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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 is the oldest player on the Cowboys' roster? Last Week's Answer: Danny White |
Cowboys Survive Scare in Detroit
I think I jinxed the Cowboys with last week's article about the Patriots
being vulnerable. Dallas went out and had an all most identical
game to what the Patriots and Ravens game was a week ago.
There are two ways to look at this game. The positive aspect is that
our quarterback led us from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to
a victory. A defense that had trouble stopping anything all day
came up big when it needed to.
The negatives are pretty obvious. Where is our defense? This was
a test to see if we have improved in pass coverage and we pretty
well answered that question. Terence Newman had perhaps his
worst game as a pro. They ran comebacks on him and the other
corners all day and we couldn't stop them. Our safeties and
linebackers were of little help. We didn't give up any big plays, but
it didn't matter. The Lions ate up the clock and kept Tony Romo off
the field for the majority of the game.
Our defense couldn't do anything right yesterday. 27 points isn't
just a huge amount when our offense averages 32 a game, but it is
tough when you let a team have that many long, time consuming
drives. I can't believe how the Lions ran on us. I wouldn't have
guessed that in a million years. Our run defense started slipping
last season about this time. The last two games have been sub par
against two teams that don't exactly excel at running the ball. We
better get that fixed in a hurry. This defense doesn't have a prayer
if teams can run and throw on them.
We also couldn't force a turnover or record a sack until the last play
of the game. This defense has been opportunistic all year. We will
probably allow some points, but we make up for it with big plays of
our own on defense. That didn't happen yesterday. Overall, I think
the defense just looked flat. We weren't covering, we weren't
tackling, we just didn't seem focused. This team will have some
problems stopping the pass though. I will have more on that later in
the week.
The offense looked great as always. I keep waiting for them to
have an off week and it just doesn't seem like it is going to happen.
28 points is below their season average, but it seems like we scored
on nearly every possession. I'd have to look at the stats, but we
didn't have many chances on offense.
Jason Witten had a monster game. He is only 45 yards short of
1000 on the year. His fumble on the 1 yard line really hurt, but he
redeemed himself with the winning touchdown catch. He is just so
reliable. He gets open and he always makes the tough catch.
I'm really impressed with Terrell Owens. He just seems different.
I've seen him in several interviews and he just seems calmer and
more mature. He is definitely a weird guy, but I think he has been
the ultimate team guy. He may have acted differently if we had lost,
but he seemed happy that Jason had a monster game. He just kept
saying he knows his role in this offense. He knows either he is
getting the ball or someone else is getting it because of him drawing
off the coverage. He is a guy that needs to feel wanted and
important and I think he feels that.
Tony Romo was amazing. This guy would run away with the MVP
any other year. He is the reason we are 11-1. This is basically the
same team as last season with the exception of him. We will be in
contention every year if he plays at the level he is playing at this
season.
Jay Ratliff is the only defensive player that stood out. He nearly
forced a safety in the 4th quarter. He had several quarterback
pressures as he was the only guy to consistently get a push up
front.
A couple of the long Lions runs were bad luck. On the T.J. Duckett
run, Ratliff stunted left leaving a huge gap that had to be filled by
Akin Ayodele. The running play was designed to go right where
Ratliff vacated. Ayodele was the only guy that had a real shot and
he was blocked by an offensive lineman. Now Duckett should have
been tackled in the secondary before he scored, but that run was
destined to be a big gain. Another play similar to this happened on
a 15 yard run by Kevin Jones. Ware came inside on a stunt and
they ran right to the spot vacated by him. Someone is obviously
supposed to fill that gap, but it makes it hard when you are moving
around to different places. Those moves help get penetration and
if they run at a stunt or twist you can look great, but if they go away
from it you could be in trouble. We may start to miss Jason
Ferguson. It was nice having a guy that could just stand there and
plug the middle. Ratliff definitely isn't the problem with our run
defense as I'm not even sure we have one, but we better get back
into the habit of shutting down the run.
I think I jinxed the Cowboys with last week's article about the Patriots
being vulnerable. Dallas went out and had an all most identical
game to what the Patriots and Ravens game was a week ago.
There are two ways to look at this game. The positive aspect is that
our quarterback led us from 13 points down in the fourth quarter to
a victory. A defense that had trouble stopping anything all day
came up big when it needed to.
The negatives are pretty obvious. Where is our defense? This was
a test to see if we have improved in pass coverage and we pretty
well answered that question. Terence Newman had perhaps his
worst game as a pro. They ran comebacks on him and the other
corners all day and we couldn't stop them. Our safeties and
linebackers were of little help. We didn't give up any big plays, but
it didn't matter. The Lions ate up the clock and kept Tony Romo off
the field for the majority of the game.
Our defense couldn't do anything right yesterday. 27 points isn't
just a huge amount when our offense averages 32 a game, but it is
tough when you let a team have that many long, time consuming
drives. I can't believe how the Lions ran on us. I wouldn't have
guessed that in a million years. Our run defense started slipping
last season about this time. The last two games have been sub par
against two teams that don't exactly excel at running the ball. We
better get that fixed in a hurry. This defense doesn't have a prayer
if teams can run and throw on them.
We also couldn't force a turnover or record a sack until the last play
of the game. This defense has been opportunistic all year. We will
probably allow some points, but we make up for it with big plays of
our own on defense. That didn't happen yesterday. Overall, I think
the defense just looked flat. We weren't covering, we weren't
tackling, we just didn't seem focused. This team will have some
problems stopping the pass though. I will have more on that later in
the week.
The offense looked great as always. I keep waiting for them to
have an off week and it just doesn't seem like it is going to happen.
28 points is below their season average, but it seems like we scored
on nearly every possession. I'd have to look at the stats, but we
didn't have many chances on offense.
Jason Witten had a monster game. He is only 45 yards short of
1000 on the year. His fumble on the 1 yard line really hurt, but he
redeemed himself with the winning touchdown catch. He is just so
reliable. He gets open and he always makes the tough catch.
I'm really impressed with Terrell Owens. He just seems different.
I've seen him in several interviews and he just seems calmer and
more mature. He is definitely a weird guy, but I think he has been
the ultimate team guy. He may have acted differently if we had lost,
but he seemed happy that Jason had a monster game. He just kept
saying he knows his role in this offense. He knows either he is
getting the ball or someone else is getting it because of him drawing
off the coverage. He is a guy that needs to feel wanted and
important and I think he feels that.
Tony Romo was amazing. This guy would run away with the MVP
any other year. He is the reason we are 11-1. This is basically the
same team as last season with the exception of him. We will be in
contention every year if he plays at the level he is playing at this
season.
Jay Ratliff is the only defensive player that stood out. He nearly
forced a safety in the 4th quarter. He had several quarterback
pressures as he was the only guy to consistently get a push up
front.
A couple of the long Lions runs were bad luck. On the T.J. Duckett
run, Ratliff stunted left leaving a huge gap that had to be filled by
Akin Ayodele. The running play was designed to go right where
Ratliff vacated. Ayodele was the only guy that had a real shot and
he was blocked by an offensive lineman. Now Duckett should have
been tackled in the secondary before he scored, but that run was
destined to be a big gain. Another play similar to this happened on
a 15 yard run by Kevin Jones. Ware came inside on a stunt and
they ran right to the spot vacated by him. Someone is obviously
supposed to fill that gap, but it makes it hard when you are moving
around to different places. Those moves help get penetration and
if they run at a stunt or twist you can look great, but if they go away
from it you could be in trouble. We may start to miss Jason
Ferguson. It was nice having a guy that could just stand there and
plug the middle. Ratliff definitely isn't the problem with our run
defense as I'm not even sure we have one, but we better get back
into the habit of shutting down the run.
Smashmouth Football Is Dying
The NFL as we know it is rapidly changing. College has already
changed. The spread offense rules college football. Big, physical
football teams simply don't have an answer for it on defense.
Look at the NFL this season. What do the Patriots, Cowboys, Colts,
and Packers have in common? They all throw the ball for big
chunks of yards and they score a bunch of points. All four teams
run the ball pretty well especially the Colts and Cowboys, but they
are still scoring their points in the passing game.
The Pittsburgh/New England game showed me that the physical
smashmouth brand of football that has been a staple of the Steelers
and many other teams is dying. The Steelers had the number one
defense in the NFL and they got torched. The reason they got
torched is that their secondary is average at best. Their physical
front seven can pummel your average NFL team into submission,
but put that defense on the field against three and four receiver
sets all game long and they are out of their element.
Dallas's defense is a worse version of the Steelers. We are big and
physical. We stop the run and we have a good pass rush. We
dominate average to below average offensive teams like Minnesota,
Buffalo, and the Jets. Put us up against an above average offense
that likes to spread the field and we are in trouble.
To win in the new NFL you need to be athletic in your back seven,
and you have to be able to score points in the passing game.
Dallas's offense is perfect. Our offense is a little more conventional
than the Patriots and Packers, but we are equally as effective. We
don't usually put more than three receivers on the field because we
have Jason Witten. We are still able to get mismatches and throw
up and down the field on just about any defense we play.
Our defense is where the problem lies. Bill Parcells built a defense
for 1987. The problem is, it is 2007. With the Giants, he had a big,
bad defense that would take you one-on-one and beat the heck out
of you. We built a decent version of that defense in Dallas, but it
doesn't work against a team like the Patriots. They make you take
your playmaking linebackers off the field in place of your 4th and
5th cornerback. Good luck with that. Our cornerbacks are
downright awful when you get past the medicore Jacques Reeves.
I've never been a fan of the Tampa 2 defense, but it is most
capable of stopping a pass happy offense like the Patriots. This is
why I give the Colts the best chance of beating the Patriots. They
have the offense to keep up, but the also have a defense that really
slowed down the Pats earlier this season. Their defense is
undersized, but everyone on the field is fast and they can fly to the
ball. This type of defense also gives up few big plays making an
offense drive the length of the field.
Football is all about match ups. You could argue that the Cowboys
defense is as good or maybe slightly better than the Colts overall.
The Colts sometimes have trouble stopping the run because of their
size. However, when they play the Patriots they have much better
success.
Well, you may ask what we can do to help our problems on
defense? The answer is that there isn't a whole lot we can do. The
best thing we can do is try to add another good cornerback or two
which is easier said than done. At safety, we will always struggle.
We are stuck with Roy Williams. Ken Hamlin isn't very rangy either,
but he will probably get locked up long term because he is a good
player. Hamlin is smart and he makes plays in coverage, but he
isn't athletic enough to help cover receivers.
Our linebacking corp is slow, but it isn't getting any better. We
basically play a 5-2 with the two linebackers being as slow as any in
the NFL. Bradie James is a great player, but he is simply not
athletic enough to help in coverage. Ayodele is the same way.
Bobby Carpenter would help alittle, but he can't even break the
starting lineup. The only linebacker we have that could play in
Indianapolis is Kevin Burnett. He has played really well this year
against the pass. He made several nice plays covering receivers
underneath against the Packers. We could have helped if we put a
more athletic guy in Greg Ellis's place that would be better in
coverage. We can't do that though because we need the pass rush
since our front three doesn't get a good push on passing downs. It
will get a tad better with Anthony Spencer, but he isn't going to help
you much in pass coverage either.
The bottom line is we are a big, slow defense that is going to stay
that way. He have a good enough team to go 12-1 and dominate
most opponents, but that isn't enough if you can't win the Super
Bowl. We could definitely outscore the Pats defense as they are
big, and slow on defense too. It is just going to be tough because
we aren't equipped to handle a pass happy offense on defense.
The 2007 Cowboys could probably beat the pants off the previous
three New England Super Bowl teams, but it remains to be seen if
they can beat the 2007 edition of the Patriots dynasty.
The NFL as we know it is rapidly changing. College has already
changed. The spread offense rules college football. Big, physical
football teams simply don't have an answer for it on defense.
Look at the NFL this season. What do the Patriots, Cowboys, Colts,
and Packers have in common? They all throw the ball for big
chunks of yards and they score a bunch of points. All four teams
run the ball pretty well especially the Colts and Cowboys, but they
are still scoring their points in the passing game.
The Pittsburgh/New England game showed me that the physical
smashmouth brand of football that has been a staple of the Steelers
and many other teams is dying. The Steelers had the number one
defense in the NFL and they got torched. The reason they got
torched is that their secondary is average at best. Their physical
front seven can pummel your average NFL team into submission,
but put that defense on the field against three and four receiver
sets all game long and they are out of their element.
Dallas's defense is a worse version of the Steelers. We are big and
physical. We stop the run and we have a good pass rush. We
dominate average to below average offensive teams like Minnesota,
Buffalo, and the Jets. Put us up against an above average offense
that likes to spread the field and we are in trouble.
To win in the new NFL you need to be athletic in your back seven,
and you have to be able to score points in the passing game.
Dallas's offense is perfect. Our offense is a little more conventional
than the Patriots and Packers, but we are equally as effective. We
don't usually put more than three receivers on the field because we
have Jason Witten. We are still able to get mismatches and throw
up and down the field on just about any defense we play.
Our defense is where the problem lies. Bill Parcells built a defense
for 1987. The problem is, it is 2007. With the Giants, he had a big,
bad defense that would take you one-on-one and beat the heck out
of you. We built a decent version of that defense in Dallas, but it
doesn't work against a team like the Patriots. They make you take
your playmaking linebackers off the field in place of your 4th and
5th cornerback. Good luck with that. Our cornerbacks are
downright awful when you get past the medicore Jacques Reeves.
I've never been a fan of the Tampa 2 defense, but it is most
capable of stopping a pass happy offense like the Patriots. This is
why I give the Colts the best chance of beating the Patriots. They
have the offense to keep up, but the also have a defense that really
slowed down the Pats earlier this season. Their defense is
undersized, but everyone on the field is fast and they can fly to the
ball. This type of defense also gives up few big plays making an
offense drive the length of the field.
Football is all about match ups. You could argue that the Cowboys
defense is as good or maybe slightly better than the Colts overall.
The Colts sometimes have trouble stopping the run because of their
size. However, when they play the Patriots they have much better
success.
Well, you may ask what we can do to help our problems on
defense? The answer is that there isn't a whole lot we can do. The
best thing we can do is try to add another good cornerback or two
which is easier said than done. At safety, we will always struggle.
We are stuck with Roy Williams. Ken Hamlin isn't very rangy either,
but he will probably get locked up long term because he is a good
player. Hamlin is smart and he makes plays in coverage, but he
isn't athletic enough to help cover receivers.
Our linebacking corp is slow, but it isn't getting any better. We
basically play a 5-2 with the two linebackers being as slow as any in
the NFL. Bradie James is a great player, but he is simply not
athletic enough to help in coverage. Ayodele is the same way.
Bobby Carpenter would help alittle, but he can't even break the
starting lineup. The only linebacker we have that could play in
Indianapolis is Kevin Burnett. He has played really well this year
against the pass. He made several nice plays covering receivers
underneath against the Packers. We could have helped if we put a
more athletic guy in Greg Ellis's place that would be better in
coverage. We can't do that though because we need the pass rush
since our front three doesn't get a good push on passing downs. It
will get a tad better with Anthony Spencer, but he isn't going to help
you much in pass coverage either.
The bottom line is we are a big, slow defense that is going to stay
that way. He have a good enough team to go 12-1 and dominate
most opponents, but that isn't enough if you can't win the Super
Bowl. We could definitely outscore the Pats defense as they are
big, and slow on defense too. It is just going to be tough because
we aren't equipped to handle a pass happy offense on defense.
The 2007 Cowboys could probably beat the pants off the previous
three New England Super Bowl teams, but it remains to be seen if
they can beat the 2007 edition of the Patriots dynasty.