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On November 20, the Dallas Cowboys will once again face off against the Washington Redskins. This rivalry used to be among the most heated in all of sports and evoked great emotion from both sides of the field. Sadly, as this weekend's game approaches, none of that passion seems to be present anymore. To many, this has become just another game in the grand scheme of things.
The reasons for this happening are obvious. I heard someone say along the way that for there to be a rivalry, both teams have to win occasionally. Dallas has won five of the previous six meetings and frankly, we all know the Redskins have not been very good in a long time. Washington has been able to pull out a victory here or there, but it is hard to muster a lot of excitement when the team in not in contention most years.
I can remember the glory years of this rivalry. I can remember when then coach George Allen first brought this feud to a boil back in the good old days. Diron Talbert and his Roger Staubach trash talking. How about the famous Ken Houston tackle of Walt Garrison on the goal line on Monday Night Football. Ah and no self respecting Skins fan will ever forget 1983, when the Riggins led Redskins destroyed the Cowboys in route to their first Super Bowl win.
Those days seem so long ago now. I never thought I would see the day when 'Dallas Week' did not conjure up snarling Redskins fans getting in the face of their Dallas cohorts and giving them the business. So what is really to blame for this loss of animosity? Some will blame it on the owner, Daniel Snyder. They believe he has messed up the team to the point of no return and will settle for nothing less than him selling the club.
That is not my point of view though. As meddlesome as Danny boy has been in the past, I will always want an owner that spends on the team to try and make it better. It very well might be the changes in the game in recent times. Back in the glory years of this rivalry, you had the same guys facing each other year after year. Now with free agency, the guys playing for the Redskins could be different each year. The front office is trying to find the right guys, but it will take time.
Personally, I think the loss of RFK Stadium out of the rivalry has played a part. The stadium would shake and shutter when the Cowboys came to town. Entire sections of bleachers would move up and down as the fans stomped their approval. It was as though the stadium would be shaking like an earthquake during some games. That feeling is gone in the megaplex called Fedex Field. It is not small and intimate and it is certainly a different crowd than RFK used to house.
Whatever the reasons are, I yearn for the return of 'Dallas Week'. I want a return to the days of a reporter for the local television station running down a D.C. street carrying a honk if you hate Dallas poster! I want to hear the chants of we want Dallas and Dallas sucks echoing from the upper reaches of Fedex Field. I thought when we played earlier this season that a touch of it came back, but this middle of the season swoon has wiped out that ground swell of passion.
The National Football League needs the Redskins to return to playoff form. They need all four teams in the NFC East to be beasts once again. More than all of that though, we need for this game that was once the most heated of the season to rise again to prominence. When that happens, it will signal to Redskins fans that brighter days are ahead once again.
John Atchison was rumored to have emerged at birth with a Redskins jersey on. Born and bred in Virginia, he is a diehard Redskin fan and will always have a fond spot in his heart for the phrase 70 Chip!
Sources: washingtonredskins.com/team/history
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