Guest Blog: Cowboys vs. 49ers
An occasional commenter here at Reign of Error, Curtis Edmonds has his own excellent blog over at Northbound. Even a cursory examination of that blog will reveal two things about Mr. Edmonds that put him in stark contrast to myself:
He's a proud Republican (and a former staffer to GWB in the state of Texas)
He's a diehard Cowboys fan.
Honestly, I"m not sure what is a worse transgression, but in spite of those foibles, Curtis is a great guy, someone I "met" online a LONG time ago, as we were both early users of Epinions.com. We don't agree about a lot of the big issues, but we still get along.
With the Cowboys sparring off against the 49ers this weekend, we thought it might be useful - to us, if no one else - to do some guest posts on each others blogs. Below is Curtis' entry, and mine will be posted over on his site. Go over there to check that out, and to see what else he's got cooking.
by Curtis Edmonds
Everyone knows that the Dallas Cowboys will defeat the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. You know this, I know this, Vegas knows this. Of course, there aren't any done deals in the National Football League (as everyone who has tried to play survival football this year knows). But for the Cowboys to fall to the Niners in their last Texas Stadium appearance ever? It's not going to happen. You can trust me.
The better question, though, is which franchise deserves to win? Which franchise is better? Both the Cowboys and the Niners boast five Lombardi Trophies apiece (although the Cowboys have more appearances, with eight). Both have storied histories and Hall of Fame legacies and iconic coaches. And - let's be honest - both franchises have not exactly set the world on fire this decade; the Niners have won just one playoff game in the last ten years. Pathetic, but it's one more than the Cowboys have won.
But is there something about the Cowboys that makes them intrinsically better, some ineffable quality that assures their domination - not only on Sunday, but for all time? Well, of course there is.
Let's break it down.
Ownership: Jerry Jones is loathsome, oily, and disgusting. But has he ever pled guilty to a felony? Has he ever been suspended from ownership? Has he ever been forced to turn over control of the team to incompetents? No. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Stadium: Both teams play in dated 70's era stadiums. But Texas Stadium is beautiful, majestic, and soul-stirring, at least if you stay out of the restrooms. And Candlestick Park -- excuse me, Monster Park at 3com Point -- is a misbegotten, misshapen swamp. And the new stadium that the Cowboys are building is -- despite being across the street from a Wal-Mart -- a showpiece, a twenty-first century marvel of excess, and someplace that I will likely never afford to step foot in. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Iconic Coaches: Everybody respects Bill Walsh's greatness, but let's face it, the most heroic thing that Bill Walsh ever did in his life was hold Paul Brown's clipboard. Tom Landry survived thirty bombing missions over Germany in a Flying Fortress, including a crash landing. Tom Landry personally incinerated more Nazis than I have Facebook friends. You gotta give a little something to a man like that. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Iconic Quarterbacks: Joe Montana? Great quarterback. Leader of men. Where did he end up? Kansas City, wearing #19, and sucking it up. What's he doing now? Hanging out at some pretend diner, schilling for the NFL Network. Oh, wait, that was last year. What's Troy Aikman doing? Working for a living, propping up Joe Buck in the broadcast booth. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Super Bowls: How did the Cowboys win five Super Bowls? They beat the Dolphins the year before they were perfect. They ended Craig Morton's career for him. They pantsed a Buffalo team that was one of the greatest of all time, and then faced down the Steelers in a classic. How did the Niners win five Super Bowls? They beat the Bengals twice and played a Chargers team that was one of the weakest entrants ever. You can't choose your opponents, of course, but beating the Bengals should only count as half a Lombardi, if that. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Organizational Class: The ultimate Niners victory over the Cowboys was the game where T.O. (you remember him, right) danced on the star at Texas Stadium in the tauntingest taunt in the history of taunting. And what happened? George Teague knocked him ass over teakettle, that's what happened. ADVANTAGE: COWBOYS
Are the Cowboys infallible? No. They're almost certainly (although you will never hear me admit this anywhere else) not as good as the Giants this year. And it's true that at least a part of me is cheering on Mike Singletary (a fellow Baylor grad, and he would be coaching the Cowboys now in a just world) to lift the Niners back to prominence. But is that going to happen this week? No. No way. No way the Cowboys lose this game.
Thanks, Curtis. You're insane, but it's all good fun.