Yeah, the Cowboys did drop their second consecutive preseason game, this time 23-13 to the Denver Broncos here on a cool, drizzly Saturday night with August snow falling in the nearby mountains.
And while the news on wide receiver Miles Austin isn't likely to be year-ending, chances are Sunday's MRI is going to reveal a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee, which likely will keep the greatly-improving third-year player out four to six weeks.
Sure, the Cowboys first units on offense and defense seemingly broke camp a tad prematurely, their minds evidently heading back to Dallas about an hour or so sooner than expected.
Once again there were those dastardly penalties, either prolonging Broncos drives, just as the late hit did on the one which really went 98 yards, or put a kibosh to a Cowboys drive, like that strange tripping penalty wiping out a huge gainer.
And at the end, another one of those quarterback-receiver miscommunications resulted in an interception, this one denying the Cowboys the opportunity for the third-teamers to actually score the game-tying touchdown and send this preseason game into overtime.
Oh well, good thing this one doesn't count either. And even better that thing this team with such lofty expectations has another three weeks to iron things out before the Sept. 7 one in Cleveland counts for good. There are some troubling wrinkles.
For as Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, leaving Invesco Field at Mile High, "We got a lot of work to do."
Granted.
But did anyone bother to smell at least one rose Saturday night, the one that those perceptions seem to smother because few can work past the guy's age or his mounting years in the league?
Tony Romo did, coming up from behind the team's oldest player, throwing his arms around his 39-year-old shoulders, and with the biggest smile you've ever seen proclaim, "That's 2001 right there; that's Brad Johnson 2001."
Romo spoke of his immediate backup, the soon-to-be 40-year-old quarterback who had a vintage year in 2001, leading his Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Super Bowl title, basically playing the same style of football then as so many are quick to criticize and want to retire him for now.
Johnson, who was afforded the opportunity to play behind the Cowboys' first-team offensive line, the one which includes three Pro Bowlers, led the club to 10 points in three possessions of work. And on the one he didn't, only that weird tripping call on a blocking Felix Jones stalled the drive that was going places.
Johnson was razor sharp, and against the Broncos' first-team defense, mind you, completing nine of 12 passes for 114 yards and one touchdown.
To those who say his arm is shot, we give you the mighty fine 37-yard pass to Austin streaking down the right sideline. To those who say he won't hang in the pocket, we give you the perfectly thrown five-yard fade to Austin for a touchdown. And for those who wanted to insist after the San Diego game that he is so old he can't make good decisions anymore, we give you the 11-yard pass to tight end Martellus Bennett, a nine-yarder to Isaiah Stanback and the six-yarder to Tony Curtis, showing he's patient enough to take what the defense during a two-minute drill will give him.
But for the record, just don't think the criticism dents his skin. Heck, he's heard it before.
"I've fought (the perceptions) from middle school to high school and for 17 years in the NFL," Johnson said. "I'm used to it. Nothing I do is ever good enough, but I sleep well at night because I know how hard I work, and that's good enough for me."
That Johnson is their backup quarterback is evidently good enough for the Cowboys, too. Because more than anything, they value his experience and place a premium on having the guy behind Romo able to come into a game in a moment's notice without the benefit of a boatload of practice snaps during the week.
They also value his penchant for not making mistakes, realizing the role of the backup quarterback is more not to lose the game than to win it all by himself. You heard that from offensive coordinator Jason Garrett mid-week while the Cowboys were practicing against the Broncos.
And now you're going to hear very similar sentiments from the owner.
"We look at his experience, and look at how he does in practice, and know he's physically able to make plays and are betting on his experience to not make bad plays," Jones said. "We know what to expect to see. That's why we have him."
Let's total the two-game preseason numbers, and remember the majority of the ones from the San Diego game came from operating behind the backup offensive line, with the backup running backs and tight ends. Johnson isn't afforded the luxury of playing with Marion Barber and Terrell Owens and Jason Witten during preseason. Barely gets to play with Patrick Crayton.
So in these first two preseason games, Johnson's QB line reads like this: 17 of 27 for 203 yards, one touchdown one interception and three sacks, although two of those were the responsibility of rookie blockers who whiffed against the Chargers. He's led the club to three scoring drives, totaling 13 points.
And let's face it, he hardly got to play last year, throwing only 11 passes in 2007, which is no way to ever get any better, especially when working in a new offense.
That is why the Cowboys thought it fair to give him some work behind the first offensive line Saturday night- just give Johnson a fighting chance to succeed. This wasn't an ultimatum of any sort, like "By gosh you had better play well against the Broncos or else."
Now if Johnson had just come out these past two preseason games and stunk it up, sure, the Cowboys would have started to scour for alternatives. But he hasn't, just adding value to what he brings to the table.
"That's hard to beat or hard to get an alternative to," Jones said, glad to have the team's perceptions of Johnson reinforced. "I'm glad we got him."
So while it's never fun to get beat, and certainly after two preseason games this is far from a perfect team, at least along the way it's nice to run into some worry-busters. You know, like the coverage teams playing much better than in the first game; like getting big special teams plays from rookies Orlando Scandrick, Mike Jenkins and Tashard Choice; like second-round pick Martellus Bennett looking like he belonged on the field, and if he needed any encouragement, first-year tight end Rodney Hannah providing plenty; and then there was Adam Jones, reassuring the Cowboys he hasn't forgotten how to return punts and playing significantly better at cornerback than he did last Saturday in his first game since Dec. 31, 2006, or during practice this past week against the Broncos.
Plus, there's Brad Johnson.
"What you hope for," Johnson said of when the backup comes in, "is you hope to stay away from penalties, manage the huddle, manage the game and make the plays you're supposed to make."
That right there is Brad Johnson, any year.
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Mickey Spagnola - 
