Dallas Cowboys Lose on the Road

The Jacksonville Jaguars were an afterthought for the NFL analysts this week. All the talk, except from yours truly, was about the Dallas Cowboys and how they were going to do this and that. In fact, after the loss the media talked about it as a huge upset. How do you figure that? Am I the only one that recognized that Jacksonville was 12-4 last season, that Dallas was 9-7, and that the game was being played in Jacksonville? I hope not.

It was a case of the media once again falling head over heels for a team, because of media coverage. I still don’t understand why the media thinks T.O. is a difference maker (positively speaking) to teams. The game started out right for the Cowboys though. They scored 10 points and were up 10-0 after the 1st quarter. The game flipped in the 2nd when Jacksonville stormed back with 10 of their own.

At the half, it was 10-10, and momentum was on Jacksonville’s side. The 3rd quarter was empty, but both teams scored in the 4th—14 for Jacksonville and 7 for Dallas. The Jaguars beat Dallas 24-17, and it was no surprise to me. One difference maker in the game was Drew Bledsoe. He threw three interceptions—including the game sealer when the Cowboys had the ball with under a minute to go.

Fred Taylor had 74 yards over 21 carries for Jacksonville. Leftwich added 237 yards in the air. He was 23 of 34. The game was not all smiles for the Jaguars. Defensive end Reggie Howard tore his left Achilles’ tendon, and now his season is over. Next up for the Jaguars is a huge Monday night game at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers—who should still be without Big Ben. The Cowboys go back to Dallas and get ready for a monumental Sunday night game against their nemesis, the Washington Redskins. Both teams are disappointed from their week one performances and will be looking for blood.