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Cowboys can't stand 49ers

By DENNE H. FREEMAN / AP Sports Writer

IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Games against San Francisco are always special, no matter the record of the participants.

This year, the 49ers have a chance to put the Dallas Cowboys into a deep hole from which there might be no recovery.

While San Francisco rides high at 7-1, the Cowboys are limping along with a 4-4 record, in danger of falling too far behind to defend their NFC East title. The New York Giants lead the division the Cowboys have won for the last five years with a 6-3 record.

Bill Bates, the Cowboys' special teams captain who has been around for every San Francisco-Dallas game in the last 15 years, said the 49ers would take special delight in beating the Cowboys on Sunday.

"They see us down and they want to be the first team to dig in a sword and twist it," Bates said. "This series has always been so competitive. ... There have been some great memories of some of the games we've lost and some of the games we have won."

Quarterback Troy Aikman said games against the 49ers mean more than the average regular-season game.

"Both franchises have a lot of pride," Aikman said. "We're always excited about playing them. This year this may be a bigger game for us than for them. We're not as good as we've been in the past, but we're still a pretty good team. But there always seems to be a lot at stake when we play the 49ers."

Aikman said San Francisco "has as good a defensive team as you can find in the NFL."

Then, almost as a warning to his teammates, he added: "If we don't play better, we'll get embarrassed. Our team doesn't have a whole lot of chances left. There is no room for error. Our goal is still to win the NFC East and I still feel we can do that."

Running back Emmitt Smith said he knows the 49ers will be geared to stop him.

"They always play the run tough," Smith said. "They always get up for the Cowboys. We need to correct our problems quickly. We're starting to run out of real estate. If we do correct our problems, there are a whole bunch of teams out there who are in a lot of trouble."

San Francisco coach Steve Mariucci said he has noticed a different feeling in workouts this week.

"I've sensed a different atmosphere at our facility," Mariucci said. "Dallas is all you can hear on the talk shows. Everybody seems to be getting jacked up. It's always a huge game between two teams who have won 10 of the last 15 Super Bowls."

Actually, it's eight of the last 16, but who's counting. The message is clear.