Why one Redskins fan has no problem rooting for the Cowboys
We Want Dallas? Sure, beating them would be nice.
Dallas Week? Yes, we play Dallas this weekend.
My responses to those phrases should be a clue that I just don’t have your grandfather’s hatred of the Cowboys. Which is why I’ll have no problem pulling for Dallas to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night.
I’m 30 years old. When Cowboys backup quarterback Clint Longley led a stunning comeback against the seemingly playoff-bound Redskins on Thanksgiving Day in 1974, I was more than a decade away from being born. In 1992, the Skins pulled off a dramatic win against the juggernaut Cowboys at RFK Stadium while I was most likely watching “Rugrats.” (The one where Chuckie’s pet caterpillar Melville died. That one always made me cry.)
I get the rivalry. The history behind it. The legendary players and coaches involved. The playoff implications involved in some of the classic games. Those older guys at work who wear Cowboys gear and inject a dose of arrogance into every conversation. But none of it really gets my blood boiling.
I understand why Chad Dukes won’t root for the Cowboys. “Rooting” for the Cowboys won’t help them win. If me “rooting” had that sort of impact, the Redskins would have won 20 straight Super Bowls by now. But this “we hate Dallas over everything in the world” stuff? Well, at this point, the shtick feels a little forced.
Those Cowboy fans at work and at Wizards games don’t bother me. Regionally, I deal with way more Eagles and Giants fans. And I hate the Eagles. “Fly Eagles Fly” is a combination of Bjork and a strangled parrot to my ears. Last week was “Philly Week” to me. Ending our playoff hopes in front of those fans would’ve devastated me to…
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