January 23, 2023
And then there were two. The divisional round of the NFL playoffs is in the books, and only the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers remain. Obviously, we have two new obituaries to write for the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys.
Giants: Over the five years preceding the 2022 season, the Giants had a share of the worst record in the NFL at 22-59 (0.272), with a point differential over that span of -530. In 2021, they were a laughingstock, embarrassing themselves seemingly on a weekly basis.
The owner was kicking press box trash cans after losses, they had a "free medium Pepsi" giveaway during which a bunch of season ticket holders were told they were ineligible for their free medium Pepsi, their head coach tried to assuage their fans by proclaiming that the Giants "ain't some clown show organization," and he followed up those comments by calling QB sneaks on second and third downs to give his team more room to punt. There was more, but that's just a small sampling.
In 2022, the Giants went from bumbling buffoons to competency 🥂🍾. They went 9-7-1 during the regular season, and won their first playoff game since the 2011 season, beating the overrated Vikings on the road.
Of course, it all came crashing down when they ran into a good team in the playoffs, and were blown out 38-7 in a game in which they were never competitive. That led to reactions such as this:
Does this take away from what the Giants accomplished this season ?
— Mike Francesa (@MikeFrancesa) January 22, 2023
In a word, yes.
Mike my man, this is not the classy, top-tier organization that the Giants want you to think they are. Over the last decade, they're the Browns. They're the Jaguars. They're the Jets. They're the Commanders. Ehhhh, OK, maybe not the Commanders. That's too far.
But this season was probably the absolute best that even the most delusional Giants fans could have reasonably hoped for at the start of the season. They shed their "clown show" status, and honestly, that's pretty big. They were somehow one of the final eight teams still standing, despite finishing the season with a negative point differential and a 21st overall DVOA ranking. They were overachievers, and they should be celebrated.
There will be plenty of time for angst next season when they go 7-10 because they ran it back with Daniel Jones and the rest of their crappy roster.
Cowboys: The Cowboys haven't been to the NFC Championship Game since the 1995 season. Since then, here's how many times each NFC team has made a Conference Championship Game appearance:
| Team | NFCCG appearances |
| Packers | 8 |
| Eagles, 49ers | 7 |
| Rams, Vikings, Panthers, Falcons | 4 |
| Saints, Seahawks, Giants, Buccaneers | 3 |
| Cardinals, Bears | 2 |
| Cowboys, Commanders, Lions | 0 |
Unlike the Commanders and Lions, the Cowboys have had a lot of chances to get there, but they now have seven consecutive losses in the divisional round of the playoffs. They have also lost five times in the wildcard round during their NFCCG drought. In terms of entertainment value, those playoff losses rarely disappoint. Something funny happens at the end of most of those games.
On Sunday night, in what was shaping up to be just a normal, respectable loss, Mike McCarthy was like, "Nope, Ima make this memorable."
— not highlight heaven (@ABsneurosurgeon) January 23, 2023
Because of that play, this game now makes my official "Cowboys playoff ending power rankings" (last 25 years):
1) The Tony Romo fumbled snap: Iconic. The 🐐 of Cowboys playoff failures.
Never forget Tony Romo botched the hold and the #Seahawks would advance in the playoffs 😳 🔥 @thesportsontap pic.twitter.com/RbsiPsK4yu
— Sports ON Tap Seattle (@SONTSeattle) July 3, 2020
2) Dez didn't catch it: In 2022 this is a catch. By rule, it pretty clearly was not a catch in 2014.
Four years ago today: one of the most memorable moments in NFL history.
— NFL Legacy (@NFLLegacy) January 12, 2019
(2014 Divisional: Jan. 11, 2015) pic.twitter.com/uqnn89tVmq
3) The Cowboys run out of time: McCarthy called an asinine play that required the Cowboys and the officiating crew to work together to spot and snap the ball with time ticking down. The Cowboys spotted the ball themselves three yards past where Dak Prescott slid, the umpire actually did them a favor by only moving it back a foot or so, and the clock expired before Dallas got the snap off. Mike McCarthy then blamed the officials for not spotting it fast enough, and even said the play call "was the right decision," lol.
What a way to end the game! #SuperWildCard pic.twitter.com/esKKpbkrQn
— NFL (@NFL) January 17, 2022
Ice in the veins of @Packers kicker Mason Crosby ❄️❄️
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) April 17, 2020
Green Bay takes down the No. 1 seed Cowboys in the 2016 Divisional Round pic.twitter.com/BqZERpcRbr
Honestly, "Cowboys Playoff Loss Day" should be a national holiday. Their playoff games should always be scheduled on Sunday, and if they lose nobody has to go to work the next day.
When the 2022 Cowboys were playing their best brand of football, they could beat any team in the NFL. They played some games this season in which they were legitimately impressive, notably against the Vikings, the second matchup against the Eagles, and their wildcard playoff win over the Buccaneers.
However, they were plagued by inconsistency, and let's all be honest, Cowboys fans — Dak Prescott kinda stunk this season. I mean, the guy led the league in INTs despite missing five games. Oh and by the way, he turns 30 in July, and is scheduled to count for $49 million on Dallas' 2023 salary cap.
2) 49ers (15-4): The 49ers' roster is stacked on both sides of the ball, and their 12-game winning streak is obviously very impressive, but holy crap has Brock Purdy gotten extraordinarily lucky to have a boatload of "could/should be interceptions" fall to the ground. It's only a matter of time before he has a three-INT day and Niners flame out, right? Then again, he only needs that luck for two more games.
Last week: 1
1) Eagles (15-3): After the Eagles had three consecutive clunkers to close out the regular season, there were legitimate questions as to whether they could regain their "best team in the NFL" form that they displayed for the better part of the season.
But after seeing Jalen Hurts and Lane Johnson (mostly) unencumbered by their respective injuries against the Giants on Saturday night, they appear to be that alpha dog once again.
Last week: 2
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