From Media Spotlight to Super Bowl Stage? Dallas Reshapes Focus

The Dallas Cowboys have made many flashy headlines over the last 13 seasons of the National Football League. They generated all types of stories from the good "Smith becomes NFL's all-time leading rusher," to the bad "Romo drop helps Seahawks win," and to the ugly "Report: Terrell Owens-Tony Romo rift."

Despite the massive amounts of media attention each season, America's Team has failed to make the ultimate headline: "Cowboys rope sixth Super Bowl title."

Even though the Cowboys haven't won a Lombardi Trophy since 1995 and a playoff game since the NFC Wild Card round in 1996, the Texas squad still faces high, championship expectations every year. 

After finishing with a 9-7 record and failing to reach the playoffs, the Cowboys look to move forward from an offseason filled with controversies, player departures and tragedy to a season filled with fresh starts, young faces and a new outlook on the game.

Dallas enters the 2009 season with the same great precedent that was set during their championship runs in the early and mid '90s. But in order to bring a Super Bowl title to Big D, the Cowboys have to address a few major concerns.

It's all about number one

The main question on every Cowboys fans mind is, "How will the Cowboys adjust to life without Terrell Owens?"

According to a Yahoo! Sports report, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said the main focus of this offseason was to make the team more "Tony Romo friendly." Jones and Cowboys management helped this cause, as they released Owens on March 5.

Romo, who passed for 3,448 yards and 26 touchdowns in 2008, became the third quarterback to be scrutinized by the disgruntled wide receiver. In an ESPN report, Owens claimed the star quarterback and tight end Jason Witten held private meetings to create plays without including him. This assumption, Owens said, was the reason to his drop-off in production. 

Even though Owens compiled his least productive year as a Cowboy (69 receptions for 1,052 yards and 10 touchdowns), his body-of-work on the field will be missed, as he hauled in 235 catches for 3,587 yards and 38 touchdowns in his three years at Dallas.

With Owens gone, this gives Romo and company the chance to play a little more relaxed in games, but not too much given the high expectations. 

In order for the Cowboys to be successful on offense, they need Romo to feel comfortable. The two-time Pro Bowl quarterback has plenty of go-to players (Witten, running back Marion Barber III, and wide receiver Roy Williams) and role players (running back Felix Jones, wideouts Patrick Clayton and Miles Austin) to get the job done on offense.

If Romo can play at a high level each week while keeping his composure late in the season, the Cowboys will have a shot at not only winning its first playoff game in 13 years, but also a chance to win another Super Bowl for America's Team.

Defense, Defense, Defense

Based on statistics, most people would believe the Cowboys were a top defensive team in the NFL. Dallas allowed 294.3 yards per game, 106.6 of which was rushing and 187.7 was passing, giving them rankings of eight, 12th, and fifth respectively.

However when people look at the amount of points allowed last season, it makes them cringe and realize that the Cowboys finished 9-7 on the year for a reason.

The Cowboys gave up 365 points, or 22.8 points per game, good for 20th in the NFL. This staggering statistic and the failure to re-sign free agents Chris Canty, Zach Thomas, and Kevin Burnett are probably two reasons why Jerry Jones focused on signing and drafting new defensive players this offseason.

To revamp this below-average defense, Jerry signed linebacker Keith Brooking, defensive end Igor Olshansky, and Gerald Sensabaugh, all of whom are projected to start this season for the Cowboys. The Cowboys owner didn't stop there, as he used seven of his 12 draft choices in April's draft on defense. 

The Cowboys hope they can develop rookie linebackers Jason Williams, Victor Butler, and Brandon Williams to complement a defense filled with polished veterans like DeMarcus Ware, Bradie James, Greg Ellis, Terrence Newman, Ken Hamlin, and Marcus Spears.

In addition, head coach Wade Phillips will play a bigger role in calling defensive plays after Jerry Jones fired former defensive mind Brian Stewart this offseason.

With all these changes, the Cowboys could see an improvement on the defensive side of the ball. If they form a top defense that can be mentioned in the same sentence with great defensive teams such as the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Baltimore Ravens, and the New York Giants, then the Cowboys will be sitting pretty come playoff time.

But if these replacements fail to produce a top-tier defense, then the Cowboys will be watching the Super Bowl again from their homes in February.

Who's going to wear the Big C in Big D?

With all the problems that surrounded the Cowboys last year, there seemed to be no true captain or leader in the locker room. Players were talking about each other. Coaches and management denied allegations of controversies.

These headaches caused Dallas to lose focus on the task at hand: Winning!

The only way the Cowboys can get back on track is for somebody to become the established leader of the squad.

This leader needs to be the first player on the field and the last one to leave it. This leader needs to be the man guys can turn to when they are having problems. Moreover, this leader needs to be the guy who calms and brings everyone together during hard times.

Most people feel Romo, Ware, or Witten should be this leader, but are having second thoughts after last year's collapse. In order for the Cowboys to succeed, there has to be a player that is willing to step up to this colossal challenge.

Predictions

For the last three years, the Cowboys always had the makeup of a championship team on paper. However, the teams on paper never translated fully onto the field.

Dallas finished the 2006 season with a 9-7 record and an early exit in the Wild-Card round after Romo dropped the snap on a 19-yard field goal attempt to give the Seattle Seahawks a 21-20 win.

The Cowboys rebounded in 2007 with a 13-3 record and an NFC East title, but they fell flat on their faces as the eventual Super Bowl champion Giants beat them in Dallas during the divisional round 21-17.

In 2008, Dallas started off hot, but a pinky injury to Romo and the rift between him and Owens caused the Cowboys to finish the season with 9-7 record, the last loss coming from a 44-6 trouncing by the Philadelphia Eagles.

Despite this trend, most experts believe the Cowboys are a top-five favorite to win the Super Bowl. Dallas has 9-1 odds to win the title, according to Sportsbook.com. 

Before the Cowboys can have the Super Bowl talk, they have to get through a tough 2009 schedule. Dallas plays 14 games versus teams with a .500 or better record in 2008, six of which are against the Giants, the Eagles, and the Washington Redskins.

The Cowboys can get through this brutal road if they answer these three questions:

Is this the year Romo establishes himself as an elite quarterback in the NFL?

Can the defense in Big D return to one of the top units in the league?

Who is going to be the true leader of one of the most storied franchises in the league?

Frankly, this is the year Romo redeems himself as a true quarterback, meaning he not only excels on the field, but also becomes the established leader in the Dallas locker room. The defense will improve slightly, but it won't be a top-five defense in the NFL given the amount of new personnel. As for team unity, the Cowboys will improve drastically in this department now that certain drama-filled players are gone.

With that saying, here are the rest of the 2009 predictions for America's Team.

Record: 10-6, 2nd NFC East, Wild-Card Birth

Playoffs: Lose in NFC Championship game

Team MVP: Tony Romo

Number of Pro Bowlers: Six (Romo, Jason Witten, DeMarcus Ware, Flozell Adams, Andre Gurode, Marcus Spears)