Late to the Party

My apologies for not posting in a while, life has been moving fast and I haven't really had a second to even sit down... besides, with The Cowboys out of the playoffs, my interest in football is slightly diminished, but regardless, I'm back to update.

There hasn't been an overwhelming amount of Dallas Cowboys news, just a few small items sprinkled throughout the last 2 weeks.

- There have been some rumors that T.O. won't be around next year, but merely hours after the rumors surfaced, him and his agent denied this possibility. "Does a bear shit in the woods?" was T.O.'s official response when asked if he believes if he will be a Cowboy next year.

- Jason Garrett is now 0-3 with the interviews he's had for head coaching positions. The Rams looked the most interested, but decided on NY Giants' Steve Spagnaolo instead.

- Ray Lewis rocking the star on his helmet in '09? Rumors erupted recently that if Lewis does indeed head into free agency this year, Jerry Jones will do whatever it takes to secure him. We'll have to see about this one, although he is a beast on the field, he is not getting any younger.

In Other Football News

I didn't even post recaps from the Divisional round, and I won't bore anyone with a recap now, but as for the Championship Games, Philly traveled to Arizona and Baltimore went up to Pittsburgh.

It was all set to be a Pennsylvania Super Bowl, the clear favorites were Pittsburgh and Philly to meet up in Super Bowl 43. Fate was sending these two teams on a collision course in Tampa, but apparently the Eagles misplaced their invitation.

Philly went to Arizona with high hopes, but left with low heads and shattered egos. Arizona completely dominated in the first half, and then gave Philly plenty of chances to comeback in the second, but thanks to Larry Fitzgerald and Kurt Warner, The Cardinals will now be heading to their very first Super Bowl... ever.

Baltimore was also on quite a streak as they went into Pittsburgh, but fate reared it's ugly head again and made this the final game of the season for the Ravens.

The Steelers had a good fight on their hands and the victory didn't come easy, but thanks to the late 4th quarter interception/touchdown by Troy Polomalu, the game was stolen away... just like that.

So there you have it. Pittsburgh vs Arizona in Super Bowl 43, and due to my dislike of the Steelers and the AFC, I'll be forced to be a Cardinals fan on February 1st.

Hey Pacman, Game Over!

Adam Jones was cut from the Cowboys and will be officially released in early February. The news is not surprising following Jones' dissappointing season, which includes the six game suspension he was dealt because of the 'incident' with his bodyguard.

That's just the start of the drama. After the news of his release, not three seconds had even passed before more allegations of trouble erupted. ESPN ran a story which puts Pacman directly in the middle of (another) shooting that occurred in 2007. Jones is being accused of arranging for three men to be shot after he was involved in a dispute with them outside of a club. Jones, of course, denies the claims and threatens a lawsuit toward ESPN.

And I thought Terrell Owens was bad. Compared to the antics of Pacman, Owens' self obsessed, egotistical and arrogant ways are a blessing. At least when Owens is trying to kill someone, it's usually just himself.



Hey Joe!

Special teams coach Bruce Read was finally fired and Joe DeCamillis, who held the same position for Jacksonville, was brought in to fix a unit which did more bad than good last season.

Joe Camillis brings a lot of talent and experience to this team. He was responsible for very successful special team units for the Giants, Atlanta and previously, Jacksonville. He also worked with Wade Phillips in Denver and Atlanta, which I'm sure helped in the interview process.

The special teams unit Dallas has displayed these past two years with Bruce Read at helm has been anything but pretty, so any change will do this squad good.



Head Coach Garrett?

It's looking less likely that Wade Phillips is stepping down or being put down, but what's looking even less likely is Jason Garrett's return to Dallas in 2009.

Even following a disappointing offensive season, Garrett is being hunted by Denver and Detroit, who have both interviewed him for their vacant head coach positions. Detroit has even scheduled him for a second interview sometime next week.

Following the amazing 13-3 season of 2007, Garrett was sought for a couple of head coaching positions then as well, but he declined. In return for his loyalty, Jerry Jones gave him the the sole title of, 'highest paid offensive coordinator/assistant head coach in the NFL.' Loyalty with Jerry Jones = new house and car. I'm sure that's something Garrett is weighing in his mind right now.

Wildcard Weekend Recap

Wildcard Weekend is over, and much like a group of surviving soccer players stranded in the Andes Mountains, some teams have made it through the long, cold season, while others have given up all hope, fallen face down in the bitter-cold snow and are now being eaten by their victors.

Goodbye Indianapolis, Miami, Minnesota and Atlanta, they have all been cooked and devoured. San Diego, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Arizona have survived and will continue to climb the mountain in search of fresh blood.

The blood they search for in the Divisional Round will be Tennessee, Carolina, Pittsburgh and The Giants. Baltimore faces Tennessee, Arizona goes to Carolina, Philly will challenge The Giants and San Diego will meet up with Pitt.

There's only 7 games left in the post season and there's no telling how this crazy season will end. My guess for next week is Tennessee taking Baltimore out, Arizona beating Carolina, Philly continuing their streak by knocking The Giants out and Pittsburgh gets the edge at home against San Diego.

Speaking of predictions... throughout the past two seasons, I have been picking every game, straight-up and painstakingly tallying them all, (thank you, Excel.) Well, I'm happy to announce that my regular season percentage for 2008 was 60%. That's 153 correct picks out of 256 total games. Not half bad...