ‘Boys go from here. And, now, Cowboys’ fans have the entire off-season to mull it over…