Who is ‘America’s Team’? The question has been raised on ESPN.com with voting as well as three compelling arguments for the three teams in question, the Green Bay Packers, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys.
The facts are shown in each article and all three present compelling arguments. From the Packers unquestioned history in the game and it’s structure as a franchise, the Steelers and their Super Bowl titles, to the Cowboys and their popularity among fans. But I found that the Cowboy argument, according to the article written by Tim MacMahon (listed above under Dallas Cowboys) made the decisive argument, the Cowboys are the most valuable sporting franchise in the country and second in the world.
Sitting in my Journalism class last week on media diversity and what not, we discussed our values as a nation, etc. What was discovered is that we are all in favor of capitalist ideals. Now before you click away off the page, let me bring you back. What this came down to was that we respect and want the Dollar, so for the Cowboys to be the most valuable franchise in America (second worldwide), and for the Cowboys to play in the worlds most unbelievable palace for the sport, how can the Cowboys not be ‘America’s Team’?
Consider that the Packers, who won many of their NFL championships during the Great Depression; I find it hard to fathom them as ‘America’s Team’. As for the Steelers, just read about the Steelers and their skeletons in the closet. While I realize that the Cowboys were no choirboys, you cannot hate on the fact that the Cowboys represented what American wants to be. The best example being Roger Staubach who was the most All-American of all quarterbacks (America’s favorite position) to ever play the game.
Staubach went to college at the United States Naval Academy where he went on to win the Heisman trophy. Following his collegiate career, Staubach served his military commitment that included a one-year tour of Vietnam. Then went on to lead the Cowboys onto 5 Super Bowl appearances, winning two. The squeaky clean persona of Staubach just adds to the idea of the Cowboys being ‘America’s Team’, plus the fact the guy did earn the nickname of ‘Captain America’, so come on, you cannot deny it now!
So while some of you will boast that the Steelers and the Packers are a workman-like team, realize that this is America, this is our game, we don’t aim to be the workman, we aim to be the guy who runs the show, we aim for the top. While the Cowboys may come up short on the field, they make up for it with state-of-the-art marketing, and the sheer value they demand.
