Dallas Cowboys Nowhere to Be Found As Steelers Continue Towards Dallas

In just a few weeks one team will be crowned Super Bowl champion on the Dallas Cowboys home field.

It won't be the Cowboys.

Since their inception into the NFL in 1960, the Dallas Cowboys have been the heroes of millions of football fans across the country and even in other parts of the world.

The Cowboys represented all that Americans loved in a hero- success, greatness, talent, heart, integrity, hard work, perseverance, and with Tom Landry at the helm- a righteousness that told the world that the good guys could come out on top.

And since that time, there has been no greater thorn in the side of the Cowboys and their fans than the Pittsburgh Steelers. They were the men in black, the hated ones, the anti-Cowboys.

While the rivalry between the Cowboys and the Redskins could generate more hostility in the Cowboys and their fans than the average world war, it would be the heart-breaking Super Bowl losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers that would burn in the stomachs of Cowboys fans across the country.

Steelers heroes like Jack Lambert, "Mean Joe" Greene, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, Franco Harris- and oh, that cocky Terry Bradshaw were like kryptonite to Cowboys fans

The Cowboys lost two Super Bowls to the Steelers in the '70s (1976 & 1978), both by four point margins. In both games, questionable calls from the officiating crews seemingly helped the Steelers, and if it weren't for those calls, of course, the Cowboys surely would have won.

The losses to the Steelers were tragic for Cowboys fans- who then were forced to suffer the most inhumane fate known to man- Steelers fans. ( I am writing this in good-natured fun, but it still stings when the other guy's team wins.)

But in 1995, the world was made right once again when the Cowboys finished off a four year roll in which they won three Super Bowls, and the third was against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While it didn't ring with quite the same pleasure as beating those Steelers from the '70s would have felt, it was still a Super Bowl victory, and it seemed to make the universe more stable.

The Cowboys had won three Super Bowls in four years, and the world in general was a better place. People were happy, flowers were blooming, and life was good.

By then the Cowboys had gained an edge in Super Bowl rings and appearances. The Cowboys had been to eight Super Bowls and had won five of them- while the Steelers had been to only five, but had won four of those five.

But the Cowboys had the edge with five rings, and five Lombardi Trophies. The world was a better place, and the Steelers were where they belonged- behind the Cowboys in the contest for the most successful Super Bowl teams.

Now however, things have taken a turn for the worst. While the Cowboys have floundered around seemingly without conviction for the last 15 years, the hated Steelers have added two more Super Bowl visits and wins to their record.

While it is plain, at least in my eyes, that they obviously received all kinds of help from the officials in each of those wins(just kidding- sort of), they have still have the rings from them. Whether I like it or not, the Steelers have been to the Super Bowl seven times now, and have won six of those.

But if the Steelers go to and win the Super Bowl this season, it will be a tragedy that may never be remedied- for this year's Super Bowl is to be played in Dallas on the Cowboys home field, and our heroes in the white jerseys are no where to be found. 

The Steelers are still alive in this year's playoff race, as are some other very good teams, including the Patriots.

Cowboys fans can only hope that either the Jets or the Patriots will put them in their place and help stave off this disaster. 

If the Steelers show up in Dallas in February, and the Cowboys aren't even there to meet them, the humiliation of Cowboys fans will be complete.

And if the Steelers show up and defeat the NFC Champions that meet them- and win a Super Bowl trophy on the Cowboys home field- the world as we know it will surely come to a tragic and devastating end. 

I think I speak for a lot of Cowboys fans when I say," Mr Jones please listen up: The next time you ask the NFL to hold a Super Bowl in Jerry World, we as the fans would like for you to remember our feelings and Cowboys pride;"

"And if it's not too much trouble, make sure that the Cowboys will be there to defend our honor."

The humiliation of 2010 for the Dallas Cowboys and their fans is almost complete.

While I wrote this article with a touch of humor, the damage done to the Cowboys with this year's failures is truly great. The Cowboys are not "just another professional franchise". If that were the case, their following of fans would not be quite so strong.

And though I joke about the Steelers and their fans ( who I grudgingly give props to for the success they have enjoyed ), the truth is that a team other than the Cowboys will be crowned as world champions for the 2010 season in the Cowboys own house- and the Cowboys didn't even put up a fight this season.

It should be a lesson that neither Jerry nor the Cowboys team ever forgets.  

The players who wear the star on their helmet, and the white, blue and silver uniforms should remember that there is much more to being a Dallas Cowboy than collecting a check and making a soundbite for reporters.

The Cowboys truly are "America's Team", and the players and coaches lucky enough to be part of that team should remember that there was a reason they were labeled as such.

An embarrassing display such as we saw this year was not the way this franchise achieved greatness.

Cowboys fans everywhere will share in the embarrassment of 2010 as another team wins a Lombardi trophy in the Cowboys hometown, in their brand new stadium; while the Cowboys themselves didn't even make the playoffs, finishing the season in a tie for last place in the NFC East.

Maybe Jerry should make the players show up to the game and serve popcorn and cokes to those who are there to root on their favorite team. Maybe it would ingrain in them a lesson as to the importance of not allowing themselves to become a punchline to the rest of the NFL.

The fans shouldn't have to be embarrassed alone.  

And that's the bottom line.