Dallas Cowboys Loss To Arizona Is a Jerry Jones Nightmare On Christmas Day

If Jerry Jones could in any way be compared with Ebenezer Scrooge, last night in Arizona he was visited by the Ghost of Humiliations Past, as the Cowboys once again embarrassed him on a national stage on Christmas night.

Jerry once again gave a pre-game interview, laughing and cutting up with NFL Network analysts Rich Eisen, Marshall Faulk, Steve Mariucci, and Deion Sanders.

And then, once again, the Dallas Cowboys proceeded to take the field against an opponent they should easily defeat, and self destructed in front of a national television audience. The Arizona Cardinals were on their third quarterback of the year, and their 4-10 record in the NFC West left little to be feared for any team, especially for a Cowboys team loaded with talent that had finally seemed to find their offense after their offensive coordinator had been named head coach.

Twice in the first quarter, the Arizona Cardinals returned interceptions for touchdowns as Jason Garrett returned to being the pass happy offensive coordinator that had cost the Cowboys seven of the first eight games of this season.

Once again, when the run game began to struggle, Garrett abandoned it for a passing attack that has led to numerous turnovers in games that the Cowboys lost by 7 points or less all season long. Those turnovers have been the difference makers in each of those losses, and this night was no exception.

As a matter of fact, this game seemed to establish the rule under Jason Garrett. Two interceptions returned for touchdowns, and then the Cowboys defensive players taking blame for allowing a last minute field goal in a game that the Cowboys should have been leading comfortably.

When the Cowboys started the game on offense, Felix Jones was stopped on the first play from scrimmage. Kitna promptly went to the air, Miles Austin fell down, and Arizona's Greg Toler intercepted the pass and returned it 32 yards for a touchdown, giving the Cardinals a 7-0 lead.

On the Cowboys second possession of the game, Garrett went straight back to the air, and Kitna was promptly sacked. The next play was a pass to tight end Martellus Bennett, which Bennett fumbled, almost giving the ball back to the Cardinals right there on the spot. Miles Austin recovered the fumble, and the Cowboys continued.

It might have been better if the Cardinals had recovered the fumble.

On the Cowboys third and fourth plays of that drive, Miles Austin gained six yards and Felix Jones gained seven yards on rushes. Garrett then follows up with four consecutive passes- the fourth being intercepted by the Cardinals Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and returned 66 yards for a touchdown.  

With 8:24 left in the first quarter, the Cowboys had run eleven plays- three running plays and seven passes. They had fumbled the ball after one reception, and thrown two for interceptions that had been returned for a touchdown.

The Cardinals physical defensive play was working wonders on the Cowboys pass happy offense, as had opposing defenses from the past nine Cowboys losses. In each of the Cowboys losses, a turnover on a pass play- oftentimes in the Cowboys own territory- had led to points for the Cowboys opponents that gave them a decisive edge in the game.

When John Kitna went down to injury just before the end of the first half, with the Cardinals already leading by a score of 21-10, backup quarterback Stephen Mcgee was forced into action for the first time in 2010.

After a 24 yard run by Marion Barber cut the Cardinals lead to 21-20, a Cardinals field goal then extended their lead to 24-20. But, the Cowboys eventually took the lead on a 37 yard pass from McGee to Miles Austin, to which Cowboys kicker David Beuhler promptly missed the extra point. This gave the Cowboys the lead by a score of 26-20, but also gave the Arizona Cardinals the ball back with 1:32 left in the game.

The final chapter in Jerry Jones' visit from the Ghost of Humiliations past was set to be played out. It would keep Jerry in suspense, and torture him with plays and even a penalty that "almost" prevented another loss- but not quite.

Cardinals rookie quarterback John Skelton had already thrown for a 74 yard touchdown pass in which the Cowboys defense had blown a coverage earlier in the game. This time he struggled to move the Cardinals, and the Cowboys had them almost out of the game with fourth down and 15 yards to go on their own 19.

But, Skelton found Larry Fitzgerald, the Cards star receiver, for a 26 yard completion, and the nightmare continued.

With only 20 seconds left, and no timeouts remaining, Skelton completed a pass to Cardinals receiver Max Komar to the Cowboys 25, and the Cardinals rushed to the line to spike the ball with ten seconds left in the game.  Even though the Cardinals were flagged for having an illegal formation, the play had been carried out, and Skelton's spiking of the ball had been an incomplete pass, which saved the Cardinals a ten second run-off of the clock.

The Cardinals had time for Jay Feely to kick the game winning kick, winning the game 27-26, and completing Jerry Jones' scrooge-like nightmare.  

Hopefully, when Jerry awakened this morning, he sees the world in a new light, and begins to feel the convictions of finding a replacement for Wade Phillips that brings everything you want in a head coach's instincts, conviction, vision, determination and the ability to impose his will and raise the team to a higher level.

At least he had the chance to view the Cowboys under the same type of offensive coordination with Jason Garrett that cost him the 2010 season, and now he can see what the future holds with Garrett at the helm.

As Jerry Jones awakened this morning, he should immediately want to change things, and avoid a future in which games like last night's debacle could become the legacy of this group of Cowboys.