NFL
The NFdi(C)eased Spooky edition
By Cowboy Teddy · @TeddyHadden97 ·
Good lord I wanted to die. For those of you not familiar with my last post, I told everybody not to fall for the Cowboys in the Cardinals game, and I meant that for the entire regulation game. I was watching in bar with several other sports fans and can remember pointing at the screen with 1:04 left saying "We are going to lose". I knew it from the start, we were going to lose this game, but then, the absolutely worst thing possible happened. The Cardinals somehow missed one of the easiest kicks of all time to put this game away. This is not me being petty, but I have no idea how you keep your kicker after that missed kick. Suddenly, I actually found myself thinking we were going to win this game. It was a complete betrayal on my part after telling the readers and insisting to all the dickheads who text me after every Cowboys loss that we were never going to win this game, but unfortunately, I did ultimately fall for the bait. The worst part is somehow people are blaming are "terrible defense" or "choking offense" for losing this game, but I'm here to put those accusations to rest. Our defense recorded a sack, a fumble, and interception, and forced the opponent into benching their starting QB. The defense absolutely SHOWED UP and DID THEIR JOB. The offense also managed to put up enough points to reasonably win a game. I would typically save this rant for the Cowboys section of this article, but a loss this horrible needed to be addressed up front immediately, and I will address the rest of it in a moment. With that band-aid being ripped off, the NFL trade deadline is November 10th, and I will address the outcomes of this week along with my expectations for what will happen before then. Happy Halloween everyone!
Watch on YouTube: Cardinals vs. Cowboys Week 8, 4th quarter through OT highlights
Cowboys: As I previously said we would be lucky to go 3-2 over the five-game stretch starting with the Buccaneers. I was fairly confident in that assessment, but I think it would be prudent to predict the next five and really put my merit on the line. The cowboys next five games are Colts, Niners, Titans, Eagles, and Seahawks. My honest prediction is that we will actually go 4-1, and that's not me putting hype or cope into my predictions, its largely looking at current teams and historical data. For starters, Titans are mostly anemic, Colts seem to be in hell, Eagles have no reason to make a run, and Seahawks and Niners are normal games. Before I address the two actual teams, let's talk about our coach. I never loved the hire but was willing to give him a chance to see what he was capable of and what the difference would be from McCarthy. I don't think he is Hitler by any means, but the sad fact is he is capable of winning and losing any game ever, which doesn't translate to any reliable post season success. Last year's win against Kansas City was awesome, and he had my full support after that, but the fact of the matter is he has lost several games this season from his play calling and 4th quarter decisions and if he doesn't figure it out soon, we are done. I know many people are calling for his firing in the fanbase, but I don't think anybody wants to actually look at what that results in. There are zero other coaches without jobs that I want right now, and even if there were, Jerry Jones would absolutely blow it in horrifying fashion. We are stuck with this coach whether we like it or not, so we better hope he gets it together. In terms of the trade deadline, I don't know if we have assets good enough to trade to get a really good pass rusher, and even if we did, are we sure this is the coach and season to go all in? I don't expect much, but then again, I'm a delusional cowboy fan as much as the next guy apparently, so it wouldn't be the most shocking thing in the world. Final words; bet us against Seahawks, bet your house on the Niners.
Giants: Going to keep this one short; Giants on Bye and leading the division. They currently have a glaring hole at running back due to injuries and inefficiencies, but will it matter come playoff time? The Giants in my eyes can lock this division up, but will it be worth going in on the trade deadline to make a run for a Super Bowl? I think it might just be a year too early, but maybe, just maybe, they make a push for Jonathon Taylor at the deadline. There are so many teams in the mix for him, but if they're going to make any move it'll be to give JJ another option than slinging it directly to Malik Nabers. The funniest option by far would be a trade with the Eagles for Saquan Barkley, and to me doesn't even seem that far-fetched. Eagles are looking to reload and would prefer to get some value on their star running back before he becomes to old to compete. I don't think Saquan is bad or necessarily out of his prime, but I could see him being optimistic at a reunion to finally give the Giants their Super Bowl he initially sought. Too long didn't read: Giants looking at running backs.
Commanders: I don't even want to talk about this team, what is the point. Team is bad, fans want Coach gone, and a run for the division is an uphill battle. Every game from here on is a nightmare. If you win, you convince yourself they can win the division (they can't) and they hurt their draft pick. If they lose, they get better draft picks and move closer to firing their coach. From my limited interactions with Commanders fans, they like their coach, but do not think he is the guy to get them to their goals. This can be a good team next year, but their best interest is to tank and get a good pick and find some stud in the next draft. I personally can't see them making moves at the deadline, but in fairness the division absolute dog water so maybe this could be the time to try something. Dan Quinn won't fix this team with one trade, but he will be gone if they get last so he might as well burn the ship down with him.
Eagles: Everybody is dead, this isn't an NFL team, and nobody knows if the Super Bowl winning coach is good. Eagles won't be trading for any players at the deadline, but they will almost be certainly selling pieces on this team that will be surprising. Its hard to not feel a little bad for them, because this doesn't feel like a quick reset, and they currently aren't looking at much more than two wins for the rest of the season. It's also incredibly difficult to give an honest assessment on Srianni given the state of his player's health. I'd like to say he IS a good coach and DOES deserve another season, but Philadelphia will not accept failure for long and given his six-game losing streak I'm not sure the ownership will either. At the very least, this will be a fun team to watch before the deadline.