Bring on the Packers
Next Thursday is going to be the biggest regular season game for the Dallas Cowboys in recent memory. The winner of the game will essentially have a two-game lead in the race for home field advantage in the NFC.
The Packers remaining four opponents are: Oakland, St. Louis, Chicago and Detroit. The Cowboys remaining four opponents are: Detroit, Philadelphia, Carolina and Washington.
Now, the loser of the Cowboys-Packers game could conceivably run the table. In fact, the loser of the game should run the table against those opponents. But the winner is not going to lose two games. This game is for home field advantage in the NFC. Period.
I don’t need to spend too much time writing about what January football in Lambeau can be like. Even if the Cowboys have the better team, which I feel they do, the weather will certainly slow everything down and become the neutralizer. And Favre and company are used to playing in those elements, while Romo and Owens and the Cowboys are not.
But more than just home field advantage for the NFC championship game, the loser will have a tougher road to get there. The Giants are likely looming in the divisional round for the loser, while the winner will feast on the Seahawks or the Cardinals or birds of another feather.
The Giants are the only team in the NFC, besides Dallas and Green Bay, who I feel has a legitimate chance of reaching the Super Bowl. I would rate their chances significantly lower at this point, because I don’t know what the Giants are going to get from Eli Manning, and the other two teams appear to be much stronger at quarterback.
But the Giants are still a threat. Eli has the pedigree. He has a lot of weapons. They still have that defense. And they could get on a roll. I wouldn’t mind playing the Giants in the NFC Championship game, but they are not a team you want to contend with in the divisional round of the playoffs. Not when some helpless Birds are the alternative. Win next Thursday and the path becomes clearer.
