Two seasons came to the brink of ending yesterday within a few hours and several hundred feet of each other. The Rangers blew their series lead, as their bats went silent over the weekend, and the Cowboys saw mistakes - primarily in the offensive line and defensive secondary - consistently scuttle their efforts. Here's how they're reacting:
Mike Jenkins said that he just had a bad game, "that's it."
Leonard Davis may in fact lose his job, after another disappointing day and his first benching in Dallas.
[Jason] Garrett would not say whether would continue as the starter or if Holland would take over.
"We'll just evaluate it and see where it is," Garrett said. "It's good to have both guys."
Wade Phillips had this to say about the killer celebration penalty on Marc Colombo:
"I don't want a penalty there, no," Phillips said. "I don't want a celebration penalty there. No, that's not acceptable. But I'm just saying the big guy spikes the ball and falls down. It's not like it's excessive celebration. But that's the rule and they went by the rule and it cost us, and we didn't cover well on the kickoff."
Colombo would not comment after the game.
Jerry Jones didn't appear in the locker room after the game. That is extremely rare. As Jean-Jacques Taylor says, chances are he knew that he needed some time to cool down.
Meanwhile, Jeff Wilson says that the Rangers have remained upbeat, and Josh Hamilton sounds like he's been listening to Ron Washington.
"I'd be lying to you if I said it's not surprising," center fielder Josh Hamilton said. "That's just the way baseball goes. Any team can beat your team any day, and vice versa. That's why we play the game."
Gil Lebreton says that the Rangers have finally recognized that the Rays are taking advantage of their aggressiveness.
The Rays pitchers had talked about taking advantage of the Rangers' eagerness at the plate and expanding the strike zone. "You saw their game plan," Hamilton said, when asked whether Tampa Bay's strategy worked.
Michael Young says that the Rangers won't panic.
"We don't need a team meeting," team leader Michael Young said. "There's no need for me to say, 'Winner advances and loser it's over.' It's a competitive group. We know what to expect and we're going to get after it."