That same source told me today that line depth remains the biggest area of concern on the team.  I wrote last week that Cory Procter and James Marten struggled against the Chargers and Joe Berger played poorly against the Broncos.  Doug Free looks solid at LT but Pat McQuistan has been hot-and-cold under Hudson Houck’s tutelage.  He looked more stable to my eyes against Denver but looked more consistent in ‘07.

Offensive and defensive lines are the hardest positions to find, at any time of the year so don’t look for Dallas to get lucky plucking anybody off waivers.  Any young lineman who hits the market will have multiple claims put on him and the Cowboys have one of the last slots in the claim order.

Hope that the linemen stay healthy again this year, especially at the center and guard positions.

Other tasty crumbs from the source:

– the Cowboys are NOT nervous about their WR play, even with Miles Austin’s setback.  “They want to see the young guys play,” I was told.  I’ll say it again.  Watch Isaiah Stanback carefully against Houston.  He’ll get a lot more reps with the second unit and while he’s not as far along as Austin, he is improving.  Hold off on those Anquan Boldin trade packages, folks, at least for the time being.

– Dallas is happy with the safety play as well.  Take an early bow, Roy Williams.  And does this mean that Courtney Brown has a chance to make the final roster?  He made some plays on the line of scrimmage late against Denver, knifing in from the edge to spill a Broncos runner in the backfield.  On the other hand, he was also victimized by a long bootleg pass on a 4th-and-1 play.  These next two games are huge for him.

– I asked about the John Beck-to-Dallas rumors and was told that the characterizations from the Miami press, that Dallas had shown “mild interest” were “a nice choice of words.”  I take it there’s not much to this story.

Here are the six guys behind Newman in the pecking order:

Anthony Henry:

• Thrown at: 3
• Completions: 3
• Yards: 54

Eddie Royal blew up Henry’s line with a 32 yard catch where Henry got his hands on the ball but could not bat it away from the Bronco. Played soft on a Brandon Marshall comeback on the next play and surrendered a four yarder later.

Mike Jenkins

• Thrown at: 4
• Completions: 4
• Yards: 54

Welcome to the NFL rookie. Denver went after him on their opening drive. Brandon Marshall ran him off on a comeback; Jenkins was still running up the field when Marshall made his cut. Denver then crossed him up, running a stop and go to Royal that got Jenkins to bite. He slipped, letting Royal cruise for 35. Marshall ended Jenkins’ evening by executing Sprint Right Option, otherwise known to Dallas fans as “The Catch” play. Marshall ran what looked like a square in, then pivoted and took off for the deep right corner, where he caught Jay Cutler’s pass for a touchdown.

Evan Oglesby

• Thrown at: 6
• Completed: 3
• Yards: 37

A decent line, but it’s actually less than meets the eye. Twice he was beaten but saw his receivers drop the passes, at eight and 19 yards. Brandon Stokley beat him with ease when the Broncos starters were in. Oglesby’s good camp work may be eroding, because…

Adam Jones

• Thrown at: 4
• Completed: 3
• Yards: 6

How about that YPA of 1.5. Jones looked much more comfortable than he did in San Diego. His tackling was much better and he dropped an interception. He’ll likely start in the nickel on the right corner, with Newman playing the slot when teams go three wide. If Jones continues to play this way, Oglesby is back on the bench, and the fans will resume their chants to get Anthony Henry benched too.

Mike Lombardi said on last week’s show that Jones is not Deion Sanders. Who is these days? If Jones can play nickel corner like this, we’ll all be ecstatic. Jacques Reeves could never sub like this.

Orlando Scandrick

• Thrown at: 1
• Completed: 1
• Yards: 0

Scandrick’s lone throw was a memorable one. He blew up Broncos wideout Glenn Martinez on the goalline; Scandrick tracked his man into the end zone, saw Martinez cutting beneath him, released his original WR and rolled up to pop Martinez. The kid is making big hits on a regular basis. He also came within an eyelash of blocking a field goal and had a 32 yard kickoff return. Those are three good ways to keep yourself on the active roster on Sundays.

Alan Ball

• Thrown at: 4
• Completed: 1
• Yards: 20

Another less-than-meets-the-eye line. Ball took a penalty on one of the other plays, escaped a completion on another play because Marcus Smith tipped the ball and avoided being beaten for a TD on a fade when Patrick Ramsey’s pass floated wide and out of bounds. Ball looked lost on a couple of these plays and needs to make some positive plays to earn another year on the roster.

– Two weeks ago, Oglesby looked like he might force the coaches to keep six corners. He looked pretty good against San Diego but Adam Jones and Orlando Scandrick have probably jumped him in the pecking order. Oglesby still has a decent chance but he’ll need big games against Houston and Minnesota to turn momentum back in his favor. If the decision had to be made today, I think Dallas would keep five corners.

Cleveland’s offense looked awful. Their defense looked worse. Their special teams worse still. The final embarrassment came when Jamal Lewis fumbled the ball inside the Giants five, only to see it returned for a touchdown. Add Derek Anderson’s concussion and it was a forgettable night for the Browns.

I blame their uniforms.

Look at these abominations:

They’re absolutely schizophrenic. The jerseys are classic Browns, circa 1955. Otto Graham wore that shirt. So did Jim Brown. The pants, on the other hand, are something from Flashdance. All that’s missing are the leg warmers. And dig those two-tone, color-coordinated shoes. Even the cleats match!

Cleveland has one of the most understated, influential uniforms around. The helmets lack a side decal. The white-on-white unis started the home-white trend years before the Cowboys existed. Look at the Packers’ jerseys. Knockoffs of Cleveland’s, especially the sleeves. Look at the Dolphins’ uniforms from their glory days of the early ’70s. They’re replicas of the Browns’ ’50s unis, with aqua and orange replacing the orange and dark brown.

Tonight, Cleveland defamed that uniform, and you can just imagine the ghosts of Paul Brown and Marion Motley shaking their heads in disgust, then causing mischief with the football. All-black, spandex pants look good on Olympic sprinters, not on flabby, big-butted 345 pound linemen. (T.O. wears tights like this — under his regular uniform pants.) The Browns are football players, but they look like they’re late for a Richard Simmons aerobic session.

You simply can’t win looking like this, and Cleveland didn’t come close.

God, I hope the Browns wear them again on opening day against the Cowboys.

He’s still learning the position, having missed San Antonio’s camp with his foot in a walking boot. All his peers were complementary of him in Oxnard, especially Patrick Crayton, who said he’s just beginning to understand how to rely on his technique to build on his incredible physical skills.

He’s not as far along as Austin was, but let’s remember this is Austin’s third year on the roster. Stanback has been working very hard, staying after practice to quiz both Ray Sherman and Bruce Read on receiving and special team’s techniques. He’s eager to get on the field any way possible and made as impression as a kick returner. He may become one of the preferred two there because he worked very hard on his blocking when kickoffs went to the other deep returner. He’s also good with the ball in his hands, posting a 32 yard return early against Denver.

He’s been running hard and catching everything thrown his way in the games, but the reads have not brought the ball his way as much as he would like, working with the third units. He’ll get his reps with the second unit now.

Make the most of it, sir. The team needs you.

Austin’s setback raises the question of whether Dallas will keep six receivers or pursue a veteran. This might open the door for a Danny Amendola, but he might be looking for a practice squad spot shortly thereafter if Austin makes a speedy rehab. Much will depend on how guys like Erik Walden, Courtney Brown and Marcus Dixon do. Dixon has yet to make the field and is looking more and more like a practice squad candidate, though the coaches are eager to get him on the field.

Know that there won’t be any quality receivers available this time of the year, unless a team loses its mind. Two weeks ago, I had former Cowboys’ scout and Galloway & Company regular Bryan Broaddus on my show and asked him how hard it is to obtain a wide receiver at this time of the year.

He recounted an offer he fielded for the Cowboys years ago:

“For some reason the Bengals were fed up with T.J. Houshmanzadeh and they really liked James Whalen, a light, speed tight end from Kentucky we had at that time. They offered to swap them straight up and I was ready to make the deal… I asked them, ‘do you want me to file the papers right now?’ [with the NFL] and they took a step back and said, ‘let us think about this overnight.’ They didn’t follow through on the deal. That’s the closest I’ve ever come to seeing a deal for a good receiver. They’re just not available…”

Any receiver Dallas did claim would likely not be better than what’s already on the roster, would be trying to learn the playbook from scratch and would be a placeholder until Austin is healthy again.

Dallas can re-gain Terry Glenn, but if the team feels Austin can play consistently as he has the last two weeks, why stand in his way? The Cowboys are guardedly optimistic he can return for Cleveland, and even if he misses one game, Austin seems the best option at the moment.

– William Goldman

Goldman was a highly successful screenwriter and said that oft-quoted line about Hollywood, but it could apply today, given the knee-jerk reactions in some quarters after yesterday’s loss to Denver.

To those in Hype-land, last night’s perfromance by the first team was “pathetic,” “putrid” and worse. Yeah, so? And if it was, what would it mean? Those same guys were dominant against the Chargers, who will have a better year than Denver. Did the Cowboys become chopped liver in seven days? Did they lose the killer instinct for winning meaningless mid-August games?

For those who need reminding:

• Dallas’ record at this time in ‘07: 2-0.
• New England’s record at this time in ‘07: 0-2.
• Miami’s record at this time in ‘07: 2-0.

Nobody knows anything at this point, at least based on pre-season performances.

You can say the Cowboys hot start helped propel them to a strong season, but that would be logically inconsistent. Because:

Dallas went 0-2 in their last two pre-season games, finishing 2-2. After last year’s Broncos game, Denver was hot because the Cowboys were blitzing like mad. The third game is supposed to be “the dress rehearsal” and yet Dallas looked awful losing to the Texans.

Do we take the two early wins as being indicative of future performance, or the last two? Or concede that none of these games mean anything?

Last year Wade had “Camp Cupcake.” This year he’s had “Camp Marshmallow.” Yet he was 2-0 last year with the softies. And he’s 0-2 this year with the softies. Do we say that the softness made for a healthier, better team in ‘07 or a weaker, less disciplined team this year? Or again conclude that we can’t conclude anything from the results so far?

I’ll go off camp performance. I’ve watched the last four. In ‘05, Dallas had no pass rush, save for Demarcus Ware, and Bill Parcells was trying to make do with Rob Petitti at RT and Keith Davis at FS. Those gambles went snake eyes and his guys were a disappointing 9-7.

In ‘06, Parcells started with Drew Bledsoe, in spite of hot-shot Tony Romo’s hot camp. In one late camp practice, the Tuna took a long, slow walk to an empty end of the practice field after watching his guys blow assignment after assignment. He looked skywards, as if to say, “why me? Why am I still doing this?” That team lived down to his fears, with a maddening tendency to yo-yo from week to week, playing up to tougher opponents like Indy and playing down to mediocrities like that year’s Raiders.

Last year Romo looked razor sharp in San Antonio, T.O. was unstoppable and the defense showed more athleticism and speed. Those tells carried over to the season, not the up and down pre-season performances.

My point? Camp performances have been pretty consistent indicators of team performance. And this year’s camp was the best of the bunch. The one thing that concerned me was the over-aggressive play of the secondary, which drew a lot of laundry when the real refs arrived.

Seeing Adam Jones‘ play jump up made me feel a lot better. Anthony Henry gave up one big throw, but had his hands on the football that play. He’ll be there. So will Terence Newman. Getting Mike Jenkins farther along his learning curve will help. The special team’s overall performance last night matched the level of attention its received this summer.

Since everybody is tailoring the Cowboys performances to their own biases, I’m taking the liberty of staying calm. The first teamers looked good in Oxnard and they looked good in San Diego. That works for me, last night notwithstanding. The defense looked like it had more rush options and showed that against the Chargers. I’ll rely on those performances.

Hey, I know just as much as anybody else, which at this point is exactly nothing.

That was the performance Dallas served up in a 23-13 loss to Denver Saturday night.  The Cowboys starters, so effective against San Diego, lost their edge;  they could stay with the Broncos but could not make the deciding plays.  The defense allowed two long scoring drives because it could not stop a sharp Jay Cutler from converting on third down.  And on the series where they defenders came through, Bradie James handed Denver a “continue your drive free” card by commiting a personal foul after Denver conceded, calling a draw on third and long.

The offense made some plays, with Tony Romo and Terrell Owens connecting for the first time this campaign, but could not string together the good plays and could not overcome 20 yards of penalties on the opening drive.

On the other hand, this was a strong night for new Cowboys.  Let’s run down the list of draftees, trade pickup and young players on the edge:

1.  Felix Jones — continued to show dazzling open field skills.   He took a short opening toss from Brad Johnson, made two Broncos miss, and turned a likely seven or eight yard gain into a 28 yarder.

2.  Mike Jenkins — was beaten on a stop and go by Eddie Royal on Denver’s second drive, and by an option route in the end zone by Brandon Marshall.  The rookie was solid, however and made some big stops as a gunner on special teams.

3.  Martellus Bennett — made the most of his limited opportunities, showing tackle breaking ability on Dallas’ initial 3rd quarter drive.  He also made a stop on a kickoff return at Denver’s 26.

4.  Tashard Choice — blocked a punt in the third quarter and showed toughness as a runner and receiver.

5.  Orlando Scandrick — Had a 32 yard kickoff return and almost blocked the Broncos’ half-ending field goal attempt and forced it wide.  Scandrick later put a wicked hit on a Denver receiver inside the Dallas ten, keeping the Broncos out of the end zone.

6.  Adam Jones — was much, much better tonight than against San Diego.  He was much more in tune with the game’s pace.  He gave up a handful of catches but tackled his man for minimal gains of two to three yard.  His tackling was much better this week.  He just missed an interception for a score and got the Cowboys’ collective pulse racing with a brilliant 24 yard punt return.

7.  Miles Austin — had another strong game, making two impressive catches on Dallas’ lone TD drive, the first a 38 yarder down the right sideline that beat tight Dominique Foxworth coverage and the second a fade over Foxworth for the score.

Austin is also the biggest question mark.  He tackled Broncos returner Andre Hall on the play immediately after his score and took Hall’s shoulder pad directly on his right knee.  The initial diagnosis was a “sprain” and Austin will be re-evaluated today.  Hope the scans don’t find serious damage, because he’s making a serious push for more playing time.

8.  Isaiah Stanback — Had a winding 32 yard kickoff return and caught a tough Johnson skipper just off the turf.  He appears to be making slow, steady progress.

9.  Bobby Carpenter — made a lot of tackles behind the second line, which played much better as a unit this week.

10.  Keon Lattimore — made some big runs in the 4th quarter playing with the third teamers.  He’s earner a more serious look the last two weeks.

11.  Bruce Read — you notice all the big special teams plays today?  His units were vastly improved from last week, showing strong play across the board.  Dallas got big kickoff and punt returns, blocked a punt, forced a bad field goal and had strong punt coverage.

If Read’s guys can bottle this week’s performance, they’ll be in great shape going forward.

It was a fuzzy game for the starters but the backups gave the coaches plenty to study this week.

1st & 10 — Bartel scrambles to 38

kickoff — Scandrick returns to Dallas 32.

Kick — good. Denver 23, Dallas 13

3rd & 10 — run middle, stopped by Smith for no gain.

2nd & 8 — bootleg run right for loss of two. Timeout Dallas — 1:32 remains.

1st & 10 — run middle. Siavii stops after gaine of two. Timeout, Dallas — 1:41 remains.

3rd & 3 — bootleg right, complete to TE for eight yards.

Denver 2nd & 5 — run up the middle, Remi Ayodele stops for no gain.

Denver 1st & 10 — power left, gain of seven.

4th & 5 — Bartel intercepted. Bartel tackles linebacker. Bartel expected his tight end to curl but the TE stopped.

3rd & 10 — pass to Hannah over middle. Gain of five.

2nd & 10 — pump and go, incomplete. Bartel was pressured but had man oepn fo ra TD.

1st & 10 — pass right, incomplete.

1st & 10 — Pass left to Amendola, gain of thirteen.

1st & 10 — Draw, Lattimore, gain of twelve.

2nd & 1 — draw Lattimore, gain of twelve.

1st & 5 — Draw, Lattimore, gain of four.

1st & 10 — penalty, illegal contact,

Dallas 1st & 10 at own 24. Deep out to Rodney Hannah, gain of 20.

2nd & 10 — Inc.

1st & 10 — go route on Oglesby, incomplete.

kickoff fumbled in end zone, touchback

Kick — Good, Denver 20, Dallas 13.

3rd & 6 — Pass to Hannah broken up.

2nd & 11 — Bartel runs right for six.

1st & 10 — Coleman stretch right thrown for one yard loss.

1st & 10 — pass middle to Hannah to Denver 14.

1st & 10 — pass middle to Hannah for sixteen.

2nd & 8 — fade left, caught by Lowder to Denver 40.

1st & 10 — toss right to Coleman, gain of two.

kickoff – five yards deep into end zone, TOUCHBACK

Kick — good, Denver 20, Dallas 10

Martinez down on field.

3rd & goal — pass into left flat to Martinez. Scandrick BLOWS HIM UP after two yard gain.

2nd & goal — fade right to Russell, incomplete.

1st & goal — stretch right, Carpenter stop at four.

4th & 1 — Timeout. Bootleg right, complete to Keary Colbert, to Dallas five on Courtney Brown.
3rd & 2 — toss right, gain of one.

2nd & 4 — Handoff left, Brown on tackle, gain of two.

END OF 3RD QUARTER.

Punt fair caught at the Dallas 41.

3rd & 9 — Pass middle, incomplete. Bartel is holding the ball too long.

2nd & 9 — Bartel pass right to Stanback batted down.

1st & 10 — Choice middle for one.

Punt — allowed to bounce, downed at the Dallas three.

3RD & 7 — Pass incomplete.

2nd & 9 — Pass left, Colbert, Jones on stop after two yard gain.

1st & 10 — Pittmans stretch right, Marcus Smith tackle after one.

3rd & 4 — pass middle to Pittman, Jones and Carpenter stop after five.

2nd & 7 — pass left to Russell, Jones on stop after three yard gain. Pacman is jumping every route and will get one if Ramsey keeps testing him.

Denver, 1st & 10 — Pittman left, Carpenter and Smith on tackle after three.

3rd & 11 — Bartel runs for no gain. FLAG on Dallas, declined. Punt to Denver 28, tackles by host of Cowboys at Denver 33.

2nd & 11 — screen right, incomplete.

1st & 10 — Bartel in at QB. Choice toss left, loss of one.

Kickoff — Stanback five yards deep, touchback.

Kick — good, Denver 17-Dallas 10.

3rd & pass left, tipped, incomplete.

2nd & 7 — Power left, — Hatcher and Walden on stop after one.

1st & 10 — Pittman left, Carpenter on stop after three.

3rd & 7 — Ramsey finds Russell up right side to Dallas 18, Brown on stop.

2nd & 8 — Pittman right. Carpenter stop for one yard.

1st & 10 — stretch right by Pittman for two. JUSTIN ROGERS INJURED ON PLAY.

1st & 10 — Ramsey pressured, lofts ball INTERCEPTED BY WATKINS. FLAG — ILLEGAL CONTACT ON BALL.

Choice blocks punt, punter runs ball 20 yards up the right side for 1st down.

3rd & 5 — pass left, Jones drops a possible pick. Good pressure on twist left by Walden.

2nd & 5 — quick pass right, Jones on tackle for no gain.

1st & 10 — Stretch left for five.

Kickoff — Folk to the one, Bennett tackles at 26.

Kick — Folk good from 43. Denver 14, Dallas 10.

3rd & 13 — Throw middle to Curtis for seven.

2nd & 10 — Choice thrown for three yard loss.

1st & 10 — Incomplete throw left to Julius Crosslin.

(Miles Austin said to have “knee sprain.”)

2nd & 1 — Crosslin on dive for three yards.

1st & 10 — Johnson to Choice in right flat for 9 yards.

2nd & 10 — Johnson to Bennett for 12 yards, breaking a tackle over the middle.

1st & 10 — Jones left for no gain.

1st & 10 — Johnson toss center to Felix Jones, sprints for 28 to Dallas 48.

Positives:

1. Special teams coverage is much better.

2. Miles Austin made two huge plays on Dallas’ TD drive, though he got up holding his right knee on the ensuring kickoff and was having the knee examined on the sideline.

3. Felix Jones looks active, though he was flagged for a holding penalty.

4. Adam Jones looked great on a 25 yard punt return. He needs to be reminded you can’t spike the ball after a big play.

Not So Hot

– Flozell Adams has been rock steady in camp but he looks sleepy tonight, getting beaten on a twist.

– tackling has been spotty. The Cowboys several times made contact with a Broncos runner in the backfield and didn’t wrap up.

– too many penalties.

1st & 10 — Cutler spikes ball with 3 seconds.

1st & 10 — (:27 seconds) Cutler escapes big pressure to Marshall, tackled at Dallas 33.

2nd & 5 — Stokely, slant on Oglesby to midfield.

Toss right, gain of five.

3rd & 3 — Young draw for 5.

2nd & 10 — pass middle for 7.

Denver 1st & 10 — pass left incomplete.

Kickoff, returned to Dallas 23. Hurd on tackle. Austin gimping off the field. Having knee checked out on sideline.

3rd & goal — fade right to Austin, who tears ball from Foxworth, TOUCHDOWN, PAT good, Denver 14, Dallas 7.

2nd & goal from Denver five — rollout pass to Cruz, who drops ball at Denver 3.

1st & goal — Hurd, crossing route at Denver five.

3RD & 4 — Johnson stop and go to Austin to Denver nine. 37 yard gain.

TWO MINUTE WARNING.

2nd & 10 — toss to Curtis in left flat for six.

& 10 — Johnson, tackled for no gain.

2nd & 7 — throw middle to Stanback for 7. Pass was low, as Stanback had room to run after the catch but had to dive for the ball.

1st & 10 — Toss right to Felix for 3.

Punt to Adam Jones at Dallas 16, returns to Dallas 41. FLAG — ADAM JONES PENALIZED 5 YARDS FOR SPIKING THE BALL.

3rd & 13 — screen right, Ratliff tackles for two yard loss.

2nd & 10 — toss play, loss of three.

1st & 10 — pass right, incomplete.

3RD & 13 — pressure on Johnson, incomplete throw to Austin right.

3rd & 5 — completion to Anderson, FLAG — HOLDING FELIX JONES.

2nd & 13 — toss right, Jones, gain of 8.

1st & 10 — Johnson in as QB. Reverse, Hurd, loss of three

Punt — into end zone. Touchback.

3rd & 5 — pass middle broken up by James.

2nd & 6 — Hall stretch left, Ware stops after one.

1st & 10 — Hall, left tackle for 4.

1st & 10 — Cutler pressured left, pass incomplete. FLAG — INTERFERENCE ON WARE.

2nd & 4 — Cutler left to Stokely, in left slot. Oglesby on tackle, gain of 10.

1st & 10 — Young right, gain of six.

3rd & 2 — short cross middle gain of five.

2nd & 5 — Young, stretch right, tackled by James, gain of 2.

1st & 10 — stop left, Marshall, plus five.

Punt — Royal catches at Denver 17, tackled by Jenkins at 20. Flag - illegal block in the back. 10 yard penalty.

3rd & 4 — Romo floats right from slight pressure, overthrows Hurd, who’s open deep.

2nd & 7 — Barber, power right for 3.

Dallas 1st & 10 from its own 20 — Romo bootleg right to Curtis, plus 3.

Denver kickoff to Stanback, 8 yards deep. Touchback

2nd & goal — Cutler roll out right, toss TD to Marshall on Jenkins. PAT — good. 14-0 Denver

1st & goal — Hall middle for 6.

1st & 10 — Cutler left to Marshall on Henry. to Dallas 11.

1st & 10 — Cutler deep in to Royal left, outfights Henry.

END OF QUARTER

2nd & 4 — Andre Hall middle, bounces off three Cowboys and gets four yards for 1st down.

1st & 10 — Culter dumpoff middle. Thomas immediate tackle, plus 6.

3rd & 18 — Draw to Young, gain of 7. FLAG — PERSONAL FOUL, BRADIE JAMES.

2nd & 20 — Young inside, gain of 2.

2nd & 18 — Pass left to Royal, immediate tackle by Henry. Gain of 9. FLAG — HOLDING, DENVER.

2nd & 13 — flag — false start Denver.

2nd & 7 — flag, false start Denver.

Denver 1st & 10 from it’s 9 — Report on Canty, “bell rung” — Toss right, Young for 3. 2nd team line in the game.

4th & 9 — Penalty on Gurode. Punt fair caught at Denver 9.

4th & 4 — Flag — false start, 76.

3rd & 4 — three wide, Romo and Owens out of sycn, pass incomplete. Dallas going on 4th

2nd & 10 — toss right, Barber behind good Anderson block for 6.

1st & 10 — Romo, great protection, floats pass too high for Owens running deep crossing route.

2nd & 4 — counter right for 11 by Barber. Great lead by Witten

1st & 10 — great protection, play action delay to 24 for 6 yards.l

3rd & 4 — shotgun, quick throw right to 81 for 4.

2nd & 14 — Good protection, throw right to 81 on Paymah for 10.

1st & 15 — (at Dallas 25) — Barber power right for one. Ronnie Cruz working at FB with Anderson out.

1st and 10 — deadball foul for 12 men in Dallas huddle.

3rd & 1 — Showgun, quick toss right to Hurd for 5. Deadball personal foul on Colombo. 15 yard penalty. 1st and 10.

2nd & 8 — stop right to Owens for 7.

1st & 10 — Barber off LT for 2.

Denver kickoff — Stanback and Coleman deep. Stanback takes the ball one yard deep, cuts right and gets to the Dallas 32.

1st and goal – Andre Hall up the middle for at TD. Extra point good. Denver 7, Dallas 0.

4th & 1 — Young goes off RT for 5.

3rd & 8 — Cutler beats Ware pressure. Complete to Brandon Stokely over the middle. Oglesby tackes one foot short of 1st down.

2nd & 8 — Stretch play right. Thomas blows up Young for no gain.

1st & 10 — Pass left flat to FB. Zach Thomas stops for 2 yard gain.

2nd and 4 — Pass center to Marshall to Dallas 16.

1st & 10 — Young center for 6.

2nd & 3 — double move right to Eddie Royal. Mike Jenkins bites and falls down. 35 yard gain.

1st & 15 — throw right to Brandon Marshall for 12.

Chris Canty limping off the field.

1st & 10 — 2 TE, Pitch right, Selvyn Young for 5. Flag — holding, offense.

Line drive kickoff by Folk. Center return. Poor tackling, to the 35. Deon Anderson is wobbly after the play.

Rain in the forecast. Field is slippery in the humidity.

Cowboys in their whites tonight. No pre-game hoodoo by Denver.

8:02 — sticking with the TV crew of Laufenberg and Johnston. They’ve got Cowboys’ credentials.

7:57 — and we’re on. Welcome.

It’s a boxing maxim that fights between fighters with different styles produce the best matches.  Two boxers can induce boredom by dancing around the ring.  Two sluggers can produce excitement in short doses, really short ones if one can outslug the other.  But a match between a boxer and a puncher can produce a compelling contrast;  can the boxer sting and jab and stay out of the slugger’s reach?  Can the usually slower power puncher show patience and exploit his power advantage?

Tonight, the Cowboys and Broncos will serve up the NFL’s version of the slugger/fighter matchup.  The Cowboys stress size and power on their offensive and defensive lines.  Their linebackers are speedy but also huge.  Zach Thomas and backup Kevin Burnett are just short of 230 lbs. but every other Dallas ‘backer weighs in between 240 and 265.  The Cowboys offensive line averages 327 lbs. with only one player, LG Kyle Kosier, under 318 lbs.

Denver, on the other hand, emphasizes speed and execution on both sides of the line.  The Broncos are adding more 300 pounders to their o-line mix but still have two starters who go 285-290.  On defense, the Broncos have only one defensive tackle above 300 lbs. and both of their 4-3 defensive ends weigh 260.  To contrast, Dallas’ TE Jason Witten outweighs ends Elvis Dumervil and John Engelberger.

Denver will try to slant, stunt and outquick the Cowboys.  Dallas will try to overpower the Broncos and will — if the Cowboys can catch them first.

Some players and matchups to watch:

– Denver’s Brandon Marshall vs. Anthony Henry and Adam Jones.  Marshall is a top-notch wideout and a big-time headache, with a litany of off the field problems.  He got the better of fellow bad boy Adam Jones in workouts this week.  Watch to see if Jones raises his game Saturday.  He’s struggling to get in sync with the NFL game after a year away and looked awful against the Chargers.

– Miles Austin vs. Dre Bly and Karl Paymah; Austin was a pleasant surprise last week and could be the second receiver the Cowboys desperately need.  Bly has been an above average corner the past few years and Paymah was a blue chipper as a nickel corner last year and will start in place of Champ Bailey, who will likely miss the game with an injury.  They’ll provide Austin with quality opposition.  If Austin reprises last week’s performance the Cowboys’ passing offense will be in much better shape.

– Andre Gurode vs. Dwayne Robertson.  The former Jet Robertson is Denver’s best run stuffer and made some plays in the Wednesday practices.  He’s got creaky knees so he’ll only get two series at the most.  Watch to see if Gurode can build on last week’s game, when he handled San Diego’s sumo Jamal Williams.

– Felix Jones vs. OLBs D.J. Williams and Nick Webster.  Jones made some huge plays against the big Chargers’ OLBs last week but will face some Tampa-2 style speed backers in Williams and Webster.  They’ll be a tougher challenge in space.

– Bobby Carpenter:  He’s been around the ball in camp and did well on pass plays versus San Diego.  He was under seige on running plays behind the leaky second-team Dallas D-line.  He’ll get a lot more reps this week with Kevin Burnett out.  See if his overall play improves with better protection.

– Martellus Bennett:  Hard Knocks gave the rookie a gut punch, showing his petulant, immature side.  He had some very exciting moments in camp, but was inconsistent.  He can make breathtaking plays when he’s focused.  Let’s see if he is tonight.

–  The punt coverage units:  will Bruce Read continue to rotate youngsters, in order to get a better look at his down-roster options, or will he go with a more set lineup, to get better consistency after last week’s forgettable game?

– the Cowboys are a physically impressive team that is pushing Denver around.  He said it would take “an impressive effort” for the Broncos to beat Dallas in a regular season game.

– fans should curb their enthusiasm about Adam Jones.  He wrote a critical piece on Jones’ woofing yesterday, when he told Broncos WR Brandon Marshall he “was no T.O.” and then watched Marshall beat him repeatedly.

I told him that the Jones I saw in Oxnard was hyper-aggressive, trying to jump every route and being beaten by double moves a lot.  He said this was Jones’ game and that fans should disabuse themselves of seeing Deion Sanders Jr. and think of Jones more as a nickel corner.  Jones’ real value, Lombardi claimed, would be as a punt returner.

–  He said the Cowboys biggest defensive weakness was two minute pass coverage;  the Cowboys were one of the worst teams last year in stopping opponents at the end of halves.  (Cue Giants flashback here.)  Dallas needs a bigger pass rush, in his opinion, to avoid a repeat.

– The biggest offensive question, in Lombardi’s opinion, is the offensive line’s condition.  He wants to see if the line can avoid late fades, of the type we saw in the playoff loss to New York.

You can hear the full inteview by clicking on “The Sports Doctors” tab just below the names on the masthead.  That will take you to our podcast archive page.

In our first segment former Cowboys scout and “Galloway and Company” radio analyst Bryan Broaddus will offer his view of the team.  In the second segment former NFL personnel man and current CNNSI writer Michael Lombardi will address NFL questions.  Lombardi worked with the Broncos last year and can give us his views of the Broncos’ strengths and weaknesses, in addition to Dallas’.

Join us at 5 pm on 1240 KSOX radio or listen to our live stream right here on site.  As always we welcome your phone calls at 1-888-806-1661.

In the meantime, here are some more crumbs of football goodness from the Chargers game:

Heavy Jumbo:   Teams don’t game plan in their first preseason matches but it’s clear the Cowboys know the Chargers tendencies.  On San Diego’s second play from scrimmage they went to their heavy packages, with two tight ends, two backs and just one wide receiver.

Dallas countered with a 4-4-3 package.  There are several interesting aspects to the package.  First, the position switch the team practiced was in effect, as Tank Johnson and Marcus Spears were the DTs and Jay Ratliff and Chris Canty were the DEs in a three point stance.  Greg Ellis and Demarcus Ware were the OLBs and Bradie James and Zach Thomas were inside.  Anthony Henry was the lone corner.

Both DTs exploded into the backfield, with Johnson getting the sack when the Chargers tried picking him up with a fullback.  Tank threw the FB aside and wrapped up Philip Rivers.

Inside Pressure — Dallas rushed their inside backers at Tony Romo a lot during practice and this carried over to the game.  Bradie James was given lots of first down blitzing responsibility and he got in free on pass plays or he got to the fullback on the offense’s side of the ball on running plays, giving Zach Thomas a free lane to the ball.

Spears Unleashed — Todd Grantham may already be paying dividends.  He had two blowups on Dallas first two drives and shows much better agility than we’ve seen in the past.

Crayton Miscast — One reason to applaud Miles Austin’s strong game is that it would allow Patrick Crayton back into his ideal role as the 3rd receiver.  KC Joyner mentions in Scientific Football ‘08 that Crayton had a YPA under 3.0 against “red” caliber corners (those who ranked in the top third of NFL CBs) but had a YPA over 10 against “yellow” (league average) and “green” corners (those in the bottom third).

Crayton is devastating in the middle of the field, but can’t shake the big time guys.  He showed that in Dallas first two series, with two impressive catches over the middle.  Both converted 3rd downs and kept drives alive.

Keep the Starting Job — The starting line of Canty, Ratliff and Spears lived in San Diego’s backfield.  The group of Bowen, Johnson and Hatcher?  Not so good.  Hatcher could hold his point but Johnson was up and down against the run and Bowen was pushed around.

On the Line — We can handicap positions after every game but the biggest issues were for second year man James Marten and for backup center Cory Procter.

Marten was being beaten around the edge inside.  When you’re working in a limited area you cannot let guys get around you.  He also failed to switch on a Chargers twist, letting his guy get a free shot at Brad Johnson.

Procter lacks ballast.  This was a problem last year, when big DTs and NTs pushed him into the backfield.  Procter had the same problem Saturday.  He got all the snaps at center, with Joe Berger working at guard but I wonder if Berger, who can also play center, will get some looks in the pivot this week.

Good Marks for the Backup Backs — The biggest question for Felix Jones and Tashard Choice entering ‘08 is their ability to block.  So far, very good.  Both rookies showed the will and the ability to find blizers and stop them.

Game ball – MIles Austin.  We know what the Cowboys have at most of their starting spots but somebody has to step up at receiver.  Austin made a strong case, running tight routes and displaying good hands.  He ran a precise deep in on Dallas’ field goal drive at the end of the half.  When he entered the game last year you knew he was running deep.  Now, he’s putting the full repertoire together.  He’s got the deep speed this team needs at the two.

Continued play at this level would be a BIG plus to this team.

Most Smug Man Today — Anthony Henry.  Everybody and their dog was ready to shunt him to safety or the bench when Adam Jones was signed.  Not so fast.  Henry played well on Saturday and had a big goal line stop.  Jones, on the other hand, was caked in rust.  He missed tackles.  He looked slow reacting to the ball.  He drew penalties.  He’s got talent, without question.  But he’s not in sync with the game yet.

So what do we know?  We know the coverage teams were ragged.  Half of them were where they needed to be on any given play but half were slow arriving.

What we learned was that guys like Julius Crosslin, Marcus Smith and Junior Siavii have limited time on the Cowboys’ roster.  But that’s not really news, is it?