Is anyone else afraid of the Cowboys?

Yesterday I read Tim Cowlishaw’s piece in the Dallas Morning News about how he and the entire Dallas Cowboys organization is almost happy that everyone is picking them to finish third.  Last season they were a sexy Super Bowl pick, with HBO following them around camp and expectations extremely high.  After all, they were also picked as one of the golden teams in 2007, but the Giants spoiled their party with one of the greatest upsets in this rivalry in January before going on to win it all themselves. 

Now there is much less pressure, although with a new stadium and a nervous owner, “less pressure” is sort of relative.  But nobody is expecting the ‘Boys to win anything, and if they squeak into the playoffs their season will be considered by many to be a success. 

Well I don’t know about you, but I’m equally afraid of Dallas as I am of Philly.  It’s not like the Cowboys purged their entire roster.  They did get rid of two questionable characters in Terrell Owens and Pacman Jones.  But Tony Romo is minus Jessica Simpson and is healthy…you might remember he missed a few games last season, and having Brad Johnson run that offense was like putting a toddler in charge of a nuclear power plant.  TE Jason Witten was also hurt for much of the season, though he played through pain.  Rookie Felix Jones made everyone forget about Julius Jones, and DeMarcus Ware was just terrorizing QBs with an NFL-best 20 sacks.

You’ll also remember that while our G-men beat up on the Romo-less Cowboys in November, 35-14, they let a less-than-100% Romo beat them in December during the skid that led to our downfall by a 20-8 score.  You rememer that game, right?  It was a Sunday nighter, and the Giants managed just two field goals and a safety, as Eli Manning could not get on track. 

So while the Cowboys finished 9-7 in 2008, you have to wonder if they would have won at least two of those games Johnson started in Romo’s place.  As much as everyone likes to poke fun at Romo and his tendency to choke under pressure, he’s been mostly very tough against us–tough to take down, and always hitting clutch third-down throws while under pressure.

So go ahead and ignore the Cowboys if you like.  But do so at your own risk, because I, for one, am very afraid of them.

Tags: Brad Johnson, Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Morning News, DeMarcus Ware, Eagles, Eli Manning, Felix Jones, Giants, HBO, Jason Witten, Jerry Jones, Jessica Simpson, Pacman Jones, Super Bowl picks, Terrell Owens, Tim Cowlishaw, Tony Romo