The Detroit Lions may not turn out to be the perfect opponent for Dallas on Sunday, but they are forever the team you hope to be measured against.
This sort of thing was unnecessary for the Cowboys in the '60s when they came of age or in the '70s when they played in five Super Bowls or even the '80s when they traveled to three NFC Championship Games. Certainly there was no need in the '90s when they bagged three more Lombardi Trophies and planted their America’s Team flag on every street corner.
It’s this 21st century game that has baffled the Cowboys and forced fans to point to Detroit and Washington as NFC teams -- the only NFC teams -- that have missed out on NFC Championship appearances for longer stretches.