Who cares if we've known the teams on the Dallas Cowboys 2012 schedule for months now? Nothing's official until we know the actual order of the schedule. Only then can we begin dissecting it as if we have any clue how the Cowboys will finish.
On Tuesday at 6 p.m. local time, the schedules for all 32 teams were released. The New York Giants' schedule is nearly always leaked first, so that's how we start to put the puzzle together. The Cowboys' opponents in 2012 had a combined .504 winning percentage. This is not the most daunting schedule you'll come across, although the early bye week will obviously frustrate coach Jason Garrett and his staff.
The Cowboys will have at least five nationally televised games in 2012, and that number's likely to grow because of flex scheduling. In addition to the Sept. 5 opener against the Giants that we already knew about, the Cowboys will play two more primetime games on NBC. They will try to end a seven-game losing streak in games played on that network. The only Monday night game will be the second home game of the season against the Chicago Bears on Oct. 1.
Now, let's take a game-by-game approach to the Cowboys 2012 schedule. In an attempt to truly humiliate myself, I will even offer final scores for each contest:
Sept. 5 at New York Giants, 7:30 p.m.
Giants 27, Cowboys 24: This will be a thrilling game between bitter NFC East rivals. Jason Garrett knows how to win in the Meadowlands, but the Cowboys won't be able to overcome all the emotion as the Giants celebrate their Super Bowl title one last time. Victor Cruz gets behind Cowboys cornerback Brandon Carr for a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter and Tony Romo's unable to lead a late comeback.
Sept. 16 at Seattle, 3:05 p.m.
Cowboys 31, Seahawks 21: The Cowboys will be fresh after having a 10-day layoff following the Giants game. Matt Flynn has a bright future in Seattle, but he'll throw two costly interceptions in this game. Carr will get one of them and rookie Dre Kirkpatrick will have the other. (just bear with me).
Sept. 23 vs. Tampa Bay, Noon
Cowboys 23, Bucs 10: The Bucs have a new head coach in Greg Schiano and a quarterback in Josh Freeman who didn't play well last season. If the Bucs can land running back Trent Richardson in the draft, they'll be formidable. But the Cowboys will overwhelm the Bucs' suspect secondary with two touchdowns from Dez Bryant, who is expected to add another route to his repertoire this season (the deep out).
Oct. 1 vs. Chicago, 7:30 p.m.
Cowboys 31, Bears 28: Chicago was a Super Bowl contender last year before quarterback Jay Cutler went down with a season-ending injury. He'll be ready to go this season and this should be an improved offense. They have an unhappy running back in Matt Forte, but this is still a team with a talented defense. That said, Tony Romo's will find a rhythm against this secondary and dial up touchdowns to Jason Witten and Miles Austin. Brian Urlacher will be distracted by his budding relationship with Jenny McCarthy.
Oct. 7 BYE
Oct. 14 at Baltimore, Noon
Ravens 20, Cowboys 17: Since 2008, the Ravens have been one of the best home teams in the NFL. The defense is starting to show a little age, but it can still hold its own. It still annoys Ravens head coach John Harbaugh that Baltimore wanted Jason Garrett to be its head coach following the '07 season instead of him. And he follows the lead of his brother, Jim, by slapping Garrett just a tad too hard on the back following the game. Garrett explains after the game that it's "part of the process."
Oct. 21 at Carolina, Noon
Panthers 28, Cowboys 24: Some are predicting a sophomore slump for Cam Newton, but that's not what sources are telling FoxSportsSouthwest.com. Newton will light up the Cowboys' secondary for 350 yards and three touchdowns. Anthony Spencer will be credited with one hurry.
Oct. 28 vs. New York Giants, 3:15 p.m.
Cowboys 38, Giants 31: Dallas finally beats the Giants at Cowboys Stadium. Eli Manning is brilliant in this game but Tony Romo is just a little better. After the game, Romo compliments Manning on his "Saturday Night Live" appearance, but later reveals to FOXSportsSouthwest.com that he thought Eli was "too reliant on cue cards."
Nov. 4 at Atlanta, 7:20 p.m.
Cowboys 23, Falcons 17: The Cowboys have always enjoyed playing in the Georgia Dome. Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan's starting to receive the Tony Romo treatment after his failure to break through in the playoffs and he'll throw a couple interceptions on this evening. Former second-round pick Bruce Carter forces a fumble in this game and starts to demonstrate why the Cowboys were so proud of the pick.
Nov. 11 at Philadelphia, 3:15 p.m.
Eagles 24, Cowboys 17: The Cowboys will regret not drafting Alabama safety Mark Barron during this game. The rookie will make at least one huge play for the Eagles and head coach Andy Reid will have a good sports cry after the game. The Eagles were embarrassed by what happened last season, but they quietly put together a nice finish. They'll be soaring at this point in the season. Brent Celek has two touchdowns in this game.
Nov. 18 vs. Cleveland, Noon
Cowboys 34, Browns 17: In a shocking move, the Browns will stick with former Texas quarterback Colt McCoy for the 2012 season. Mack Brown will show up at Cowboys Stadium, but it will be a long day for McCoy. Anthony Spencer records his first sack of the season for the Cowboys and then tries to re-open discussions on a long-term contract.
Nov. 22 vs. Washington, 3:15 p.m.
Cowboys 27, Redskins 17: The Cowboys have a chance to stack some wins at this point in the season. Robert Griffin III will have a lot of family and friends at Cowboys Stadium, but he has bad memories of this place. He suffered a concussion against Texas Tech his last time in this building and had to miss the second half. He'll play well against the Cowboys, but the Redskins will lose.
Dec. 2 vs. Philadelphia, 7:20 p.m.
Cowboys 30, Eagles 27: This will be the fourth primetime game of the season for the Cowboys. And as I pointed out earlier, the Cowboys rarely win on NBC. But Michael Vick will struggle in this game. He'll be sacked six times, in part because the Eagles don't have a viable left tackle. The Cowboys and Eagles will have identical records after this game.
Dec. 9 at Cincinnati, Noon
Cowboys 17, Bengals 10: The Cowboys will face their old friend Terence Newman for the first time. Dez Bryant will hurdle Newman on his way to the winning touchdown. Dallas wins, but will struggle to move the ball against former Cowboys defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer's unit.
Dec. 16 vs. Pittsburgh, 3:15 p.m.
Steelers 20, Cowboys 10: The Cowboys' interior offensive linemen will get exposed in this game. No offense to guard Mackenzy Bernadou, but he's not ready for James Harrison.
Dec. 23 vs. New Orleans, Noon
Cowboys 34, Saints 30: Sean Payton will be 30 minutes away from Cowboys Stadium, but he'll have to watch the game on TV. Seriously, can the man actually attend an NFL game? Drew Brees will light up the scoreboard, but Tony Romo will have the last laugh. The Saints will have their suspended players back by this point, but it won't matter.
Dec. 30 at Washington, Noon
Redskins 27, Cowboys 20: RG3 will have figured things out by now – if he's still in one piece. The Cowboys need this win to have a shot a home-field advantage in the playoffs, but the Skins will find a way in the regular-season finale.
Final record: 10-6
