Are Dallas Cowboys headed to Super Bowl LVIII? History points to Lombardi Trophy after 40-0 domination over Giants
The Cowboys got their 2023 NFL season to a blistering start, destroying the Giants 40-0. That the win came on the road was even more impressive.
Every part of the team worked. The offense scored touchdowns. The defense was dominant with sacks, turnovers and touchdowns. Even the special teams got in on the act, and it was their field goal block and return that opened the scoring.
Considerint the same, the Cowboys are a smooth-running machine and will be going into their next games confident that they can dominate. However, for a team that has made the playoffs for the last two seasons, the aim is a bit higher. They want to go ahead and make strides in the postseason.
Cowboys look to Super Bowl LVIII after 40-0 win against the Giants
For two years running, the Dallas Cowboys have lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs, who got their own campaign with a win on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Last year, it was in the Divisional Round, and the year before, they faltered in the Wild Card Round. It extended an itch going back to the 1996 Super Bowl, when they won the Lombardi Trophy for the last time in franchise history. It was their third championship win of that decade.
Going back to that 1995 season that culimated in the Super Bowl win in 1996, the opening day fixture for the Cowboys that year was also against the Giants on the road. They won that game 35-0. It was a smaller margin of victory than this time, but it was a shutout away from home.
The Cowboys ended that season with a 12-4 record and went on to win the Lombardi Trophy. Enroute, they beat the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers. If history is any judge, Dallas should kick on from this win and look to win the Super Bowl LVIII.
If not the Lombardi Trophy, can the Cowboys at least make the NFC Championship game?
Beyond the question of winning the Super Bowl, 1996 was also the last time the Dallas Cowboys went to the NFC Championship game. They have never been back since.
A look back at Dallas' history shows some interesting trends. This 40-0 win against the Giants was their second-largest margin of win against their divisional rivals. Their biggest win was in 1966, when they won 52-7. That game was at home, but it was also the first game of the season for the Cowboys.
After beating the Giants, they finished with a 10-3-1 record and proceeded to play the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game (known simply as the NFL Championship at that time).
Unfortunately, they lost 34-27 as the Packers proceeded to the first ever Super Bowl. Bart Starr and company would go on to win that edition against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Nevertheless, it shows something interesting. Any time Dallas has faced the New York Giants and won by 35 points or more in their opening game, they have gone on to the NFC Championship at least and won the Lombardi Trophy once.
Given that they're in a drought for both the Super Bowl and the conference championship going back to 1996, this win might portend good things to come.
The gap between the mammoth victories is also interesting. 1966, 1995 and 2023 are nearly all thirty years apart from each other. It seems that Dallas finds its bearings against the Giants in their opening game every three decades or so.
If that's the case, they should fulfill the trendlines that history shows and aim to win either Super Bowl LVIII or at least break their NFC Championship game drought.