Well I was right, take Dallas and 6.5, and even when the line dropped to 5 or 4.5, you still would have won. The reason Dallas lost had nothing to do with the refs, it had to do with The Clapper. With 2 of the 3 top receivers not playing, Dallas had way more talent on that field.
This season alone the refs have absolutely impacted outcome of games in favor of the Pats three times from my memory. Bills. Giants. And tonight’s Cowboys game. It’s egregious interference and it’s ruining the game.
Big picture update #2 - Dallas cannot beat a good team. If they win the participation trophy that is this year's NFC East title, in the likely scenario Dallas has to play decent/good teams, they have about as much chance of going deep in the playoffs as Booger McFarland does of winning a Peabody Award...T
I have to mention I am very happy for Frank Gore that he passed Barry Sanders for 3rd all time in rushing yards.
I was really hoping the late games today would have turned out better. Hopefully Monday night is better.
Judy Batista NFL.COM in her article asks: Why wasn’t Zeke in late in the game on third and two? And why did Garrett kick afield goal late in the game in the Red Zone when they would still have to score a touchdown to win even if they made the fg? She quotes JJ: why are we in a position where a non conference opponent away from home is crucial to the success of our season? Foxburough is not an easy place to play. And the weather sucked. Still looks to me like NE VS SF in the Super bowl with NO and SEA possibilities.
I knew people would bring this up, but I agree (surprisingly) with Garrett. If there was less time on the clock. and/or if it was less than 7 yards to get the 1st down, then he definitely should have went for it. But this happened with over 6 minutes left. Here are the different possible cenarios, let's use 6 minutes left in the game as a baseline, and the end result is that Dallas still needs a TD either now or later, to either tie or win - unless NE gets a FG the game is over, so by Dallas taking the FG they are still in it unless NE gets a TD. 1) Go for the 1st down and fail - NE takes over, kicks a FG, then you're down by 10 with likely 2 minutes left or less, game is out of reach for Dallas 2) Go for the 1st down and fail - NE takes over, is stopped, and Dallas gets the ball back with plenty of time to get a tying TD 3) Go for the FG, stop NE, get the ball back, need a TD to win as they are down by 4 4) Go for the FG, NE kicks a FG, Dallas still down by only 7, and need a TD (just like they would have if they went for it the first time) Either way, Dallas needs a TD to either tie or win. So, the decision to take the FG on 4th and 7 with that amount of time on the clock was the correct one IMO. I can guarantee you if Dallas went for it and failed, then everyone would say "Why didn't they take the FG, then try and the get the winning TD next series, as they needed a TD regardless"
