You have to win a game for it to be a rivalry. It’s been nothing but ownage by the 49ers between these two teams
Relax, breathe. I can feel the anger coming from 49ers fans about the headline. I hear it now: “Jason isn’t old enough to understand the rivalry.” Let me stop you right there.
Some of my earliest moments as a 49ers fan were losses to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Championship Games. When the 49ers finally broke through following the acquisition of Deion Sanders and defeated the Cowboys, the Chargers stood no chance. Nine-year-old Jason even understood the winner of the NFC title game was the Super Bowl champion.
The thing is, that was then. The 49ers and Cowboys traded blows and, more importantly, wins and losses. There is no denying the huge moments between the two franchises, including Dwight Clark’s touchdown reception, which sent the 49ers to their first Super Bowl and birthed a dynasty. Clark’s logo on “The Catch” is what Jerry West’s logo is for the NBA, if the NFL had one.
This isn’t a rivalry anymore because the 49ers keep crushing Dallas. A rivalry where one team gets soundly beat repeatedly isn’t a rivalry; it’s ownage. If you think I’m not keeping the same energy, then let me stop you again. The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t the 49ers’ rivals either. It’s not a rivalry if one team can’t beat the other.
As the career record between the two franchises sits, the 49ers are leading 20-19-1. Here’s a summary of the “rivalry” lately: The 49ers whip the Cowboys, Dallas players vow to “have something” for the 49ers the next time they see them, and the next time they seem they get whipped again. Rinse and repeat.
For a “rivalry” that is so storied, I’d argue the Los Angeles Rams have more of a claim to a rivalry currently after beating the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game after years of the 49ers beating them. Hell, even the Philadelphia Eagles have a better claim to a rivalry as the two-game stretch against the 49ers is 1-1 with an NFC Championship victory.
The 49ers didn’t have much of a rivalry against Seattle during Russell Wilson and Richard Sherman’s time until they started winning games. That rivalry went from being one-sided to the 49ers turning into a nonrivalry after Dre Greenlaw’s goal-line stop. Seattle is on a huge losing streak against the Niners. Again, it’s not a rivalry, it’s a one-sided beef.
History is history and NBC will play up the moments when it was two heavyweights clashing from the 90’s, but the 49ers are the heavyweights and the Cowboys are bantamweights heading into Sunday night’s game. Regardless of how the 49ers have looked lately, the Cowboys have been exponentially worse on offense and defense in 2024.
If the 49ers whip up on the Cowboys again, it will push the “rivalry” away further than ever. Dallas ran back the exact same team, added Tyler Guyton, and returned Ezekiel Elliott. They look even worse than ever.
Rivals are for teams that traded wins and losses. Not for teams who get crushed in different venues with different quarterbacks. History is history, but nothing is more “history” than the idea the 49ers and Cowboys are rivals.
Take care of business on Sunday, 49ers. Try to win a game before anyone claims there is a rivalry instead of continued beatdowns, Dallas. Otherwise, this is just big brother/little brother. That’s not a rivalry; that’s ownage.