After Strong Showing, Cowboys TE Phillips May Have Torn His ACL

Reports coming out of Dallas are that the Cowboy's tight end John Phillips probably tore his ACL last night in the Hall of Fame Game against the Cincinnati Bengals.  Its the part of the game that you hate to see because the guy made some really nice plays last night and looked to be pushing Martellius Bennett for the number 2 spot behind All Pro Jason Witten.

Bennett offends my sensibilities as a former player.  He has all the ability in the world but every time you see him he is lazy in everything he does.  Even when it comes to something as simple as breaking the huddle.  When everyone else is trotting up to the line you see him walking with no sense of urgency whatsoever.  The stuff he does off the field is irritating but to be honest I wouldn't care about all of that if I it ever looked like football mattered to him.  But since his rookie year I have seen nothing but the opposite.

Phillips looked to be a guy who at least had the potential to give the Cowboys a 2nd option at TE.  Who would block and bust his ass on every single play.  That he could run routes and catch was a decided plus.  I hope he gets well soon and comes back even stronger for next year.

For now though the other guy challenging Bennett is Scott Sicko who also had a decent game.  But as a rookie and a guy who contemplated not even playing football after he went undrafted, I'm not looking for much out of him this year.

So all of us Cowboys fans are probably stuck with Bennett for a little while longer.  Here's hoping the light bulb finally goes off.

False Equivalence

Since the New York Yankees won their 27th World Series on Wednesday night, by far the most of any Major League Baseball team, there have been many many conversations about how their level of spending gives them an unfair advantage. Now to me this is an obvious truth. The fact that every single year the Yankees have the ability to look around the league and cherry pick the best guys off other teams with the enticement of big money simply can't be disputed. Now that is not a guarantee of success, but it definitely makes it a lot more likely.

I am not saying this diminishes their achievements in anyway, I am just saying that you can't over look what is staring you right in the face. If they don't have Mark Texiera or C. C. Sabathia, their two big free agent signings in the last offseason, do they win the championship this year? I highly doubt it. Still under the current rules they are working under there is nothing untoward about what they have done. It makes sense for them to put the best team together than money can buy because that is the way Major League Baseball is now set up.

But all of a sudden Yankee fans are offended by people pointing this fact out. And one of their biggest fall back arguments seems to be "Yeah well if it was that easy why aren't the Washington Redskins winning the Superbowl?" This is a patently ridiculous argument but you will actually hear sports pundits on the radio and see them on TV and in print actually repeating it. Not only are the NFL and Major League Baseball just two different animals in general, but the Redskins in particular are exactly the wrong team to use in comparison.

See with baseball you can literally run your team like you are a fantasy owner if you have enough money. Because there are only about 15 or so guys on a roster and because there is no salary cap you can literally pay to have all stars at every position on the field. When you look at what the Yankees have done over the years that is basically exactly what they have done.

In the NFL by contrast you generally can only sign but so many big name players from other teams because of the constraints of the salary cap. So of the 22 starters on offense and defense you might be able to pluck two or maybe three at the most pro bowl type players away from other teams to try to make a run at a championship.

But there is also the matter of team chemistry and this is the biggest difference in the two sports. With 53 guys on an NFL roster there are going to be challenges to keep everyone on the same page. You have to mesh a lot of different attitudes and a lot of different egos into one common mindset to try to get the job done. With much fewer players on a MLB roster you don't have have the same level of cohesiveness. Besides that when there is a problem its a lot easier to get with one guy or two guys to address it than having to police a bunch of guys on a NFL team.

A related major difference is how you deal with a free agent "bust". See for the Yankees and other MLB teams with big revenues, if they sign a guy that doesn't produce then they either trade him, cut him, and or pay another guy to replace him. In the NFL on the other hand if you sign a big time free agent and they don't work out then you are screwed for at least a few years because of the constraints of the salary cap. That means that the guy pretty much HAS to play for the first couple of years of their contract at least and it also means that if there is a personality conflict then the team just has to deal with it. That means coaches can be undermined and game plans can be hurt because of one guy who can't be cut or traded.

With the Redskins however the problem is actually that their owner Dan Snyder DOES try to run his ball club like a Major League Baseball franchise. He truly believes that any problem on a football field can be fixed if you just throw money at it. Just look at his teams over the years. The most recognizable guys generally are people that he took from another team. Best player on offense this year is probably Clinton Portis who came from where? Denver. Best player on defense this year has probably been London Fletcher, who came from where? Buffalo.

Year after year after year Snyder, instead of focusing on building his teams from the ground up through the draft and player development, just looks on the list of free agents from other teams and starts licking his chops. That is the exactly WRONG way to run an NFL franchise and its why his teams will not win a championship. In the NFL you can't have a bunch of mercenaries coming to your team every year and expect to have long term success. That is just too much turnover and too much turmoil and nobody ever gets to stay long enough to establish themselves as a leader and for the team to establish an identity.

Now I know people compare Snyder many times to Jerry Jones down in Dallas, but that is a patently ridiculous comparison when you get beyond the bluster. Look back and those Cowboys teams that won Superbowls. Where did the overwhelming majority of the talent come from?

Homegrown, that's where.

Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Moose Johnson, the offensive line, Tony Tolbert, Ken Norton, Larry Brown, and the list goes on and on. Yeah he brought in some guys to get them over the hump, but the heart of the team were guys they drafted and coached up to Pro Bowl status. Hell look at the Cowboys even now. Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Miles Austin, DeMarcus Ware, Jay Ratliff, Terrance Newman and again the list goes on and on.

Now try to think of a starter, not even necessarily a Pro Bowler, other than Chris Cooley that Snyder has drafted and had thrive over the last 5 years.

The point is you don't build an NFL winner in the same way that you build a MLB winner. When you look at the teams that win Superbowls year in and year out a substantial part of their team is always, and I mean ALWAYS home grown. And before anybody starts hollering about the New England Patriots let me throw some names out, Teddy Bruschi, Lawyer Milloy, Tom Brady, Troy Brown, Assante Samuel, Richard Seymour, Willie McGinest, again the list goes on and on.

That is the anti thesis of what you will find with perennial MLB World Series champs or contenders. For them its all about finding guys off other teams to bring in as center pieces for their team to help them bring home the title.

Again I am not hating on the Yankees for that, hell more power to them, I am just saying we have to be honest about it.

It is what it is.

Roy Williams Shows You How To Work An Interview

I was slightly amused last week when several members of the sports media came to Terrell Owens' defense after another debacle in the interview room. There is no doubt that the people asking him questions were baiting him into saying something controversial, but why should he get points for not taking the bait? You see professional athletes who have the stature of T.O. and for that matter who have their own publicists as T.O. does should have a helluva lot better grasp on how to handle the media at this point. It really shouldn't be impressive that when asked if he likes the plays that are called that he says he just runs them and it doesn't matter whether he likes them. How about something as simple as saying "Yes, I actually do like the plays that are called we all just have to execute them better"? THAT'S what a "good" answer would have been to that question and if it wasn't T.O. most people wouldn't have accepted anything less. But I guess somehow in bizarro world Owens has now become a sympathetic figure because he talked his way out of 3 great situations and is now on a sorry team with a very average quarterback.

You will excuse me if I don't shed any tears.

On the other hand Roy Williams has been getting crushed in Dallas for the last year basically because he isn't T.O. Not that he ever claimed to be and not that he isn't a really good receiver. But just by virtue of the fact that Jerry Jones gave up so much for him in a trade and after T.O. left he became the defacto number one receiver, you have every body and their momma rushing to throw him under the bus. It is in this situation that after four games he finds himself with pretty pedestrian numbers. And for anybody paying attention it largely isn't his fault. Time and again he has run good routes and gotten open only to have Tony Romo still misjudging his speed and either throwing the ball behind him or well over his head.

So when NFL.com came calling and tried to bait him into complaining does he take the bait? Does he throw his quarterback under the bus? Does he give lukewarm answers about his offensive coordinator, Jason Garrett's, play caling?

Hell No!

He takes his lumps like a man.

It's also not what Williams was expecting after he and Romo spent about four weeks throwing together before the start of offseason workouts.

"No, this is not what I envisioned by no means," Williams said Wednesday. "It's still early. It's like the stock (market). It's a bad first quarter. Maybe the second quarter will be good."

Notice the optomism?

So is the status of the Romo-Williams relationship, which raises all sorts of other questions, like whether the Cowboys should have trusted Williams to replace Terrell Owens as the team's No. 1 receiver and even whether they should have gotten rid of T.O. Or perhaps the issues start with Romo and his decision-making, or maybe with the plays being called by offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.

Something obviously isn't working, considering Williams has seen just 25 passes come his way. That ties him for 44th in the NFL, which is low considering Romo has thrown the 10th-most passes in the league.

"I think the chemistry is there," Williams said. "It's just ... it's just ... the chemistry is there."

See how he stood by his relationship with Romo, even as his ribs are aching from the hit he took because of Romo's errant pass on Sunday?

The lack of action last season was somewhat understandable. Not so much this time around.

"I promise you it's OK," Williams said. "I'm not, `Aaarrrrrgggghhh, give me the ball.' It's going to come."

The guy has 11 catches in the first four games and he says its ok. Imagine that, covering your teammate's ass in an interview. This has to be unprecedented! *snark

Simple math shows that Williams is on pace for 44 catches, a woeful figure for a No. 1 guy. Even for a No. 2 guy.

"Or No. 3," Williams said.

Williams insists he's just being patient, something he was forced to learn during his years with the Lions.

"Holler at me in four more games," he said. "It's tough for me, but I'm going with the punches."

Patience. How many times has the word patience been associated with any team's top wide receiver?

Now Roy Williams' numbers may or may not get better this year, but it is blatantly obvious that he is not going to let his personal numbers, or lack of them, distract from what this team is trying to do and where it is trying to go. And you know what, if the Cowboys get better and get into the playoffs you can rest assured that his kind of attitude will have had a lot to do with it.

It is what it is.

Talking Tony Romo: Straight, No Chaser

Two weeks ago I wrote a post in defense of Tony Romo and I stand by it. I didn't think he lost the Giants game for the Cowboys and I still don't. But I am always going to tell you the truth when it comes to football, and Romo stunk up the joint yesterday in Denver.

I can't be sure about whether this is an actual trend or not but in watching the game live and again this morning on DVR it is apparent that Romo was not reading the coverage on the left side of the field the majority of the day. Most right handed quarterbacks throw the majority of their passes to the right so I understand that, but if you are an elite quarterback then you have to be able to see the whole field. This is ESPECIALLY true when you face an all world cornerback like Champ Bailey who camps out on the right side of your offense.

I wish I could go back and watch the other first three games to see if this is more than just a one time occurence but even if it was just something Romo did yesterday it is still disturbing. A lot of people, myself included, will take Jason Garrett to task for his playcalling and on a few plays she should be criticised. But on a lot of the plays that didn't look so hot Romo just never saw wide open options.

Lets talk about the play where Romo fumbled the ball after being stripped by the corner to the offense's left. Maybe no other play illustrates my point any better Evidently Romo was the only guy who didn't notice the blitz because Martellius Bennett went out for a hot read and so did Jason Witten. Because of the design of the blitz, had Romo hit Bennett on that hot read he would have had plenty of wide open field to run. But instead Romo locked in on the right side of the field and when they were covered he took the sack without ever even looking left.

Want another example? At the beginning of the second half our defense, specifically DeMarcus Ware, came up big and forced a fumble on Denver's very first offensive play. The result was that we had outstanding field position and were guaranteed at least a field goal if nothing else. But on third down Romo tries a throw to his right to Miles Austin which ends up getting picked by the aforementioned Bailey.

Now to be sure it was a helluva play by Bailey and it appeared that Austin ran the wrong route, but on the other hand why was Romo trying Bailey in the first place? Had he looked for Crayton on the left side he would have seen him come open on a seam route for at least a chance at a touchdown. Instead almost sure points were taken off the board because Romo locked in on the primary receiver on the right hand side of the field.

But wait, I'm not done.

At the start of the 4th quarter the Cowboys were facing 3rd and 11 at close to midfield. The Broncos sent 8 on a blitz and their secondary was locked up in man to man with no safety help. Does Romo look away from Bailey and try to exploit the weaker corner in man coverage? Hell no. Instead he never even takes a peek left and instead throws is away to the right. Had he looked left he would have seen a combo route with Roy Williams coming free underneath a clear out route on a slant that very likely would have garnered a first down.

Now I could keep going because there were other plays like that one but I want to fast forward to the end of the game. I was just watching "First and 10" on ESPN and Kordell Stewart and some other no named guy were ragging on Garrett for those last two play calls. Well considering Stewart's problems reading defenses during his career I can't say I am shocked at how wrong he was. But let me break both plays down for you tot explain why they were the right calls but Romo made the wrong throws.

First of all Denver played essentially the same defense on both plays. They sent 8 guys at Romo again and left their three secondary guys in man to man with no help. Now again, if its me and I have three corners to pick on and one of them is named Champ Bailey, those other two guys are going to get most if not all of my attention. But instead Romo threw both times at Bailey trying to get the ball to Sam Hurd. Now you would think after the first time the slant didn't work that Romo would at least think about looking elsewhere. But after watching both plays over and over its apparent that he was going to Hurd come hell or high water both times.

But see here is the problem, Miles Austin was WIDE ASS OPEN on both of those plays.

Maybe you didn't hear me the first time.

WIDE ASS OPEN.

You have to understand that for corners playing with no safety help that close to the endzone the last thing you want to do is let the receivers inside. On both plays Austin freaked his guy and came across the middle so open Romo could have thrown it to him underhanded. On the first play Crayton was in the slot and ran an out route which took his guy out of the picture all together. So had Romo even glanced in that direction all he would have seen was 19. On the second play both Austin and Crayton ran quick slants and while Crayton's guy was a little closer to Austin this time the net result was still the same. Austin beat him like a drum inside again and was standing in the endzone wide open.

Don't believe me? Watch both plays at the end of this highlight clip. Austin will be at the top of the screen. (You can forward to 2:46 if you don't feel like watching the whole thing)



See what I mean?

So there you have it ladies and gentlemen, Romo definitely lost the game for us yesterday. Hopefully this is just a one game aberration but I intend on keeping an eye on where he goes with the ball. One thing I should also poiint out which is a head scratcher is that the majority times, at least yesterday, Roy Williams was lined up on the left hand side. What sense does it make to put the guy who is supposed to be the number one receiver to the side the quarterback hardly even looks at? A rhetorical question to be sure.

As a side note I would also like to point out that Romo didn't appear to be wearing any pink yesterday. I have to say that I found that pretty bush league that he didn't support the league's efforts to raise breast cancer awareness. I can't say for sure that Kyle Orton did either but I really don't care about that guy. Perhaps it was karma that Romo didn't play well if he couldn't do something as small as throw on a pink armband.

Im just sayin.

P.S.

I see people constantly hating on Roy Williams and I think its time most of them pulled their heads out of their buts. Did Jerry Jones over pay for Williams? The answer to that is very likely. But you can't deny the guy's talent and you can't deny his achievments so far.

In 2006 Williams had 82 receptions and over 1,300 yards for Detroit, a year in which he led the NFC in the latter category. In 2007 he had 64 receptions and over 800 yards even though he missed 4 full games for the Lions and he made the Pro Bowl. He showed on sorry teams in Detroit that he could still shine even though he was pretty much all they had. Its worth noting that even though he hasn't dominated so far he still had 3 more catches and the same amount of touchdowns (1) as T.O. So if you are a real Cowboys fan how about backing off the guy and supporting him instead of tearing him down. He hasn't said or done one thing to deserve the level of hate thrown his way. Hell if anything he has been a model teammate and hasn't complained at all about being under thrown several times by Romo and about not being fed the ball by Garrett. Do you really think TO would be happy now if the Cowboys were running as much as they are and he wasn't getting his balls? Better question, do you think TO wouldn't have gone to the media by now to complain about not getting the ball?

Get real.

I said before TO got to Dallas that he would end up messing up the team. A zebra don't change its stripes and sure enough he slowly but surely found a way to bring them down. First he frustrated Bill Parcells into leaving and soon after he started going to the media to undermine Garrett, Romo and Witten. I for one as a Cowboys fan couldn't be happier that he is gone. And if you call yourself a Cowboys fan you at least need to recognize that he ain't coming back. Throwing Roy Williams under the bus because you like T.O.'s reality show don't help at all. Rooting for the Cowboys come hell or high water on the other hand definitely will.

It is what it is.

Tune Out The Tony Romo Haters

Lets imagine for a moment an alternate universe. In this universe the Dallas Cowboys defense stops the New York Giants offense on either 3rd and 6 or 3rd and 4 on the final drive of the game to preserve a 31-30 point win over the New York Giants. What do you think the headlines would be today?

Well consider this. On the previous drive the Cowboys got the ball with seven minutes and change left on their own 30 yard line down 6 points. And they proceeded to go 70 yards down the field and score a touchdown.

Now to be sure the bulk of the yardage was eaten up by the running backs, specifically Marion Barber. And the culmination of the drive was a Felix Jones run in to the endzone, not a pass from Tony Romo. However Romo did hit Witten on a crucial 3rd and 8 for the first down plus about 4 yards.

So I ask again, what would the headlines be had he defense held on to the one point lead?

I imagine what the headlines WOULDN'T say is what they are saying today. Namely that Romo is basically a loser who "can't win the big one". Now I have problems with Tony Romo of my own, and by no means did he play a great game, but to use this loss as some kind of litmus test on his ability to win or lose is ridiculous if you ask me.

Here is what you will hear all day long. That Romo has to protect the ball and that he can't turn it over 3 times. Now being a defensive minded guy I largely agree with that sentiment. I think which ever team wins the turn over ratio generally will win the game. And for that reason a major emphasis has to be placed on not carelessly turning it over.

But here is the truth, while Tony Romo threw three interceptions last night, he really only made one bad decision. The ball he threw up for Sam Hurd in the fourth quarter that was picked off by the Giants' safety Kenny Phillips was definitely a poor decision. Even if he didn't see the safety (which I don't believe for a second) the underneath defender already had him played relatively well. Not only that but there appeared to be receivers running underneath routes who were open and available. What made it even worse is that at the time the Cowboys were nursing a 4 point lead. It wasn't the kind of play that we "needed" at the time. And of course the fact that the Giants ended up driving it all the way down to score a touchdown just pours salt in the wound.

As for the other two picks, Romo made the right read both times but ended up making physical errors. On the pick six in the first half he threw to Roy Williams on an in route but the ball sailed on him and went right into the hands of Giants cornerback, Bruce Johnson. But it still was the correct place to go with the ball because Williams was open. On the fourth quarter pick, I mean seriously that was just a freak incident. You could watch football for years and years and never see a play like that happen. Again in that situation he went to the right guy, Jason Witten, who had the favorable match up but he threw the ball just behind him and he couldn't hang on to it. The ball hits his foot and goes right up into Kenny Phillips' hands who was trailing him on the play. It was such a freak play that even the refs initially got it wrong and had to go to a replay.

But the reality is, if anything, these two plays illustrate the fact that Tony Romo IS a winner. You want to know what happened after he threw the pick six right before the end of the first half? He didn't sulk, he didn't go in the tank. Instead he lead the team all the way down with 40 seconds left from his own 35 to the Giants 45 for a field goal. What did he do after the freak interception off of Witten's foot? He led the touchdown drive in the fourth quarter that I alluded to earlier.

Does that sound like a loser to you? Does that sound like a guy who "can't win a big game"?

Now in full disclosure I have been a fan of the Dallas Cowboys practically my whole life. But this has nothing to do with being a homer for the team. You want to hear me criticize them? Ask me about the sorry exhibition of tackling from our secondary last night. Ask me about Felix Jones fumbling a kickoff return when Miles Austin should be the return man anyway. Ask me about the fact that we only had one guy last night getting consistent pressure on the quarterback. Ask me about the blitzes that we kept calling that had no shot of getting pressure on the quarterback. Ask me about why our corners kept allowing the Giants receivers inside versus the blitz. And last but not least, ask me about Bobby Carpenter because I have a lot to say about that weak link.

But when it comes to football I watch from a different lens from most. I go by the available evidence to form my opinions, not some hack talking non stop on the Tee Vee. And having played and coached the game I see things that the average fan doesn't. That's why I decided to watch the game again this morning, so that I wouldn't get caught up in emotion in my analysis and instead I would rely on what the tape showed me. What you are reading in this post is about reality versus the perception you will hear all day on places like ESPN.

Fact: The Cowboys scored 31 points last night against a very good New York Giant defense.

Fact: Of those 31 points Romo accounted directly for 14 of them with a passing and a rushing touchdown.

Fact: He gave the Cowboys the lead in the third quarter and again in the fourth quarter.

Again he did not have a great game, but he for damn sure wasn't Jake Delhomme either. The pundits today who are throwing him under the bus are just repeating what is generated in Cowboys hating echo chamber.

In fact watching the game again this morning I find more problems with the Cowboys defense than their offense. Turnovers aside they still allowed Eli Manning to throw for over 300 yards and the Giants had two receivers with 10 catches and over 130 yards a piece. For the second week in a row the Cowboys also didn't get any sacks. I am beginning to believe that the loss of Greg Ellis, who just so happened to have two sacks yesterday for the Raiders, was bigger than most people imagined.

All in all though I don't see a reason to panic at all. Aside from Marion Barber's injury just about everything else is correctable. And just to reiterate, the Giants aren't exactly the Lions anyway. And even with all of the mistakes we made last night on both offense and defense there was still a lot to like. The offensive line didn't give up a sack and our backs racked up 251 yards on the ground. Our defense held the much feared Giants running game to less than 100 net yards on the ground. And as many yards as our defense gave up to Manning in the air, we held them to four field goals instead of giving up touchdowns when they got close to the red area.

So while there are valid things to complain about with last night's game, saying Tony Romo is a loser isn't one of them, and the sky is definitely not falling.

See you next week for the Carolina Panthers game.

Bucs Film Review: Dallas Cowboys Week 1

Here is my critique of the Bucs yesterday in their game against the Dallas Cowboys.

General Thoughts:

I thought the team fought hard all game including all the way up till the end. I think we have a lot to build on and a pretty good foundation. I think that from top to bottom though there are some areas that need to be addressed if we want to be competitive in the NFC South.

Coaching:

I thought the game plans on both sides of the ball left something to be desired. The offensive game plan was ok but I couldn't for the life of me understand why we didn't just keep running the ball down Dallas' throat. I think the way we came out running the ball was close to making them question themselves but then for whatever reason we kind of got away from that.

On defense however I have a lot of questions. For one we weren't especially prepared for the Cowboys splitting out Martellius Bennett out as a wideout. That seems to me like something that would have been obvious that they would do. And yet just about every time that Dallas went with that formation our guys looked confused and we had coverage break downs. Our blitzes also left quite a lot to be desired in terms of their design. More than once it looked like one or more guys were confused on what their responsibilities were. The Cowboys also ran an unbalanced line twice on their last touchdown drive and it didn't appear that we did anything to adjust to that.

Offense

Quarterback: Byron Leftwich had a pretty good game in my opinion. Its true that he missed on some relatively easy throws on a couple of third downs, but he also made some big throws on the money down the field. The biggest thing to me is that Leftwich was hit cleanly by my count at least 7 times and yet and still he stood tall in the pocket for the most part and kept delivering the football. The last touchdown drive when the game was pretty much out of hand showed me a lot about the guy as a player and a quarterback. I still worry that he won't make it very many games because of the hits he takes but there is no doubt that he isn't scared.

Offensive Line: I thought the O Line was outstanding yesterday, especially considering the talent they were facing. Donald Penn in particular had a big game effectively neutralizing the reigning sack champion, DeMarcus Ware. Up until the last drive of the game Ware didn't even sniff Leftwich when he rushed the left side of our line and to my trained eye he definitely looked frustrated by the end of the game. I think its time to start pumping Penn up for a Pro Bowl slot.

The rest of the line also brought it. Jeff Faine may have had the roughest game but he was dealing with a Pro Bowler also in Jay Ratliff. Still Ratliff didn't exactly have a stellar game either. Jeremy Zuttah did give up some rushes to Jason Hatcher but for the most part the O Line kept Leftwich clean and also did a helluva job in opening up holes in the running game.

Running Backs: Cadillac Williams is definitely back. He ran the ball violently yesterday and set a tone early on. He also showed that he is back to being able to make really hard cuts on a dime. I was a little worried after he got horse collared on one long run but he got back up and kept toting the pill. Derrick Ward also had a nice game. His running was a little smoother but still very effective and he caught a few balls out of the backfield. As I suspected the Bucs put Earnest Graham back on special teams and he only ended up getting one carry. I guess its hard to complain about it all things considered but I think had the Bucs went with more running Graham would have gotten more carries and there would have been a greater opportunity to wear down the Cowboys defense which started cramping up some in the second half.

Tight Ends: I didn't think either of our tight ends blocked particularly well yesterday. I realize that most of the time they were matched up against big athletic rush linebackers but still I kind of expected more from Jerramy Stevens especially and to a lesser extent Kellen Winslow Jr. In the passing game Winslow had some nice catches as did Stevens but both also had big drops. Winslow on a sure third down conversion at a crucial point of the game. Stevens down close to the goalline when it appeared he had alligator arms.

Wide Receivers: By far Michael Clayton was the bell cow yesterday. He showed his famous toughness but also a renewed ability to make tough catches. I have no reservations about saying that this kid benefited the most from the firing of John Gruden. If yesterday was any indication he is poised to have a big year. Rookie Sammie Stroughter had a catch that was initially called a touchdown but came up just short on replay and had another nice catch for a first down. Antonio Bryant had two catches but was mostly a non factor in his first live action since preseason knee surgery. The rest of the group were good but not noteworthy.


Defense

Defensive Line: Lets start with the guy who has a target on his chest, Gaines Adams. I don't think Gaines had a good game. That is not the same thing as saying he had a bad game which he didn't. But with the spot light on him in his third year after being selected 6th in the draft overall, having a not bad game just isn't good enough. I thought he had at least 2 good pass rushes but that was about it. He didn't show up in the stat sheet and as hard as I tried I couldn't even find a way to credit him with an assisted tackle. There were times when he looked as if he wasn't sure where to go and he lined up way off the ball when he rushed from the left hand side. He also had the off sided during the two minute drill by the Cowboys before the half which gave them a first down and the very next play was the long TD pass to Miles Austin. Ironically he had one of his best rushes on that play and Romo just barely got the ball off before he got to him. But close only counts in horseshoes.

As for the rest of the group, I thought Jimmy Wilkerson had a couple or 3 nice pass rushes and Greg White had a great rush once on Flozell Adams which is the reason Tony Romo is walking around with a limp today. I felt like the inside guys played well but didn't do a whole lot of note. Ryan Simms had a couple of good rushes and the rookie Roy Miller was active. I personally don't like the way our guys are lined up nor that they have to have their outside hands down but that is just my personal opinion. It didn't win or lose the game yesterday but I do think it hinders pass rush on early downs. The Bucs also tried their small line up for pass rush and as I predicted Wilkerson got stoned by Leonard Davis more than once. I did see the line attempt pass rush games on two different third downs. On one they tried a game on both sides and it was an EPIC FAIL. Nobody really sets up pass rush games anymore. The second time they ran a TOM game with the two defensive tackles which was actually pretty decent and effective.

But ultimately there were no sacks out of the group yesterday and with 27 passes that is unacceptable.

Linebackers: There was some drama before the game because starting LB Geno Hayes showed up late to the stadium and was benched as a punishment. That meant Matt McCoy ended up getting the start. McCoy definitely wasn't ready and it showed. When Hayes did get in the game it took him awhile to get it going too but he ended up having a pretty decent game. He had the most tackles of the backers thats for sure.

Barrett Ruud had a good game too and made some good plays. The Cowboys offense just wasn't set up for him to make that many tackles. But his run fits were usually right on and he was good in his pass drops as well. Quincy Black was pretty quiet yesterday. I didn't notice him making a whole lot of plays and it was kind of surprising because the Bucs played a whole lot of base defense yesterday.

Defensive Backs: Where to begin? I guess I'll start off with Sabby Piscetelli as his bad plays were so obvious. Now the thing of it is Sabby had a decent game overall. He was good in his run fits and his run support and he had some good open field tackles when in coverage on the Cowboys' tight ends. However he got caught at least twice looking in the backfield and allowing Patrick Crayton to get by him, once for a touchdown. Now to be fair we have to remember that Tanard Jackson was out with a suspension yesterday, and its likely that on those plays he may have been the guy playing Sabby's position because he is the better coverage safety. Still Sabby has to learn from those mistakes. As a safety you are the last line of defense and you just can't let guys get behind you like that.

Similarly Jermaine Phillips took a horrible angle on Roy Williams' long touchdown catch in the seam. I could also throw out the caveat that Flip was practicing at linebacker most of the off season but in the end it doesn't matter. If you are on that field you have to make that play and he didn't. He also left his ankles and his jock on the field yesterday when Miles Austin shook him on the way to that long TD reception right before the half. Now he did make some great plays in run support and as usual he was physical as all hell. But unfortunately in the league you don't get a pass on your bad plays just because you made some good ones.

Ronde Barber had a helluva game for the most part. He set the tone early for the defense on two blitzes where he came up with a tackle for loss one one and a sack on the other. He also battled Martellius Bennett close to the endzone and broke up a fade stop to him even though he was going up against a guy much bigger, stronger and taller than he was. He also had a nice pass break up as well.

Aqib Talib didn't look like he same guy that we are used to yesterday. He didn't really get any good jams at the line of scrimmage. He consistently let Roy Williams get inside on his quick slant routes and his run support was anemic. He did have an outstanding play where he ran Williams' out route for him but he couldn't secure the interception. If you want to be a big time player in the NFL that is a play that you have to win on and winning is not just breaking it up. On a break like that winning is nothing less than an interception. I was honestly expecting a lot more from the guy than I saw yesterday.

Elbert Mack and Will Allen got some burn yesterday too but not enough to really make a difference either way.

Special Teams:

As much as I love the Bucs, I have to say that I felt a sense of karma yesterday with the blocked field goal and the the miss right before the half by kicker Mike Nugent. Now I don't have anything against Nugent, but I think a lot of us felt like the team kind of did Matt Bryant dirty. And that was kind of like poetic justice.

Just remember that if we have either of those field goals yesterday the its 13-10 at the half instead of 13-7. I think that would have made a huge difference.

Oh and since I don't mind calling folks out, that was a piss poor effort by Jerramy Stevens on the blocked field goal. It almost looked like he was just in a hurry to get off the field or something. I mean he had two guys to block and I don't think he got either one of them. Just not a good look at all.

As for the other phases of the kicking game, I felt like we were on point for the most part yesterday except for the fumbled punt by Clifton Smith. But all in all the coverage and return units did their jobs.


Well that is the recap for the game. Hopefully we can fix some of what ails us before next week when we have to go up to Buffalo and face the Bills. We definitely don't want to be 0-2 and facing the Giants back here, thats for sure.

Live Blogging The Bucs: Week 1 Cowboys

Vlogging The Bucs: Leave Ryan Sims In On 3rd Down

When Did The Circus Come To Town?

I love Emmitt Smith as a player. One of my greatest honors was playing against him because of how much respect I had for him. I have argued in the past and will continue to argue that if he isn't the greatest running back to play the game, he is definitely in the conversation. The guy could do it all on the field and do it all in dramatic fashion. But I have just one request.

Somebody keep his ass away from microphones.

Jerry Jones has visions of Super Bowl grandeur, but Emmitt Smith certainly isn't expecting the Cowboys to return to glory this season.

During an appearance on ESPN Radio this morning, Emmitt offered a gloom-and-doom prediction and plenty of Roy Williams ripping.

"Realistically, I think that the Cowboys can win seven games," Emmitt said.

Emmitt seems to think that the new all-business approach, complete with player accountability, is a bunch of bull.

"I mean, when I start hearing things are going to change, I keep asking myself as a player, how much are they going to change?" he said. "Are you going to be a hard-nosed coach now since things are going to change? Are you going to be more focused than you were last year? Those kind of things, I'm like, c'mon. This is not a game where you can just turn it on and turn it off."

And Emmitt took aim at Roy Williams again, praising almost every other one of Tony Romo's weapons but saying he couldn't understand why the Cowboys gave up so much to get the receiver from Detroit.

"The question is, can Roy step up and be what they need him to be?" Emmitt said. "I don't know. I don't know if it's possible.

"I do not see him as a No. 1. I never have saw him as a No. 1. Never have. When I say No. 1, I mean your No. 1 go-to guy. He's not your No. 1 go-to guy."

It seems like every bit of hate coming from Emmitt these days is all about the Cowboys cutting TO. Why he supports that asshole I will never know because Emmitt himself was such a team player. But the truth is obvious. The only reason he trashes Roy Williams, who has made a pro bowl by the way and should have made at least one other as a Lion, I repeat as a Lion, is because he wants everyone to blame the TO not being there if Dallas doesn't do well this year.

I will acknowledge that in a lot of ways I am a homer for the Cowboys, they were my team growing up after all. But I pride myself on being realistic first and foremost and the Cowboys could lose Romo, Demarcus Ware and Marion Barber for the year next week and still win 7 games. I won't be so bold to say that they will definitely win the NFC east but I will say that they will be in contention all the way to the end with their primary competition for the crown likely to be the Eagles. I for one like their matchups going against the Eagles. Especially with the Eagles' totally rebuilt offensive line.

I really don't know if Emmitt has been right about any prediction he has made since leaving the game. Basically at this point I would much rather see him just do some signings and some commercials and just call it a day. His skills as a commentator just leave a whole lot to be desired.

Im just sayin.

Holleywood Makes A House Call!

I spent a lot of the spring talking a lot of shit about Michael Irvin's reality show "4th and Long" before it ever came on. I was just sure it was going to be corny and just a total farce. However, as sometimes happens, I ended up being hooked on the show. Don't get me wrong, a lot of the drills the had on the show had absolutely nothing to do with playing pro ball. Still a lot of the players were themselves compelling. For instance I started off the season kinda cheering on a guy by the name of Montrell Jones because he played for my alma mater UT, but by the end of the season I was pissed that he hadn't been cut earlier on because the guy was lazy as hell.

But the most compelling guy, to me at least, ended up winning the show. Jesse Holley was a big guy who could run and jump and catch and he just kind of stood out in most regards. At first I wasn't sure he was physical enough but as each week passed he showed himself to be more and more willing to initiate contact. But as big or bigger than all of that was the attitude he had on and off the field. Here was a guy competing for a job against every other guy on the show, yet you ALWAYS heard him giving encouragement to the other guys whether on or off the field. And it got to a point after awhile where because Irvin and the other coaches didn't spend much time talking him up that I figured he might get robbed. But in the end they did the right thing in my opinion and the best guy won.

Now being a Cowboys fan from since I was a kid I have been following online the progress of the time on the blogs. For whatever reason nobody gave Holley a chance in hell of making the team. I realize that for a "reality TV guy" to get a roster spot might be a little too much for people to accept inside the NFL culture but I mean if the guy can play whats the difference between him and a guy who never even played football who ends up becoming a pro bowl tight end?

So Holley would make one or two plays a day in practice but didn't get much burn in the preseason games. It doesn't look like he has a prayer of making the team and honestly I think thats a shame. Im not saying the guy is a world beater, but he does have height and speed and he doesn't appear to be scared at all. But I will tell you this much, if he does get cut today at least he went out with a bang last night.



Im sure the Cowboys' special teams coach about had a heartattack when he first picked up the ball but that's what we call an "attaboy". If it works everyone praises you, if not you are gonna get dog cussed. I am pretty sure I know which one Holley got when he came back to the sidelines.

Live Blogging The Cowboys/Titans Preseason Game

A Semi Bold Prediction

With all the focus being on Roy Williams in Dallas, Patrick Crayton will lead the team in receptions.

I think a lot of people, including the local Dallas press is sleeping on Crayton because he has been around for awhile. But as far as I can tell he has been the most consistent reciever in camp and he has a knack for getting open. I still expect Williams to get more yardage but Crayton will catch between 70 and 80 balls.

Write it down, take a picture, I don't give a fcuk!