I did not "blame the defense for not pitching a shutout". What I said was that the Skins led the game with about 6 minutes to play. The defense did not have to hold them outside field goal range; they had to prevent a TD.
They had done that - - and more - - all day long. But when it mattered most - - because if they failed the staggering offense would have precious little time to overcome the deficit - - the defense came up small.
The point for fanboys to look at is this:
The Skins' defense has done this about 5 or 6 times in the past two years. The coaches and the "Larry Michaels" of the world love to paint this as an elite defense. And for three quarters of a game they are usually well above average. But when it matters - - when it REALLY matters - - they OFTEN come up just small enough to lose the game.
Now if that isn't what happened on Sunday, I must have seen the wrong game. I'm not talking about what should have happened if the offense had scored more or what might have been if the moon were actually made of green cheese. I'm talking about what actually happened in the final six minutes of the Skins/Cowboys game on Sunday 11/22/2009.
As Dandy Don Merideth used to say on MNF back in the 70s:
"Were ifs and buts candy and nuts,
Oh, what a Christmas there'd be..."