You are correct.
They only let Dallas into the playoffs this year because they risked losing viewership if they pushed this drought any further.
Incredibly, with consistently one of the most expensive rosters of athletes in the World, the Cowboys were for several years after the dynast of super bowl wins among the most penalized teams in the NFL.
It is theater. I really wish I could give up my addiction. It is ridiculous. The wrestling metaphors are quite apt.
I hope that Troy Aikman was able to give Aaron Rogers a sponge bath after the game. I know he really admires and likes Aaron— what a great quarterback. He really is incredible you know.
Incidentally, if you are curious about how the NFL is managed by the refs, I highly recommend this website:
http://www.teamrankings.com/nfl/stat/penalty-first-downs-per-game?date=2009-02-02
At this site, you can see not simply how many penalties your team receives but how many their opponents received. You can see how many yards are transacted. You can see year to year. You can see how often teams got first downs off penalties. It is pretty clear that there are patterns and it seems far from random.
You contend that mult games were thrown to get Dallas into the post season but Cowboys fans are the tin foil hat wearers?!?!