An inside look at Cowboys Stadium

This weekend's journey into the new home of the Dallas Cowboys was one that I will certainly not forget anytime soon. For any person who has ever set foot into a sports venue - new, old, historic or otherwise - unless you have been to Cowboys Stadium, you have not experienced anything of this magnitude.

It's got several nicknames: Jerry World, Jonestown Coliseum, the Death Star, Jones Mahal and several others, but one thing is for certain, this place is as grand, lavish, over-the-top, first-class as any stadium or any building ever for that matter.

Here's a brief walk through of my personal experience of the new stadium, including everything except the game, which was the only major disappointment of the evening.

Arriving at Cowboys Stadium, we pulled into our assigned parking lot, a great deal easier than the old Texas Stadium parking cluster where all "Blue" parking was in the immediate area. Here assigned lots corresponded with your section for your tickets. Of course there were cash parking lots for the nimble amount of $60. Then again, if you've paid $350 per ticket, is the extra $60 where you're going to fall short? Definitely a steep price to park, but as I emerged from the car, I couldn't help but grin at the site of what I had only seen in sketches and graphics. The stadium dwarfs it neighboring Rangers Ballpark to the same degree that the Cowboys dwarf the Rangers in interest.



The giant glass walls and spaceship-like dome were a reality in front of me. You can see the reflection of your car in the parking lot on the glass sides of the building. I found my customized paver brick ($150 well worth it) in the Jim Jeffcoat section of the Legacy Walk. Nearby this fans paver expressed the sad truth that accompanies the price tag of this new stadium. Not too far down, my father found his brick.

Walking to one end of the stadium, our tickets were scanned, and we were within the stadium grounds. The end zone ends of the stadium are fenced off where ticketed fans can enjoy pre-game music and watch other games on massive TV screens that Jerry Jones and the Cowboys plan to rent to other venues in the offseason.

When entering through the giant glass doors - the world's largest - in the end zone, the Cowboys did a great job of anticipating capacity crowds with very wide concourses. Wide as they were, however, with more than 105,000 fans packed into the stadium, it was still a crowded walkway on the ground level. Many party-pass holding fans made their way to one of the six party decks that combined to hold over 30,000 standing room only fans, or one and a half American Airlines Centers worth of people. The Dallas Mavericks and Stars can eat their hearts out. Each party deck had its own unique experience. The Ford Deck had cars displayed on it. The Miller Lite Deck has the Rhythm and Blue Dancers which frankly pale in comparison to the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. These poor man's versions of America's Sweethearts weren't as pretty, couldn't get on the same beat, and looked like some sort of captive dancers in Jabba the Hut's den.

Looking up from the end zone, I got my first view of the Jerry-tron, also known as Godzilla-vision, also known as the largest HDTV screen ever. It's as tall as a seven-story building as is the equivalent of suspending a Boeing 747 over the field. It's massive and it's amazingly clear. The screen is larger than life.

Think about all the times that sports teams have the lame "watching parties" at their stadium or arena when the team is on the road in the playoffs or for a big game. I have never once in my life attended such a watching party because I know the type of picture I'd get watching on those screens at Texas Stadium or American Airlines Center or the old Reunion Arena (which will be missed). But if the Cowboys called for a watching party at Jerry World, I'd be all over it. The owner's goal was to ensure that fans who stayed at home to watch the game did not have a better view of things than fans who invested their time and money to be in attendance. Mission accomplished. Not only did a replay follow each play, but following the main replay, the massive video board then became a four-shot showing of the replay with four different angles of the play at once. It was almost information overload but still gave fans plenty of opportunity to dissect the previous down.

I took several pictures of the video board, and it's as if I was right there on the field with my camera. It's too clear and too big to ignore. That video board guarantees a great view of the field for any fan regardless of where their seat (or standing-room-only square foot of space) may be. Even if you aren't facing the field and the mega-vision video board, it's extremely difficult to avoid eye-contact with an HDTV in the stadium. Close your eyes and spin around five times. When you open your eyes, even though you won't be focused in any specific direction, you'll still have plenty of HD screens to comfort your dizzy brain.

The seats in new Cowboys Stadium are not the hard plastic folding pieces of rental junk from your neighbors summer pool party. These are cushy comforts for every fans' fanny with armrests and legroom as well. Each row of seats is affixed to a sliding base that can have additional seats squeezed in for larger events if the armrests are removed. Hello Super Bowl XLV!

After the game I snuck into a luxury suite to test out what looked like the captain's chairs in mom's old minivan. Not quite. Instead, they are more like dad's recliner, welcoming your entire body with the warmth of a winter blanket. I've always criticized and doubted the fanhood of people in suites like this who I feel don't cheer as loud or as hard as people in seating sections. After demoing the new digs at the Death Star, I almost want to rescind those harsh words. If I had plunked down in a seat like that to watch a game at Cowboys Stadium, it would take some sort of fire/child-being-born/imminent-nuclear-disaster to get me out of there. Heck, even though there are private bathrooms in each of the suits, if I was sitting there, that's a Screw it, I'll hold it situation if I've ever seen one.

The roof opened to much acclaim as with each 30 minute interval, the voice over the loud speak, sadly not the same voice from Texas Stadium (a noticeable drop off from George Dunham), announced "The roof will open in 90 minutes." "...in one hour!" "...in 30 minutes!" "...in 10 minutes!" "...in five minutes!" until finally the time had arrived. The roof and the giant glass doors at each end split as daylight burst through, and the Cowboys Stadium was officially opened. Once the roof had retracted - a 12 minute procedure - looking up through the hole felt like I was back in Irving, Texas, at the house that Clint Murchison built. Exact same dimensions, exact same feel. God can still watch his favorite team play on Sundays ... unless of course bad weather forces the roof closed in which case He'll have to watch the Jerry-tron with everyone else in attendance.

Not only do the Cowboys enter the field through a Hall of Fame level suite-holders club at the field level that allows players to pass through the fans en route to the field, but Jerry Jones even arranged for the visiting New York Giants to have the same experience, rounding up Giants fans to gather for NYG's entrance across the way.

As far as the concessions on opening night, there were a few surprises along with a few disappointments. I went in expecting the prices to be, well, on par with the venue. I didn't find any of the $90 pizzas or $30 burgers (Kobe beef burgers for $13.50 at my local concession stand). With so many registers and stands, I decided to test the limits of snack stands by doing something I never did at Texas Stadium: going for food at half time (after the Ring of Honor ceremony of course). Not only did I walk right up to the register, but the entire process was very efficient. Small monitors on the cash registers displayed my order and the insane price. At Texas Stadium, my heart belonged to a heaping helping of Super Bowl Nachos. I can remember them costing only $5.00 when I was a kid. Last season they were around $9.00 but came with a ladle or two full of melted cheesy cheese with pico de gallo, jalapenos and chili. Once I heard the vendor tell the guy in front of me that hot dogs would be a 5-10 minute wait, I decided that now was the time to go head-to-head with the old Texas Stadium nachos. My first concessions experience at new Cowboys Stadium.

Sadly, much like the game itself, the Cowboys really dropped the ball here. Much like memories of Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith, I guess there are some "good old days" that are just going to be better than any current incarnation. No offense to Tony Romo or Marion Barber and the new nachos, but I prefer the old entre. The platter consisted of blue corn chips, melted philly cheesesteak cheese (what the heck?! Philly?! We're in Dallas. That's a division rival. Get your head out of your ass, Jerry!), corn, black beans, and the stench of $8.50 wasted. Now I did get a very nice souvenir commemorative cup with a
picture of the new stadium on it, but that's about it.

After the game ended and Lawrence Tynes blew up the Death Star with a last-second field goal, we stayed to watch the post-game press conference on the massive Jerry-tron, a perk that we were sold on in the ticket-buying process. Too bad that our mush-mouthed coach doesn't annunciate well enough for you to understand him over the stadium's speakers. Maybe there was a better auditory experience in one of the clubs or suites, but I hope they can fine tune watching the press conference over the video board for future games.

Traffic exiting the stadium turned out to be what it is at every sporting venue in every city everywhere: traffic. The promises of better plotted out traffic patterns to get everyone in and our quicker didn't appear to come to fruition (and we waited to watch the press conference on the screen which didn't let much of the traffic die down). Eventually our car trudged out of the lot, up the street and onto the freeway. Not quite as simple as Texas Stadium which was surrounded entirely by freeways so your only way out was onto a high-speed thoroughfare. This was a little more daunting, but perhaps it will flow easier after the first few games. Seeing more than 105,000 people leave from the same place all at the same time isn't an easy exit strategy anyway (insert joke about Iraq War here).

The new stadium truly was a sight to behold. Other than some half-hearted nachos, traffic jams and a mumblingly-inaudible Wade Phillips press conference (which come to think of it might not be entirely the fault of the speaker system), the evening was the grandest sporting event I've ever witnessed, including Super Bowls, BCS games, Final Fours, Stanley Cups and NBA Finals. No other single event had the pomp and the celebration of this night. This one regular season game was more highly attended than any Super Bowl ever was.

For a North Texas region that truly sees football as its own religion, credit Cowboys owner Jerry Jones for building a great house of worship.


Cowboys Stadium roof opens for the first time


Pictures from Cowboys Stadium on Opening Night

Opening Night: Dal 31, NYG 33

If only the Cowboys could have played to the level that their new home truly deserved.

Then again, to play that well, it might have taken the combined efforts of all the former Cowboys legends who were on hand to help commemorate the evening. Dallas opened its new $1.12 billion Cowboys Stadium in front of NFL record 105,121 screaming fans falling 33-31 to the New York Giants on the final play of the game.

The Cowboys rallied from behind several times throughout the game, and the defense was able to bend but not break in holding New York to field goals on drives early in the game, but with just over 3 minutes to play, the Giants comfortably drove down the field and Lawrence Tynes kicked the game winning field goal as time expired.

If this new stadium is the Death Star, one of many nicknames in the local D/FW area, then Tynes fired torpedos into the ventilation shaft that blew the thing up. Cue the triumphant music and hand out medals.

(A special look at the new Cowboys Stadium coming tomorrow)

For the second straight week, the Cowboys defense could not bring down the opposing quarterback and failed to take the ball away. It didn't help that the Cowboys suffered through four turnovers and a handful of bad bounces. That is all, however, part of the game. An interception went off a shoe, and New York scored on a bobbled catch in the end zone. It happens every week (Brandon Stokley's tipped TD for Denver in week 1). And Dallas will get a few of those bounces during the course of the season. Tonight wasn't the night.

Going -4 in the turnover battle is an impossible formula to win a football game. The fact that the Cowboys even had the lead with under four minutes to go shows how well certain elements of the game were working for them. Dallas was able to gash the Giants for 251 rushing yards, and the run defense that struggled against Tampa Bay in week 1 held New York under 97 yards. But the Giants deserve credit for taking what the Cowboys gave them. Eli Manning aired it out to the tune of 330 yards and a pair of TDs. Two NYG receivers - Mario Manningham and Steve Smith - put up over 130 yards receiving.

On the other side of things, Cowboys QB Tony Romo was average at best and Jake Delhomme at worst. One week after a monster game of over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns, the quarterback went 13 for 29 with a mere 127 yards passing and three interceptions. Sure one pick was off a heel, but the other two were bad, bad throws. Heck, one of them was practically a punt - without the fear of hitting the video board of course. Romo essentially threw a jump ball to the safety on a deep pass to Sam Hurd, and he had several other throws where he missed his targets (targets that were often times double covered).

Dallas got a lot to love out of Marion Barber and Felix Jones, who combined for 220 yards on 25 carries with a touchdown each. The duo of running backs displayed what the Cowboys are capable of in the running game. Even Tashard Choice worked effectively as a third down back early in the game. Jones did have a costly fumble on a kickoff return in the first half setting up more easy points for New York.

The Cowboys secondary looked weary as defensive backs lagged behind receivers all evening. Manning had too much time and too many options. There were open receivers on every key play, and Manning was more than able to find them. On one play, he even spun 360 degrees to evade a Dallas defender and flung the ball to his safety value to keep moving the Giants down the field.

Sadly this performance was eerily similar of the Cowboys failure to give Texas Stadium a proper swan song last December, and that's exactly what the Cowboys couldn't afford to do. With a win or a loss tonight, the Cowboys season still requires taking the field 14 more times, but it hurts beginning the year with such a blemish at home against a team that the Cowboys will need to beat at some point this season if they plan on advancing in the playoffs.

The season will go on, and the Cowboys have a favorable schedule in the early parts of the season. The next five games are against Carolina, at Denver, at Kansas City, Atlanta and Seattle, which are a combined 5-5 on the young season. All of those games the Cowboys are better than on paper, but that has to translate to the field.

Jerry Jones put together a truly magnificent opening night at his new playground, but in the end New York put a Giants blemish on the night.

USC 13, UW 16: Who let the dogs out?

A week ago the USC Trojans were flying high on the wings of a true freshman quarterback after knocking off the Ohio State Buckeyes in front of 105,000 angry i-dotting maniacs. Fast forward from Columbus to Seattle, and a week later the Trojans crashed and burned against a team that went 0-12 a year ago. The Washington Huskies 16-13 upset of the No. 3 USC Trojans is yet another example of a current Trojan team riding the same cocky wave that none of the most recent SC squads were truly worthy of.

Think about the 2003 USC Trojans, which were coming off a Pac-10 title behind Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Carson Palmer and defensive standout Troy Polamalu. The season began with high expectations, but no one knew just how high. Training camp saw a QB battle between a handful of untesteds: Matt Leinart, John David Booty and Matt Cassel. The first game was a 23-0 win at Auburn. SC got out to a 3-0 start to the season before one bad half of football cost them the game at Cal, the lone loss of a split National Title season.

The next two years saw the Trojans go on one of college football's most impressive runs in recent history, dominating all opponents in their path in 2004 en route to a 55-19 Orange Bowl win over the heavily-favored Oklahoma Sooners for the BCS Championship. Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart announced he would return to SC for his fifth year, and it was a forgone conclusion that USC would win a third straight National Title in 2005. That year, Trojans Bush-pushed their way past Notre Dame in a game that frankly lead to the aura of invincibility that surrounds this USC program.

Frankly, there was no way they should have beaten Notre Dame, but Dwayne Jarrett's big catch-and-run on 4th and 9 put the Trojans in position to win it on the final play of the game. Two and a half months later, the Trojans were seconds away from defeating Texas in the Rose Bowl before Vince Young stole the show and the BCS Championship running to his right, cutting the corner of the end zone and snapping the Trojans' 34-game winning streak. When the year ended, Leinart, Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, LenDale White and many others left for the NFL, but that aura remained - for better or worse.

USC carries itself with that aura of invincibility into each game. They have for years. Maybe that's how they've been able to squeak out several close-calls in recent years while only suffering a handful of loses. Or the loses to Oregon State and UCLA in 2006, Stanford and Oregon in 2007, and Oregon State in 2008 displayed that the Trojans walk around with falsely-deserved confidence that is simply lingering around from those National Title seasons of 2003 and 2004.

But now, counting Matt Barkley and Aaron Corp, the Trojans are four quarterbacks removed from Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer. They are three offensive coordinators removed from the days of Norm Chow. Yes, it is still Pete Carroll's team, but the true elements that helped him build a dynasty - and make no mistake, seven straight Pac-10 titles is a dynasty - are no longer in the Cardinal and Gold, and it's consistently catching up to the Trojans.

Remember the 2004 Trojans, the "Leave No Doubt" Trojans? They did just that. They left NO doubt. It was undeniable the talent on that squad and what they were going to do week in and week out. Fast forward to the recent Trojans teams, and we see doubt all across the USC program. Starting QB Matt Barkley is hurt, and Aaron Corp just set back the Trojans passing game 15 years. The highly touted "stable" of running backs just put the ball on the turf four times on Saturday. Defensive jedi Taylor Mays missed a game with an injury for the first time in his career, and the defense on the field allowed the Huskies to march down the field for the winning field goal. The Trojans lost the turnover battle, 3-0, and went 0-for-10 on 3rd downs while the Huskies were nearly 50% on 3rd down conversions.

Doubt!

Lots and lots of doubt.

Now USC may bounce right back and go on to win the rest of its games just like last year's squad. The 2008 Trojans and quarterback Mark Sanchez finished the year with a very respectable Rose Bowl win over Penn State and a record seventh Pacific-10 Conference title. Great. The Trojans missed out on a National Title shot, and frankly that's part of the beauty of college football's lack of a playoff. Can you balance on the high wire for the entire fall, or will you do just that, fall? The Trojans have slipped up enough in recent years to miss out on return trips to the BCS Championship game.

Perhaps a loss to Washington will be damaging enough to cost the Trojans a title shot even if they salvage the rest of their season and win out. Easier said than done. Perhaps the Trojans can bounce back and put together a strong enough season to contend for the Pac-10 title and a BCS berth. Or perhaps this is just another example of an aura of greatness still lingering around a program that has long since lost much of the magic.

Truly deserving a grand opening

The doors open in less than 48 hours for the real first for the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington. Yes there have been concerts and those pesky pre-season games. Sunday night, however, the Dallas Cowboys will tear off the tag, shred open the shrink-wrap, and take the field for the first time at the nation's most impressive sporting venue. Yes, you heard me new Yankees Stadium and Citi Field. Your puny baseball fields are no match for a place that the local Sports Radio 1310 The Ticket refers to as the Death Star.

Doesn't seem like the most far-fetched nickname either. First of all, the obvious, pretty much this team is either the most-loved or most-hated in the NFL. Not to mention the stadium's true capacity and capabilities are only beginning to be realized.

The championship banners from Texas Stadium have been moved from Irving to Arlington, and even the biggest Cowboys legend of them all has made the move.

Dallas opens the shiny new Cowboys Stadium against the NFC East rival New York Giants on Sunday Night. National TV audience. New stadium. Big rivals. It's a night that's going to be more about the venue than about the ballpark. It's a game where the Giants need to follow the script of the evening. The Cowboys opened Texas Stadium - the only stadium to host five Super Bowl champions - in 1971 with a thumping of the New England Patriots. That year the Cowboys went on to win the first of five championships. Texas Stadium closed with tremendous fanfare despite a crushing defeat that ended up costing the Cowboys a playoff spot. The Ravens didn't stick to the script as the Cowboys lost "The Farewell" of its old home. The Cowboys do not need a repeat in kind.

It's going to be a big night for everyone, especially Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. He may be one of the most hated owners in sports, but no one can deny his passion and drive for his Cowboys. The man wants to leave his legacy, a legacy that already includes three Lombardi trophies. This venue defines what Jerry Jones has been to the Cowboys. In his eyes, there is no circumstance where the Cowboys should not be Number 1, and that includes the home field. That's why Jerry has build the Palace of Dallas, the Mansion of the Metroplex, the Death Star of DFW. It's big, it's grand. It's everything that Jerry Jones feels the Cowboys are, and he's turned it into a building.

When the game begins on Sunday, the players must handle business on the field. There is no excuse for a loss. With all the pomp and circumstance, all the hype, all the glory that this new venue represents, the product on the field must be equally worthy of inhabiting such a place. Would it be the worst thing in the world if the Cowboys lost the opener but went on to have a successful season? Unless the year ends with a Super Bowl berth - and this is Dallas, so who are we kidding, a Super Bowl trophy - it's a scenario that's best not to think about. Win the game. Open the new Cowboys Stadium the right way. Give this place the Grand Opening that you gave Texas Stadium almost 40 years ago. Defeat the Giants and make it an amazing season. Simple as that.

Those may seem like unrealistic, gaudy demands, but they are a requisite for occupancy of such a venue.

Fear Serena Williams

Watching Serena Williams go all Henry Gates on a line judge at the U.S. Open this weekend was an ugly scene for the sport of tennis. Much like Gates, Williams appeared to be in the right in her cause, but very much in the wrong in the way she handled it. Williams dropped more f-bombs than overheads and threatened to shove a tennis ball down the line judge's throat for calling a foot-fault on the play. Serena Williams was penalized one point, giving the match win to her opponent and bouncing her from the tournament. Gates, as you remember, was the Harvard professor arrested for going off on the cops who arrested him after he was caught breaking into his own house. Both had a gripe for what they were being accused of - a foot-fault isn't quite as serious as breaking and entering, but the symetry shouldn't be lost nevertheless - and both decided to go on extreme over-the-top explosions.



The crazy-ass tirade aside, the most despicable part of this entire ordeal was how Serena simply brushed off the incident in the post-game interview. The American tennis star didn't overtly deny threatening the life of the line judge, but offered the excuse that she had never been in a fight in her life, so she didn't know why the line judge would have any reason to fear her.

No reason to fear her?! Really?

How about the crazy angry lady menacingly heading toward you threatening to jam a fuzzy yellow ball down your throat. I might be somewhat intimidated by that, and I don't blame the line judge for fearing for her own safety. Williams has a racket, the line judge has nothing. Williams is a world-class athlete, the line judge sits in a chair. This would not have been a fair fight to say the least.

For Serena Williams to act innocent as if she didn't do anything wrong is completely disgusting and puts a black eye on American tennis as one of the country's top players is eliminated from the U.S. Open for throwing a hissy-fit.

Foot-fault? No.

Foot in mouth? Absolutely.

Chicks dig the long ball: Dal 34, TB 21

The 2009 season is underway, and the Dallas Cowboys earned a win despite sloppy football to open the game. Quarterback Tony Romo and Co. seemed off-balance in the first half - save for a long TD pass in the closing minutes - and the defense allowed the Bucs backs an automatic five-yards or so with each run of the ball. Despite the poor play early in the game, Dallas bounced back with a solid second half more representative of the Cowboys potential in 2009. Yes, the Cowboys were not ever in serious jeopardy of dropping the game to Tampa Bay, but what is a team with the Cowboys' talent level even staying close to Tampa Bay? Turns out the Bucs were helping the Cowboys stay ahead in the first half, but Dallas finally was able to ride without training wheels in the second half en route to a 34-21 win over Tampa Bay on Sunday.

Romo finished the game 16 for 27 for a career-high 353 and three touchdowns after starting slow, frequently throwing behind his targets. Perhaps the ball wasn't getting out fast enough, or maybe he was just off the mark. Whatever the problem, Romo seemed to correct it in the second half. While he doesn't have Terrell Owens anymore - and the debate will rage all season over whether or not the Cowboys are better without him - Romo and receiver Roy Williams hooked up three times for 86 yards and a 66-yard touchdown to give its winning points in the third quarter. Romo's TD passes were all big plays, a 42-yard strike to Miles Austin, a 66-yarder to Roy Williams, and the 80-yard run-away to Patrick Crayton. What can I say? Chicks dig the long ball.

Romo didn't turn the ball over in the game, but at times he flirted with interception after interception, especially late in the third quarter on three straight incompletions. He does have that gunslinger mentality at times, but offensive coordinator Jason Garrett needs to make sure Romo protects the ball better, especially when protecting a lead.

That sort of sloppy play that the Cowboys demonstrated early in the game is okay against the likes of Tampa Bay, a team that even the inept Brad Johnson was able to defeat last season, but what about against NFC East foes like the Eagles, Giants and Redskins? Would you trust that effort against an Eagles team that forced six turnovers today?

Some notes on the season-opening win in Tampa Bay
+ Was the Cowboys most heads up play of the first half when center Andre Gurode snapped the ball early when he saw the Bucs defensive end jump offsides? I believe so. Until Romo hit Miles Austin for the first Dallas touchdown of the game, that was the Cowboys biggest offensive highlight. If a center can get a stat credit for a first down, Gurode deserves one.

+ New strong safety (read: new Roy Williams) Gerald Sensabaugh blocked an early Bucs field goal attempt to keep the Cowboys ahead, 3-0. Sensabaugh got a good jump, and Dallas overwhelmed the left side of the Tampa Bay line to get into the backfield. Dallas wasn't exactly strong in the special teams game last season, especially after Felix Jones went down for the season with injury. In fact, other than Felix Jones' kickoff return for a touchdown, perhaps the best play Dallas saw on special teams was from backup punter Sam Paulescu who rocked Clifton Smith on a punt return last season.

+ It wasn't all positive for Sensabaugh. He did launch himself at Bucs receiver Michael Clayton, knocking himself to the ground on the play. Anyone else reminded of the man he replaced, Roy Williams, who would often transform into a frequently misguided heat-seeking missile. As long as Sensabaugh doesn't go full-Roy and copy that hands-on-his-hip-and-looking-for-a-teammate-to-blame-for-that-last-touchdown pose, Dallas should be all right.

+ Also in the secondary, Mike Jenkins appears to be ready for another season of making business decisions. How about someone in the Cowboys secondary step up and cover someone. Even Terence Newman got burned deep late in the first half to set up a scoring chance for the Tampa Bay. Fortunately for Dallas, Bucs quarterback Byron Leftwich overthrew a receiver who had slipped behind Jenkins, and the Bucs missed their field goal attempt as the half ended as the Cowboys dodged a bullet.

+ Rookie kicker David Buehler - former USC Trojan - had three touchbacks on kickoffs in the game. Last season the Cowboys didn't have one. Placekicker Nick Folk did connect from 51 yards in his first action of the season, making all his kicks in this game.

+ I didn't know that intentionally kicking a ball on the ground was a 10-yard penalty. Secondly, Patrick Crayton lost more manliness than yardage when booting the muffed punt by Newman out of bounds. Fall on the ball, or drop to the ground and slap it out, but toeing the ball away from you seems a bit dainty. Yes, Crayton caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from Romo in the 4th quarter, but I'd like to see a little more toughness from a receiving corps that lost perhaps one of the most dangerous receivers in the league this offseason. Yes, the receivers got a lot of chances as Romo passed for a career-high in yards, but don't confuse big stats with consistent production. A great showing for week 1, but that's only what we're at: week 1. And as the Cowboys found out last season, it's not how you start, it's how you finish.

Not a bad win today for the Cowboys, but not a good win. If the Cowboys are going to contend for a playoff berth - let alone win its first playoff game since 1996 - Dallas will need to play a much tougher, much more consistent and on-point game next week when the team opens its new home against the rival New York Giants on Sunday night.

The Boys are Back in Town

The 2009 NFL season is here, and that means things are gearing back up here at No Joshin' so bookmark to your favorites, and buckle your chinstrap. Today it's the Cowboys and Bucs to kick off the regular season in Tampa Bay.