I suspect that this post might make Blugold Matt regret bringing me on....
But I cannot wait for Thanksgiving and even more so for the following Thursday when the Green Bay Packers actually have to play a good team when they travel to Big D to take on my Dallas Cowboys.
Even though the teams have the same record, the Packers are having a magical season. GB's season feels like something out of a movie as a good team is getting all of the right breaks. Cowboys fans knew that this team had potential to be very good, but there were plenty of question marks (especially Tony Romo). Essentially, this Cowboys team has been living up to its best case scenario. I can't wait to see the two teams meet. I'll save the story of how a teenager living in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, ends up becoming a rabid Cowboys fan for another post.
TANGENT ALERT: Wade Phillips has been the most pleasant surprise for me. He is currently throwing a monkey wrench in my theory about teams that hire Larry Brown in the NBA or Bill Parcells in the NFL. My Brown/Parcells theory is that when teams hire them, they are essentially making a Faustian bargain. The team will get better immediately and will contend for titles. Considering where the Cowboys were as the Dave Campo era ended, I was happy to make that bargain. But the guy that follows Brown or Parcells is essentially set up for failure. If the next coach is a relaxed players coach, the team will treat him the way a classroom of sixth graders treat a nice guy substitute teacher when their strict teacher is out sick (think Pete Carroll with the Pats and to a lesser extent, Flip Saunders with the Pistons). And if the new coach is a tough guy type, the players won't respect him. They were willing to put up with Parcells/Brown because they knew that it was worth it. But the new guy likely hasn't proven himself and the players aren't going to take more yelling from a guy who isn't as smart as Brown/Parcells. At least for now, Wade Phillips seems to have busted this theory and I'm not sure how he has done it. Then again, Pete Carroll went 10-6 his first year with the Pats. END TANGENT.
This week, the Cowboys essentially get a bye week as the 2-8 New Yawk Jets, led by whistle blowing coach Eric Mangini, come to Dallas. Meanwhile, the Packers face a 6-4 Detroit team whose season is in some turmoil. Both make rather disappointing preludes to the big event.
The Race Is On -- George Jones
Welcome to Paradise -- Green Day
