SPORTSDAY

We interrupt Albert "Einstein" Breer's heartbreaking breakdown of Super Bowl XLII to pass on something that should really perturb you folks.

Sports Illustrated's Dr. Z gave each Super Bowl a grade and accompanying comment. The following comment was so unprofessional that it even made me cringe.

XIII (1979) Steelers 35, Cowboys 31 -- Yeah, it was exciting, with a recovered onside kick at the end and then Rocky Bleier recovering the final one, but this was the heyday of the America's Team arrogance and I wanted to see the Cowboys crushed not merely beaten. Call it B-

So much for the golden rule about no cheering in the press box. But I'm sure Dr. Z is able to put that bias aside during Hall of Fame voting.

Getty Images

A lot of folks are wondering why I haven't sensationalized the possibility of Tom Brady's supermodel girlfriend jinxing him at the Super Bowl. I've been called a hypocrite and other mean things because of our exhaustive Jessica Simpson coverage.

There are several reasons why I've given Gisele/Brady a pass:

1) She doesn't have her dad playing Cupid in an effort to pump life back into her career.

2) Albert "Einstein" Breer might cry if I make fun of Brady.

3) I thought you folks didn't want to read about any team other than the Cowboys.

4) Quarterbacks with three Super Bowl rings get the benefit of the doubt.

Superstar columnist Tim Cowlishaw writes that the Cowboys must be kicking themselves after watching the Giants win the Super Bowl.

As Wade Phillips infamously noted the morning after the Cowboys' playoff loss, the Giants only won that game on the scoreboard. The Cowboys kicked some serious tail on the stat sheet.

If it makes the Cowboys feel any better, Michael Strahan offered quite a compliment to America's Team.

"Trust me, that is the best team we played, the Cowboys," Strahan told the New York Post.

I spoke to Albert "Einstein" Breer on the telephone, and I can assure Calvin "Lucky" Watkins and all the concerned readers that Einstein's doing fine. His voice was a bit hoarse (probably because of all the loud sobbing), but he's ready to return to work tomorrow.

Speaking of which, we'll kick off our full-fledged off-season coverage in the morning. We'll start a position-by-position series tomorrow, assessing what the Cowboys have on the roster at each position and what other options are out there.

We're also offering a money-back guarantee that you won't find more Cowboys-centric draft coverage anywhere else on the Internets. We'll crank that up beginning with the Combine.

Getty Images

Look, it gives me no pleasure to proclaim that Eli Manning has matured into a franchise quarterback. It's admitting that I was wrong about the guy, but you can't deny what he did during these playoffs.

Spare me the Trent Dilfer comparisons. Yes, they both won Super Bowls with the help of dominant defenses. But Eli did a lot more than avoid mistakes; he made plays. Perhaps you missed his 40-second drill at the end of the first half against the Cowboys. Or the two touchdown drives he engineered in the fourth quarter against a team a lot of experts had crowned as the best in NFL history.

You really want to question whether Eli outplayed Romo or Brett Favre or Tom Brady? He beat them in the box score and on the scoreboard. What more do you want?

Only the biggest Big Blue homers thought the Giants had a realistic chance to win the Super Bowl entering the playoffs, much less the season.

But the Giants' title is no fluke. You need a lot more than luck to win three playoff games on the road and beat an undefeated team in the Super Bowl. The Giants, who jelled at the perfect time this season, earned this championship and are built to be contenders for several years.

Getty Images

Dedicated readers of this here blog will recall a bunch of New Englanders badmouthing the '90s Cowboys, saying that Dallas' last dynasty would have no chance against the perfect Patriots. Refresh your memories right here.

I would direct you to the Boston Herald's Pats blog to rub it in their faces, but they're not accepting comments at the moment. So feel free to say your told-ya-so's right here, and I'll be sure to get Albert "Einstein" Breer to pass them on to his people.

I'm sure the Cowboys players, coaches and front office staff feel they are better than the New York Giants.

In some ways, maybe they're right. But the bottom line is when it counted, the Giants won the game that mattered.

And now the Giants have won the Super Bowl.

Wow. Strange game.

Give the Giants credit and the 1972 Dolphins can still hold their heads up high.

You've got to love Michael Strahan. Terry Bradshaw asked him a softball question during the trophy presentation, and the Giants' gap-toothed defensive end swung right for Bradshaw's big mouth.

"You know what? We watch a lot of TV. We have a lot of free time," Strahan said, glaring at Bradshaw. "I remember somebody saying that the Giants have a false sense of confidence from the first time we played them. No! We've got confidence!

"And you know, my guys are the best in the world! In the world!"

Strahan, who had a sack and played a key role in the Giants' constant pressure on Tom Brady, might opt to ride off into the sunset after winning a Super Bowl title. What a way to go out.

Looking for a quick flight to NYC for the parade.

Anybody know a good airline to use.

Some folks might consider Bill Belichick getting the handshake over with and getting the heck off the field with a second still on the clock a classless move.

Ease up on the poor guy. He just wanted to get an early start on studying film for next season.

Just as nobody predicted before the season, the New York Giants won the Super Bowl.

And the Patriots went from being perhaps the best team in NFL history to the best runner-up ever.

Wow.

I will never, ever again doubt Eli Manning.

His performance in the fourth quarter -- putting together two touchdown drives against an undefeated team -- has been simply unbelievable. He's been good throughout the playoffs and phenomenal in the last 15 minutes.

Eli capped it with a 13-yard fade route to predicition king Plaxico Burress, but the play everybody will be talking about for years is the scramble and 32-yard throw to David Tyree.

Unless Tom Brady does something in the last 30 seconds to steal the show.

What a phenomenal play.

Eli Manning, never known as a scrambler, somehow got out of a whole lot of trouble in the pocket. That was amazing in itself.

Then he set his feet and fired the ball downfield. David Tyree went up in a crowd and snatched it like a rebound.

Thirty-two yards later, the Giants are at the Patriots 24, setting up what should be a spectacular finish.

Tom Brady's performance in the clutch is one of the primary reasons he's a surefire Hall of Famer and perhaps the best quarterback to ever play the game. Randy Moss is the first Hall of Fame-caliber to team up with Brady.

And they just hooked up to give the Pats a lead, connecting on a 6-yard touchdown with 2:42 remaining.

As well as the Giants' defense has played, Brady has thrown for 266 yards and a TD. He was eight of 11 for 71 yards on that drive, with Moss catching three balls for 27 yards.

Considering the competition, the New York defense's performance ranks right up there with the most impressive in Super Bowl history.

The Giants have managed to make Tom Brady a mere mortal, putting constant pressure on him and taking away the possibility of big plays. And the Patriots' running game has done squat since the touchdown drive on New England's opening possession.

But with the ball in Tom Brady's hands and the Pats trailing by a field goal, I don't like the Giants' chances.

It was the 40-second drill at the end of the first half in Texas Stadium until that touchdown drive.

You sensed that if the Giants didn't take the lead on that drive, they never would. Eli Manning made it happen, completing three of three passes for 62 yards and a touchdown.

Manning just threw it to the open guys instead of trying to force it to his marquee receivers. He hit Kevin Boss for 45 yards, Steve Smith for 12 and squeezed a 5-yard TD pass to David Tyree, a dude most of the world had never heard of until now.

And Tom Brady's Pats are suddenly playing from behind.

1) Rookie Kevin Boss, the fifth-round pick from Division II Western Oregon, is a keeper. He just beat Rodney Harrison for a 45-yard reception.

2) Jeremy Shockey is trouble waiting to happen. How many alcoholic drinks did he have in front of him when Fox flashed to him sitting in a luxury suite?

This is certainly a Super Bowl where MVP voters should hold off on filling out their ballots until the final moment.

They just showed eight candidates on the commercial that asks fans to text in votes. None of them were named Justin Tuck, the Giants' defensive lineman who has been the most impressive player on the field.

Texas Tech-ex Wes Welker has made two big plays to get the Pats from the shadow of their goal line to midfield.

Red Raiders had to especially enjoy Welker's last catch. He beat Texas-ex Aaron Ross on a quick crossing route that turned into a 19-yard gain.

For a guy who predicted a win, Plaxico Burress hasn't done a whole lot to help the Giants' cause tonight.

Burress has one catch for 14 yards. Eli Manning went to him twice on that drive. The first was a first-down post route in traffic that would have been an unbelievable catch. The second was a crossing route on third down that Randall Gay broke up. A receiver as big as Burress ought to be able to use his body to shield the cornerback on that kind of play.

The Giants gave New England another shot with an inexcusable penalty (12 men on field for punt return), but Tom Brady still couldn't take advantage.

New York's front four, the Giants' biggest strength all season, has been simply phenomenal tonight. Michael Strahan sure didn't look like an old dude when he blew by the right tackle for a sack that was the key play in keeping the Pats from scoring.

Loved the Shaq-as-a-jockey spot. Not sure what it had to do with Vitamin Water, but it was funny.

Tom Brady completed four of five passes on the possession, but he was hit on every dropback but one. The exception was the incompletion -- a quick swing pass to Kevin Faulk that DE Michael Strahan tipped.

The Giants' pressure has taken away the threat of the Patriots' downfield passing game. Brady simply doesn't have time to do anything but dink and dunk.

I'm sure Tony Romo can relate.

To borrow a phrase from Wade Phillips, the best team from the first half does not have a lead.

The Giants have rushed for more yards and passed for more yards than the Patriots. The turnovers are even. But the Pats have a 7-3 lead.

New England finished the one time it moved into New York terriotory. The Giants' drives into Pats' territory have resulted in a fumble, a pick and a punt (which came after a key penalty).

Defensive ends Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora deservingly get a ton of pub, but Justin Tuck is the dude dominating this Super Bowl.

Tuck, a DE who lines up inside on passing downs, is absolutely eating Patriots LG Logan Mankins' lunch. Tuck whupped Mankins for two sacks, including the forced fumble to kill the two-minute drill, and has hit him at least one other time.

Give Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo credit for figuring out how to creat favorable matchups for Tuck. You wonder whether Falcons owner Arthur Blank is watching this game and wishing he would have waited before hiring a head coach.

New Falcons head coach Mike Smith devised the scheme that Brady picked apart for 26 completions on 28 attempts. Brady completed eight of 14 passes for only 82 yards in the first half.

The Giants are fortunate that Eli Manning didn't just throw his second pick after his third-down pass clanked off CB Randall Gay's hands.

It looked like Eli and rookie WR Steve Smith, who sure is getting thrown a lot of passes, read the coverage differently. Smith curled up into a soft spot in the zone, but Eli threw an out.

Has anybody seen Plaxico Burress this quarter?

There's no doubt that Tom Brady had the best season by a QB in NFL history, but he's been J.A.G. so far in this Super Bowl.

Of course, there aren't many quarterbacks that will look good if their offensive line can't pass protect. The Giants got to Brady on back-to-back plays, the first with a blitz by LB Kawika Mitchell and the second with Justin Tuck beating his man straight up.

Not sure what the over-under for Brady's passing yards is, but I'm guessing he's on pace to fall short with 31 midway through the second quarter.

The Giants got into the red zone when WR Amani Toomer pushed off to get room to make a 38-yard catch on the sideline.

DeSoto native Ellis Hobbs, the dude who was pushed off, made sure the Giants didn't score. Hobbs took advantage of a good break, picking off a pass that bounced off rookie WR Steve Smith's hands.

It should be a first-and-goal situation for the Giants. Instead, the Pats have the ball with pretty good field position.

YouTube is loaded with videos poking fun at T.O.'s tearful defense of Tony Romo. Crest Cadillac, which is located in Plano, decided to get in on the act.

Did this commercial run across the nation? I didn't think there was room for local ads during the Super Bowl.

Wonder why Gisele isn't wearing a pink Brady jersey?

Laurence Maroney was a huge bust on my fantasy team (and many, many others) this season. He's been awesome ever since the fantasy regular season ended.

Maroney's 1-yard run gave the Pats the lead and extended his TD streak to six consecutive games. He's gone over 100 yards in four of the last five games.

So much for the running game being the Patriots' playoff Achilles heel, huh?

Former Cowboy Eric Ogbogu is the star of these Under Armor commercials. He is one of the partners in the company as well.

We ran into Eric at the EA Sports party on Wednesday night with former teammate Al Johnson, who just finished his first year with the Cardinals. Ogbogu was excited about the upcoming spots. The first one was impressive with Under Armor pushing a new high-performance sneaker. We asked Ogbogu if he wanted to get into acting, but he did not want to spend that much time learning a new craft and moving to Los Angeles.

As we go, let's rank the commercials. We'll do our best to keep up from here.

Randy Moss, who has a total of two receptions during the playoffs, has yet to have a pass thrown his way. Not that he cares, with the Patriots a yard away from the end zone at the end of the first quarter.

Eli Manning looked pretty calm and cool during the first Super Bowl drive of his career.

He completed five of seven passes for 38 yards, including three drive-extending completions on third down. His only mistake was trying to force the ball to double-teamed Plaxico Burress in the end zone, and I'm not sure you can really count throwing the ball to a 6-6 playmaker as a mistake under any circumstances.

The Giants had to settle for a field goal after a dump-off to Steve Smith, who is on pace to break the Super Bowl record for receptions.

The best thing Eli and Co. did was make Tom Brady and Randy Moss stand on the sideline and watch for 10 minutes.

Best commercial so far? I vote for the Budweiser fire-breathing spot but didn't think it was anything special.

We learned as much from Chris Myers' very important sideline interview with LB Tedy Bruschi moments before kickoff.

Nice that Fox could squeeze that in between post-coin flip, pre-kickoff commercial breaks.

I saw in the comments that a few of you folks thought Terry Bradshaw used a profanity to describe Howie Long's head, so I rewinded the ol' DVR and listened up.

I believe he said Long had a "big bucket head." The FCC can relax.

Cory Webster will start at right cornerback in favor of Sam Madison for the New York Giants.

In honor of Albert Breer we will also list the inactives, not that any of this matters today:

For the Patriots
QB Matt Gutierrez, WR Chad Jackson, CB Antwain Spann, T Wesley Britt, G Billy Yates, WR Troy Brown, TE Stephen Spach, DL Santonio Thomas. (Brown is one of 10 Patriots looking for his fourth Super Bowl ring, but the veteran receiver has been a non-factor this year).

For the Giants:
QB Jared Lorenzen, RB Danny Ware, DB Geoffrey Pope, T Adam Koets, DT Manny Wright, WR Sinorice Moss, TE Jerome Collins, who spent time on the Cowboys' practice squad last year, DT Russell Davis.

We'll do our best to update you through the game today but the wireless connection is a little spotty.

Just took a tour outside University of Phoenix Stadium. There certainly appeared to be more Patriots fans walking around than Giants' fans.

As many of you know, Tim Cowlishaw's fame has risen since his time on ESPN's NASCAR Now and Around the Horn, but our esteemed columnist has lost his touch with some of the most famous athletes. Walking back into the stadium we passed Roger Federer, but TC had no clue who the man decked out in a Nike hat and jacket was.

Less than three seconds, however, he had a warm greeting with NFL Network host Rich Eisen. Tim is planning on an appearance on Total Access any day now.

The fact that the Super Bowl is still hours away hasn't stopped folks from debating whether these Patriots are the best team in NFL history.

Hall of Fame scribe Rick "Goose" Gosselin weighed in, saying he'd rank the Pats third if complete their perfect season. Goose ranks the '62 Packers No. 1 and considers the '92 Cowboys the best of the Super Bowl era.

Emmitt Smith's answer on ESPN was a bit surprising. He said the Pats are having the best season in NFL history, but he considers the '70s Steelers the best team. He didn't mention the dynasty he helped create in Dallas.

In other news, Keyshawn Johnson's scarf is one of strangest wardrobe choices in NFL history.

A lot of folks are fired up about this whole Spygate ordeal. Heck, a member of Congress even wants to chat about it in what couldn't possibly be a shameless publicity stunt.

It really is a shame that a proven bunch of cheaters like the Patriots is on the verge of becoming the best dynasty in NFL history. Why couldn't they win with integrity, like the Team of the '90s?

Oh, wait just a second ... what's that Jimmy said to the Boston Globe this week?

"The only thing I can say is so many people made such a big to-do about it, and everybody - and I mean everybody - went to the edge on rules in one form or fashion," Johnson said, reflecting on his coaching tenure with the Cowboys. "That's just part of the game, that's stealing the signals in baseball. This stuff has been going on for so long.

"When I came into the NFL, back in '89, I talked to a Kansas City scout and he said, 'Here's what we do, we videotape the opposing team's signals and then we synch it up with the game film.' So I did it."

I have a suggestion that should satisfy all Cowboy fans offended by Bill Belichick's cheating ways: All teams that cheated since the salary cap went into effect should be stripped of their titles. Pre-salary cap cheating is fine, since nothing about the NFL was fair in those days anyway.

Super Bowl XXVII (game story/highlights) was competitive for most of the first half before it turned into a big, old party for the Cowboys.

Nine turnovers fueled a 52-17 blowout of the Bills. Troy Aikman put on a precision passing show, completing 22 of 30 attempts for 273 yards and four TDs. Michael Irvin caught six passes for 114 yards, including two TDs in an 18-second span near the end of the second quarter that turned the game into a rout. Emmitt Smith rushed for 108 yards and a TD.

Leon Lett gave the world something to laugh about, letting Don Beebe chase him down and strip the ball while Lett was strutting into end zone on what should have been a rub-it-in fumble return for a TD. But the Cowboys' celebration had already started by that point, and so had their dynasty.

The Boston Herald cites a source that says the Patriots videotaped the Rams' final walkthrough before Super Bowl XXXVI.

Surprised? Maybe by the timing of the report, but not that the Patriots have cheated for a while.

ESPN.com has a story on Matt Walsh, a former Pats employee who spent a lot of time behind a video camera. I'd tell you more, but I didn't read the story because the topic bores me.

But feel free to express your outrage on this here blog.

The Arizona Republic reports that a Giants defensive end was arrested on suspicion of DUI.

This won't have any impact on the Super Bowl, since it's not Michael Strahan or Osi Umenyiora or Justin Tuck.

It's Adrian Awasom, who has been on the injured reserve since September. He happens to be one of my favorite former North Texas football players, so I sure hope this is all a big misunderstanding. Kind of like Tank Johnson's suspicion of DUI arrest in Arizona, you know?

Super Bowl XIII (highlights) will always be remembered around these parts for Jackie Smith's drop in the end zone on the last pass thrown to him in his Hall of Fame career.

That play, however, didn't finish off the Cowboys in a 35-31 loss to the Steelers that ultimately determined the Team of the '70s title. It would have tied the score in the third quarter, but it was just one of many crucial plays that didn't go the Cowboys' way. Steve Pate's DMN game story also mentions a fumbled exchange between Tony Dorsett and Drew Pearson on what was supposed to be a reverse pass, CB Aaron Kyle's on John Stallworth's 75-yard TD, a pass interference call on Benny Barnes that led to a lot of (bleeps) in quotes and a fumble by Randy White on a squib kickoff.

And Terry Bradshaw, accused by Hollywood Henderson that week of not being able to spell "cat" if spotted the C and A, spelled MVP without any trouble after passing for 318 yards and four TDs.

McClatchy-Tribune

Super Bowl spies tell me that Tom Petty, who will perform at halftime of the Super Bowl, had a press conference today. Doesn't interest me much, but it was a big deal for The Ticket's Hardline.

Original Hardliner Mike Rhyner, you see, is the front man of the cover band Petty Theft. So he got up and asked a question about Petty's early music and got a polite response. Schtickmeister Corby Davidson, in what I'm guessing was an attempt to humiliate his fellow Hardliner, later informed Petty of Rhyner's side gig and asked if he'd critique him. Petty declined, but he was willing to give his take on cover bands.

"The only thing about cover groups is, as long as they’re not better than us, that’s OK," said Petty, who later delivered a half-hearted, "Gig 'em, Aggies" upon request.

The Cowboys scored the first 13 points of Super Bowl XII (game story/highlights), and the Doomsday Defense made sure the win was never in doubt.

Co-MVPs Harvey Martin and Randy White led a defense that held the Broncos to a then-Super Bowl-record low 156 total yards. Denver QB Craig Morton, who stunk it up for the Cowboys in Super Bowl V, was harassed into the perhaps most horrendous performance in Super Bowl history. Morton had as many interceptions as completions (four) when he was benched in the third quarter.

Roger Staubach, who split time with Morton at the start of his Hall of Fame career, was efficient in his second Super Bowl win. He completed 17 of 25 passes for 183 yards, including a beautiful post route to Butch Johnson for TD. But the knockout punch was a TD pass from fullback Robert Newhouse to Golden Richards, who seemed to take pleasure in beating a Bronco safety who badmouthed the Cowboys' receiving corps that week.

"I didn't see [Bernard] Jackson coming in, but I heard him," Richards said. "He talks a lot, you know."

Actually, "star" might be a bit of an exaggeration, but Tony Romo does make a cameo appearance in this Diet Pepsi ad that will air during the Super Bowl.

Rumor has it Romo and Jessica Simpson will be in a Pizza Hut commercial together, too. Ain't that sweet?

Romo might not be at Peyton Manning's pitchman level, but he's pretty popular among ad execs these days. Romo's previous Pepsi commercial did a fine job of foreshadowing the Cowboys' playoff loss.

A spy at the Super Bowl informs me that Michael Strahan was talking about how irrelevent pregame trash talking is come kickoff when he was asked about Patrick Crayton.

"Man, I don't even know who Patrick Crayton is," Strahan said.

You might recall that Crayton did some gum flapping the week of the Giants-Cowboys playoff game. (And after the Cowboys' November win in New Jersey and at various other points throughout the season.)

Seemed like Strahan was motivated by Crayton's mouth while the Giants gloated in the visitors' locker room at Texas Stadium. But the gap-toothed future Hall of Famer apparently has a pretty short memory.

The folks in Lifestyles want to know what makes your party the best on the block.

Tell them, not us.

Super Bowl X (game story/highlights) is best remembered for the highlight every football fan has seen hundreds of times: Steelers WR Lynn Swann, the game's MVP, making an acrobatic, leaping catch on a deep ball over Cowboys CB Mark Washington. That play might have put Swann, whose career stats are pedestrian, in the Hall of Fame.

Another Hall of Famer had a shot to steal Swann's thunder, but Roger Staubach couldn't complete a comeback from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit. The Cowboys' 21-17 loss ended with Staubach firing three incompletions into the end zone.

The Cowboys trimmed the deficit to four when Staubach hit rookie WR Percy Howard for a 34-yard TD with less than two minutes to go. That ended up being the only reception of Howard's NFL career.

Dallas got the ball back with 1:22 remaining, and had its best chance to take the lead on the second-to-last play. On second down from the Pittsburgh 38, Staubach threw a jump ball to the 6-4 Howard. It sailed over Howard's head, and he claimed after the game that he was pushed. A prayer to Hail Mary receiver Drew Pearson was picked off on the final play.

Why was Howard in the game? Starting WR Golden Richards' ribs were broken in the fourth quarter. "Mel Blount just slugged me in the ribs," Richards said.

New England can stake its claim to that title by completing the first 19-0 season in NFL history with a Super Bowl win.

But Foxsports.com John Czarnecki isn't buying it. He ranks the '07 Pats third, behind the 1984 49ers and Jimmy's first Super Bowl champs.

2. 1992 Dallas Cowboys: This was the first of Jimmy Johnson's back-to-back Super Bowl teams. Yes, they lost three games during the regular season, but they were super impressive in the playoffs, whipping a 14-2 Niners team in San Francisco for the NFC title, and then demolishing Jim Kelly and the Buffalo Bills 52-17 in Super Bowl XXVII. These Cowboys were powerful on both sides of the ball, and offensive tackles Mark Tuinei and Erik Williams (maybe the best lineman of his generation not in the Hall of Fame) protected Troy Aikman and opened holes for Emmitt Smith. Cornerback Kevin Smith had the talent to shut down Jerry Rice, too.

The '93 Cowboys were my favorite America's Team squad, at least the post-Emmitt-holdout version. And I still believe those 'Boys were better than these Pats.

BLOGGER'S NOTE: We planned to have all kinds of Cowboys-centric Super Bowl coverage this week, but the Cowboys didn't exactly cooperate. So we had to scrap most of our grand ideas, but we can still do our review of America's Team's eight Super Bowl appearances. We'll link to the DMN game story and NFL Films highlights from each Cowboys' Super Bowl -- one per day, except for the to-be-determined bonus day that will have two.

This passage from Bob St. John's game story pretty much sums up the Cowboys' 24-3 win in Super Bowl VI (highlights):

Sometimes sidelights sound a theme. In the nearby French Quarter the night before this game a Miami fan was seen to give a Dallas Cowboy fan the choke sign. The Cowboy fan stood up and clouted the guy.

Tom Landry's Cowboys seemed a lot like that.

Roger Staubach (12-19 for 119 yards and two TDs) was named the MVP, but the key to the Cowboys finally be crowned NFL champions was kicking the Dolphins' butts in the trenches. The Cowboys, led by local products Duane Thomas (Dallas Lincoln) and Walt Garrison (Lewisville), rushed for a then-Super Bowl-record 252 yards. Dallas held a Miami offense featuring future Hall of Famers Bob Griese, Larry Csonka and Paul Warfield to 185 total yards.

And Bob Lilly, a legend who was the Cowboys' original draft pick, finally got to light up a victory cigar at the end of the season after coming close so many times.

BLOGGER'S NOTE: We planned to have all kinds of Cowboys-centric Super Bowl coverage this week, but the Cowboys didn't exactly cooperate. So we had to scrap most of our grand ideas, but we can still do our review of America's Team's eight Super Bowl appearances. We'll link to the DMN game story and NFL Films highlights from each Cowboys' Super Bowl -- one per day, except for the to-be-determined bonus day that will have two.

Super Bowl V (story/highlights), the Cowboys' debut on the big stage, is best remembered for three reasons.

*Colts kicker Jim O'Brien booted a 32-yarder with seconds remaining to give Baltimore a 16-13 win over the Cowboys.

*Dallas LB Chuck Howley, who picked off two passes and pretty much dominated, remains the only player from a losing team to be named Super Bowl MVP.

*Legendary DT Bob Lilly, the Hall of Famer forever known as Mr. Cowboy, reacted to the loss by setting a world record for the longest helmet toss.

Craig Morton's miserable performance (12 of 26 for 127 yards and a TD with three picks, including one that set up the tying TD and one that set up the winning FG) isn't mentioned very often. One can only imagine what would have happened if Roger Staubach didn't watch from the bench.

Since Albert only likes to link to stories from the Boston Herald, where he used to work, I figured I'd link to a story in The Boston Globe, where I used to work, that has Bill Parcells quoted.

Hopefully in the future we can have a balance between Boston's broadsheet and Boston's tabloid in the next week or so. Of course, none of you want to read about the Super Bowl here because this is a Cowboys blog, so please oblige us a little.

More Cowboys' stuff on the way.

In doing some Super Bowl research (scroll down to Fact X), I stumbled on to an interesting, and obscure, fact.

Tedy Bruschi, who was a rookie on New England's 1996 AFC Championship team, will become just the seventh player in the history of the big game to suit up for five Super Bowls with the same team. Former Broncos quarterback John Elway is another one to turn the trick.

And the remaining five? All Cowboys -- Larry Cole, Cliff Harris, D.D. Lewis, Charlie Waters and Rayfield Wright -- from the 1970s.

You can grunt and groan about Giants vs. Patriots, but all red-blooded American males are required to watch the Super Bowl. So you might as well go ahead and decide which team you want to win.

OK, I know no true blue Cowboy fan could ever root for the Giants to win. I reckon the question should be, are you rooting for the Pats to win or lose?

As far as I'm concerned, a perfect season would be pretty cool to see. It could very well be a once-in-a-lifetime thing. And Albert "Einstein" Breer could use a pick-me-up after his alma mater got whupped in the BCS championship game.

More than anything, though, I just want this to be a rare Super Bowl that is fun to watch for four quarters.