They Really Are America’s Team — and Maybe the World’s
November 30, 2005
I was playing around with the new sitemeter and saw some amazing stats.
Of the last 100 visitors, only eighteen were from Texas. Fourteen of you are visiting from outside the country, from such far flung places as Australia, New Zealand, France, Britain, Germany and the Netherlands. Closer to home, we’ve got a few fans clicking in from Canada and Mexico.
The other 68 of you are from the rest of the continental 48.
Awesome.
Philly’s Complaint Should Make Jerry Tamper (charge) Resistant
November 29, 2005
By now you’ve certainly heard the news. The Philadelphia Eagles have filed a complaint with the NFL charging Jerry Jones with tampering. Jerry’s alleged offense? He stated in a radio interview that he’s a “risk taker” and has taken on troublemakers like WR Terrell Owens before.
We would all be laughing if the consequences were not so severe. But I’m going to laugh anyway.
Consider the source, ladies and gentlemen. The Philadelphia Eagles front office is the party filing the complaint.
Let’s go in the wayback machine to the spring of 2004 and examine the manner in which the Eagles acquired T.O. Owens and his agent got into a dispute with the NFL over procedure. Owens was expected to become a free agent but missed a filing deadline that would have voided his contract. The league ruled that he was therefore still a member of the 49ers. Owens and his agent began working out a contract with the Philadelphia Eagles, who offered the 49ers a fifth round pick and a player as compensation. The 49ers were unhappy with such a low offer for a top-tier WR and traded Owens to the Baltimore Ravens for a 2nd round pick.
Owens refused to report to Baltimore, insisting he wanted to play for Philadelphia. The 49ers wanted more compensation from the Eagles but the Philly brass refused to budge because they wanted to wait on an arbitrator’s ruling that might have made Owens a free agent. The 49ers, Ravens and Eagles sorted out the mess before the scheduled hearing, so the arbitrator never ruled.
The 49ers blinked, fearing they might get nothing for him. They agreed to Philly’s offer of a 5th-round pick and backup DT Brandon Whiting, and returned the 2nd rounder to Baltimore, who concluded they would not fight for a player who was all but signed by another team. Owens then received a seven year, $42 million contract from the Eagles.
So let’s tally this up. The Eagles:
a. negotiated with Owens before the NFL ruled conclusively that Owens was a free agent. This may have been done with the 49ers blessing, but it did not have the league’s stamp of approval;
b. paid the 49ers less than market value for T.O., though they gave him a contract in line with his skills;
c. refused to match Baltimore’s offer, which was more in line with Owens’ value, because they knew he wanted to play for them.
On the other hand, the Cowboys owner said he has taken on players like Owens in the past.
Which reads more like tampering to you?
Oh, and did I mention that 14-hour hearing last week, where the Eagles presented reams of information to the league in order to shut down Owens for the remainder of the year?
Let’s see if we can put the Eagles’ reasoning into a syllogism. It would look something like this:
A. Terrell Owens is a disruptive player. We have won the right to suspend and later release him;
B. The Dallas Cowboys say they have taken on players like Owens, suggesting they might sign him when we release him;
C. Therefore, the Dallas Cowboys are guilty of tampering with our player, since it is our expressed intent to release him. Uh, wait……
The Eagles now look like the NFL’s possessive girlfriend — I don’t want him, but you can’t have him!
But T.O.’s the only crazy one here, right?
Where Have the Fullbacks Gone?
November 29, 2005
The Cowboys running troubles foreground the lack of a good fullback. Many teams share the Cowboys’ problem. The fullback is an endangered species in the early ’00s, as many teams have gone to one back three receiver sets, a la the Colts. College football compounds the problem as spead offenses are even more prevalent there. This means fewer fullbacks are being developed for the NFL teams that run traditional two back sets.
The trend has made the few bonafide fullbacks left valuable men. Lorenzo Neal, Mack Strong and William Henderson have learned what left-handed baseball relievers like Jesse Orosco have long known: as long as you can walk, you’ll have a job. Neal and Strong are both 13 year veterans and their teams would beg them to come back if they threatened retirement this offseason. Neal blasts holes for LaDainian Tomlinson in San Diego. Strong is Shaun Alexander’s escourt in Seattle. These unsung greybeards are big reasons why Alexander and Tomlinson lead the NFL in touchdowns.
Strong and the 11 year Packers veteran Henderson will be free agents next year. Dallas might consider them despite their age. Another younger option will be 49ers’ fullback Fred Beasley. The eight year pro was Garrison Hearst’s battering ram when San Francisco was still a playoff contender. Beasley is also considered the best running fullback in the game. I’m sure he would consider leaving a 49ers team that has crumbled around him.
Imagine how effective Julius Jones and Marion Barber would be with a Daryl Johnston clone leading their way. A fullback like Beasley would be a mid-priced free agent signing who could provide a big-ticket effect.
Defense Looking Thin Around the Middle
November 29, 2005
The Dallas linebacking corps, the thinnest and weakest unit on the defense, got weaker yesterday with word that captain Dat Nguyen was placed on injured reserve with neck and knee injuries. What’s worse, coach Bill Parcells suggested Nguyen may be considering retirement because the injuries prevent him from performing at his standard of play.
Nguyen played a bit against Denver, mostly out of necessity. His backup Scott Shanle was out with an ankle injury, meaning the Cowboys did not have a healthy weakside inside backer. Backup strongside linebacker Ryan Fowler got the start, meaning Dallas had no healthy backups. Nguyen spelled Ryan when Dallas played nickel defense.
The Cowboys moved quickly to add depth, signing free agent Michael Barrow. The eleven-year vet may start against the Giants on Sunday since he is familiar with the 3-4 scheme, having played it while he was a Panther in the late ’90s. Barrow has topped the 100 tackle mark six times in his career, most recently in 2003 when he was, coincidentally, a New York Giant. Barrow signed with the Redskins in 2004 but spent the entire season on IR with severe knee tendonitis.
Overtime Loss Underlines Dallas’ Strengths and Weaknesses
November 27, 2005
The overtime 24-21 loss to Denver Thursday offered Dallas the chance to measure itself against one of the NFL’s elite. It showed Dallas matched up very well. The defensive line is already a joy to watch and it spent the last 20 minutes of the game overwhelming Denver’s line. The seemingly flawless Jake Plummer was exposed as a QB who will serve up interceptions when you press him. The Dallas offense showed it can move against a pressure defense, answering three Denver leads with tying touchdown drives.
On the other hand, the game probably revealed the limits of the ‘05 team, as Dallas has four glaring areas of need, two on each side of the ball, that will probably end this season short of the Super Bowl.
Defense: nine strong and two missing.
The defense turned in a very impressive line Thusday. Denver had eleven possessions in regulation. Two were methodical touchdown drives, one in each half. Remarkably, Denver did nothing with its nine remaining possessions. Absolutely nothing. Six were three and outs. Two were four and outs, where a first-down-producing pass was followed by a three weak plays. The ninth was a one play drive where Plummer was baited by Terence Newman into throwing a deep interception.
The secondary played superbly, in spite of missing RCB Anthony Henry. The Broncos made backup Aaron Glenn one of their targets, yet failed to abuse him. Here is his line for the day:
Among those eight passes were four long bombs. None of them were completed.
Shanahan was wary of throwing right at LCB Terence Newman, with good cause:
Dallas, with Glenn and Jacques Reeves getting extensive playing time, took the Broncos receivers out of the game. Denver’s wideouts caught only six passes and just one for more than ten yards. They might have performed more poorly had Henry been healthy.
Denver moved the ball aerially in two ways. The first was in the deep middle, against safeties Keith Davis and Roy Williams. Tight end Jeb Putzier got 23 yards on Denver’s first TD drive when Davis was slow to close on him. He got a key 20 yards on a third and seven play early in the third when Williams was picked by a criss-crossing Broncos receiver. He also got fourteen on a first down cross on Williams that the SS just missed tipping away. Safety coverage has been an issue all year and would benefit from some more speed and recognition skills at the free position. However, these are not the types of plays that beat a team.
The one position that Denver exposed consistently was the left outside linebacker. The Broncos managed only eighteen runs in regulation and shied away from the middle of the Cowboys front, choosing to attack the left and right perimeters. Shanahan called most of his plays to his left at Demarcus Ware. Ware held his end. Denver’s big plays came on the few times they ran right:
Denver also threw three passes at LOLB’s Scott Fujita and Kevin Burnett for 24 yards. Dallas furiously rotated the two, hoping to find some consistency, but neither could close off his side. Denver targeted Fujita for early passes. One, a 13 yard shallow cross to Mike Anderson, kept Denver’s first TD drive alive. On Denver’s second half TD drive Burnett got a chance but was lost in space. He gave up contain on a Plummer bootleg that let the QB get ten yards and a first down. On another third down Burnett lost track of TE Putzier, who gained eight yards and another first down. On Ron Dayne’s 16 yard TD run Denver ran a counter play at Burnett. Burnett dove inside Kyle Johnson, allowing the Denver fullback to hook him inside. Dayne ran around the exposed end untouched for a score.
LOLB has been a weakness all year and has become worse since Al Singleton was lost to injury. Fujita and Burnett’s poor play might explain the Cowboys’ signing of former Giants LB Michael Barrow today.
The perimeter weakness also undid the strong play of the Cowboys’ linemen. Jason Ferguson was a nuisance, stuffing the Broncos center and guards and pushing all runs wide. Chris Canty was unstoppable on runs and on passing downs. He and Ware prevented Denver from getting any push on runs to their side. Canty abused left guard Ben Hamilton. He drew a holding penalty that ended on Denver drive in the third quarter. Later, Canty’s pressure forced an errant throw that Newman dropped at the Denver 30. In the first half, he and Greg Ellis combined on a stunt that resulted in an Ellis sack. Dallas also had a mismatch at right tackle, where Ellis got the better of George Foster.
Dallas had Denver measured, and if they had a bookend to Demarcus Ware, they could have shut the Broncos down completely. I’ve been predicting the Cowboys will draft an OLB in the first round next April, and this game only intensifies that belief. One more big playmaker outside would take this defense from good to nasty.
Offense: understudies underwhelm
Two huge offensive mistakes linger in the mind. The first was Drew Bledsoe’s inexplicable first quarter interception, where he overthrew an open Dan Campbell on an easy five yard out. The other was Billy Cundiff’s 33 yard miss of a field goal that would have given Dallas the lead with five minutes remaining in the game.
The play calling, as it does after every loss, also drew scrutiny, in particular the hitch pass thrown to Terry Glenn on a 3rd and one on Dallas’ last possession. That was a poor call, but critics should look at the overall game plan, which was the Cowboys’ most aggressive since the blowout win over Philadelphia. The Cowboys attacked from the beginning, throwing on nine of their first eleven offensive plays. Dallas moved the ball but was undone by two drops and the Bledsoe interception.
Sean Payton set up CB Champ Bailey with some hitch passes and then torched him when Bledsoe faked a hitch and snuck Keyshawn Johnson behind him for a TD. Dallas ran a new rollout-throwback pass to Terry Glenn that worked for 38 yards. The first half ratio of passes to runs was 60:40.
There was even good news on the pass blocking front, as Torrin Tucker had his best day. Dallas turned him loose Thursday, offering almost no back and tight end help. And Tucker responsed; by my count he was only beaten once all day. Denver did get to Bledsoe a few times but needed heavy blitzes to faze him.
Dallas’ offensive troubles can be summed up in three simple words — backside run blocking. The running game stumbled against the league’s second-ranked run defense. The Broncos’ linebacking corps is probably the best Dallas has faced all year. They’re fast, smart and hard to block. They play in an agressive scheme that has them moving a lot just before the snap, making them harder for linemen to locate and reach. The Denver linemen also slant and loop a lot, using their speed to overcome their lack of size.
That speed tripped up the Cowboys linemen. In the first half, Broncos linemen caught several running plays from the backside on run blitzes. On one notable play, Dallas ran the counter play it had used so effectively against Arizona and Detroit, with center Al Johnson and Larry Allen pulling left to lead Julius Jones. Denver’s weakside backer D.J. Williams raced through the hole created when Johnson pulled and caught Jones for no gain.
These plays are to be expected against a good front. But they were not the sole reason the running game sputtered. As is the case with the FS and SOLB positions, this game exposed weaknesses at fullback and tight end that Dallas cannot resolve this season.
Several Cowboys runs failed because the lead blockers and backside blockers for Julius Jones and Marion Barber failed to do the job. FB Lousaka Polite and TE Jason Witten were the most frequent culprits. Polite’s whiffs denied Dallas several long runs. An example came in the second quarter. The Cowboys were facing a second and twelve from their own one after a stellar Denver punt. Dallas called a stretch play left from a two-TE, I set. All of the Dallas linemen and the tight ends locked up their men and a huge seam developed between LG Larry Allen and C Al Johnson. The Broncos’ safety was set deep, fifteen yards beyond the line of scrimmage. The play would turn on the duel between Polite and Denver MLB Al Wilson. If Polite blocked Wilson, Julius Jones had room for a first down. Polite was beaten to the hole by Wilson, who shed him and dropped Jones after a one yard gain.
In the third quarter, Dallas called a draw for Jones on third and seven. Polite led Jones through the hole and shoved LB Ian Gold enough to spring Jones free for eight yards and a first down. Polite’s block did just the bare minimum but no more. Gold was therefore able to herd Jones towards the sideline and out of bounds. Had Polite cut Gold, or locked him up, Jones would have had an open corner and a chance to make a much longer run. Polite clearly lacks the speed and bulk to be a quality fullback. He’s regularly beaten to the hole and lacks the ballast to stand defenders up.
Polite had company in his infamy. Witten had backside responsibility on Denver ends for much of the day and failed to cut them. Far too often, they slashed across his face and were able to dive and trip up the Dallas runners after one and two yard gains, when the frontside blocking was strong. I gave Witten poor marks after the Raiders loss and saw the same inconsistent blocking Thursday. Sadly, Witten’s bad blocks helped undo his season-best receiving day.
The final backside failure came on the second and two play from the Denver 49 at the two minute warning. This time, RT Rob Petitti whiffed on a slanting Courtney Brown. Brown dropped Julius Jones by the ankles for no gain. This consistent failure to convert simple running plays factored into Payton’s decision to pass on the next play.
The question, which I asked after the Raiders loss, is what to do? Witten is too valuable to take out of the lineup. Dan Campbell is a steady blocker, but he seems to have lost the step he never had after last year’s foot injury. He’s stiff and has average hands at best. His presence in the lineup compromises the passing game. It has not been mentioned as a top priority for the ‘06 offseason, but add a quality tight end to the wish list.
The bigger need, perhaps the biggest on the offensive side of the ball, is fullback. The Cowboys short yardage and goalling rush has all but disappeared since the bye, and it was not that strong before. DE Marcus Spears’ play as goalline FB tells you everything you need to know about Polite’s blocking skills.
Lost in the dreck was a promising game by Al Johnson. The young center had his best day run blocking, handling Denver’s slant nose tackles with regularity. On a couple of plays he turned and pancaked Broncos’ NTs. This after he injured his knee in pregame warmups. Bill Parcells mentioned that Johnson will probably need a minor scope procedure but is expected to play against the Giants. He and Torrin Tucker show signs of life after slow starts to their Cowboys careers.
On the whole, the team showed that it will soon belong among the league’s elite. Bill Parcells wanted to build a defense that could line up and physically overpower opponents. He’s close to completing the job, as top offenses like the Giants, Seahawks and now the Broncos have learned. The offense continues to stubbornly pursue a power running attack and has found two quality backs for its trouble. It also may have found keepers in Tucker, Johnson and Petitti. However, those four holes, two on the offense and two on the defense, mean that the glory everybody craves will probably have to wait until next year.
Notes: Some readers have asked if there was holding on Ron Dayne’s 55 yard run on the second play of overtime. There was and there wasn’t. The play was run to the left. For the only time all day, Denver got the Dallas interior linemen to overpursue on that side.
On the backside, in contrast to the Dallas linemen, RG Cooper Carlisle was able to cut Jason Ferguson and get his back turned to the play. The holding, which I’ll call a loose hold, was by RT George Foster on DE Marcus Spears. Foster grabbed and held Spears’ jersey, slowing his pursuit. It was not a glaring foul and being on the backside, not something the back judge was likely to see. I also don’t think that Spears would have been able to catch Dayne from the backside anyway, had he been able to run free.
“We’re Not Houston”
November 27, 2005
Cowboys fans will remember that was Jimmy Johnson’s response to NBC announcer Jim Gray in a halftime interview during Super Bowl 27. The Cowboys had a big lead and Gray wondered aloud whether Buffalo could come back the way they had against Houston, when they erased a 35-3 Oilers lead in the divisional playoffs.
That line came to me watching TV a few minutes ago. I live in the Austin area. The CBS affiliate here has given us the Texans games religiously since they were formed. They’ve signed on to pregames and post-games and all forms of promos for that moribund team.
Today? The Texans are playing the Rams, but the CBS affiliate is showing Washington versus San Diego. The need of Cowboys fans to watch their rival apparently is greater than the need of the Austin-area Texans fans — all 187 of them — to watch their boring team.
Tex Schramm used to joke in the ’70s that the Cowboys were more popular in Houston than the Oilers (sorry, Oiler Troll). I can’t speak for Clutch City but it hasn’t taken long for the Texans to lose their Austin beachhead. With the Saints flirting around San Antonio, prospects can’t be hot for the Texans there either.
It’s good to be the king.
Sunday Open Thread
November 27, 2005
I get a chance to watch the competition; I’m getting Washington/San Diego and Chicago/Tampa Bay now with Seattle/Giants later. What do you see?
2nd Half Thread, Cowboys - Broncos
November 24, 2005
I’m very happy to be wrong about my predicted score.
Cowboys - Broncos Open Thread
November 24, 2005
Here’s hoping the Broncos become Thanksgiving stuffing.
Cowboys - Broncos Preview
November 24, 2005
The Cowboys face perhaps their toughest challenge this afternoon in the Denver Broncos. Denver ranks second in the AFC with an 8-2 mark but has been the most consistent team in the league since its week one flop against Miami.
When Denver Has the Ball
The Broncos like to run — a lot. Establishing the run is priority one in all their games and will be again today. Much has been said throughout the year about Dallas’ offensive conservatism but consider this Denver stat: the Broncos have thrown more than they have run only twice this year. That was in the first two games of the season.
The Broncos will run it as much as you let them. If they get ahead and can maintain the lead they won’t let up. In several games this year their run-pass ratio has been 2:1.
The lead the NFL in rushing yardage per game, averaging over 168.
Their stellar rushing has made QB Jake Plummer’s job one of the easiest in the game. He’s playing like Bob Griese did for the early ’70s Dolphins, throwing just 16 to 18 times in many of the Broncos wins. Plummer and Broncos HC Mike Shanahan have been able to pass on their terms this year and this has made Plummer the most error-free QB in the league; he has not thrown an interception since week two.
The staple of the Broncos running game is their stretch play. You often hear it referred to as their “zone blocking” scheme, as if they were the only team in the NFL to incorporate it. In fact, many teams use the zone scheme, but few execute it as effectively as Denver.
Denver has some philosophical differences from the other zone blocking teams. They prefer smaller, more mobile linemen who can run. Watch the Broncos at the snap and you’ll see five linemen running quickly and laterally. They want to reach outside the linemen they are blocking and hook them inside. If the opposing linemen runs too hard to get to the outside, the linemen will help them, pushing them even harder to create a hole. On the backside the Denver linemen take advantage of a league rule allowing an offensive lineman to hit an opponent in the back of the leg. All teams do this to some extent, but no team bends the rule to its limit as much as the Broncos.
The idea is to get the defensive line moving laterally and hope that at least one of the offensive lineman can hook his man. If it happens on the perimeter the Denver back will go outside. If a lineman creates a seam on the backside, the runner will cut back in that direction. Once the defenders on the backside of plays become overly concerned with pursuit and shutting down cutback lanes, Denver will run the mobile Plummer on bootlegs. Once the backside ends and linebackers temper their pursuit of runs to wait on Plummer’s rollouts, the cutback lanes reappear. This is the vicious cycle the Broncos create for opposing front sevens.
Defending the Broncos running game requires discipline, athleticism, power and depth. Dallas has the power and depth, with a six man defensive line rotation that is young and strong. Don’t be surprised if Dallas activates an extra lineman today to keep the rotation turning should somebody get injured. The play of the Dallas inside linebackers has improved dramatically since Bradie James became confortable with the mental aspects of the pro game around week six.
The biggest concern for Dallas will be the play of the outside linebackers Demarcus Ware and Scott Fujita. Ware seems to have hit a wall in his rookie campaign, as his play has regressed since the bye. Fujita has a maddening tendency to play hot and cold. Both players were awful in containment against the Eagles. Donovan McNabb ran several bootlegs successfully to Fujita’s side, forcing the Dallas coaches to insert rookie Kevin Burnett midway through the game.
Ware’s problems this year have come on containment against outside runs. Early in the year, he was allowing tackles and tight ends to hook him inside. He got better in the middle of the season but has shown some of his old bad habits the last two games. He improved in the Detroit game, as did Fujita, but if these two don’t improve their recognition and technique the Broncos will take yards in huge chunks against them.
One possible antidote to the OLBs troubles is moving Roy Williams up to the line of scrimmage. If he has weakside responsiblilty and is sent on run blitzes, the backside linebackers can concentrate more on taking Plummers rollouts away. And taking his option passes away is a huge part of beating Denver. Only one team has been able to shut Denver’s run down in their last nine games. That was San Diego, back in September. The three teams that have forced the Broncos to struggle, the Chargers, Redskins and Giants, all contained Plummer. They harrassed his rollouts and forced him to operate from the pocket, where he is not as effective.
If Anthony Henry is healthy, look for Dallas to press Denver’s receivers and bring controlled heat on Plummer. When Denver does throw, keeping veteran WR Rod Smith under control is key. Smith is Plummer’s primary target. He has 52 receptions, roughly 40% more than the next Denver wideout, speedster Ashley Lelie. The Cowboys had a lot of trouble defending the deep ball early in the year, but have allowed just one reception of over 40 yards since Randy Moss ripped them for a 70 yarder in week four. That came in the Cardinals win, when Anquan Boldin outfought Henry for a touchdown. Denver is not a deep passing team, though they will take a couple of chances to Lelie. Keeping Plummer inside the hash marks and marking Smith tighly are essential to keeping Denver’s aerial game under control.
When Dallas Has the Ball:
Denver took a lot of abuse when it raided the lowly Cleveland Browns for much of its defense line this offseason. Gerard Warren, Courtney Brown, Ebenezer Ekuban and Michael Myers, the latter two former Cowboys draftees, were considered washouts. Right now the Broncos are having the last laugh. They have conbined with Trevor Pryce and the rest of the Broncos front seven to produce the second best run defense in the league. There are several factors in this ranking. The first is that Denver has an athletic linebacking corps, led by MLB Al Wilson. OLBs Ian Gold and D.J. Williams can fly to the ball. Denver also has the old headhunter John Lynch playing strong safety. He’s lost a step from his Tampa Bay days, but he’s still one of the smarter players around and will nail you if he gets close to you. The second factor is that Denver’s opponents often abandon the run, because they are playing catchup.
This second point suggests that the coin toss will be one of the most important factors of the game. Denver is a fast starting team and has scored first on every opponent except Miami. Getting ahead of the Broncos, or keeping pace with them will determine the contour of the game. For this reason, don’t be surprised if Dallas starts the game winging it down the field. A replay of the home Philadelphia game, where Dallas attacked the Eagles corners with Terry Glenn, may be coming.
Denver’s secondary is the weakness of their defense. It’s not terrible, but it ranks 28th in the league. One reason, as I have pointed out, is that Denver’s opponents are often playing from behind. However, the Denver back four has shown difficulty in stopping good passing games when it knows the pass is coming. It’s win over the Eagles is a case in point. Denver raced to a 28-0 lead but watched Philly roar back once Donovan McNabb warmed up. The Eagles cut the lead to 28-21 and were driving for the tying score when McNabb threw an interception in the Broncos end zone.
The remarkable, or perhaps not so remarkable part of the Eagles comback is that they torched CB Champ Bailey in the process. Terrell Owens schooled him on a 90 yard catch and run and later beat him for a 58 yard reception. Bailey is one of the most overrated players in the league. Football passing analyst K.C. Joyner noted that in ‘04 Bailey’s performance put him in the bottom half of corners, as he was one of the most beaten on deep balls. Yet he was voted to the Pro Bowl. TV announcers talk about his believed covererage skills so reflexively that his name has morphed from “Champ Bailey” to “Shutdowncorner Champ Bailey.”
Bailey is having another difficult year, as he has played with a separated shoulder and a strained hamstring. Denver coaches blamed the bad hammy for Owens’ big catches. He’s listed as questionable because of the leg injury. If he takes the field and is matched up man-to- man on Terry Glenn, expect Sean Payton to target him frequently.
Also expect Dallas to take more shots to slot receiver Peerless Price out of the three WR set. Price’s production has not risen to the standard Patrick Crayton set before his injury. Price has been improving however. He caught a 58 yard bomb against the Eagles and was open deep agaist the Lions, but was missed by Bledsoe. The Cowboys have been running a lot of three man routes, keeping a back and tight end in to help tackles Torrin Tucker and Rob Petitti. Denver plays a pressure scheme, so look for more of the same, especially since the deep matchups, especially Glenn’s and Price’s, favor Dallas.
If Dallas does get a lead, look for them to then try and hammer Marion Barber and Julius Jones at the Broncos front. Dallas has been stubborn in its attempts to get the run going and has had its two best running games of the year in its last two home games. A key has been the improved play of C Al Johnson and RG Marco Rivera, who have made Dallas the most right handed running team they’ve been since the early ’90s, when Erik Williams was healthy.
Prediction:
The game will turn on the first quarter. Denver will run the ball effectively. The Cowboys outside linebackers have been suspect lately and this makes me question how well the Dallas front can contain the Broncos’ runners. If the Broncos get an early 10 or 14 point lead, it will be a gloomy afternoon.
If, on the other hand, Dallas can hit Denver with some early passes, they can dictate the pace of the game. Dallas will get yards through the air. The question is whether they do it early, in the process of getting the lead, or late, in the process of trying to catch up.
The bigger question marks are on the Cowboys’ side. Drew Bledsoe struggled with his accuracy last week, and this has to be a concern with a short preparation week. I’m pulling for Dallas with both hands, but my head tells me to go with consistency.
Denver 20, Dallas 17
The Tape Puts Life into a Dull Game
November 22, 2005
I am more enthusiastic about the Cowboys chances after watching the tape. Some highlights that got lost in the shuffle.
– Dallas, aside from those three teeth-gnashing plays at the goal line, ran the ball well all day. The opening drive had only two short completions. Dallas threw only two passes the entire fourth quarter.
– The game was an early ’90s Parcells special. Hog the ball early, get a lead, take the life out of the other team and shorten the game. The first drive was fourteen plays and 8:02 long. The second drive was stopped by a Julius Jones fumble. The third drive was 13 plays and 6:43 long.
– The right side of the line was more effective running the ball than the left. Dallas made good work of a strange version of a power sweep right in which RG Marco Rivera and center Al Johnson pull. The more familiar version of this sweep has both guards pulling, but Johnson must be better at pulling wide than Allen at this point.
– Dallas was quite good in running the ball in from the five and six. It was goal line plays — and third and ones — that give the o-line trouble. Sean Payton is calling Drew Bledsoe’s number a lot in those situations and he’s getting the job done.
– Torrin Tucker got a lot less help on passes this past week than he did in the Cardinals and Eagles games. He handled his man effectively.
– The defense recovered from some sloppy tackling on the opening drive to shut Detroit down. The Lions had only one sustained drive the afternoon, and made only two plays of any significance, both on that drive. Kevin Jones faked out Scott Fujita on a pass in the flat and escaped for 28 yards. Later, Roy Williams split the Cowboys’ safeties and caught a 30 yard pass.
The run defense, with a few exceptions, was solid. Fujita and Demarcus Ware both got caught inside on early runs Jones broke wide. This should not have happened because Dallas was playing a 4-3 with the OLBs set wide on the line of scrimmage; it was in effect a 6-1, the type of 4-3 lineup NFL defenses used to play in the ’50s and ’60s. To their credit, both linebackers improved as the game progressed. Detroit did nothing on the ground in the second half. Kevin Burnett did sneak into a couple of series in the second half to spell Fujita. He didn’t make any plays of note, but may get more time this week, especially if Fujita bites too hard on bootleg plays, something he did against Donovan McNabb two games ago.
– The rush was not as bad as we panic mongers screamed in the gameday threads. I expected Dallas to blitz and Mike Zimmer held off for the most part. That accounts for my harsh words about the rush. LaRoi Glover had a strong game and got a consistent inside push. When Dallas did blitz, Roy Williams drew a couple of holding penalties.
It was not a perfect game, but if Dallas had gotten that last yard and gone up 14-0 there was the real chance of seeing a shutout. Detroit got eight possessions in the game and penetrated the Cowboys’ 30 just once. The offense had its most conservative game plan of the year and still had grinding drives in all four quarters, finishing with over 36 minutes in possession time. When passes were called, Cowboys receivers got open.
So why did this game look so sleepy?
I think there were two reasons. The first was Bledsoe’s lack of accuracy. He missed a wide open Witten on a throwback screen in the first quarter. Witten would have scored on the play. On Dallas’ final first half drive Peerless Price snuck behind the Lions’ secondary, but Bledsoe missed him. He also missed on a couple of stop fades to Keyshawn Johnson that have been automatic all year. The lack of a passing rhythm forced three punts in the middle of the game and broke the momentum Dallas built in the first 23 minutes of the game. I would be surprised if Bledsoe missed open receivers like this again this week. He’s had some shorthop throws in every game, but his accuracy has been a strength.
Preening referee Ed Hochuli and his crew were the second and in my opinion the larger reason the game deteriorated. “Ed Hercules” and his boys went flag crazy. Detroit did commit a silly number of false starts but the zebras also called illegal contact to an insane extent. Consequently, the game was stopped a number of times for no reason. Dallas benefitted from a phantom roughing call on its second scoring drive. On the other hand, the Cowboys’ third drive stalled when Torrin Tucker was called for holding on a play where he didn’t touch anybody.
The signature play of this yawner came in the third quarter when the officials called offsetting personal fouls on a play when Roy Williams gave Joey Harrington a tepid shove. Lion Marcus Pollard drew the second flag when he tossed the ball to a sideline official. The official missed the ball and drew his handkerchief when the ball hit his face. Fox announcer Tony Saragusa rightly yelled, “you can’t flag a guy because you can’t catch.” Neither player should have been penalized.
What’s worse, Hockuli’s crew had a habit of meeting and discussing every infraction for at least half a minute before making a call. As a result a game that should have ended in about 2:45 topped the three hour mark.
On the whole, however, the game plan offers encouragement for the short week. Thanksgiving Day games are sloppier than most because the teams have less time to prepare game plans and to let their bodies recover from Sunday’s games. The team that has fewer moving parts on its offensive and defensive machines usually wins. A couple of weeks ago I would have said this fact favored Denver. Now that I’ve seen the stripped-down Cowboys control a game, admittedly against a mediocre team, I feel much better about their chances.
The Playoffs Begin Thursday
November 21, 2005
Looked at the standings in the last few minutes?
Dallas has the third seed in the NFC as of today. Be proud and be wary. Five of the last six games match Dallas against teams in the playoff mix. Denver is the 2nd seed in the AFC. Kansas City is the 8th AFC seed. The Panthers are the 4th seed in the NFC with the Giants 6th and the Redskins 8th.
They are Dallas’ next five opponents.
The playoffs, for all practical purposes, begin against the Broncos. A bad streak in the next month and Dallas’ season is done.
Holiday Hankering
November 20, 2005
I’m considering giving myself satellite radio for Christmas. I’m intrigued by the chance to get all the NFL games live. Does anybody have the Sunday Drive, as it’s called? What do you think of it?
Instant Snapshot
November 20, 2005
Some instant observations, post Lions win:
– Anthony Henry got one quarter of work. With the Broncos coming up Thursday, there’s no point in overworking that tender groin.
– Today was Drew Bledsoe’s sloppiest day throwing the ball. He missed lots of open receivers. Some throws were hurried. Others were not.
– Some players can play on one leg or on one arm. Rob Petitti went on a fuzzy head for the last 40 minutes after being kicked in the back of the helmet.
– Detroit had some success running outside on both the Cowboys OLBs during the first half. In the second half they went mostly at Demarcus Ware. Ware stepped up his game and helped shut the Lions ground game down.
– Greg Ellis made a big play, but the Cowboys pass rush is out to sea. If Mike Zimmer can’t locate it by Thursday, the turkey dinner won’t taste good for the Cowboys nation.
– The ground game was strong early and late. But you know that failure to punch in a first and goal from the one will stick in Parcells’ craw all week.
– Dallas may have found its running backs blend for the remainder of the season. Julius Jones had 21 carries for the afternoon and Marion Barber had 15.
– The coverage teams had a strong day, holding the dangerous Eddie Drummond in check.
– Welcome back Billy Cundiff. His 56 yarder field goal was dead center. It’s strange, but the injury may have been a blessing in disguise. I saw Cundiff in Oxnard this year and in San Antonio in 2003 and I do not recall him ever having this type of distance. He worked really hard during his rehab.
– They’re spoiling us. The tackling was sloppy at times. The pass rush, or the lack of it, was frustrating. Yet the defense held Detroit to 226 total yards and only one sustained drive all day.
– It was surprising not to see Kevin Burnett today, considering Scott Fujita’s early struggles.
– Big glut: The Cowboys, Giants, Bucs, Panthers and Bears are all 7-3. I’m glad I don’t do power rankings.
Cowboys - Lions Open Thread
November 20, 2005
It’s time for the first three-game winning streak of the year. We’ve had enough of the up-and-down results.
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