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Guys...it's Dallas week!! I will have two posts out today asking for your contributions to a debate on a very important matter, and one I think we will be happier to discuss than recent topics. (Update: Most Respected post will come out tomorrow morning.)
I appeared on a Blogging the Boys podcast last night and we discussed our most hated and most loved players of each other's teams. I will put a separate post out for Most Loved, but let's get started with Most Hated, shall we?
One thing that stood out when we had this conversation is that nobody truly hates players who stink. If a Dallas player is terrible, I kind of love him, but no...Andre Gurode won't be among my Most Loved Dallas players of all time.
For me, it comes down to two players: Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin.
It was kind of the perfect storm of hatability (made-up word that should be a word) when Irvin went from The "U" to Dallas. Cocky, arrogant, brash...Irvin combined these qualities with pure greatness and led me to truly dislike this player. On one hand, thinking about how hard he worked during the week through what had to be some killer hangovers is somewhat inspiring. I know I've had to answer that bell...uhhhhh...at times. His dominance against the Redskins and the star on his helmet kept me from ever appreciating him and to this day, when I see him, my brain turns off and my blood temperature rises.
Smith, on the other hand, was a guy I really learned to loathe in a healthy, Redskins-esque manner. Bearing witness to his toughness and persistence twice a year during an era where the Cowboys dominated the Redskins wore on my soul. The act that he belittled the rivalry irked me to no end. When asked about the history and rivalry between the Redskins and Cowboys, he famously answered, "What rivalry?" I get it, Emmitt. You were great and your teams destroyed us. BUT DON'T ACT LIKE THERE IS NO HISTORY UST BECAUSE YOU HAD A GOOD RUN OVER YOUR CAREER!!!
Calm down, Ken.
Let's open it up for discussion. Which Dallas Cowboy ranks at the top of your list of "Most Hated?"