Post by ccboy on Nov 5, 2008 5:35:12 GMT -7
Home Stretch For The Cowboys
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edward Lewis - Email
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
November 4, 2008 5:32 PM Change Font Size A A A A
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What a difference a week makes for the Redskins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OTHER RECENT NEWS
IRVING, Texas - The names read like a Pro Bowl roster: Tony Romo, Adam "Pacman" Jones, Felix Jones, Kyle Kosier, Terence Newman, Jason Witten and Anthony Henry. All of these Cowboys are banged up in some way, either with injury or suspension, preventing them from playing at 100 percent or even at all.
But with every single one of them projected to be healthy enough after the bye, the painstaking wait for their return might soon be over. The much-anticipated bye week finally is here. While the Cowboys sit in last place in the NFC East at 5-4, this very well could have been worse had the Cowboys not banged out that four-point win over Tampa Bay. With nearly half a season left to play, the Cowboys don't trail a potential NFC wild-card spot by anything more than one game. Problem is, things are all jumbled in the NFC, five teams not leading their divisions ahead of the Cowboys at either 6-3 or 5-3.
As the Fox broadcasting duo of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman constantly pointed out throughout the Cowboys' 35-14 loss to the Giants this past Sunday, Dallas probably will need 10 wins to reach the playoffs. With four of the final seven games to be played at home, however, finishing this stretch at 5-2 is not farfetched by any means, although five of those final seven opponents currently own winning records.
Since the Cowboys do not have to prepare for an opponent this bye week, let's take a deeper look at the final seven on the Cowboys schedule.
Washington Redskins (6-3): What a difference a week makes for the Redskins. Coming into Monday night's matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington was considered one of the top three teams in the league, riding a two-game winning streak. Getting smashed 23-6 at home, though, certainly brought them down some, the final damage in that game done by backup quarterback Byron Leftwich. In fact, the 17-point rout puts the Redskins just one game in front of the struggling Cowboys in the NFC East standings. A loss to the Redskins on this November Sunday would be potentially devastating, though, since a defeat would put Dallas essentially three games behind the Redskins who would own the tiebreaker via a season sweep.
San Francisco 49ers (2-6): Interim 49ers head coach Mike Singletary sure has brought new life to a floundering 49ers squad. His pants-dropping and player-benching antics have people wondering aloud how San Francisco will respond. The team is 0-1 under Singletary, but things are definitely changing in the Bay Area. After sending tight end Vernon Davis to the locker room after an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Seattle two weeks ago, Singletary's new team means business. So while they may dwell in the cellar of the NFC West now, don't chalk this game up in the win column just yet.
Seattle Seahawks (2-6): Much like the Cowboys, the Seahawks season has been marred by injuries. Pro Bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has missed the past four games with a back injury and, at one point during this season, the Seahawks started Logan Payne and Michael Bumpus at the wide receiver positions. But also like the Cowboys, if the team can get healthy by the Thanksgiving Day matchup in Irving, the 2-6 Seahawks could be a potentially dangerous team. This game not only will resurrect memories of Tony Romo's infamous bobble in that 2006 season playoff game, but will also mark the return of former Cowboys running back Julius Jones.
Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2): How jealous are Cowboys fans of the Steelers' performance on Monday night? Their Pro Bowl quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, injures his throwing arm in the first half and the team is forced to rely on its backup quarterback. However, all Byron Leftwich does is complete seven of his 10 passes for 129 yards and one touchdown. With the league's best defense and outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley ranked among the league's top-five in sacks, this team might just be the best in the AFC. The Cowboys will try to avoid a repeat of the last time these two teams faced off in Dallas in 2004, when Roethlisberger engineered a comeback 24-20 victory.
New York Giants (7-1): When asked how it felt to beat a depleted team after Sunday's 35-14 victory over the Cowboys, all Giants defensive end Justin Tuck could say was, "Depleted?" Playing without running back Felix Jones, starting left guard Kyle Kosier and Pro Bowlers Tony Romo, Roy L. Williams, Mat McBriar and Terrence Newman, suffice to say the Cowboys were officially depleted. Dallas will get a chance to show New York what it really has when the presumably healthy Cowboys take on the Giants in Irving on Sunday Night Football in mid-December. The Cowboys had defeated the Giants three straight games before losing last year's playoff matchup, and now the first meeting of this season.
Baltimore Ravens (5-3): The Cowboys will certainly hope the last regular-season game played at Texas Stadium won't be the last meaningful one of this year. The Cowboys will take on the AFC North's second-place Ravens in a game that might decide the fate of this Cowboys season. Led by its defense, Baltimore has stopped nearly every opponent so far, ranking second-best in the NFL by allowing just 246.4 yards per game. The Cowboys are 13-10 playing on Saturdays, and have won the past three during the regular-season - and past two Saturday games televised by the NFL Network. They must stop rookie quarterback Joe Flacco, whose seven interceptions have had a great impact on his 75.6 QB rating.
Philadelphia Eagles (5-3): In a perfect Cowboys world, this game would be meaningless. If the Cowboys take care of business in the previous six games, a rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles would simply be a tune-up for postseason play. However, in all likelihood, this Cowboys game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia will be the most meaningful. With the Eagles and the Cowboys separated by just a 1/2 game in the NFC at this point, the season finale might decide an NFC wild-card playoff spot. The Cowboys have only swept the Eagles once since 1998, but after winning a 41-37 shootout at Texas Stadium in Week 2, at least there is a possibility.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edward Lewis - Email
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
November 4, 2008 5:32 PM Change Font Size A A A A
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What a difference a week makes for the Redskins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OTHER RECENT NEWS
IRVING, Texas - The names read like a Pro Bowl roster: Tony Romo, Adam "Pacman" Jones, Felix Jones, Kyle Kosier, Terence Newman, Jason Witten and Anthony Henry. All of these Cowboys are banged up in some way, either with injury or suspension, preventing them from playing at 100 percent or even at all.
But with every single one of them projected to be healthy enough after the bye, the painstaking wait for their return might soon be over. The much-anticipated bye week finally is here. While the Cowboys sit in last place in the NFC East at 5-4, this very well could have been worse had the Cowboys not banged out that four-point win over Tampa Bay. With nearly half a season left to play, the Cowboys don't trail a potential NFC wild-card spot by anything more than one game. Problem is, things are all jumbled in the NFC, five teams not leading their divisions ahead of the Cowboys at either 6-3 or 5-3.
As the Fox broadcasting duo of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman constantly pointed out throughout the Cowboys' 35-14 loss to the Giants this past Sunday, Dallas probably will need 10 wins to reach the playoffs. With four of the final seven games to be played at home, however, finishing this stretch at 5-2 is not farfetched by any means, although five of those final seven opponents currently own winning records.
Since the Cowboys do not have to prepare for an opponent this bye week, let's take a deeper look at the final seven on the Cowboys schedule.
Washington Redskins (6-3): What a difference a week makes for the Redskins. Coming into Monday night's matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington was considered one of the top three teams in the league, riding a two-game winning streak. Getting smashed 23-6 at home, though, certainly brought them down some, the final damage in that game done by backup quarterback Byron Leftwich. In fact, the 17-point rout puts the Redskins just one game in front of the struggling Cowboys in the NFC East standings. A loss to the Redskins on this November Sunday would be potentially devastating, though, since a defeat would put Dallas essentially three games behind the Redskins who would own the tiebreaker via a season sweep.
San Francisco 49ers (2-6): Interim 49ers head coach Mike Singletary sure has brought new life to a floundering 49ers squad. His pants-dropping and player-benching antics have people wondering aloud how San Francisco will respond. The team is 0-1 under Singletary, but things are definitely changing in the Bay Area. After sending tight end Vernon Davis to the locker room after an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Seattle two weeks ago, Singletary's new team means business. So while they may dwell in the cellar of the NFC West now, don't chalk this game up in the win column just yet.
Seattle Seahawks (2-6): Much like the Cowboys, the Seahawks season has been marred by injuries. Pro Bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck has missed the past four games with a back injury and, at one point during this season, the Seahawks started Logan Payne and Michael Bumpus at the wide receiver positions. But also like the Cowboys, if the team can get healthy by the Thanksgiving Day matchup in Irving, the 2-6 Seahawks could be a potentially dangerous team. This game not only will resurrect memories of Tony Romo's infamous bobble in that 2006 season playoff game, but will also mark the return of former Cowboys running back Julius Jones.
Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2): How jealous are Cowboys fans of the Steelers' performance on Monday night? Their Pro Bowl quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, injures his throwing arm in the first half and the team is forced to rely on its backup quarterback. However, all Byron Leftwich does is complete seven of his 10 passes for 129 yards and one touchdown. With the league's best defense and outside linebackers James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley ranked among the league's top-five in sacks, this team might just be the best in the AFC. The Cowboys will try to avoid a repeat of the last time these two teams faced off in Dallas in 2004, when Roethlisberger engineered a comeback 24-20 victory.
New York Giants (7-1): When asked how it felt to beat a depleted team after Sunday's 35-14 victory over the Cowboys, all Giants defensive end Justin Tuck could say was, "Depleted?" Playing without running back Felix Jones, starting left guard Kyle Kosier and Pro Bowlers Tony Romo, Roy L. Williams, Mat McBriar and Terrence Newman, suffice to say the Cowboys were officially depleted. Dallas will get a chance to show New York what it really has when the presumably healthy Cowboys take on the Giants in Irving on Sunday Night Football in mid-December. The Cowboys had defeated the Giants three straight games before losing last year's playoff matchup, and now the first meeting of this season.
Baltimore Ravens (5-3): The Cowboys will certainly hope the last regular-season game played at Texas Stadium won't be the last meaningful one of this year. The Cowboys will take on the AFC North's second-place Ravens in a game that might decide the fate of this Cowboys season. Led by its defense, Baltimore has stopped nearly every opponent so far, ranking second-best in the NFL by allowing just 246.4 yards per game. The Cowboys are 13-10 playing on Saturdays, and have won the past three during the regular-season - and past two Saturday games televised by the NFL Network. They must stop rookie quarterback Joe Flacco, whose seven interceptions have had a great impact on his 75.6 QB rating.
Philadelphia Eagles (5-3): In a perfect Cowboys world, this game would be meaningless. If the Cowboys take care of business in the previous six games, a rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles would simply be a tune-up for postseason play. However, in all likelihood, this Cowboys game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia will be the most meaningful. With the Eagles and the Cowboys separated by just a 1/2 game in the NFC at this point, the season finale might decide an NFC wild-card playoff spot. The Cowboys have only swept the Eagles once since 1998, but after winning a 41-37 shootout at Texas Stadium in Week 2, at least there is a possibility.