Having people root in your corner when times aren’t going well is a blessing that not everyone has a luxury of having. The Cowboys are 29-17-1 all-time on Thanksgiving, but have failed to cover in each of their last four games (losing two straight-up).
Advertisement
In the midst of the pouring rain and then eventual sunshine, the energy was all over Sun Life Stadium.
The Cowboys, by virtue of their vaguely terrible division, still aren’t completely out of the playoff hunt, but Dallas essentially has to win out.
Only two NFC teams since 1992 have started a season 10-0.
That could’ve been a disaster as the Cowboys came close to recovering the kickoff.
That control was never given up either.
The drive might not have happened had it not been for a defensive holding call on Taylor, negating what otherwise would have forced a Dallas punt from its own 4. Or maybe Romo came back just in the nick of time to allow this insane idea of a 2-7 team reaching the playoffs to come to fruition.
“They have seven losses; their season is over – give it up, you Cowboys homer!”
The true test for Romo and the Cowboys will be when the Panthers (10-0) with their undefeated record come a calling Thanksgiving Day in Jerry World.
This game wasn’t loss on the shoulders of one particular player either.
Miami coach Dan Campbell suggested that penalties and dropped passes killed the Dolphins.
“That’s a hard way to live”, Campbell said.
“Be honest with you, I don’t even know what game we’re in”, Taylor said. “They’re a damn good football team”.
This from the team that failed to score any touchdowns in three of seven games without Romo.
Additionally, a few of the blame goes to the signal-caller, Ryan Tannehill. But if you are the Cowboys, you live with it because of all the positive plays he makes.
-PASS DEFENSE: A. The Dolphins completed just 13 passes for 188 yards and two scores. On a scale of 100 his total QBR was at 18.6, and his Quarterback Rating was 90.3. After watching the coverage get a little soft and the pass rush a little slow in the second half of those games, McDermott decided he needed to keep the intensity dialed up until the final horn. “You nearly take it as a challenge, and it makes it nearly more enjoyable”.
If the Dolphins are to turn around their season, it has to start with their offense. One of the standouts of the game was cornerback Brent Grimes. The outrage at the initial line will only provide the game with more interest from both fans and gamblers.
Moreover, defensive end Olivier Vernon had himself a wonderful game as well.
“We feel like we’re a very physical offense”, McFadden said. In the process, he also gave Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith all that he could handle. Christopher Ruiz, a civilian contractor who died in Afghanistan in October, was honored during a timeout in the Dolphins-Cowboys game.
The Dolphins are among the eight teams in the AFC that have either four or five victories, although the Buffalo Bills can join the Pittsburgh Steelers at 6-4 on Monday night if they can win on the road against the undefeated New England Patriots.
“I look at it as we need a win badly, badly”.
If the Cowboys can focus on taking it one game at a time, and one play at a time, they might be able to spark a bit of something. It’s all about winning. Let’s cut out the errors, the mistakes that have absolutely killed us.
Advertisement
Before you discount these guys exclusively due to their record – take a look at the bigger picture.
