Desperation Bowl: Vikings vs. Cowboys

By Fred Guzman

Just five weeks ago, it would have been hard to imagine that these two teams would be coming into such a high-profile game with 1-3 records.

But that’s where the visiting Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings both find themselves going into Sunday’s Desperation Bowl.

After all the pre-season talk about how the Cowboys were in a good position to become the first team ever to play in a Super Bowl on its home field, Dallas has been a major disappointment.

And, for a change, it’s hard to put all of the blame on Tony Romo, the lightning-rod quarterback. Romo’s numbers are actually pretty decent. He’s completing 68.4 percent of his attempts and is averaging 337 yards per game, which ranks third in the league. His TD to INT ratio, however, is a modest 7 to 5.

So the Dallas fans, instead, have aimed the bulk of their discontent at head coach Wade Phillips.

For Minnesota, QB Brett Favre has some major problems. And we’re not talking about a sexting scandal that has earned him a measure of infamy.

Favre was visibly bothered by elbow pain in Monday’s loss to the Jets, and suggested he might have to sit out a game or two in order to give elbow some rest. If that were to happen, it would end Favre’s recocrd iron-man streak of consecutive starts, which currently stands at an amazing 289 games.