How Cowboys fans should feel about Brandon Aubrey’s recent field goal misses

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Fans of the Dallas Cowboys might still have nightmares of the disastrous kicking display during last season’s playoffs.

Brett Maher had a total meltdown in the Cowboys’ first postseason affair at Tampa Bay, missing four of five extra points.

The Cowboys still won the game comfortably, but my lasting memory from that encounter is not the victory but Maher’s incredible string of misses.

Surely, shades of Maher’s disaster crept into the minds of Cowboy fans when current kicker Brandon Aubrey missed an extra point at the start of the 2023 campaign.

Fortunately, the former soccer player has given Mike McCarthy plenty of reasons to put him out to attempt long field goals this season.

Aubrey, though, didn’t end the regular season on a great note, seeing his first field goal against Washington blocked last Sunday, while missing another attempt later on.

You cannot fault Aubrey for the block; someone clearly missed an assignment on that one.

For those superstitious folks, the finger was pointed squarely at Fox commentator Kevin Burkhardt, who’d mentioned Aubrey’s perfect form before that kick.

Like saying the word shutout or clean sheet to a goalie before a game is finished, the jinx was in, though afterwards, Burkhardt did issue an apology on X.

Aubrey’s previous 35 field goals were right down the pipe, many from long distance, going 10/10 on kicks from 50 yards and beyond.

The thought of not again might be in the backs of some people’s minds after last Sunday though.

Blessing in Disguise

Sadly many Minnesota Viking fans remember Gary Anderson for the wrong reasons.

What you’re often judged upon in kicking is your makes and misses.

Like Aubrey, Anderson was 35/35 on field goals during the 1998 regular season.

Anderson’s miss in the NFC Championship Game versus Atlanta though, is all that most talk about today, as the “Dirty Birds” came back to beat the Vikings in overtime.

The good news for Aubrey is that his misses happened in their final regular season affair.

Dallas had already clinched a playoff berth and his misses ultimately had no bearing on the outcome.

Just like all good things must come to an end, and what goes up must go down, there’d come a point where Aubrey would miss.

Better to do it last week, get it out of your system than have the lingering thought of will the streak end in the playoffs as far as I’m concerned.

Aubrey can go into this weekend’s matchup against the Packers with a clean slate, knowing he doesn’t have to read about his streak and the pressure that goes along with it.

Without mentioning Aubrey’s scintillating season for fear of a jinx, I will say that all of his field goal misses were on the road.

Dallas won’t play outside of AT&T Stadium until the NFC Championship, and that’s only with a 49ers victory.

You can read between the lines if you dare.

Aubrey’s great season earned him his first Pro Bowl selection in his first NFL campaign.