Browns, ’Boys thinking big

Cleveland’s first challenge is a big one as both teams look to make playoff runs.

CLEVELAND (AP) — They’re more “American Idol” than America’s Team these days. Celebrities in shoulder pads, the Dallas Cowboys have stars on their helmets, on the field and on their guest list.

From T.O. to Romo to Jerry Jones to Jessica Simpson to Pacman (sorry, make that Adam), the Cowboys can dazzle on the red carpet or in the red zone.

They even had their own hit summer reality TV show as HBO’s “Hard Knocks” spent a few weeks peering behind the scenes at Dallas’ training camp.

True NFL blue bloods, no team has a higher profile. And no team has greater expectations.

“It’s always Super Bowl or bust kind of deal,” quarterback Tony Romo said this week, “and we start the next year and it’s Super Bowl or bust again. It’s just part of it. Every team has pressure at the start of the year because every organization thinks they have a chance to be really good this year.

“We’re no different. I think we’re going to go out there and hopefully do good things on the field.”

Without a postseason win since 1996 — an eternity in demanding Big D — the Cowboys, 13-3 last season with 13 players in the Pro Bowl, will embark on another title run today. They open against the Cleveland Browns, a team with similarly high hopes and an offense capable of matching Dallas point for point.

While the Browns may not be able to match the Cowboys’ Q rating or star power, they also have their eyes on the playoffs — and perhaps something even bigger. And if the football bounces the right way, who knows? The New York Giants weren’t exactly the trendy pick to win it all last season. But they did, knocking the Cowboys off their high horses in the first round of the NFC playoffs.

This, though, is supposed to be Dallas’ season.

“I think everyone knows across the nation that we have the talent,” Terrell Owens said. “We just have to go out there and do what we do best. Everybody is excited with what can become of what we have in this locker room. We aren’t going to by any means win the Super Bowl by what we do in Week 1.”

As is usually the case, Owens will be in the spotlight. He’ll be matched against a suspect Cleveland secondary, which will likely be without starting safety Brodney Pool (concussion) and has two second-year cornerbacks in Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald — both listed generously at 5-foot-10. They will have to deal with the imposing 6-foot-3, 215-pound Owens, perhaps the toughest assignment they’ll ever face.

“Big-bodied guy. Great receiver. Great hands. Great route-running ability. Pro Bowl starter,” McDonald said, listing Owens’ many attributes. “We’ve got a few of those guys ourselves. We’re going to try to prepare the best we can and get ready for him.”