Getty Jaylon Smith
They say winning cures all, and it certainly seems to have heeled the Dallas Cowboys‘ confidence issues.
Take, for example, ballyhooed linebacker Jaylon Smith, who not only projected a playoff berth but feels Dallas will go undefeated along the way.
“We’re going to go 7-0,” Smith told reporters after Sunday’s 31-28 victory over the Vikings.
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Winning each of their remaining games reads like a pipedream for a 3-7 Cowboys club that had lost four straight prior to their Week 11 conquest in Minnesota. But, reviewing the schedule, it might not be that crazy:
- Beat the Alex Smith-led 3-7 Washington Football Team at home on Thanksgiving.
- Beat the 6-4 Baltimore Ravens who appear diminished from last year’s dominance.
- Beat the Joe Burrow-less 2-7-1 Cincinnati Bengals.
- Beat the injury-ruined 4-6 San Francisco 49ers.
- Beat the division-leading 3-6-1 Philadelphia Eagles at home.
- Beat the 3-7 New York Giants for the 2020 sweep.
Pulling off Smith’s prediction probably ensures the Cowboys, with a record of 9-7, win the NFC East and host at least one postseason contest.
“There’s a lot of football left to be played,” head coach Mike McCarthy said after Sunday’s game, via ESPN. “You have to play your best football in November and December, so obviously with the state of our division, that focus is ours. We need to win Thursday, and this will be our first opportunity to really stack success, and that’s the key to where we are as a team. All three phases played well. This is clearly the most rounded performance, victory we’ve had this year. It took us a little longer to get here, but I clearly think the journey will make us stronger.
“We need to do something with this win. It needs to mean something.”
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Jones Lauds Dub, But …
Appearing in a Monday radio interview, Cowboys COO Stephen Jones praised the team for scoring a “much-needed” and potentially season-saving win — a furious fourth-quarter comeback, to boot.
However, Jones does not share Smith’s unbridled optimism. Not yet, anyway. Dallas surely is capable of stacking victories, but until they do, there remains a long row left to hoe across the final six weeks.
“It was a much-needed win, as you can imagine. It’s been five weeks since we’ve been able to get one in the win column again. We’ve really felt like we’re playing better. I said late last week, there’s no such thing as moral victories. You are what you are. Although we’ve been playing better on the defensive side of the ball, and showing a little continuity on the offensive side of the ball, we hadn’t been able to get a win,” he said on 105.3 The Fan. “So to be able to go out there against a very balanced and well-coached Vikings team, and play for four quarters, and ultimately get the win, was really huge for this football team. Obviously, we got a long way to go in terms of getting to where we want to be as a team.”
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Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL