Be honest, after Brandon Aubrey’s perfect kicking record was ended by a blocked kick and Dak Prescott had a pass tipped for a pick, you were nervous.
If you say you weren’t you’re a lying, dog-faced, pony soldier. (That’s as close to politics as you’ll ever get from me here, I promise).
The Commanders came out and played like a team with nothing to lose.
They went for it on fourth down. They called gimmicky plays.
And still, Dallas grabbed an early 7-0 lead after an impressive opening drive. Then, with a chance to go up 10-0 it went sideways.
A missed block allowed a Commanders’ defender to easily reject Aubrey’s kick.
The block was returned to the 20 and the Commanders cashed it in with a tying touchdown. Then they took a 10-7 lead.
And if you weren’t sweating bullets by then I question if your heart is actually beating.
But the Cowboys settled down, took control of the game, and won going away, 38-10.
They finished with their third-straight 12-5 season. Dallas is the NFC East champions for the second time in three years and the NFC’s No. 2 seed in the playoffs.
The Cowboys are guaranteed home playoff games for the first two rounds, assuming they dispatch the Packers this weekend.
And if the 49ers stumble in their Divisional round game, the Cowboys would host the NFC Championship game should they advance that far.
But in the meantime: How About Them NFC East Champion Cowboys!
Brandon Aubrey Sets A Record
I had a bad feeling when I posted about Aubrey’s bid to set two more NFL records last week. I was afraid I’d jinx him and sure enough…
Sorry, man, my bad.
Aubrey’s blocked field goal attempt denied him a pair of NFL records on Sunday.
But he still walked out of the stadium with a franchise record. His second extra point of the game gave him 151 points on the year.
He surpassed Emmitt Smith’s 1995 mark of 150 points for the most points scored by a Cowboys’ player in a single season.
While he missed his next field goal attempt, hitting the upright from 36 yards out, he rebounded with a 50-yarder.
Aubrey finished with 157 total points for the season. He went 36-for-38 in field goals – and 49-for-52 on extra points — for the year.
Mr. Smith Goes Off
Atlanta’s Head Coach Arthur Smith was not a happy camper after the Falcons got crushed 48-17. He had a reason to be grumpy.
With the Saints up 41-17, and having just made a first down at the one with 70 seconds left, New Orleans lined up in a victory formation.
Then they ran a handoff to Jamaal Williams instead. The Falcons’ defense was not set for an actual play and Williams easily scored.
After the game, Smith confronted Dennis Allen and presented the Saints’ Head Coach with some choice words.
I don’t blame him. It was a bush league move by the Saints.
The game was over. Just take two knees and go home.
I did notice some comments on social media that the Falcons should have stopped them if they didn’t want the Saints to score.
But when you go into that formation you don’t run a play trying to score.
As it turns out Allen had sent his offense out onto the field with the instruction to take a knee and run out the clock.
He was overruled by his players, led by backup quarterback Jameis Winston. They decided they wanted to get Williams his first touchdown of the season.
And good sportsmanship be damned.
It will be interesting to see how Allen addresses this because there are multiple issues here. He’s the coach, he dictates strategy.
Not the players.
It doesn’t surprise me that Winston was the instigator of this debacle. His Florida State career was littered with bad decisions.
From stealing crab legs, stealing soda from a Burger King, shooting out windows with a BB gun all the way up to sexual assault allegations, Winston had quite the run.
It seems he still hasn’t grown up. Hopefully over the offseason, Allen can get through to him.
But I doubt it.
And recall the old Eagles-Cowboys rivalry that flared up in the 1980s when the Cowboys scored late in a game?
It triggered Buddy Ryan into putting bounties on Cowboys players the next time they played.
The Black Monday Axman Cometh
Speaking of Smith he’s likely to be out of a job before the end of the day today.
Probable coaches joining him in the unemployment line include Washington’s Ron Rivera and New England’s Bill Belichick.
Tennessee’s Mike Vrabel could also be in jeopardy. Brian Daboll had been rumored to be on the hot seat but might have saved his job with the Giants’ 27-10 win over the Eagles.
Assuming Mike McCarthy isn’t going anywhere, which job would attract Dan Quinn?
Maybe none if Seattle’s Pete Carroll decides he’s had enough of the grind. Quinn returning to the Seahawks would be a no-brainer.