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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 |
Another Fan's Perspective
By: Ed Cormier
The o line looked like it has potential to be the best we have had in
awhile. Davis looked better in 1 quarter with Dallas than he did his
whole career in Arizona. If he continues with the hustle we just may
have an anchor that we have so desperately needed. Gurode
looked good. There were certainly some mis-steps with the o line
but overall I think we have some depth. Unlike we have had in a long
time.
Brad Johnson was a waste of money. Ask any Viking fan and they will
tell you he has no game left. I was very very disappointed with his
showing and I think this will prove to be another Jerry Jones gaffe.
Johnson's signing was Jerry again thinking he knows football. We
are stuck with him now and You have to get down on your knees
and pray that Romo remains healthy.
Tyson Thompson looked tenative in his cuts. I think a couple of more
games and he will get his confidence back. He certainly has the
speed. I was not impressed with Marion Barber at all. I know you all
are thinking , how can you say that. Barber looked very slow
Thursday night . I know everyone likes his toughness and what but if
he ran like that from the starters role he would be out of commission
by October. Julius looked quick again. My take on the running back
situation , where are you Larry Johnson? Hoyte was a stud.
Hurd and Austin seem to have locked up two of the roster spots at
wr. I was not impressed with any other backup wr though I think
Urban has a chance. Tight end is set.
Now to my pet peeve, the defense. I was totally unimpressed.
Spears and Canty looked well like the Spears and Canty of old. Very
very average. It's time for Ratliff to be handed a starting de postion.
The guy is a force and I said it during last season and I have been
saying it this past off season. Ferguson looked solid but Dallas has
done a poor job at acquiring a backup. Very very dissapointing.
Glymph can just flat out rush the qb. I am tired of towing the
company line. I don't care if a guy was a higher draft choice. Let the
better players play. Why doesn't Dallas use it's best players ? Just
because Spears was a higher draft choice doesn't mean he is better
than Ratliff.
Bradie James again looks slow. I think Carpenter should start at ilb.
Spencer in my opinon will improve. However again if Glypmh is the
better pass rusher then use him. What you saw on Thursday night is
why I just absolutely despise the 3-4. You have to have stud line
backers and Dallas has continually drafted linebackers and it still
doesn't look like we have the right mix. With a four man line we
already have the guys in place. Akin Ayodele looked stuck in mud.
I thought Joey Thomas looked good. The sideline route that he
prevented he was just all over the wr and it was nice to see. He
stopped that play cold. I think he will be the 4th cb for Dallas. Henry
looks like the Henry we had the first season here pre-injury. He was
a stud his first 9 games here. The safety postions were terrible. Roy
Willaims was knocked backwards by the Colts backup running
backs. Was it just me or did I see Roy again getting lost in
coverage? All this talk he is gonna play in the box and what have
you won't fly. The offenses will dictate if Roy has to cover. If Dallas is
in a standard set then the offense goes 3 wide Roy is toast. This is
how New Orleans exposed Roy and teams will continue unless
Dallas can generate a pass rush. From what I saw on
Thursday there is no pass rush. I think Wade may have inherited a
defense that is better in Jerry's mind than it actually is.
All that said it was the first preseason game and there were some
good things on offense. Defense was very mediocre. I think Wade
needs to step up the pressure this week. I will be at the Dallas vs
Houston game and I don't think that will be an accurate measuring
stick for Dallas. The third pre season game is considered the game
that is most like the real thing. Houston is not who I want to have
measure my self to. However if Dallas performs poorly in that game
then it could prove to be along season.
Keep an eye on Lamar Woodley for the Steelers. I know Dallas had
some interest in him and he was taken in the second round.
By: Ed Cormier
The o line looked like it has potential to be the best we have had in
awhile. Davis looked better in 1 quarter with Dallas than he did his
whole career in Arizona. If he continues with the hustle we just may
have an anchor that we have so desperately needed. Gurode
looked good. There were certainly some mis-steps with the o line
but overall I think we have some depth. Unlike we have had in a long
time.
Brad Johnson was a waste of money. Ask any Viking fan and they will
tell you he has no game left. I was very very disappointed with his
showing and I think this will prove to be another Jerry Jones gaffe.
Johnson's signing was Jerry again thinking he knows football. We
are stuck with him now and You have to get down on your knees
and pray that Romo remains healthy.
Tyson Thompson looked tenative in his cuts. I think a couple of more
games and he will get his confidence back. He certainly has the
speed. I was not impressed with Marion Barber at all. I know you all
are thinking , how can you say that. Barber looked very slow
Thursday night . I know everyone likes his toughness and what but if
he ran like that from the starters role he would be out of commission
by October. Julius looked quick again. My take on the running back
situation , where are you Larry Johnson? Hoyte was a stud.
Hurd and Austin seem to have locked up two of the roster spots at
wr. I was not impressed with any other backup wr though I think
Urban has a chance. Tight end is set.
Now to my pet peeve, the defense. I was totally unimpressed.
Spears and Canty looked well like the Spears and Canty of old. Very
very average. It's time for Ratliff to be handed a starting de postion.
The guy is a force and I said it during last season and I have been
saying it this past off season. Ferguson looked solid but Dallas has
done a poor job at acquiring a backup. Very very dissapointing.
Glymph can just flat out rush the qb. I am tired of towing the
company line. I don't care if a guy was a higher draft choice. Let the
better players play. Why doesn't Dallas use it's best players ? Just
because Spears was a higher draft choice doesn't mean he is better
than Ratliff.
Bradie James again looks slow. I think Carpenter should start at ilb.
Spencer in my opinon will improve. However again if Glypmh is the
better pass rusher then use him. What you saw on Thursday night is
why I just absolutely despise the 3-4. You have to have stud line
backers and Dallas has continually drafted linebackers and it still
doesn't look like we have the right mix. With a four man line we
already have the guys in place. Akin Ayodele looked stuck in mud.
I thought Joey Thomas looked good. The sideline route that he
prevented he was just all over the wr and it was nice to see. He
stopped that play cold. I think he will be the 4th cb for Dallas. Henry
looks like the Henry we had the first season here pre-injury. He was
a stud his first 9 games here. The safety postions were terrible. Roy
Willaims was knocked backwards by the Colts backup running
backs. Was it just me or did I see Roy again getting lost in
coverage? All this talk he is gonna play in the box and what have
you won't fly. The offenses will dictate if Roy has to cover. If Dallas is
in a standard set then the offense goes 3 wide Roy is toast. This is
how New Orleans exposed Roy and teams will continue unless
Dallas can generate a pass rush. From what I saw on
Thursday there is no pass rush. I think Wade may have inherited a
defense that is better in Jerry's mind than it actually is.
All that said it was the first preseason game and there were some
good things on offense. Defense was very mediocre. I think Wade
needs to step up the pressure this week. I will be at the Dallas vs
Houston game and I don't think that will be an accurate measuring
stick for Dallas. The third pre season game is considered the game
that is most like the real thing. Houston is not who I want to have
measure my self to. However if Dallas performs poorly in that game
then it could prove to be along season.
Keep an eye on Lamar Woodley for the Steelers. I know Dallas had
some interest in him and he was taken in the second round.
Is a Lighter D a Better D?
I was bored a few days back and looked at the Cowboys depth
chart on Sportsline like I usually do time to time. I was shocked
when I noticed how light all the players on defense were. No I've
been hearing all off-season about how guys like Bradie James and
Roy Williams played 10 to 15 pounds heavier than their listed
weights. They numbers I'm about to show you are the differences
in the actual listed weights from the two seasons which means the
difference in what they actually play at between last season and this
season is probably even larger.
Bradie James - 250 to 239
Akin Ayodele - 250 to 240
Bobby Carpenter - 257 to 248
Kevin Burnett - 240 to 227
Greg Ellis - 270 to 265
DeMarcus Ware - 257 to 252
Roy Williams - 229 to 225
Terence Newman - 195 to 181
Jay Ratliff - 305 to 298
Now I don't know what to make of Newman's weight, but the other
weights give me some hope that this defense won't look as sluggish
as they did last season. Parcells had the right guys to play his
rock'em sock'em scheme, but the lack of speed particularly with our
linebackers was easily apparent last season. Watching Ayodele or
James in open space made me cringe. Bradie James at full speed
last season wasn't even fast enough to call it running. He looked
like an undersized center trying to chase after a tight end or
running back in pass coverage and it was ugly.
Don't give me wrong, James and Ayodele aren't suddenly going to
morph into Dexter Coakley and Dat Nguyen, but the lighter weight
can only help them. They will still be physical linebackers whose
strong suit is taking on blockers and stuffing the run, but this will
make them a little more well-rounded which is needed in this day of
age. You need linebackers that are capable of shadowing tight
ends and running backs for short periods regardless of what
scheme you play.
Ware and Ellis's weight losses weren't dramatic, but imagine
DeMarcus Ware being even a wee bit faster. Ellis won't be any
more athletic then he was because the Achilles injury will hinder his
mobility assuming he even plays this season.
I didn't really think Burnett needed to loose any weight, but he
should just be that much faster which is good because his only real
role in this defense is that of nickel linebacker. Phillips could
envision him as the Dallas version of Donnie Edwards in the coming
seasons though. Carpenter's weight loss doesn't really effect
anything because his main problem is shedding blocks and the only
thing that will help that is technique and strength.
Roy has needed to lose weight for awhile now. When you are
getting paid as much as he is you should be in shape. I don't fault
him for not being great in coverage because of his somewhat
limited skill set in that area. He doesn't have the athleticism most
smaller safeties do. Still though, he shouldn't have a gut when he is
playing safety. The least he can do is get as light as possible so he
can be the best in coverage that he possibly can be.
Ratliff was the only defensive lineman with any real change in
weight. I would just say that it is an indication that he won't be the
backup nose tackle if at all possible. 305 isn't a natural playing
weight for him, but he needed it playing the nose. He was only
around 290 in college so the lighter weight should make him even
more explosive than he seemed last season.
I was bored a few days back and looked at the Cowboys depth
chart on Sportsline like I usually do time to time. I was shocked
when I noticed how light all the players on defense were. No I've
been hearing all off-season about how guys like Bradie James and
Roy Williams played 10 to 15 pounds heavier than their listed
weights. They numbers I'm about to show you are the differences
in the actual listed weights from the two seasons which means the
difference in what they actually play at between last season and this
season is probably even larger.
Bradie James - 250 to 239
Akin Ayodele - 250 to 240
Bobby Carpenter - 257 to 248
Kevin Burnett - 240 to 227
Greg Ellis - 270 to 265
DeMarcus Ware - 257 to 252
Roy Williams - 229 to 225
Terence Newman - 195 to 181
Jay Ratliff - 305 to 298
Now I don't know what to make of Newman's weight, but the other
weights give me some hope that this defense won't look as sluggish
as they did last season. Parcells had the right guys to play his
rock'em sock'em scheme, but the lack of speed particularly with our
linebackers was easily apparent last season. Watching Ayodele or
James in open space made me cringe. Bradie James at full speed
last season wasn't even fast enough to call it running. He looked
like an undersized center trying to chase after a tight end or
running back in pass coverage and it was ugly.
Don't give me wrong, James and Ayodele aren't suddenly going to
morph into Dexter Coakley and Dat Nguyen, but the lighter weight
can only help them. They will still be physical linebackers whose
strong suit is taking on blockers and stuffing the run, but this will
make them a little more well-rounded which is needed in this day of
age. You need linebackers that are capable of shadowing tight
ends and running backs for short periods regardless of what
scheme you play.
Ware and Ellis's weight losses weren't dramatic, but imagine
DeMarcus Ware being even a wee bit faster. Ellis won't be any
more athletic then he was because the Achilles injury will hinder his
mobility assuming he even plays this season.
I didn't really think Burnett needed to loose any weight, but he
should just be that much faster which is good because his only real
role in this defense is that of nickel linebacker. Phillips could
envision him as the Dallas version of Donnie Edwards in the coming
seasons though. Carpenter's weight loss doesn't really effect
anything because his main problem is shedding blocks and the only
thing that will help that is technique and strength.
Roy has needed to lose weight for awhile now. When you are
getting paid as much as he is you should be in shape. I don't fault
him for not being great in coverage because of his somewhat
limited skill set in that area. He doesn't have the athleticism most
smaller safeties do. Still though, he shouldn't have a gut when he is
playing safety. The least he can do is get as light as possible so he
can be the best in coverage that he possibly can be.
Ratliff was the only defensive lineman with any real change in
weight. I would just say that it is an indication that he won't be the
backup nose tackle if at all possible. 305 isn't a natural playing
weight for him, but he needed it playing the nose. He was only
around 290 in college so the lighter weight should make him even
more explosive than he seemed last season.