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2020-2021 Regular Season:
Tremendous
Kickoff (Before A Viral Pickoff)?
September 12,
2020 At 11:57 PM CST
By Eric M. Scharf-
- The NFL season – at long last –
has returned on full blast. While the sport of football never gets
old, this season – truth be told – will require every team to be a
lil’ more creative and particularly bold. The ongoing pandemic has
altered “life as we know it.” The difference-making ability of some
teams to embrace change (rather than display an allergy to strange)
will certainly show it.
Major Mod To The Practice Squad
The impact of COVID-19 has undeniably been felt everywhere. Among
many changes to the 2020 pro sports landscape, the NFL was forced to
shelve their offseason plans, truncate training camp, and cancel the
preseason games with which (most but not all) prognosticators and
fans have come to view with little care. Preseason games – after all
– have increasingly become slightly-better-than-practice-quality
events during which many star players (from highly-anticipated
rookies to long-established veterans) suffer particularly-damaging
dents. Add in the always-potential impact of the virus, and many an
NFL team may find themselves feverishly yelling: “There are suddenly
not enough of us!”
One critical solution to fending off such roster health pollution
has been to apply a major mod to each team’s practice squad. The
NFL’s “shadow bench” has been expanded from 10 to 16 slots, with
teams having no accrued-season-restrictions on which players are
allowed to fill those additional spots. Teams previously could not
fill their 10-limit squads using any dude with more than two seasons
accrued.
Furthermore, teams can choose four of those six veteran-friendly
spots to shield against ever-present competitors looking for
more-and-better to lure to their playing field. While there is
apparently no penalty for quickly reassigning a protected veteran
back to the practice squad directly after a game only to be called
back up again from the "farm team," that process can only occur
twice before that player is exposed to those organizations looking
to poach. Teams with a routinely-solid game day 48 will magically
navigate that ever-present problem so that, on their chances of
success, it largely does not encroach.
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- The change to this particular practice squad restriction has
resulted in the surprising return of a great human being and man of
conviction. After spending a productive three seasons with the
Baltimore – as a hybrid cornerback-safety helping to supervise their
secondary store – one Brandon Carr will – once again – be donning
the Dallas star. DFW is Carr’s offseason home and – even with all
the continuing, fan-driven swirl around that troubled-yet-talented
guy named Earl – it was seemingly all too convenient and
cost-effective for both parties if (once again) Dallas’ defensive
backfield Carr was asked to potentially roam.
Nonetheless, time will tell if Carr (still in search of championship
“hardware” that has been a bridge too far) – having been called up
to the regular season roster for game one for more safety fun – will
continue to receive game day opportunities or see his career
all-but-done.
Good Quote Or Garbage Bloat?
"I think they're gonna contend for it. I think Mike [McCarthy] will
bring a different level of toughness and a little spunk with him,
and some creativity offensively that Dak will enjoy. I DO think they
will make a run for it." – Brett Favre (during a Sirius XM interview
on the possibility the Cowboys’ new head coach can guide Dallas to
that “shiny thing” for which “Cowboys Nation” continues to starve).
Former Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett was fond of saying the
Cowboys needed "the right kind of guys." Will McCarthy, Nolan, and
Fassel be the right kind of guys, or will their efforts be swatted
like flies?
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- And – beyond the subtly-tweaked or entirely-new schemes – will their
rebuilt roster (carefully forged this offseason) be able to
reasonably demonstrate flexible themes so refreshingly pleasin’?
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New School Kind Versus Old School Grind
One day before September 10, 2020 (and what is known as “World
Suicide Prevention Day”), Dak Prescott indulged an interview with
Fox Sports’ Ben Graham Bensinger in which he shared thoughts about
the suicide of his brother Jace. Prescott – while
reasonably-engaging whenever on camera or in front of a mic – had
(until that point) been remarkably private on the subject of his
brother, not a hint, not a trace. When he finally spoke, something
unexpectedly (?) intense awoke.
"All throughout this quarantine and this offseason, I started
experiencing emotions I've never felt before. Anxiety for the main
one. And then, honestly, a couple of days before my brother passed,
I would say I started experiencing depression. And to the point of,
I didn't want to work out anymore. I didn't know necessarily what I
was going through, to say the least, and hadn't been sleeping at
all." – Dak Prescott.
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Skip Bayless (currently of FOX Sports’ “Skip and Shannon:
Undisputed” and formerly of ESPN’s similarly-formatted “First Take”
and “Cold Pizza” programs) – as has been his natural, decades-old
inclination – had perhaps a prehistoric perspective to share with
Cowboys Nation (which came with an upfront disclaimer for the
occasional world class defamer).
"I'm gonna' disqualify myself right up front on this question. I'm
the wrong one to ask about this when it comes to him as the face of
that franchise, of America's Team. I'm gonna' ask our audience to
feel free to go ahead and condemn me if you choose as cold-blooded
and insensitive on this issue. I have deep compassion for clinical
depression, but when it comes to the quarterback of an NFL team, you
know this as well - better - than I do, it's the ultimate leadership
position in sports. Am I right about that? You are commanding an
entire franchise. What's the roster now? 53 still? [You're]
commanding a lot of young men and some older men, and they're all
looking to you to be their CEO, to be in charge of their football
team. Because of all that, I don't have sympathy for him going
public with, 'I got depressed. I suffered depression early in COVID
to the point where I couldn't even go work out.' Look, he's the
quarterback of 'America's Team'. And, you know and I know the sport
that [he plays], it is dog eat dog. It is no compassion. No quarter
given on the football field. If you reveal publicly any little
weakness, it can affect your team's ability to believe in you in the
toughest spots, and it definitely could encourage others on the
other side to come after you [with debasing cat calls whenever you
for every little or large mistake]." – Skip Bayless to Shannon
Sharpe on September 10, 2020 (with an outdated case to make that
triggered a response far from sunny).
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The very next day – with social media debates not falling his way –
Skip’s employer chimed in to weakly blunt potent public punch, err,
reaction to Bayless’ chin.
“At FOX Sports, we are proud of Dak Prescott for publicly revealing
his struggle with depression and mental health. No matter the cause
of the struggle, FOX Sports believes Dak showed tremendous courage
which is evident in both his leadership on the Dallas Cowboys and in
his character off the field. We do not agree with Skip Bayless’
opinion on Undisputed this morning. We have addressed the
significance of this matter with Skip and how his insensitive
comments were received by people internally at FOX Sports and our
audience.” – FOX Sports Junior Content Writer (in the absence of
anyone brighter).
While “The Tortured Cowboys Fan” was a regular reader of Bayless’
columns for the Dallas Morning News and Dallas Times Herald (among
his other writing stops at various newsprint shops), his career
transformation into a (largely-unchecked) sports television
personality did (and still does) not follow the comparatively rigid
restrictions of the preceding media outfits which did not allow him
to similarly-convey his convictions.-
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For those within the greater sports industry who have lazily labeled
Skip Bayless as ignorant, you need to read up on his long history of
carefully-crafted yet KNOWINGLY-WILLFUL opinions so belligerent. He
routinely goes for the highest octave in being the most evocative
and provocative. And FOX will certainly do less-than-zero to rein in
their sports version of – [vomiting sound all around] – Sean Hannity.
Cue the insanity.
"I think being a leader is about being genuine and being real. I
think it's important to be vulnerable, to be genuine, to be
transparent. I think that goes a long way when you're a leader and
when your voice is being heard by so many, and you can inspire." –
Dak Prescott (as thoughtful as ever when put on the spot in reacting
to Skip’s unnecessarily cruel, antagonistic "slip").
Fans surely expected Dak to dedicate his 2020 performance towards
potentially placing a three-egg omelet on GM Jerry’s and son
Stephen’s collective face AND in loving memory of his brother Jace.
Now? Skip has (purposely, pugnaciously) given Prescott added
motivation to deliver a Super season for Cowboys Nation.
And “in a world” sorely lacking in (enough) empathy, the new school
ability to be publicly, refreshingly kind has taken the shine from
the old school societal expectation to unquestionably suck it up and
grind.
Get On With The Show Or Forced To Go?
While most NFL fans - with interests outside the West Coast - will
be raising a kickoff toast, followers of the San Francisco 49ers and
Los Angeles Rams will be quite literally holding their breath to see
if those teams do, indeed, get to play week one host.
The air quality index in Santa Clara (home of the 49ers' Levi
Stadium) reached 194 on Friday. If that index reaches 200 on game
day, the league will (logically, strongly, and wisely) consider
postponing or relocating their contest to another locale (proving
that - whether by viral pandemic or climate change so seemingly
California-endemic - mother nature holds ultimate sway).
Meanwhile, down in SoCal, similar air quality concerns (from Los
Angeles County's own struggle to contain what burns) are being
monitored ahead of Sunday night's season opener at the brand-new
Sofi Stadium between the Cowboys and Rams. The NFL's very latest
crown jewel - ultrachic with fan curiosity at maximum pique - was
developed on the former Hollywood Park Racetrack site for SEVERAL
billion clams.
And yet, “The Tortured Cowboys Fan” is willing to bet that team
owner Stan Kroenke's one major regret is perhaps the lack of
(tremendously) large glass doors (like those at AT&T Stadium) which
prevent the Rams' new game day digs from restricting exterior
elements . . . thus, the very real potential for relocation
arrangements.
As with Arizona at San Francisco scenario, time will imminently tell
if the Cowboys and Rams get to officially put SoFi Stadium through
its paces as scheduled or if they must get up and go.
Will They Or Won’t They?
While The Tortured Cowboys Fan prefers the balance and symmetry of
even numbers, 2020 has been anything but on-the-money. 2020 – as any
ophthalmologist can attest – is universally associated with
excellent vision . . . the very best.
When last the Cowboys and Rams competed, Dallas squeezed Los Angeles
so hard they were practically "decleated." Though most fans
acknowledge that their 2019 regular season performance so
dominatingly-tough did NOTHING to make up for the Cowboys’ 2018
postseason loss to the Rams so self-destructively rough.
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- Will key players (both expected and surprising) routinely-combine
with refreshingly-opportunistic coaches to consistently succeed and
fulfill a thirsty championship vision? Or will the latest edition of
“America’s Team” defeat “the teams you are supposed to beat” yet
suffer a familiar brain bleed at the first sign of contender
collision?
Will fans (undeniably eager for Cowboys football to resume) allow
themselves to be suckered into the results of another "GREAT
TRAINING CAMP" theme, or will they patiently wait for America's Team
to earn their keep under their own steam?
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- After what the NFL hopes is a tremendous week one kickoff, will the
league continue their successful avoidance of COVID-19 or – as the
fall begins to really set in – will there eventually be a viral
pickoff?
We shall see. We Always do.
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