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By Don Stokes Senior Writer Football Reporters Online

As I watched the end of Super Bowl XLV come to a conclusion as the Green Bay Packers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 in the “gigantic” football palace that Jerry Jones built, I wondered out loud as the Packers QB Aaron Rodgers took the final knee to run out the clock the magnitude of that moment must be for him. As the Cowboys Stadium turf was engulfed with players, press, NFL bigwigs and fans my lovely wife reminded me of the very first time we saw the newest SB MVP Aaron Rodgers. It was on a Saturday morning NFL draft day in 2005 at Radio City Music Hall.

I recalled watching him on television sitting gleefully at a table with his family and well wishers with all of the other expected early draft picks of that season nearby. Rodgers was expected to be an early 1^st round draft pick.

(Eds. Note: it was just as agonizing for us in the Media interview room as well…)

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NFL Targeted in Lawsuit Over ‘Phantom’ Super Bowl Seats, Says Goldfarb Branham LLP

Action to represent fans who didn’t get what they paid for

DALLAS, Feb. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Two Green Bay Packers fans who were denied their dream of attending Sunday’s Super Bowl game even though they paid for tickets have filed a lawsuit in Dallas against the National Football League, The Dallas Cowboys, and Cowboys Stadium.

Dallas-based law firm Goldfarb Branham filed the suit on behalf of two Wisconsin residents who were sold tickets to seats that did not exist – “phantom” seats – sold by a league that cared more about breaking attendance records and making profits than protecting the fans’ experience. The suit includes claims of fraud, breach of contract and negligence.

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Did the Cowboys just save their season?(with this win)

By Jp Fox Contributing Writer- Football Reporters Online

(photo-Tony Romo Via Wikimedia Commons)

Without reminding them of the 1993 season, every Dallas Cowboys fan had visions of the same story line when the ‘Boys started out the 2010 season 0-2. The difference, though, was that in ‘93 the Cowboys were without Emmitt Smith who was holding out over a contract dispute. After they started 0-2, Smith quickly signed and the rest is history, with the Cowboys ending up Super Bowl champions. With the Super Bowl being played in “Jerry World” after this season and the Cowboys near the top of the line of favorites to represent the NFC in that very game, it was hard to imagine the Cowboys not putting out their best effort each and every week to become the first team in NFL history to play the Super Bowl in their home stadium. With all of the weapons the Cowboys had on offense to go along with a very stout defense, Jerry Jones had to of been a very happy camper with his chances of that very scenario playing out in his favor.

Fast forward to this season. The ‘Boys started out 0-2 with losses to the Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears. The Cowboys even lost on the final play of the game in week one against Washington, with reserve offensive tackle Alex Barron drawing a holding penalty before Tony Romo threw the thought-to-be game-winning touchdown. Against the Bears in week two, Tony Romo had two passes tipped that resulted in interceptions for the Bears. Things just weren’t going the Cowboys’ way up to that point. Blogs were going wild with, “Fire Wade Phillips” rants. Fans were calling for offensive coordinator Jason Garrett’s job as well. The Cowboys were supposed to have an explosive offense with the nucleus they had put together. The defense was still being led by their front seven, which includes DeMarcus Ware, Jay Ratliff, Anthony Spencer, and Keith Brooking.

With the Cowboys having their bye week in week four, it was a must-win situation in week three on the road against the Texans, who were sporting the top offense in the NFL. If the Cowboys were to go into week four, which would be their bye, the Cowboys would have had a 2.9% chance of making the playoffs, had they been 0-3. So the battle of Texas was definitely going to be a heated one to say the least. One team was trying to go 3-0 for the first time in franchise history while the other was trying to avoid falling into an 0-3 hole. And with all of the hype surrounding the Cowboys going into the season, it would have been a huge disappointment if the team would have to wait until week 5 to make another attempt at their first win of the season.

Many people had the Cowboys slated for a 6-10 season after two weeks of the season. To me, that is completely ridiculous. That is why they play the games. That is why there is 16 games. Anything can happen on any given Sunday. Going into the game against Houston, the Texans had to of been pretty confident. They had just come back from 17 down in the third quarter to force overtime and eventually beat the Redskins in week two. The Cowboys held a players-only meeting during the week leading up to the game to prove that the situation is urgent. With Matt Schaub leading the Texans and Tony Romo doing the same for the Cowboys, it would have been easy to expect a shoot-out. Schaub had just come off a game in which he threw for just shy of 500 yards.

Without giving a whole recap of the game, the Cowboys basically stomped all over the Texans and then some. The game was out of reach at 27-6 when Houston tacked on a garbage-time touchdown to make it 27-13, which ended up being the final score. Tony Romo put up a 127.6 passer rating, while the most unlikely of heroes arose in wide receiver Roy Williams. Williams put up five catches for 117 and two touchdowns. The 117 yards was the most Williams put up since joining the Cowboys mid-way through the 2008 season. The Cowboys actually found some sort of running game as well, rushing for a combined 101 yards, mostly between Marion Barber and Felix Jones. DeMarcus Ware was awarded NFC Defensive Player of the week for his effort against the Texans, which resulted in three third-down sacks. Dallas even forced their first three turnovers of the season in the game. They even had another bright spot in kicker David Buehler, who made kicks of 49 and 40 yards after missing a kick in each of the Redskins and Bears game.

So the Cowboys are now 1-2 going into the bye week. It doesn’t look pretty, but what would 0-3 have looked like? With all of the star power they have, with Jerry Jones, and with all of the Super Bowl hopes and dreams, Cowboys fans can exhale (at least a little bit) for the time being. After the bye week, three of their next four games are at home. Having the crowd on their side for a little stretch is only going to help the Cowboys. 1993 seems like such a long time ago, probably because it really is a long time ago. But with Dallas proving they belong with the big boys after this past weekend, it’s not such a farfetched idea that the Cowboys can duplicate what the 1993 team did. 0-2 then Super Bowl……..? We will just have to see what happens on any and every given Sunday.

2009 Dallas Cowboys Preview By J.P Fox-Football Reporters Online

Coming off of a horrific ending to the 2008 campaign, the Dallas Cowboys are desperate to not let another season without a playoff victory pass them by. With a season that ended with a 44-6 loss in Philadelphia, with a playoff spot on the line, people in Dallas, and around the country, could begin to wonder about the job security of head coach Wade Phillips. Criticized for running “cupcake” training camps, not being tough on his players, and failing to fully prepare his teams for games, Phillips is definitely on the hot seat coming into his third season as head coach of America’s Team. With an impressive 22-10 regular season record in two years with Dallas, Phillips has not been impressive in the closing months of the season in both years with the team. In his final three games of the ’07 season, Phillips and the Cowboys went 1-2. Dallas ended up losing to the division rival New York Giants in the Divisional round of the playoffs. In his final four games of the ’08 season, the Cowboys went 1-3 and missed the playoffs. With an owner like Jerry Jones, mediocrity will not be accepted. Phillips better get the Cowboys to the playoffs, and WIN in the playoffs, to keep his job.

Quarterback Tony Romo could also be in a make or break year. He was inserted into the starting lineup midway through the 2006 season and brought the team to the playoffs. The following year, he led Dallas to a 13-3 record, but ended the season without a playoff victory. And in 2008, the Cowboys missed the playoffs by getting romped in Philly to end the season. Romo is the heart and soul of the Cowboys. When he goes, the team goes. Some people are ready to put Romo is the same breath as a Peyton Manning, before he won the Super Bowl. Manning just couldn’t get the Colts over the hump. Now Romo has got to get the Cowboys over that hump or he will have a lot of people not too happy about him receiving a $67 million contract before proving himself.

Jerry Jones has rid the offense of Terrell Owens but inserted Roy Williams as the #1 Wide Receiver. The team gave up three draft picks and a $45 million contract to get Williams to Dallas, from Detroit, midway through last season. The team also has speedster Miles Austin at wideout, as well as Patrick Crayton, a good possession receiver, and Sam Hurd, an up-and-coming player. But the receiving corps with probably only go as far as Roy Williams takes them. He will step into the huge, gaping shoes that Terrell Owens left behind. Roy Williams will probably need to have a season like his 2006 campaign, for the Cowboys to keep on ticking. Dallas had T.O. for the last three seasons to be their #1 receiver and now that elite role for the ‘Boys will go to big #11. And at tight end, the Cowboys will have All-Pro Jason Witten, who is Tony Romo’s favorite target, as well as super-athletic, second-year player Martellus Bennett. Bennett has shown flashes of a super-star-type tight end, and will help the offense take pressure off of Jason Witten when he is on the field.

The strength for the Cowboys offense will be their running game. They have a three headed monster in Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. Felix Jones is the teams’ biggest weapon and with him healthy, the team will have an extra dimension that they lacked in the ten games he missed last season due to injury. Three players on the offensive line, Flozell Adams, Leonard Davis, and Andre Gurode, have made the Pro Bowl at least twice in their career. With Marion “The Barbarian” as the between the tackles, short yardage runner and #1 back, Felix Jones as a change-of-pace and third down back, and Tashard Choice available to give both of them a breather, the Cowboys should have no problem running the ball this season.

The Cowboys were ranked 8^th overall in the NFL in total defense last season. But one thing the team did lack was forced turnovers. They ranked in the bottom half of the league in that category. Returning for the defense is star linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who racked up 20 sacks in 2008, Terence Newman (cornerback), Jay Ratliff (defensive tackle), and Ken Hamlin (safety), who each have made at least one pro-bowl, and linebackers Bradie James and Anthony Spencer. Gerald Sensabaugh comes over from Jacksonville and will replace Roy Williams at the strong safety spot. Sensabaugh will bring more play-making ability than the aging Williams. Keith Brooking, who had 100+ tackles with Atlanta last season, replaces Zach Thomas. At defensive end, the Cowboys will have Marcus Spears, a young player who is coming into his contract year, and Igor Olshansky, who comes over from San Diego to replace Chris Canty. Olshansky was drafted by San Diego when Wade Phillips was the defensive coordinator there. And lastly, at the cornerback spot opposite Terence Newman, the Cowboys will go with a rotation of second-year players, Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick. Jenkins was drafted in the first round last year and Scandrick, the fifth. Throughout the year, Scandrick outplayed Jenkins and many thought Scandrick would open the season as the starter. Instead, Jenkins will start the first game, Scandrick will start the second, and they will rotate until one significantly outplays the other.

So that outlines who will be playing for the 2009 Cowboys. The team is not too far off from becoming relevant again. They have a strong defense that will look to improve on their strong 2008 numbers with a couple of new faces. Also, a strong running game will only better Tony Romo’s chances of becoming that quarterback that every Cowboy fan hopes he is. A strong running game only opens up big things for a quarterback, and when you have three young, hungry runners, your quarterback is set up to flourish. I believe the Cowboys need a couple players to have big years for the team to break out: Felix Jones, Roy Williams, DeMarcus Ware. Jones missed 10 games last year, Williams had 19 catches in 10 games with the Cowboys, and Ware is looking to force more fumbles and become more relentless in the running game this season. Every Cowboy fan is hoping that the ‘Boys can claim that first playoff victory since 1996 but mostly, they are hoping the team can join the Pittsburgh Steelers as the only teams with 6 World Championships.