Giants, Cowboys bring out best and worst in each other

The Giants/Cowboys rivalry has been really up and down lately, for both teams.  In 2007, Dallas was the class of the NFC and were expected to march to face the Patriots in the Super Bowl.  But the Giants, who had lost to them twice during the regular season, stunned the Cowboys in the playoffs in big D as their defense smothered QB Tony Romo, forcing him to make mistakes, including the game-clinching interception by RW McQuarters in the end zone.  Giants win 21-17, and go on to win it all. 

Last season, the first meeting was tainted.  Brad Johnson was the Cowboys’ QB as Romo sat out with a broken finger, and suffice to say Johnson was not the second coming of Troy Aikman.  He was not even the second coming of Quincy Carter, or, I don’t know, Steve Pelluer.  The Giants won 35-14.  Then a few weeks later, after having rolled over just about everyone else and having clinched a first round bye, the Giants were mauled 20-8 by Romo and company in Dallas.  They were still dealing with the Plaxico Burress gun fallout, but suddenly the Giants couldn’t run the ball or put enough pressure on the QB (sound familiar?). 

Fast forward to Game 2 of this season.  Everyone was picking the Giants as a Super Bowl contender and the Cowboys for 3rd place in the division.  I, for one, didn’t think Dallas should be taken lightly, and openly feared them.  But then the Cowboys, and Romo in particular, made lots of mistakes (127 yards, 3 picks) en route to a 33-31 loss to the G-men.  Still, the Giants needed Eli Manning to drive down field in the final minutes to secure that win, and they sure didn’t play their best game, letting Dallas run the ball up and down the field (251 rushing yards) like they were, well, the Giants of last season’s first 12 games. 

Romo’s perils in December are well-documented, and while he’s looked like a Pro Bowler at times against the Giants, he’s also looked like a pro bowler at other times.  Which guy shows up Sunday?  Hard to say, but as these teams bring out the best and worst of each other for different games, or sometimes the best and worst of each other in the same game, we should look at this in simple terms for each team:

Dallas is 8-3 and leading the NFC East, and they control their own destiny.  They are playing very well this season both offensively and defensively.  But they have that December monkey on their collective back, and we can’t discount that.

The Giants are 6-5 and in third place in the division, currently not in position for a playoff spot.  They have to win for survival, and they tend to play well with their backs against the wall.  They are also at home, and all things being equal, I’m taking Manning in a tight game over Romo any day of the week. 

This should be interesting.  I was leaning toward picking Dallas in this one, but I’m really not so sure I should. 

I’m curious what you all think…..

Tags: 2007 season, 2008 season, Brad Johnson, Cowboys, Eli Manning, Giants, NFC East, Patriots, Plaxico Burress, Quincy Carter, RW McQuarters, Steve Pelluer, Super Bowl, Tony Romo, Troy Aikman