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Latest News
2007 SCHEDULE
PRE-SEASON
Thu Aug 9 INDIANAPOLIS
(FOX) 7:00 pm
Sat Aug 18 DENVER (BSM)
7:00 pm
Sat Aug 25 @ Houston
(BSM) 7:00 pm
Thu Aug 30 @ Minnesota
(BSM) 7:00 pm
REGULAR SEASON
1. Sun, Sept. 9 NY GIANTS
(NBC) 7:15 pm
2. Sun, Sept. 16 @ Miami
(FOX) 3:05 pm
3. Sun, Sept. 23 @
Chicago (NBC) 7:15 pm
4. Sun, Sept. 30 ST. LOUIS
(FOX) Noon
5. Mon, Oct. 8 @ Buffalo
(ESPN) 7:30 pm
6. Sun, Oct. 14 NEW
ENGLAND (CBS) 3:15 pm
7. Sun, Oct. 21
MINNESOTA (FOX) Noon
8. Sun, Oct. 28 BYE WEEK
9. Sun, Nov 4 @
Philadelphia (NBC) 7:15
pm
10. Sun, Nov. 11 @ NY
Giants (FOX) 3:15 pm
11. Sun, Nov. 18
WASHINGTON (FOX) Noon
12. Thu, Nov. 22 NY JETS
(CBS) 3:15 pm
13. Thu, Nov. 29 GREEN
BAY (NFL) 7:15 pm
14. Sun, Dec. 9 @ Detroit
(FOX) Noon
15. Sun, Dec. 16 PHILLY
(FOX) 3:15 pm
16. Sat, Dec. 22 @
Carolina (NFL) 7:15 pm
17. Sun, Dec. 30 @
Washington (FOX) Noon
PRE-SEASON
Thu Aug 9 INDIANAPOLIS
(FOX) 7:00 pm
Sat Aug 18 DENVER (BSM)
7:00 pm
Sat Aug 25 @ Houston
(BSM) 7:00 pm
Thu Aug 30 @ Minnesota
(BSM) 7:00 pm
REGULAR SEASON
1. Sun, Sept. 9 NY GIANTS
(NBC) 7:15 pm
2. Sun, Sept. 16 @ Miami
(FOX) 3:05 pm
3. Sun, Sept. 23 @
Chicago (NBC) 7:15 pm
4. Sun, Sept. 30 ST. LOUIS
(FOX) Noon
5. Mon, Oct. 8 @ Buffalo
(ESPN) 7:30 pm
6. Sun, Oct. 14 NEW
ENGLAND (CBS) 3:15 pm
7. Sun, Oct. 21
MINNESOTA (FOX) Noon
8. Sun, Oct. 28 BYE WEEK
9. Sun, Nov 4 @
Philadelphia (NBC) 7:15
pm
10. Sun, Nov. 11 @ NY
Giants (FOX) 3:15 pm
11. Sun, Nov. 18
WASHINGTON (FOX) Noon
12. Thu, Nov. 22 NY JETS
(CBS) 3:15 pm
13. Thu, Nov. 29 GREEN
BAY (NFL) 7:15 pm
14. Sun, Dec. 9 @ Detroit
(FOX) Noon
15. Sun, Dec. 16 PHILLY
(FOX) 3:15 pm
16. Sat, Dec. 22 @
Carolina (NFL) 7:15 pm
17. Sun, Dec. 30 @
Washington (FOX) Noon
| Cowboy's Trivia Question of the Week! Who holds the Cowboys' single season passing yardage record? Last Week's Answer: Purdue |
Breakin' Down the Roster: Defensive Backs
I think this is the group of players with the most intrigue of any on
the entire football team. I believe I know what we are going to get
from the offense. I have a good idea of how the front seven will
play next year. I have absolutely no idea how the secondary is
going to perform this upcoming season.
This unit fell apart the last five games of last season. The question
is, will we see the above average secondary of the first eleven
games or the awful one from the last five. I'm known to be an
optimist, but I see the secondary playing pretty well next season.
At cornerback, we are set with the trio of Newman, Henry, and
Glenn. All three guys played a little worse than they did in 2005.
Glenn will continue to decline, but I think Newman and especially
Henry will have better seasons. The most overlooked guy in the
secondary is Henry. He has been amazing the past two years when
completely healthy. The problem has been he has had nagging
leg injuries that have slowed him down. That is a big problem when
you are already one of the slower cornerbacks in the league. This
could be a make or break year for Henry. If he stays healthy and is
able to keep from getting burned too many times and continue to
make great plays on the ball like he does then we can use our first
round picks on different positions. If he turns in a repeat
performance I can nearly guarantee a move to free safety and a
first round draft pick at cornerback.
Behind the experienced trio are a number of guys fighting for two
spots. Jacques Reeves and Nate Jones are entering their third
seasons so they will probably have to show significant improvement
to hang around. I've like Reeves ever since he filled in when Henry
was hurt in 2005, but he seemed to play less than Jones last
season. I believe one of these two guys or maybe the experienced
Joey Thomas will make it on the roster as the fourth corner simply
because we don't want an injury to force a rookie into the nickel.
Vying for the final spot will be first year player Quincy Butler and
rookies Alan Ball and Courtney Brown. Butler and especially Brown
have tremendous upside, but Ball appears to be more ready to
actually make an impact this season. I'd say Ball makes the team
and Brown and possibly Butler land on the practice squad.
Everybody knows that safety was a huge weakness for this team
last season. Roy Williams, Keith Davis, and Pat Watkins all
struggled in coverage. I'm not too excited about their prospects this
year either. Wade Phillips isn't know to be a secondary guru and
his aggressive front seven schemes often leave his back four
vulnerable to the big play. Because of this, I expect to see our
defense get burned a ton this season. This doesn't mean that our
defense will be terrible though. The more aggressive scheme
should lead to more turnovers and negative plays. Plus, the way I
look at it, our safeties aren't going to be good in coverage, so why
not just send as many people at the QB as you can including the
safeties. If Roy can't cover the tight end regardless, why not just
send the house and see if the quarterback even has time to get the
ball to the tight end. We gave up a lot of big pass plays last season
and I don't see that changing, but we can still be a great defense if
we stuff the run and force turnovers because giving up big plays
isn't the worst thing a defense can do. You give the ball right back
to the offense, which makes it much better than being a bend but
don't break defense that let's the other team control time of
possession.
A big topic of discussion is Ken Hamlin. How much will he improve
the secondary? I believe that he will definitely help and he will
prove to be a bargain for such a small investment. The fact that he
seemingly already has the free safety job wrapped up tells me we
are probably going to see the Ken Hamlin that showed so much
promise in Seattle his first few seasons. That Ken Hamlin is one
heck of a football player. He isn't going to be the true centerfielder
type you would like to have teamed with Roy, but the bottom line is
he will be a good player who will help our defense as a whole. He is
a good play maker who is amazing in the box and his coverage is at
the very least is a step up from Keith Davis and his all-around skills
blow Pat Watkins out of the water.
Our depth at safety appears to be so good that we might actually
keep five safeties. Keith Davis is a special teams ace who is a
quality backup at strong safety. Pat Watkins is a young guy who I
think will be a quality starter in time. The wildcard is Abram Elam.
He is another great special teams guy. He is very inexperienced
but he is a great athlete. There is a good chance he will either
unseat Keith Davis or he will force us to keep five safeties which we
can definitely do because Davis and Elam are perhaps our two best
special teamers. Speaking of special teams, I'll wrap up this long
series Tuesday with special teams.
I think this is the group of players with the most intrigue of any on
the entire football team. I believe I know what we are going to get
from the offense. I have a good idea of how the front seven will
play next year. I have absolutely no idea how the secondary is
going to perform this upcoming season.
This unit fell apart the last five games of last season. The question
is, will we see the above average secondary of the first eleven
games or the awful one from the last five. I'm known to be an
optimist, but I see the secondary playing pretty well next season.
At cornerback, we are set with the trio of Newman, Henry, and
Glenn. All three guys played a little worse than they did in 2005.
Glenn will continue to decline, but I think Newman and especially
Henry will have better seasons. The most overlooked guy in the
secondary is Henry. He has been amazing the past two years when
completely healthy. The problem has been he has had nagging
leg injuries that have slowed him down. That is a big problem when
you are already one of the slower cornerbacks in the league. This
could be a make or break year for Henry. If he stays healthy and is
able to keep from getting burned too many times and continue to
make great plays on the ball like he does then we can use our first
round picks on different positions. If he turns in a repeat
performance I can nearly guarantee a move to free safety and a
first round draft pick at cornerback.
Behind the experienced trio are a number of guys fighting for two
spots. Jacques Reeves and Nate Jones are entering their third
seasons so they will probably have to show significant improvement
to hang around. I've like Reeves ever since he filled in when Henry
was hurt in 2005, but he seemed to play less than Jones last
season. I believe one of these two guys or maybe the experienced
Joey Thomas will make it on the roster as the fourth corner simply
because we don't want an injury to force a rookie into the nickel.
Vying for the final spot will be first year player Quincy Butler and
rookies Alan Ball and Courtney Brown. Butler and especially Brown
have tremendous upside, but Ball appears to be more ready to
actually make an impact this season. I'd say Ball makes the team
and Brown and possibly Butler land on the practice squad.
Everybody knows that safety was a huge weakness for this team
last season. Roy Williams, Keith Davis, and Pat Watkins all
struggled in coverage. I'm not too excited about their prospects this
year either. Wade Phillips isn't know to be a secondary guru and
his aggressive front seven schemes often leave his back four
vulnerable to the big play. Because of this, I expect to see our
defense get burned a ton this season. This doesn't mean that our
defense will be terrible though. The more aggressive scheme
should lead to more turnovers and negative plays. Plus, the way I
look at it, our safeties aren't going to be good in coverage, so why
not just send as many people at the QB as you can including the
safeties. If Roy can't cover the tight end regardless, why not just
send the house and see if the quarterback even has time to get the
ball to the tight end. We gave up a lot of big pass plays last season
and I don't see that changing, but we can still be a great defense if
we stuff the run and force turnovers because giving up big plays
isn't the worst thing a defense can do. You give the ball right back
to the offense, which makes it much better than being a bend but
don't break defense that let's the other team control time of
possession.
A big topic of discussion is Ken Hamlin. How much will he improve
the secondary? I believe that he will definitely help and he will
prove to be a bargain for such a small investment. The fact that he
seemingly already has the free safety job wrapped up tells me we
are probably going to see the Ken Hamlin that showed so much
promise in Seattle his first few seasons. That Ken Hamlin is one
heck of a football player. He isn't going to be the true centerfielder
type you would like to have teamed with Roy, but the bottom line is
he will be a good player who will help our defense as a whole. He is
a good play maker who is amazing in the box and his coverage is at
the very least is a step up from Keith Davis and his all-around skills
blow Pat Watkins out of the water.
Our depth at safety appears to be so good that we might actually
keep five safeties. Keith Davis is a special teams ace who is a
quality backup at strong safety. Pat Watkins is a young guy who I
think will be a quality starter in time. The wildcard is Abram Elam.
He is another great special teams guy. He is very inexperienced
but he is a great athlete. There is a good chance he will either
unseat Keith Davis or he will force us to keep five safeties which we
can definitely do because Davis and Elam are perhaps our two best
special teamers. Speaking of special teams, I'll wrap up this long
series Tuesday with special teams.
Michael Turner to Dallas Rumor Again
I am still hearing rumors about Wade Phillips trying to get his LT Jr.
in MT...Michael Turner.
We CANNOT do this.
All Wade Phillips has to do is improve the pass rush and make this
a powerhouse defense.
Don't even think offense Wade. Please.
Leave it to Jason Garrett. He will be an good OC and play caller.
Just use the roster we have this season and we will be a Top 10
maybe even Top 5 offense with him.
The rumor of us trading for MT would probably be a good idea if i
wasn't for our high odds on having the chance to get Darren
McFadden with a top 5 pick next year. And we all know we could go
to the Super Bowl and the odds will still be in our favor.
By now, enough people have seen what the Chargers want for Mr.
Turner and how rediculous they sound. For those who haven't:
TURN ON ESPN ONCE IN A WHILE.
It's a lot. A First rounder, a Second rounder, and probably another
player might satisfy their needs.
But hold on.... Lets check if those odds have changed since I
started this argument.
Nope... We still could get McFadden with just one First rounder.
To me, one deal seems a little more.... SMART... for lack of a better
Wade..er..Word.
Anyways, we haven't even talked about Turner and his potential.
Yes he has a high yards per carry.
Yes he had big runs and breaks tackles.
But all of those were behind the REAL LT.
Also none of us are real draft experts, even though we think we are
with the mocks drafts we make that get up to "Mock 9.0". There are
reasons this guy wasn't an early round pick.
He doesn’t have blazing speed so he might be best suited n a 2-
back situation like Marion Barber is for us.
And two bruisers don't work so well so we must be wanting to trade
Marion as the player in the deal.
Wait... No? "Because he had 16 touchdowns last year" you say?
The idea is NOT to try and supply our pick to other teams so he
can do his damage against us.
I have high hopes for Wade Phillips and this Cowboys team.
Demarcus Ware will be a monster like Shawne Merriman was when
he was with Wade. Hopefully Marcus Spears and Chris Canty will
blossom into the once projected 1st round picks they were seen to
be.
And hopefully Jason Garrett will say "Hey... we are going to get one
good year out of Julius Jones because its a contract year. And like
his brother Thomas, he will play hard when he knows his money will
be nicer on the other side. We don't need no stinkin' MT. "
I am still hearing rumors about Wade Phillips trying to get his LT Jr.
in MT...Michael Turner.
We CANNOT do this.
All Wade Phillips has to do is improve the pass rush and make this
a powerhouse defense.
Don't even think offense Wade. Please.
Leave it to Jason Garrett. He will be an good OC and play caller.
Just use the roster we have this season and we will be a Top 10
maybe even Top 5 offense with him.
The rumor of us trading for MT would probably be a good idea if i
wasn't for our high odds on having the chance to get Darren
McFadden with a top 5 pick next year. And we all know we could go
to the Super Bowl and the odds will still be in our favor.
By now, enough people have seen what the Chargers want for Mr.
Turner and how rediculous they sound. For those who haven't:
TURN ON ESPN ONCE IN A WHILE.
It's a lot. A First rounder, a Second rounder, and probably another
player might satisfy their needs.
But hold on.... Lets check if those odds have changed since I
started this argument.
Nope... We still could get McFadden with just one First rounder.
To me, one deal seems a little more.... SMART... for lack of a better
Wade..er..Word.
Anyways, we haven't even talked about Turner and his potential.
Yes he has a high yards per carry.
Yes he had big runs and breaks tackles.
But all of those were behind the REAL LT.
Also none of us are real draft experts, even though we think we are
with the mocks drafts we make that get up to "Mock 9.0". There are
reasons this guy wasn't an early round pick.
He doesn’t have blazing speed so he might be best suited n a 2-
back situation like Marion Barber is for us.
And two bruisers don't work so well so we must be wanting to trade
Marion as the player in the deal.
Wait... No? "Because he had 16 touchdowns last year" you say?
The idea is NOT to try and supply our pick to other teams so he
can do his damage against us.
I have high hopes for Wade Phillips and this Cowboys team.
Demarcus Ware will be a monster like Shawne Merriman was when
he was with Wade. Hopefully Marcus Spears and Chris Canty will
blossom into the once projected 1st round picks they were seen to
be.
And hopefully Jason Garrett will say "Hey... we are going to get one
good year out of Julius Jones because its a contract year. And like
his brother Thomas, he will play hard when he knows his money will
be nicer on the other side. We don't need no stinkin' MT. "