As expected, the media in Dallas -- and nationwide -- has been none-too-kind to the Dallas Cowboys since the team's 44-6 loss to Philadelphia that left the Cowboys out of the NFL playoffs.
"Another Cowboys season goes by the wayside," headlined the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The Clarence E. Hill Jr. column led with "Pathetic. Truly pathetic."
"Quittin' Time" blared The Dallas Morning News. A column by Jean-Jacques Taylor led with: "Wade Phillips presides over the most gutless team in franchise history. That's his legacy. Forever."
The Cowboys ended the season with back-to-back losses to Baltimore and Philadelphia. Their 9-7 record wasn't good enough for an NFC playoff berth. The Cowboys haven't won a playoff game since Dec. 28, 1996, when they beat Minnesota.
The 38-point loss to the Eagles was the largest margin the Cowboys have lost by since Jerry Jones bought the team in 1989.
The Cowboys move into a new $1.1 billion stadium next year in Arlington.
After Sunday's game, the team wasn't too kind to itself, either, with quarterback Tony Romo and wide receiver Terrell Owens seeming to put some of the blame for the Cowboys' late-season collapse on offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.
"They exposed something we do fundamentally offensively," Romo said of Philadelphia, which limited the Cowboys to two field goals.
"Scheme is a major part of it that the normal fan or writer doesn't understand," Romo said after the game in Philadelphia. "If you're put in a really good situation, it really allows your team to be successful a lot. That's why I think some games, it's easy to say, 'Well, he didn't play good.' A lot of it is scheme."
Dallas averaged 22.6 points per game, 18th in the league. That's down from 28.4 points per game a year ago, which was second best in the NFL.
Romo, who sources say suffered a rib injury in the second half against Philadelphia, collapsed in the shower after the game. He recovered to attend his postgame news conference, but had to be helped from the podium. He flew home with the team.
Said Owens: "I just feel with the weapons on this team, we just need more opportunities. There needs to be some changes in regard to getting some guys involved, putting guys in position to win. It all starts with the guys calling the plays."
Jones, the Cowboys' owner and general manager, says he won't make a head-coaching change.
"Are we going to change coaches?" Jones said in the locker room after the game. "The answer is no."
Of the season, Jones said, according to The Dallas Morning News: "I am about every way you can to explain about feeling embarrassed. We did not play to what my expectations were this season."