"Bleak" Cowboys 7, Redskins 6

I don't want to hear it
I don't want to know
I just want to run and hide
This is just a nightmare
Soon I'm going to wake up
Someone's going to bring me around--Radiohead

It's bleak. Being 3-7 is bleak.--Jim Zorn

In October 2001, the winless Redskins were up 7-6 late in the fourth quarter in Dallas when Stephen Davis fumbled andthe Cowboys drove to kick a winning field goal. In December 2004, the Redskins were up 10-6 late in the fourth quarter at Dallas when Vinny Testaverde found Patrick Crayton for a long stupid touchdown pass.


And this is why, when Sean Suisham had the opportunity to put the Redskins up by 9 but missed his second field goal of the game wide right, I knew we had just lost the game even though Dallas was scoreless at that point. There was no point in leaving the television on any more. It was a done deal. Tony Romo escaping the arms of Brian Orakpo, twisting around, moving outside the pocket, and finding Crayton in the middle of the end zone was 100 percent inevitable.


Joey and I watched the game at Steve's place with Steve, Greg, Faryn and Harlye. A good thing about that was we got to see Steve get perturbed at the fact that Faryn and Harlye were reading a poodle magazine late the first half when the Redskins were trying to miss a field goal, which they did. Steve shot up out of his seat, grabbed the magazine, and spiked on the ground.

Steve said he kind of felt bad for Cowboys fans or football fans in general who were being subject to this horrible brand of football, and how everything/every game the Redskins touches turns into a horrible succubus. My response was fuck it, we have to deal with this shit every week, why should they be spared the misery?

Additional banter:

• Giving Tony Romo a Texas accent (Oh, man. That's frus-stratin'!) even though he is from Wisconson


• The concept that Wade Phillips really isn't the head coach, and that the actual head coach is who ever is yelling the loudest on the Cowboys sideline (No! See, look a-here!)


• The concept that because the game was so boring and poorly played that 99.6% of Cowboys fans/people who call themselves Cowboys fans were now outside playing with their trucks instead of watching the game

Without Haynesworth, the Cowboys and Marion Barber were able to get big chunks of yardage on the ground. But the Redskins defense made some great stops on third downs, forced a fumble in the red zone, and Romo's accuracy was terrible.

Campbell, on the other hand, was extremely accurate on third downs, several times getting 8 yards on thirds and sevens, and hitting Malcolm Kelly and Rock Cartwright for some big--relatively big--catch and runs, meaning they changed field position. He was never able to hit on any big plays but that was because of o-line again, which lost another player to injury--4th string right guard Chad Rinehart broke his fibula.





Also, Ladell Betts tore up his knee. Both are out for the year. So going into the last 6 games, we have Cartwright--who will give 150%--and this Ganther guy. The skins may have to ask Marcus Mason to come back, if he'll have us. C'mon, baby, please! We didn't meant it. Baby come back!



Fletcher and Rocky McIntosh played very well, as did LaRon Landry. But as I said during the game, Landry must be living in a dreamworld. He made a big hit on Roy Williams to knock a ball loose and then he started doing his cocky look at my masterpiece of defense dance. LaRon, you've been underachieving for over a year now. Either score 4 touchdowns a year like Ed Reed, or sit the eff down, and shut up.
Back to Fletecher and McIntosh and the rest of the defense--they have a right to make statements like, well if a defense holds a team to 7 points, well then, I mean, in the NFL, you know.... "Just trying to figure out what we could have did a little bit different at the end to keep them out of the end zone, because we played so well defensively. And they really didn't deserve to win this game. I think we played well enough to [win]," Fletcher said.

Yeah, you played great, but both of you dropped intereptions early in the game. Dropped--right in your effing meat mitts. So you can lament how the offense sucks and didn't give your great performance the support it needed, or you can return those interceptions for touchdowns like the Ravens and Bears used to do this decade, and then look at the big shiny "W" in the standings when you open the paper the next day.

But what really burns me up about this loss is not the missed field goals or the injuries or the dropped passes, and has nothing our decimated lineup from injury and neglect that on paper had no business being up by 6 with 8 minutes left.

It was calling a draw play on third at 2 from the 30 that lost 2 yards. No guts, no drive, no balls, no direction, no grit. The Cowboys knew that play was coming the way a heavy weight fighter knows that his opponent is just hoping to hear the bell ending the final round. Throw the effing ball and see if you can win the game. I knew we had lost the game the moment Campbell handed the ball to Cartwright here, and it felt like a knee cap to the jujunum.

The team needs a brand new start.


And until big changes are made, you can expect a flurry of tantrums and embarrassing behavior.