Post by prossman on Dec 27, 2008 21:45:26 GMT -7
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by Elliot Harrison, Special to FOXSports.com
Updated: December 27, 2008, 8:30 PM EST 1 comment add this RSS blog email Print
THUD.
I'm not sure who came up with the word, but it might be an apt description of the sound the Cowboys' high-powered offense makes.
Losing two of three, Dallas finds itself in a do-or-die situation this weekend in Philly. Unfortunately, for the majority of the last three games, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett's attack has featured more dying than doing.
With frequent three-and-outs has come frequent frustration in recent weeks.
Terrell Owens accused Tony Romo of picking a favorite receiver, and it's not TO.
Concerning the above, tight end Jason Witten has been labeled the favorite Cub Scout.
Receiver Patrick Crayton was reportedly not delighted with the Romo-Witten dynamic either, asking for more looks in the offense. Crayton hadn't been celebrating after routine 8-yard grabs, like he normally does, because he had been catching so few of them.
And yesterday, newest Cowboy receiver Roy Williams weighed in with his own discontent.
"My thing is, if you brought me in half the season, you obviously know what I am capable of doing, " Williams said, according to Dallas-Ft. Worth media. "You wouldn't have spent what you did to get a person. You know what I can do. I know what I can do. I can tell you what I can't do. I'm just waiting."
With all this disharmony, hearsay, and innuendo, it's amazing Dallas is 9-6 and still in the thick of the playoff hunt. And for that, you can thank the defense. Despite an awful fourth quarter last week versus the Ravens, the group has been stellar for the better part of two months.
This week, Wade Phillips' unit faces an Eagle offense that, on the surface, appears to be struggling mightily. Donovan McNabb and company only put up 275 yards of offense and no touchdowns last week. Not exactly clutch in a must-win game versus Washington, Andy Reid's offense has to quit sputtering if they are to have any shot Sunday.
This week's Film Study pits the Dallas D versus the Philly O in the biggest NFC game of the weekend.
Film study
Every Eagles fan and pro football writer in the country is less than enamored with Andy Reid's offense. So what's the problem? What happened last week?
There were the normal problems: some bad throws, poor red zone play selection, rapidly shrinking holes, etc. But it kills me when fans or writers say, "oh, there were a couple drops too." Try eight.
A formidable offense becomes a perishable one when the receivers lose over a half-dozen balls right in their hands. The sad part for the Eagles lies in the fact that receivers were running open in the Redskins' secondary. Reid created mismatches for Brian Westbrook, tight end L.J. Smith, DeSean Jackson, and other receivers on several occasions, only to face third-and-longs because his guys weren't finishing plays.
Jackson performed like Robin Williams in "The Best of Times," except he didn't make the catch in the end. The highly touted rookie played hot potato on more than one key play, the biggest coming on a potential touchdown pass on the final drive of the game. Down 10-3 and driving for the tying score, McNabb put the perfect compliment of zip and touch on a pass that traveled over fifty yards in the air, descending right into Jackson's hands. And right to the ground.
While McNabb's amigos did little to help the playoff cause, the Eagles were again stymied by the abandonment of the running game. After averaging well over 30 carries a game in their three-game win streak, they passed on 31 of their last 33 plays.
That's important, considering whom they're playing this week. Perhaps Reid noticed what went down in Irving Saturday night, and might reintroduce running the football to his game plan.
The Cowboys gave up a 77-yard run by Willis McGahee and an 82-yard run by the anti-Willis McGahee on back-to-back Ravens' plays in the 4th quarter last. Little-known Le'Ron McClain crushed the Texas Stadium sendoff with his home run, while exposing a season-long Cowboy weakness: safety.
Ken Hamlin, who's started every game at free safety this season, had one job on both runs. With the Dallas defense selling out to stop the run, it was incumbent on Hamlin to make sure the runner didn't break it. "Selling out to stop the run" is much like playing goal-line defense, meaning that once the first wave is penetrated, there is no second wave. On McClain's scamper, Hamlin charged into the area and bounced off of him like defenders used to carom off Christian Okoye in Tecmo Bowl; this after Hamlin made a Deion Sanders-esque attempt at stopping McGahee on the previous run.
And much like the Eagles offense, the shame of it is how well Dallas' defense played going into the game. Since Wade Phillips started calling the defensive plays, the unit has done an about face and, at times, carried the team. Dallas had only allowed 13.8 points per game in the five contests leading up to the Baltimore debacle.
Of course, no one is sure if Phillips is really directing traffic, as the Cowboys have been as forthright as General Motors on the topic.
A healthy return of corner Terrence Newman from a groin injury has also been responsible for the turnaround. Newman's ability to cover the slot receiver has given the pass rush more time, resulting in an NFL-high 58 sacks.
While the Cowboys sacked McNabb four times in the first meeting, too often in recent games they've allowed him to make huge plays on the run. It's incumbent on the Dallas pass rush to not just hurry Rush Limbaugh's favorite athlete, but put him on his back with the ball still in hand ... especially if Reid eschews the ground game again.
DeMarcus Ware, Greg Ellis, Jay Ratliff, and Jim Jeffcoat can't let McNabb find receivers galloping through open spaces like they did versus Washington. Okay, actually I meant Ware, Ellis, Ratliff, and Chris Canty. I was just seeing if you were paying attention.
What I learned
McNabb is great at buying time, and despite slowing down since that 2006 knee injury, he can still pick up a key first down when needed. However, Reid can provide his quarterback more time by running on first and second down, making the Cowboys edge rushers think before they speed rush. I look for Reid to call 20-25 running plays Sunday.
On the other side of the ball, Tony Romo and his receivers should be on the same page. Garrett is too bright of coordinator, and Romo too sharp of a player, to allow the in-game miscommunication to fester anymore.
I certainly don't see the Cowboy defense keeping the Eagles out of the end zone, but don't expect Dallas to get outscored either. Romo shuts down his critics ... for a week.
Pick: Cowboys
Odds and ends
The Colts will represent the AFC in Super Bowl XLIII (that's this year).
Chicago could end up being the quietest 10-win team in the League.
Flozell Adams Watch: Big Flo's been a little stiff-legged lately, and Romo bailed him out with a couple of Houdini-esque escapes last week. That said, there's no way right tackle Marc Colombo is a better player, as I've seen written lately. It's easier to grade out higher when you face lower grade defensive ends every week. Flo' has faced Murderer's Row the last month, and has a date with Trent Cole Sunday.
msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/8...ept-them-alive
__________________
by Elliot Harrison, Special to FOXSports.com
Updated: December 27, 2008, 8:30 PM EST 1 comment add this RSS blog email Print
THUD.
I'm not sure who came up with the word, but it might be an apt description of the sound the Cowboys' high-powered offense makes.
Losing two of three, Dallas finds itself in a do-or-die situation this weekend in Philly. Unfortunately, for the majority of the last three games, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett's attack has featured more dying than doing.
With frequent three-and-outs has come frequent frustration in recent weeks.
Terrell Owens accused Tony Romo of picking a favorite receiver, and it's not TO.
Concerning the above, tight end Jason Witten has been labeled the favorite Cub Scout.
Receiver Patrick Crayton was reportedly not delighted with the Romo-Witten dynamic either, asking for more looks in the offense. Crayton hadn't been celebrating after routine 8-yard grabs, like he normally does, because he had been catching so few of them.
And yesterday, newest Cowboy receiver Roy Williams weighed in with his own discontent.
"My thing is, if you brought me in half the season, you obviously know what I am capable of doing, " Williams said, according to Dallas-Ft. Worth media. "You wouldn't have spent what you did to get a person. You know what I can do. I know what I can do. I can tell you what I can't do. I'm just waiting."
With all this disharmony, hearsay, and innuendo, it's amazing Dallas is 9-6 and still in the thick of the playoff hunt. And for that, you can thank the defense. Despite an awful fourth quarter last week versus the Ravens, the group has been stellar for the better part of two months.
This week, Wade Phillips' unit faces an Eagle offense that, on the surface, appears to be struggling mightily. Donovan McNabb and company only put up 275 yards of offense and no touchdowns last week. Not exactly clutch in a must-win game versus Washington, Andy Reid's offense has to quit sputtering if they are to have any shot Sunday.
This week's Film Study pits the Dallas D versus the Philly O in the biggest NFC game of the weekend.
Film study
Every Eagles fan and pro football writer in the country is less than enamored with Andy Reid's offense. So what's the problem? What happened last week?
There were the normal problems: some bad throws, poor red zone play selection, rapidly shrinking holes, etc. But it kills me when fans or writers say, "oh, there were a couple drops too." Try eight.
A formidable offense becomes a perishable one when the receivers lose over a half-dozen balls right in their hands. The sad part for the Eagles lies in the fact that receivers were running open in the Redskins' secondary. Reid created mismatches for Brian Westbrook, tight end L.J. Smith, DeSean Jackson, and other receivers on several occasions, only to face third-and-longs because his guys weren't finishing plays.
Jackson performed like Robin Williams in "The Best of Times," except he didn't make the catch in the end. The highly touted rookie played hot potato on more than one key play, the biggest coming on a potential touchdown pass on the final drive of the game. Down 10-3 and driving for the tying score, McNabb put the perfect compliment of zip and touch on a pass that traveled over fifty yards in the air, descending right into Jackson's hands. And right to the ground.
While McNabb's amigos did little to help the playoff cause, the Eagles were again stymied by the abandonment of the running game. After averaging well over 30 carries a game in their three-game win streak, they passed on 31 of their last 33 plays.
That's important, considering whom they're playing this week. Perhaps Reid noticed what went down in Irving Saturday night, and might reintroduce running the football to his game plan.
The Cowboys gave up a 77-yard run by Willis McGahee and an 82-yard run by the anti-Willis McGahee on back-to-back Ravens' plays in the 4th quarter last. Little-known Le'Ron McClain crushed the Texas Stadium sendoff with his home run, while exposing a season-long Cowboy weakness: safety.
Ken Hamlin, who's started every game at free safety this season, had one job on both runs. With the Dallas defense selling out to stop the run, it was incumbent on Hamlin to make sure the runner didn't break it. "Selling out to stop the run" is much like playing goal-line defense, meaning that once the first wave is penetrated, there is no second wave. On McClain's scamper, Hamlin charged into the area and bounced off of him like defenders used to carom off Christian Okoye in Tecmo Bowl; this after Hamlin made a Deion Sanders-esque attempt at stopping McGahee on the previous run.
And much like the Eagles offense, the shame of it is how well Dallas' defense played going into the game. Since Wade Phillips started calling the defensive plays, the unit has done an about face and, at times, carried the team. Dallas had only allowed 13.8 points per game in the five contests leading up to the Baltimore debacle.
Of course, no one is sure if Phillips is really directing traffic, as the Cowboys have been as forthright as General Motors on the topic.
A healthy return of corner Terrence Newman from a groin injury has also been responsible for the turnaround. Newman's ability to cover the slot receiver has given the pass rush more time, resulting in an NFL-high 58 sacks.
While the Cowboys sacked McNabb four times in the first meeting, too often in recent games they've allowed him to make huge plays on the run. It's incumbent on the Dallas pass rush to not just hurry Rush Limbaugh's favorite athlete, but put him on his back with the ball still in hand ... especially if Reid eschews the ground game again.
DeMarcus Ware, Greg Ellis, Jay Ratliff, and Jim Jeffcoat can't let McNabb find receivers galloping through open spaces like they did versus Washington. Okay, actually I meant Ware, Ellis, Ratliff, and Chris Canty. I was just seeing if you were paying attention.
What I learned
McNabb is great at buying time, and despite slowing down since that 2006 knee injury, he can still pick up a key first down when needed. However, Reid can provide his quarterback more time by running on first and second down, making the Cowboys edge rushers think before they speed rush. I look for Reid to call 20-25 running plays Sunday.
On the other side of the ball, Tony Romo and his receivers should be on the same page. Garrett is too bright of coordinator, and Romo too sharp of a player, to allow the in-game miscommunication to fester anymore.
I certainly don't see the Cowboy defense keeping the Eagles out of the end zone, but don't expect Dallas to get outscored either. Romo shuts down his critics ... for a week.
Pick: Cowboys
Odds and ends
The Colts will represent the AFC in Super Bowl XLIII (that's this year).
Chicago could end up being the quietest 10-win team in the League.
Flozell Adams Watch: Big Flo's been a little stiff-legged lately, and Romo bailed him out with a couple of Houdini-esque escapes last week. That said, there's no way right tackle Marc Colombo is a better player, as I've seen written lately. It's easier to grade out higher when you face lower grade defensive ends every week. Flo' has faced Murderer's Row the last month, and has a date with Trent Cole Sunday.
msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/8...ept-them-alive
__________________