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Dallas Cowboys – Week 6

cowboys win

Well, well, well. The Dallas Cowboys are 5-1. Who would’ve thought? I famously predicted (famous in my own mind) that the Dallas Cowboys were going to go 2-14 this year. With a historically bad defense last year and the losses of DeMarcus Ware and Sean Lee, I couldn’t see the Dallas defense being better. Last year, their offense was good, but not great. You can never count on anything positive from the offense. Oh, and add to that an absolutely abysmal preseason.

Fast forward to now. The Dallas Cowboys have to go to Seattle to play the Super Bowl champs. Let’s understand that the Super Bowl champs aren’t the team that they were last year. They’re having some issues. They need wide receivers who can separate and catch the ball. They need another playmaker besides Percy Harvin. Yet, they still have a stout defense. They still have Russell Wilson. I remember just two years ago when the Dallas Cowboys went to Seattle and got shredded early in the season. It was the first time I had an opportunity to see Russell Wilson. I wasn’t dazzled by anything that he did but at the same time, he really didn’t make any mistakes. That is probably the hallmark of Russell Wilson’s game. He may not dazzle you with outstanding throws and arm strength, but at the same time he doesn’t really make any mental mistakes. During that game, the Dallas Cowboys took control early only to have a punt blocked and a couple of key turnovers to seal the game for Seattle.

On Sunday, the Dallas Cowboys had plenty of opportunities to roll over and play dead. They did not. They spotted the Seattle Seahawks 10 points. Through sheer grit and determination the Dallas Cowboys scored the next 17 points. They were in control of the game. Dwayne Harris fumbled a punt, giving Seattle not only momentum, but seven points. The very next drive, the Seattle fans were going crazy. The Dallas Cowboys were deep in their own end of the field, Tony Romo frantically trying to signal his receivers. The center snapped the ball. The ball bounced off of Tony Romo’s leg into the hands of a waiting Seattle defender. Another three points for the Seahawks. Normally, this would lead to Tony Romo trying to fit the ball into an impossibly small window, which would lead to an interception. For some reason, that didn’t happen.

Instead, we saw a remarkable sequence of plays. On a third and long, deep in our own end of the field, Tony Romo throws a back shoulder fade to Dez Bryant who leaps up and grabs the ball over Richard Sherman. First down. A couple of plays later, the Dallas Cowboys have it third and long, again. We’re in the fourth quarter. The Seattle fans are going nuts. Tony Romo goes back to throw and gets immediate pressure off of his left side. He spends out of pressure only to have to avoid another defender in his face. He scrambles to his right. He throws about a 30-yard pass and appears to have overthrown Jason Witten, but the ball lands in Terrence Williams’ hands. Williams makes one of the best catches I’ve seen by a Dallas Cowboy in years. He drags both of his feet as he is falling out of bounds. Magnificent play. Then, the Dallas Cowboys don’t forget how to run the football. In the past, when we were down in the fourth quarter, we would always throw the ball, throw the ball, and then throw the ball some more. Instead we handed the ball to DeMarco Murray. He breaks it for 25 yards. Next play, DeMarco Murray off the right tackle for 6 yards. Now, in my opinion, one of the most remarkable things was when the Dallas Cowboys run the ball again. DeMarco Murray runs right, cuts it back left in his head at the 2-yard line by Richard Sherman. He carries Richard Sherman into the end zone for a 15-yard run and a touchdown. That was the game.

What is remarkable to me is the toughness the Dallas Cowboys have shown on both offense and defense. The Dallas Cowboys have shown not just physical toughness but also mental toughness.

No, I have not jumped on the Dallas Cowboys bandwagon. The Dallas Cowboys have torn my heart out on a number of occasions over the last 15 years. Right now, I’m just gonna sit back and smile. (Let’s see how we do at the end of the season. Let’s beat Philadelphia.)

By ecthompsonmd|2014-10-13T22:35:14-04:00October 13th, 2014|NFL|Comments Off

Black Friday Thankfulness – Dallas Cowboys Edition

I know that it is Black Friday and Americans are pushing and shoving trying to buy the latest toy for their three-year-old toddler who won’t remember the toy in two years. I’m going to skip that mess. I would like to talk about why I am thankful that the Cowboys have proven I don’t need to hope for the playoffs, that this season is over.

Dejected Tony Romo

I am extremely thankful that I only watched the first half of this football game. Actually, the first two series tell the story. The fact that the Cowboys once again made a furious comeback that came up short is immaterial. The Dallas Cowboys defense stopped the Washington Redskins and Robert Griffin, III on the first possession. As a matter fact, they went backwards. After a punt and an obligatory penalty (both teams are ridiculously penalized because they are bad), the Dallas Cowboys started at the Washington 35-yard line. The Cowboys moved the ball to the Washington seven-yard line. They had third and six at the Washington Redskins’ 12-yard line. Jason Witten, our all-Pro tight end, was called for a false start. The drive stalled. We kicked a field goal. The Dallas Cowboys started the drive on the 35-yard line. The Redskins give up almost 26 points each game. Their defense allows an average of 390 yards per game, yet the Cowboys could not find a way into the end zone. Kicking a field goal was simply awful.

The Washington Redskins had eight plays, but then had to kick the ball again as the drive stalled. The Dallas Cowboys got the football on their own 13-yard line. They put together three plays, which yielded a first down. They get six yards on, in and around to Dez Bryant. Then, because the Cowboys hate momentum early in the game, they decided to give the Washington Redskins the gift of momentum. As a matter of fact, the next sequence of penalties really exemplifies the Dallas Cowboys season. It started with a false start on Doug Free, who is our penalty-prone tackle and who has struggled mightily this year. Next came a penalty that I simply cannot understand or explain. After a penalty, the play clock restarted and somehow the Cowboys could not get… The whistle blew – delay of game. Completely inexcusable. So, instead of having a second down and four, the Cowboys had a second down and 14. Two plays later, they were punting the ball to the Washington Redskins. On the Redskins’ next possession they began to run the ball and after several plays Robert Griffin, III, displayed a beautiful play action pass and hit Aldrick Robinson for a 68-yard touchdown pass. For all practical purposes, the game was over.

I’m sure that the Dallas Cowboys have plenty of excuses for their mediocre performance. They can point to the fact that their former All-Pro receiver Miles Austin has been chronically injured, again. They can also point to the fact that the defense simply isn’t the same without Jay Ratliff in the middle. They could also mention that they simply cannot run the ball without DeMarco Murray. Without a running game, Tony Romo has to force the ball and that’s a recipe for multiple interceptions. Every team has injuries. The New England Patriots, the Green Bay Packers, the San Francisco 49ers – all of them had injuries to key players, yet somehow they managed to play competitive football. Even without the injuries, the Cowboys were looking mediocre at best. It is time for Jerry Jones to begin the plan for next season. It is my opinion, that the Dallas Cowboys will not, unfortunately, be competitive until Jerry Jones recognizes that he cannot win without Jimmy Johnson. It is that simple.

By ecthompsonmd|2013-11-03T18:17:09-04:00November 23rd, 2012|NFL|Comments Off

We need to see a ton of Felix Jones running the ball

This is why you watch the NFL. It is for games like these. Everything on the line. Win and you are in the playoffs and you win the NFC East. Cool.

I just finished watching the Giants lose to the Redskins in their week 15 match-up. The Giants did just about everything that they could to lose that game. They played the run extremely badly. Had Rex Grossman played better, the Redskins could have really killed the Giants. The Redskins controlled the clock, which limited Eli Manning. Also, the wide receivers for the Giants were dropping the ball like they got paid to run great routes and drop the ball.

Beating the Giants (Dallas offense): We need to be able to run the ball. There is some concern about the lost of Montrae Hollard (he tore his biceps and is out for the rest of the season). It appears that veteran Derek Dockery will start at left guard. This should be okay. The Cowboys need to run the football. Felix Jones appears to be in position to take a significant amount of the work. He was out last week with a hamstring injury. Sammy Morris has run the ball well, but the Cowboys are going to need the big-play ability of Felix Jones. We need to be able to control the clock. This will protect our extremely vulnerable defense. In my opinion, we need to run a lot of two and three tight end sets. This gives us a strong run formation and we should be able to pass the ball to Jason Witten, John Phillips and Martellus Bennett (who has been playing a little better lately). It is imperative that the Cowboys run the ball effectively in order to neutralize the pass rush of the New York Giants. Jason Pierre Paul is their new sensation. He was extremely disruptive during the last Dallas Cowboys – New York Giants meeting. He had two sacks (one of the sacks was for safety), a forced fumble and a blocked field goal. The play action pass will be open off of the run. The true weakness of the New York Giants defense is their secondary. The true strength of the New York Giants is their offense. Therefore, we need to keep them on the sidelines. Run the ball. Short passing game. Control the clock. I’m not worried about Romo’s hand. I’m more worried about Romo’s protection. We must take this fight to the Giants and it starts on offense.

Beating the Giants (Dallas defense): I have no idea what Rob Ryan has been focusing on this last week. As defensive coordinator, he should’ve seen a lot of things that turned his stomach while watching the film of New York Giants – Dallas Cowboys football game. The Cowboys got no sacks. If you get no pressure on Eli Manning, expect to lose the game. The front seven of the Dallas Cowboys is as competitive a group as you’ll find in the NFL. The secondary for the Cowboys — how can I put this? They simply suck. Both corners are playing poorly. Abram Elam (safety) is not playing particularly well. Gerald Sensabaugh is making plays all over the field, but he need some help. Orlando Scandrick is playing okay in the slot. That’s it. Dallas had trouble stopping the run and the pass against the Giants a couple weeks ago. DeMarcus Ware appears to be healthy. Jay Ratliff, All-Pro nose tackle, appears to be healthy. They have to be able to play at the top of their game in order for the Dallas defense not to be abused. The key may be Anthony Spencer. If he can play well, the Cowboys have a good chance of winning this game.

These teams are mirror images of each other. Both QBs are good. Both offenses are good. They both have defenses which are not playing well enough for either team to go deep into the playoffs. This game is a toss-up. In a league in which the Packers can lose to the Kansas City Chiefs, anything can happen. In a league in which the St. Louis Rams beat the New Orleans Saints (remember this was a week after DeMarco Murray ran for over 200 yds against the Rams), anything can happen. Let’s sit back and enjoy a great game. I hope you have a wide screen in HD because this is going to be fun.