Neither the Dallas Cowboys nor the visiting Washington Redskins thought they would be just playing out the string when they looked at this Sunday's matchup before the season started. But that was before all the turmoil started inside their respective locker rooms and carried out to the field.
The off-field saga continued with the Redskins on Friday when head coach Mike Shanahan announced that starting quarterback Donovan McNabb was being benched Sunday in favor of Rex Grossman.
McNabb is in the midst of the worst season of his career since his 1999 rookie campaign with a career-high 15 interceptions and a 77.1 quarterback rating - 25th in the NFL.
Still, the announcement drew the ire of McNabb's agent, Fletcher Smith, who told ESPN that the decision is "disrespectful to Donovan. He has not been more disrespected his whole career than he has this season. It's absolutely ridiculous."
The so-called disrespect started earlier this season when McNabb was benched late in a close loss to Detroit Oct. 31.
Shanahan stated afterward that he was worried about McNabb’s cardiovascular conditioning and that the veteran with 16 fourth-quarter comeback wins under his belt didn’t have as good of a grasp of the two-minute offense as Grossman.
The confusion continued the following week when Washington signed McNabb to a five-year, $78 million extension. The contract seemed curious since Shanahan wasn’t even sure that McNabb fit his style, but it left the club an out. Although McNabb will make an extra $3.5 million this season, the organization could cut him at the end of the season without any future financial obligation.
Expectations were high in the nation’s capital this offseason after the hiring of the two-time Super Bowl-winning coach and the acquisition of the six-time Pro Bowl quarterback. However, before Shanahan could even get settled into his office, postseason plans started unraveling.
Mega-millionaire defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth didn’t appreciate his role in Shanahan’s 3-4 defensive scheme, demanded a trade and stayed away from mandatory minicamp in July, but only after he was assured the Redskins couldn’t recoup the $21 million check they gave Haynesworth in March.
While the Haynesworth fiasco extended into the season, Shanahan found himself in the middle of the McNabb controversy, and the organization hasn’t been able to overcome all the off-field turmoil.
And it showed on the field.
The Redskins have lost four of five since the Lions loss, including an embarrassing 17-16 loss to Tampa Bay last week when McNabb got the ’Skins into the end zone with 13 seconds left before they botched the extra point.
If expectations in Washington were high, anticipation in Dallas was off the charts.
Dallas (4-9) expected to make a run at becoming the first host city to have its team appear in the Super Bowl, but the Cowboys imploded week in and week out.
The collapse started in Week 1 against the Redskins (5-8), when Dallas lost 13-7 after reserve tackle Alex Barron was called for holding on the last play of the game, when Tony Romo had hit Roy Williams for an apparent game-winning touchdown.
The Wade Phillips watch began soon thereafter even though owner Jerry Jones said his fourth-year coach’s job was safe for the season. But Jones couldn’t ignore the 45-7 thrashing on national television at the hands of the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 7, thus the Phillips era ended with a 1-7 thump.
The job was handed over on an interim basis to highly paid and equally criticized offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, whose star had fallen after two seasons commanding an offense that moved the ball but couldn’t stick it in the end zone enough.
Garrett, with a more disciplined approach than Phillips, seems to have breathed some life into the ’Boys despite playing without the injured Romo.
Dallas is 3-2 under Garrett, with wins over the New York Giants, Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions and close losses to the New Orleans Saints and Philadelphia Eagles last week. The Cowboys are 3-4 since 38-year-old quarterback Jon Kitna replaced Romo.
Garrett and the rejuvenated offense has helped mask a defense that has already allowed 116 more points than last season, ranks 31st in the league and is on pace to give up the most points in franchise history. Dallas yielded 30 or more points twice last season but has surrendered that many six times in 2010, including the last three games.