One can imagine how it pained Jerry Jones to learn he had fallen short of his goal to set the Super Bowl attendance record.
You must leave this to your imagination since the Cowboys owner is the only principal figure of Super Bowl XLV who has not answered questions publicly.
But as Jones worked his suite Sunday night, between chats with Warren Buffett over investment strategy and Ashton Kutcher about Nikon commercials, something else had to pain Jones more:
The realization of how short his team comes up when compared to Green Bay.
The Packers are the NFC’s gold standard. Teams with Super Bowl aspirations in the conference must first prove they can beat Green Bay.
How have the Cowboys done in that category?
Well, the teams have met the last two regular seasons. The Packers outscored the Cowboys, 62-14, in those games. It would have been worse if Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy hadn’t shown mercy on his battered opponent in the final quarter of their game three months ago.
Quarterback is the key position. Jones and the Cowboys have faith that a healthy Tony Romo allows them to compete for the championship. But a healthy Romo managed only seven points against the Packers defense in 2009, and that came in the game’s final minute.
Aaron Rodgers is 27 years old and has one Super Bowl title.
Romo is 30 and has one playoff victory. The scales tip decidedly in favor of the Packers quarterback at the moment.
Here’s something else to consider. Rodgers has shown he can lead a one-dimensional offense to the title.
Green Bay’s running game was at best erratic during the regular season. McCarthy chose to run the ball only 13 times against Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl because he wanted to put the outcome in Rodgers’ hands.
Can the Cowboys do the same with Romo?
Jason Garrett consistently talks about the need for offensive balance. You saw that in his first eight games as head coach. He ran the ball more than he did as an offensive coordinator because he was trying to put his backup quarterback in the best position to win.
With Romo in charge, Garrett has been known to abandon the run and rely on his quarterback’s arm more quickly than he did with Jon Kitna. But is he willing to do that to the level Green Bay does with Rodgers? Can Romo pull if off?
A big reason Romo’s turnovers were on the rise before he landed on injured reserve was because the Cowboys got nothing out of their running game.
How do these teams compare at other key positions? Two of Green Bay’s top defenders are outside linebacker Clay Matthews and nose tackle B.J. Raji. The Cowboys counter with DeMarcus Ware and Jay Ratliff.
Matthews is 24. Ware is 28.
Raji is 24. Ratliff is 29.
The Cowboys have arguably the league’s best tight end in Jason Witten. He’s 28.
The Packers have one of the league’s best young tight ends in Jermichael Finley. He’s 23 and spent most of the season on injured reserve. He didn’t even contribute to the team’s win over the Steelers.
And then there’s the offensive line. Green Bay’s five starters in the Super Bowl averaged 27.4 years. Three of them are 28 or under.
The average age of the Cowboys’ starting offensive line is 30.8 years. Left tackle Doug Free is the only starter under 31 years of age.
Some things are worse than failing to break the attendance record.
You must leave this to your imagination since the Cowboys owner is the only principal figure of Super Bowl XLV who has not answered questions publicly.
But as Jones worked his suite Sunday night, between chats with Warren Buffett over investment strategy and Ashton Kutcher about Nikon commercials, something else had to pain Jones more:
The realization of how short his team comes up when compared to Green Bay.
The Packers are the NFC’s gold standard. Teams with Super Bowl aspirations in the conference must first prove they can beat Green Bay.
How have the Cowboys done in that category?
Well, the teams have met the last two regular seasons. The Packers outscored the Cowboys, 62-14, in those games. It would have been worse if Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy hadn’t shown mercy on his battered opponent in the final quarter of their game three months ago.
Quarterback is the key position. Jones and the Cowboys have faith that a healthy Tony Romo allows them to compete for the championship. But a healthy Romo managed only seven points against the Packers defense in 2009, and that came in the game’s final minute.
Aaron Rodgers is 27 years old and has one Super Bowl title.
Romo is 30 and has one playoff victory. The scales tip decidedly in favor of the Packers quarterback at the moment.
Here’s something else to consider. Rodgers has shown he can lead a one-dimensional offense to the title.
Green Bay’s running game was at best erratic during the regular season. McCarthy chose to run the ball only 13 times against Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl because he wanted to put the outcome in Rodgers’ hands.
Can the Cowboys do the same with Romo?
Jason Garrett consistently talks about the need for offensive balance. You saw that in his first eight games as head coach. He ran the ball more than he did as an offensive coordinator because he was trying to put his backup quarterback in the best position to win.
With Romo in charge, Garrett has been known to abandon the run and rely on his quarterback’s arm more quickly than he did with Jon Kitna. But is he willing to do that to the level Green Bay does with Rodgers? Can Romo pull if off?
A big reason Romo’s turnovers were on the rise before he landed on injured reserve was because the Cowboys got nothing out of their running game.
How do these teams compare at other key positions? Two of Green Bay’s top defenders are outside linebacker Clay Matthews and nose tackle B.J. Raji. The Cowboys counter with DeMarcus Ware and Jay Ratliff.
Matthews is 24. Ware is 28.
Raji is 24. Ratliff is 29.
The Cowboys have arguably the league’s best tight end in Jason Witten. He’s 28.
The Packers have one of the league’s best young tight ends in Jermichael Finley. He’s 23 and spent most of the season on injured reserve. He didn’t even contribute to the team’s win over the Steelers.
And then there’s the offensive line. Green Bay’s five starters in the Super Bowl averaged 27.4 years. Three of them are 28 or under.
The average age of the Cowboys’ starting offensive line is 30.8 years. Left tackle Doug Free is the only starter under 31 years of age.
Some things are worse than failing to break the attendance record.