2009 COWBOYS PREDICTION: 12-4
By mark rogers
April 19, 2009
After taking an in-depth look at who the Cowboys lost, who they added, who they're playing and when they're playing...I've decided that the 2009 edition of America's Team will finish the season 12-4.
A couple of experts that cover the team year-round have predicted 8-8 and 9-7 seasons. I think they're just being pessimists.
Here's how it breaks down...
Sunday, September 13 @ Tampa Bay (1-0): Dallas beat this team last year with Brad Johnson as the QB. The Bucs will most likely be starting Byron Leftwich in his first game with the team. Dallas should win this game.
Sunday, September 20 vs. New York Giants (2-0): The first game at Jerry World. The place will be absolutely electric. All other storylines (Chris Canty's return, defending NFC East champs in town, etc...) will be overshadowed by the attention given the new stadium. The home crowd alone will power Dallas to a win. Kind of like how Central Florida almost beat Texas a couple of years ago when they played the Longhorns in a brand new stadium.
Monday, September 28 vs. Carolina (3-0): Coming off a huge win against the Giants in the new stadium, it'll take more than what Carolina will be able to muster to beat Dallas on an early roll...especially on another national television stage.
Sunday, October 4 @ Denver (4-0): The thin air won't make much difference to our three-headed rushing attack. First year head coach Josh McDaniels will still be trying to get his team in a groove with a new quarterback.
Sunday, October 11 @ Kansas City (5-0): Former Cowboys' assistant Todd Haley is the head coach of the Chiefs. This will be the revival of a long-time rivalry between Dallas and the team that used to reside in Dallas before Lamar Hunt took his franchise to KC. I'd give KC a win here but there's one thing to consider...the Chiefs play the Giants and Eagles in the two weeks leading up to this game. They'll be worn out.
Sunday, October 18, BYE
Sunday, October 25 vs. Atlanta (6-0): With two weeks to prepare for the surprise team of the NFL last year, Dallas will keep the early season momentum going with yet another win.
Sunday, November 1 vs. Seattle (7-0): It'll be one of the best starts in franchise history. 7-0 after first year coach Jim Mora and the Seahawks leave town. I think Seattle would have a chance to win if the game was in Seattle.
Sunday, November 8 @ Philadelphia (7-1): You know the Eagles will just LOVE to be the team that gets to end the Cowboys' winning streak...especially in Philadelphia. It's the first game in Philly since the 2008 season-ending disaster. We can't win 'em all.
Sunday, November 15 @ Green Bay (7-2): Another loss after seven wins to start the year. Coming off a tough loss in Philly, it'll be tough to play in the cold and unwelcome atmosphere of Lambeau Field. Tony Romo has struggled in cold weather.
Sunday, November 22 vs. Washington (8-2): Back home and back in the win column against the hated Redskins.
Thursday, November 26 vs. Oakland (9-2): Things will be turning around after the two-game losing streak. There will be much to be thankful for on Thanksgiving as Dallas stomps all over Oakland.
Sunday, December 6 @ New York Giants (9-3): Dallas is known for tanking in December over the last few years. This month is especially brutal - the NFL didn't do us any favors. After taking care of the Giants in dramatic fashion to open up Jerry World, the Giants will get their revenge and tighten up the NFC East division race.
Sunday, December 13 vs. San Diego (10-3): This will be a tough win because San Diego usually plays its best football late in the year. But we'd better win this one since it's at home and three out of four December games are on the road.
Saturday, December 19 @ New Orleans (11-3): A Saturday night road game against yet another former Cowboys assistant, Sean Payton. This should be a shoot-out, but Dallas must win this game to get the "always play terrible in December" monkey off its back.
Sunday, December 27 @ Washington (11-4): We'll beat Washington at home, but as usual, we'll lose in Washington.
Sunday, January 3 vs. Philadelphia (12-4): This will complete the trend of beating every division foe at home and losing to them all on the road. We'll win this one to end the year winning three of four and take some momentum heading into the post-season...a post-season which will see Dallas win a playoff game for the first time in more than a decade.
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Comments
This site does not necessarily agree with comments posted below.
zach on April 22, 2009 6:25 PM
geeze, even i'm not this homered-out...
12-4. no way. 10-6 in the toughest division in football...
Sid on July 1, 2009 9:45 PM
I am a huge cowboys fan but 12-4, I don't think so. They look like 10-6 to me. They'll lose to Philly, Washington, and NY once. They'll lose to Atlanta, Green Bay, New Orleans, and Denver.
Denver- Last year the Cowboys were surprised by the skins, I think the Bronchos will do the same thing.
Atlanta- They are bound to have an excellent season.
Green Bay- What you said
New Orleans- Drew Brees is really good and December cold weather.
I think they can get the last play-off spot; however, winning will need hard work. I hoep the best in the Cowboys and what a day it would be if they got out of their win-less playoff drought.
Josh on September 7, 2009 4:05 PM
9-7 is more realistic for a team that has major holes in the defenses secondary. with the exception of four games the defense will face teams that can throw the ball. no matter how good their pass rushing may be ( which even that may be only be sub-par ) it will not be enough to get them into the post season. try again next year mr. jones!
ps.
as long as jerry jones is the owner the cowboys will never see their glory days return. mark my word.
mark rogers
on September 11, 2009 10:51 AM
Major holes in the secondary? Terrence Newman is a Pro Bowler and one of the best corners in the league. Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick have both had exceptional camps and made great plays in the pre-season. Ken Hamlin is a solid safety and Gerald Sensabaugh is a huge improvement from what we had last year. Even Pat Watkins is finally starting to emerge to give us some depth in the secondary.
In addition to those players, any weaknesses in a secondary are minimalized by a great pass rush, which we have. Our pass rush "may be only sub-par"??? We are talking about the Dallas Cowboys, right? Demarcus Ware led the league in sacks last year. Anthony Spencer is a freakish athlete who will finally get to prove why he was a first-round pick and start now that Greg Ellis is gone. He'll also benefit from people keying on Ware.
Bradie James was near the top, if not THE top, pass rushing inside linebacker in the NFL...he had close to 10 sacks. Jay Ratliff is unblockable one-on-one. Igor Olshansky is a slight downgrade from Chris Canty, but he's a proven DE, and Marcus Spears is above average. We have one of the best pass-rushing defenses in the league. That's a fact and something that even Cowboy-haters will admit.
And have you forgotten that we had "glory days" with Jerry Jones as our owner? We went from 1-15 to the Super Bowl in 3 years with Jones running the show. Not saying that I'm not frustrated with our current playoff win drought or the fact that this is the longest stretch in our history without a championship...but I don't believe we have major holes in our secondary or a sub-par pass rush.
Thanks for reading!! Keep commenting, Josh!! I always like a good sports debate!