WDan Devine, a Dallas Cowboys fan from New York City for the past 53 years, came across the news Tuesday. Cowboys owner, president and general manager Jerry Jones has resigned despite the team's 48-32 loss to the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs. Last Sunday, he retained Mike McCarthy as head coach — he couldn't believe what he was reading. Enough is enough, he decided, enough is enough.
Despite his strong loyalty to the team over half a century, he has watched five Super Bowls and 30 or so Cowboys games in person across the country, with every jersey hanging in his closet and Dallas memorabilia. Despite being in the office, Mr. Devine, 59, had vowed to forever stop being a Cowboys fan. “It's over,” said Mr. Devine, a forensic accountant. What really annoyed him was Jones' assertion in Tuesday's statement announcing McCarthy's retention that “this team is very close and capable of achieving our end goal.” .
Green Bay led Dallas 27-0 at the half. “Didn't he watch that game?” Devine says, turning up the volume. “Do you think he still has a roster that can compete with the 49ers and Ravens? They played the youngest, most inexperienced teams and did badly. So are you even close?”
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Fans of the mighty Cowboys, the world's most valuable sports franchise, are in a state of shock this week following a crushing wild-card loss to Green Bay and Jones' decision to keep McCarthy, even though he was the most favored. It seems that the survival of the species is in danger. The most successful coaches in NFL history are available on the open market. Vitriol is at an all-time high. Supporters spewed profanity on social media.made by people meme a lot.critic It was a stroke.
But for fans like Devine to dismiss Dallas, which hasn't played in a conference championship game in nearly 30 years, speaks to a deeper problem in Cowboy Nation. Fans like Devine touted Dallas' reputation as “America's Team” and helped build the franchise into a multibillion-dollar brand. They came of age during his 1970s, when Monday Night Football grew into a cultural phenomenon, and were drawn to the winning ways, cheerleaders, and charm of helmeted star Roger Staubach. Even in the depths of hostile territory like New York City, children like Devine bled silver and blue. They lost three straight in the conference championship game in the 1980s, the end of the Tom Landry era, and a 1-15 season under new owner Jerry Jones and his handpicked Landry coaching successor Jimmie Johnson. , suffered some rough seas. But that patience paid off in his '90s, when three Super Bowls were won by the “triplets” — Hall of Famers quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith and wide receiver Michael Irvin. Did.
But since then, with the hiring of Super Bowl champion Bill Parcells as coach, the signing of Terrell Owens, and the emergence of quarterbacks Tony Romo and Dak Prescott, Cowboys fans have felt some hope. . However, the Cowboys, led by Jones, have not improved year by year. So many people seem fed up with it. If Dallas loses Dan Devine, he could be losing the country. The status of “America's Team'' is rapidly fraying.
I'm Dan's nephew, so I know everything about him. When I came of age in the 1980s, I spent many hours alone in his room, either in class or at a party, watching cartoons or baseball games, or watching the little Cowboys on his shelf. I was looking at helmets. Now, I sometimes receive texts from my mom's younger brother, Uncle Dan, rants about his favorite sports teams, especially the Cowboys and New York Mets (we have an affinity for baseball teams). (I've never really cared about the Cowboys). But Tuesday night's article surprised me. Cowboys are dead to me. The Ravens are my new favorite team, followed by the Pack. ”
I only knew Uncle Dan as a die-hard Dallasite. Dan started rooting for Dallas in 1971 when she was 7 years old. His best friend's father met Bob Lilley, the Dallas Hall of Fame defensive tackle known as Mr. Cowboy, and spoke highly of him. Plus, Dan always liked westerns and sheriffs. gunsmoke He was popular in his house. He hung posters of Staubach, Tony Dorsett, and Randy White in his room. During pick-up football games on the basketball court in the Bronx housing complex where he grew up, he would insist on pretending he was Staubach or wide receiver Drew Pearson. “Those games would start with a touch,” says Bob Schaefer, Devine's longtime friend and New York City Cowboys fan. “And we end up fighting.”
Schaefer wanted to name her son, now 27, Troy after Aikman. His wife rejected the idea. For example, he hasn't given up on the Cowboys. So was Dan really serious? When I called him to confirm that he wasn't just furious over email now, he stood firm. “I just raised my hand,” Dan says. “I'm a bigger Cowboys fan than any other team, so it's going to be hard to lose that. The owners don't care about the fans. Why should they care so much? ” He has already removed all eight Cowboys jerseys from the hanger. They are curled up on the floor.
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Dan's wife of 30 years, Michelle, confirmed that he was serious about it. “That's the craziest part of it all,” Michelle says. “I believe he's really over it. I can't believe he's actually saying that. I was stunned. I never thought this day would come.” We've been through some of the best times, including going to AT&T Stadium together. “It was really, really cool,” she says. And then there are the tough moments, like when Dan yells, “Please, someone help me!” About 15 years ago, when the Cowboys lost, the nearby New York City police came to check on his safety.
Generally speaking, Dan's attitude makes Michelle sad. “That was a big part of who he was,” she says. “I feel like he's losing a part of himself.”
I imagine next Thanksgiving and our family's annual tradition of watching the Cowboys game at Dan's house. If Dallas is undefeated and looks like a true Super Bowl contender, you won't be glued to the TV loudly chanting “Boys?” “No,” he says. “It doesn't matter. We'll go 15-0 the first 15 weeks and close the bed in Week 16 or Week 17 or the first week of the playoffs.”
Spoken like a true Cowboys fan who was completely defeated.
And you know Dan Devine isn't alone.
A new day has begun in Dallas.