Post by scorpion42 on Nov 7, 2008 15:52:11 GMT -7
COWBOYS INSIDER
Dallas Cowboys defense deserves to celebrate when the time is right
By MAC ENGEL
tengel@star-telegram.com
A Cowboys defense overrun by Derrick Ward and the Giants trumps the stat sheet that showed three turnovers and four sacks.
Star-Telegram/Paul Moseley
IRVING — The last person I expected to go Antonio Bryant on the Giants Stadium faux-grass was DeMarcus Ware. But there was the Cowboys’ best defender, celebrating a sack and a forced fumble of Giants quarterback Eli Manning … and the Cowboys only trailed by three touchdowns midway through the third quarter.
This is not an isolated incident, either.
Two weeks earlier, Ware registered a sack of the season near the end of the first half that prompted a small celebration. He must not have noticed the Cowboys trailed the Rams — the Rams, dude — 21-7.
(Before continuing, it should be noted Ware is one of the kinder, more gentle professional athletes I have encountered. He is a pro’s pro.)
The time has come for Ware and this defense to quit celebrating stat-padding numbers such as these. A sack of Manning down 21 points is too late. The same for a sack of Bulger. Plays such as these may look good on season totals and help in contract negotiations, but they are too late in games and they aren’t making a difference when the time for a difference is long gone.
Despite what the overall numbers indicate — the Cowboys defense ranks ninth in the NFL, and fifth in sacks — this unit has not been dominant. If Wade Phillips ever needed to live up to his reputation as a great defensive coordinator, or a Mr. Fix It, now would be a good time. He was hired to coach up a collection of high draft picks and big-money players that thus far remain mostly paper numbers.
“We’re all 5-4. I think we have a good rush. I think we’ve haven’t played from way ahead like we did last year, which impresses me a little bit more,” Phillips said. “To get four sacks the last game against a team that only been sacked six times the whole season and be behind like we were showed me something.”
What did those three turnovers and four sacks accomplish? A 21-point loss that wasn’t as close as it appeared. Some of that can be pinned on an offense that was inept for the third consecutive week, but illustrating such numbers goes back to the Ware’s sack dance. There is a time and a place for everything.
The Cowboys defense can point to their overall ranking and their sack totals all they want, but thus far they simply haven’t been good enough. Not consistently.
They deserve praise for their effort and performance in a 13-9 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Oct. 26. That was easily the best the defense has played under Phillips. Performances such as that one need to be the standard, not an aberration.
For every good stat or play the Cowboys can and will throw at you, there is always a “Yeah, but …” qualifier. The Cowboys will say they shut down the Eagles in the fourth quarter in a Week 2 win. Yeah, but … they also allowed 31 points, 24 in the first half. Good defenses don’t do that.
They defeated the Bengals. Yeah, but … they allowed 22 points to an offense that was led by a quarterback, Carson Palmer, who was obviously not right when he walked on the field. Palmer hasn’t played since, and those 22 points are the second-most the Bengals have scored in a game this season.
The Cowboys defense ranks ninth in the NFL. Yeah, but … they have given up a total of 219 points, the seventh-highest figure in the NFL. They are one of two teams that rank in the top 14 in the NFL in points allowed with the luxury of a winning record.
Then there are the interceptions. The Cowboys have three, tied for 29th in the league. There is no “Yeah … but” for this.
Maybe the return of corner Terence Newman from injury next week will help change some of this. The same for linebacker Anthony Spencer, who returned last week.
“I think the last couple of games the defense has shown some things of being where we want to be in some areas,” Phillips said.
Phillips speaks of the game against the Bucs, and the game against the Giants when the Cowboys had four sacks and forced three turnovers.
But as we all know, four sacks and three turnovers in a 21-point loss aren’t worth celebrating.
It’s time for the Cowboys defense to start producing the plays worth celebrating … preferably when they deserve to be celebrated.
Mac Engel, 817-390-7760
Dallas Cowboys defense deserves to celebrate when the time is right
By MAC ENGEL
tengel@star-telegram.com
A Cowboys defense overrun by Derrick Ward and the Giants trumps the stat sheet that showed three turnovers and four sacks.
Star-Telegram/Paul Moseley
IRVING — The last person I expected to go Antonio Bryant on the Giants Stadium faux-grass was DeMarcus Ware. But there was the Cowboys’ best defender, celebrating a sack and a forced fumble of Giants quarterback Eli Manning … and the Cowboys only trailed by three touchdowns midway through the third quarter.
This is not an isolated incident, either.
Two weeks earlier, Ware registered a sack of the season near the end of the first half that prompted a small celebration. He must not have noticed the Cowboys trailed the Rams — the Rams, dude — 21-7.
(Before continuing, it should be noted Ware is one of the kinder, more gentle professional athletes I have encountered. He is a pro’s pro.)
The time has come for Ware and this defense to quit celebrating stat-padding numbers such as these. A sack of Manning down 21 points is too late. The same for a sack of Bulger. Plays such as these may look good on season totals and help in contract negotiations, but they are too late in games and they aren’t making a difference when the time for a difference is long gone.
Despite what the overall numbers indicate — the Cowboys defense ranks ninth in the NFL, and fifth in sacks — this unit has not been dominant. If Wade Phillips ever needed to live up to his reputation as a great defensive coordinator, or a Mr. Fix It, now would be a good time. He was hired to coach up a collection of high draft picks and big-money players that thus far remain mostly paper numbers.
“We’re all 5-4. I think we have a good rush. I think we’ve haven’t played from way ahead like we did last year, which impresses me a little bit more,” Phillips said. “To get four sacks the last game against a team that only been sacked six times the whole season and be behind like we were showed me something.”
What did those three turnovers and four sacks accomplish? A 21-point loss that wasn’t as close as it appeared. Some of that can be pinned on an offense that was inept for the third consecutive week, but illustrating such numbers goes back to the Ware’s sack dance. There is a time and a place for everything.
The Cowboys defense can point to their overall ranking and their sack totals all they want, but thus far they simply haven’t been good enough. Not consistently.
They deserve praise for their effort and performance in a 13-9 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Oct. 26. That was easily the best the defense has played under Phillips. Performances such as that one need to be the standard, not an aberration.
For every good stat or play the Cowboys can and will throw at you, there is always a “Yeah, but …” qualifier. The Cowboys will say they shut down the Eagles in the fourth quarter in a Week 2 win. Yeah, but … they also allowed 31 points, 24 in the first half. Good defenses don’t do that.
They defeated the Bengals. Yeah, but … they allowed 22 points to an offense that was led by a quarterback, Carson Palmer, who was obviously not right when he walked on the field. Palmer hasn’t played since, and those 22 points are the second-most the Bengals have scored in a game this season.
The Cowboys defense ranks ninth in the NFL. Yeah, but … they have given up a total of 219 points, the seventh-highest figure in the NFL. They are one of two teams that rank in the top 14 in the NFL in points allowed with the luxury of a winning record.
Then there are the interceptions. The Cowboys have three, tied for 29th in the league. There is no “Yeah … but” for this.
Maybe the return of corner Terence Newman from injury next week will help change some of this. The same for linebacker Anthony Spencer, who returned last week.
“I think the last couple of games the defense has shown some things of being where we want to be in some areas,” Phillips said.
Phillips speaks of the game against the Bucs, and the game against the Giants when the Cowboys had four sacks and forced three turnovers.
But as we all know, four sacks and three turnovers in a 21-point loss aren’t worth celebrating.
It’s time for the Cowboys defense to start producing the plays worth celebrating … preferably when they deserve to be celebrated.
Mac Engel, 817-390-7760