Cowboys Knee Jerk Reactions VS Giants

By:  Bobby Shores

This here is my "knee jerk" reactions/observations on the Cowboys game against the Giants, I am doing this after ONLY watching the game one time & live. I have not reviewed the film, read any other opinions on it, or listened to any podcasts; I did listen to the radio that talked about it briefly on my way to work, but literally got nothing out of it for this article.

"More Ogletree Please" Kevin Ogletree – [Editor's Note:  I started the "More Ogletree Please" three years ago when Kevin Ogletree was the darling of Cowboys training camp and made an impact early in the season catching wide receiver screens and 5-8 yard outs.] 

Kevin Ogletree

This will be the story of the week, undrafted free agent out of Virginia who looked like a promising talent the first year of his career before laziness and rumors "entitlement" dogged him the last two years. Nearly everybody (myself included) had written him off, it seemed like even the Cowboys had as they didn't find him worth retaining at the end of last year with a $1.26 million restricted free agent tender, opting instead to let him test the market before bringing him back for the minimum of $460,000. 

After a strong showing in the preseason and training camp Ogletree answered the call last night to the tune of 8 catches for 116 yards and 2 touchdowns. The most impressive part of Ogletree’s night was not the touchdowns, it was the clutch catches, being where Tony Romo expected him to be. You could tell that Ogletree will be one of Romo’s favorite targets this year by the way Romo continually looked his way in clutch situations. Ogletree, rather than Romo safety valves Jason Witten and Miles Austin and emerging star Dez Bryant, was the primary target on 3rd and shorts; running hard slants to get the first downs over and over again. He ran crisp and precise routes punctuated by near perfect throws from his quarterback.

Now I may be going out on a limb here, but the third wide receiver position has been in flux for a number of years, and we thought we had it answered until the Jaguars blew away Laurent Robinson with a 5-year $32 million contract in free agency, so I am suggesting that we go ahead and lock-up Kevin Ogletree for a few years. I am not calling for some huge contract, just enough to make him happy while keeping the Cowboys cap flexible for years to come. I am thinking something along the lines of 4-years and $12-14 million (that's $3-3.5 million annual average). While many will say that the "sense of entitlement" will come back once he has some money in his pocket, well I think otherwise, I honestly believe that after trying summer he had that he has matured and this is a whole new Kevin Ogletree.

Running Game – While it started off very slow, mostly due to the ineffectiveness of the offensive line (more on that later), DeMarco Murray and Lawrence Vickers got in their groove and started getting big chunks of yards. Murray’s 20 carries for 129 yards provided a solid balance to the Cowboys offense, making life on the Giants defense very difficult. Look for the running game to get going earlier in the game as the season progresses, particularly if the offensive line can come together.

While Murray did average a solid 7+ yards per carry, to me, he seemed to not have the burst that I saw last year which worries me a little. Also, on the long 48 (I think) yard run he wore out too quick, that should have been a touchdown and leads me to believe that he may not be in the shape he should, or maybe he is nursing some minor injury. Regardless something does not seem right and his 20 yards rushing in the first half is not going to cut it all year, but he obviously finished strong and was more than effective enough.

Play Calling – This was one of my favorite parts of this game, particularly Jason Garrett's offensive play calling. You can argue with the early 4th & 1 fullback dive with Vickers, but I wanted to see that play, unfortunately Jeremy Parnell (playing Tight End basically on that play) missed his block while the rest of the left side of the line did not get lower than the Giants defenders.

Besides that one questionable call (again that I agreed with) the rest of the game was called great. Unlike years past, Garrett didn't get the lead and go super conservative by calling run, run, run, punt. He kept his foot on the accelerator with a solid mix of run/pass and even gave Romo the options of going deep (like that long pass play to Dez). This tells me that Garrett finally realized that he doesn't need to dramatically alter his play calling style just because he has the lead, continue to use what got you the lead in the first place!

Felix Jones – I don't know where to start here, as an Arkansas Razorback alum, two kids attending there right now, and every member of my family owning a Felix Jones jersey.....It pains me to even bring this up....I think it may be time to cut Felix loose, he has looked overweight and generally uninterested, hopefully he is still just trying to get back in shape after his shoulder surgery this offseason. 

On kickoff returns he seemed to run (not sprint) in a straight line with no shakes or wiggles and still struggled to get back to the 20. He didn't even get a chance in the game as he had 0 carries, but he did get 2 passes thrown his way but both of them were uncatchable. It may be time to promote Lance Dunbar to the active roster as he will provide that "spark" in the backfield with Darren Sproles like skills, plus he would be a contributor on all special teams and run kickoffs back harder. I am not ready to make these moves yet, but Felix doesn't have much time, even in my book.....Maybe he just needs a change of scenery to revive a once promising career.....

Jason Garrett & Rob Ryan

Defense, Defense, Defense – WOW! WOW! WOW! This topic deserves an entire article, so I will keep this short. All 4 linebackers were the star of this unit, they set the tone with both DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer providing plenty of pressure on Eli Manning with Spencer looking good dropping back in coverage. Sean Lee and Bruce Carter were unbelievable in the middle, we already know that Lee is one of the most instictive middle 'backers in the NFL and he continued that last night racking up tackles and impact plays. Carter is the biggest surprise here, while he is not as instinctive as Lee, he was always right there with him a half-step behind cleaning up the tackles. Hist athleticism sets him apart, he looks like he can make a wrong read or take a misstep and still go sideline-to-sideline. I can't wait to see him continue to develop!

The defensive line and secondary were also impressive. The D-Line had great hustle and were flying to the ball and Jason Hatcher looks like he is answering the calls of all the people saying this was his "breakout year", and don't forget that Jay Ratliff wasn't even suited up for this game! The secondary was helped out by Victor Cruz's myriad drops and Morris Claiborne showed some promise but you can tell he is raw (particularly in his backpedal and turns, but he will learn that). The Cowboys big free agent CB Brandon Carr made some plays, but it looked like he may have tried to jump some routes or something because guys got behind/around him some and I need to go watch that on film some more...

Rob Ryan - This is the defensive I have been dreaming of for years! Ask my wife, I was wanting Rob Ryan as the Cowboys defensive coordinator when he was still coaching in Cleveland!! The play calling was excellent, he had guys coming from all over the field, and the fact that they stopped the Giants on the 1-yard line 3 times in a row!!! WOW WOW WOW!!!!

Offensive Line – Not much to say here, the play speaks for itself....I think I counted about 8-10 penalties on the offensive line as they were being pushed backwards most of the time. Nobody on the line played very well in any aspect of the game. But let's be honest, these guys have not played or practiced very much together during camp or the preseason, and center Ryan Cook played all but 3 offensive snaps after starting center Phil Costa went out with a back problems.

On the good side, Romo only got sacked twice, and they didn't come from the most dangerous Giants pass rushers, they came from up the middle, Romo had more to do with the only being sacked twice than the offensive line. This offensive line can only get better from here, and I think it will, it's time to see what offensive line coach Bill Callahan can do from here on out, this falls squarely on his shoulders.

One last thing, Tyron Smith struggled mightily playing on the left side of the line for the first time in his college or NFL career, but give him some time and he will get it. Those of you that thought that he was already a "Top 10" tackle in this league and would play on the left side like he did the right (Casey Ryan Mallow, maybe next time you will listen to me), I told you so! If you listened to me then you knew there would be some growing pains here, and without his insane athletic ability and reach, he would've gotten Romo hurt.


Obviously I could and should go on about the amazing game that Romo had, the breakout game for Dez Braynt, the second half for Miles Austin, the safety's, etc. But these are what stood out to me most, I have and will touch on the rest here and on Twitter.

Well there you have it, my week 1 knee jerk reactions, stay tuned as I give you more information as I break down the film. You can get all my immediate thoughts by following me on Twitter. 

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Myth of the Cowboys 3rd Wide Receiver

By:  Bobby Shores
[Editor's Notes:  Not a well put together piece, information is good, but this article jumps around and has about as much continuity as the Cowboys offensive line, but that's what I get when doing this while watching film and being in a time crunch]

I am so tired of hearing about who is going to be the Dallas Cowboys 3rd wide receiver(WR) this year. All I hear when listening to the Talkin' Cowboys Podcast and The Lunch Break Podcasts are:
     "How is "x" player looking for the 3rd receiver spot?"
     "Who is the 3rd receiver going to be?"
     "Who is going to step-up and replace Laurent Robinson as our 3rd receiver?", etc.

There are a hundred variations of these questions and they dominant the airwaves. In fact, if someone knew nothing about football or the Dallas Cowboys and started learning about them by listening to the current coverage, they would most likely come to the conclusion that the 3rd WR is the most important position on a football team, and definitely the most important player on the Cowboys (if they accidentally turned on ESPN they would think Tim Tebow is the greatest player to ever live as a "news" network gave him an impromptu birthday party). Right now it seems that the Cowboys entire season hinges on who fills the 3rd WR role....

So how did this infatuation with the 3rd WR begin? Well, it began way back in 2011 when the Cowboys picked up Laurent Robinson to provide a veteran presence as the young receivers weren't ready for significant snaps and as insurance for the unproven and oft-injured starting receivers of Dez Bryant and Miles Austin. From the "3rd receiver" spot Robinson went on to have a career year with 54 catches for 858 yards and most importantly 11 touchdowns. Not only did he become a major part of the offense but he was the most consistent threat and Tony Romo's favorite red zone target.

For obvious reasons the Cowboys wanted (and tried) to resign Robinson during free agency, but when the Jacksonville Jaguars inexplicably paid him like a #1 wideout there was no way Dallas would be able to commit that much money to the position, and thus the noise started for the Cowboys to replace the 3rd wide receiver.

Debunking the Myth

Next I would like to say that while Robinson was originally the 3rd WR on the depth chart, he was basically the 1st WR in reality. Yes, Dez Bryant and Miles Austin are technically the starters, but since Austin missed most of the season with another hamstring injury and Bryant was banged up every game and basically didn't show up after halftime, Robinson became the default #1 receiver. Really you could say that him and Bryant were 1a and 1b, with the stats bearing that out as his and Bryant's stats (63-928-9) were nearly identical [Editor's Note: Miles Austin came in at 43-579-7 for the season technically making him the 3rd WR by stats.].

Since we now know that in reality Robinson was not the 3rd WR last year, lets look at the total output of all the Cowboys weapons to see where everybody ranks. Tight End Jason Witten led the team in receptions and yards (79-942) and added 5 touchdowns himself. When taken as a whole it now looks like Robinson, Bryant and Witten were essentially 1a, 1b, and 1c when it comes to aerial targets. Then if you add in DeMarco Murray's 897 rushing yards, it now looks like he was 1d.

So yes Laurent Robinson was "technically" the 3rd WR last year and due to injuries, ineffectiveness (Bryant 2nd half disappearing acts), and the rapport that he and Romo developed he became a bigger part of the offense then most 3rd WR's do, or do they? Let's go back a few years and see what the "3rd WR" typically does in this offense....

In 2010 the 3rd WR had 530 yards, 2009 he had 596 yards, 2008 he only had 278 yards, 2007 314 yards, 2006 516 yards. Basically the 3rd WR has 400-500 yards receiving and a few touchdowns, really not much production.

Another reason why the 3rd WR is less important this year is that I believe the Cowboys have a very potent backfield if Murray and Jones can remain healthy and the offensive line can play well.

In the Cowboys offense, this year, years past, and for the foreseeable future the 3rd WR is usually going to be the 5th option AT BEST and realistically the 6th or 7th. In the passing game, Romo (or whoever plays QB) is going to typically look for Bryant, Austin, Witten, Murray, and Tight End #2 before going to the 3rd WR; and in a lot of cases they will look for the other back (Felix Jones) before the 3rd WR. Yes, I know that this is all dependent on personnel, formation, defensive looks, progressions, etc. but regardless the 3rd WR is going to be one of the last looks.

With all this said, I have an article coming out soon about the state of the Cowboys wide receivers, so stay tuned!

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Does Size Really Matter....for QB's in the NFL? Pt.1

By:  Bobby Shores
[Editor's Note:  This is my first of hopefully many articles I am writing on the beach in Florida, enjoy!]

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They get lost in the crowd they're are so short

With NFL training camps about to open up (or just opening up, depending on when this gets finished and posted) I decided to write a series (or article depending on time and content) about current trends that we are seeing in the NFL, and I am going to try and go beyond the obvious like "it's becoming a passing league",  "workhorse backs are a thing of the past, it's a committee approach now", etc. The first one is going to be about the size of quarterbacks, and how not only are shorter quarterbacks becoming more of the norm, they are excelling!

It seems that between as far back as I can remember and the mid-2000's short quarterbacks basically had no chance to succeed, most weren't even given a fair chance with Doug Flutie being the poster child for short quarterbacks back in the day. Flutie spent his entire career fighting off his replacements, even though he was typically the best quarterback on the roster by far. Now short quarterbacks (6'2 and below) are being given legitimate chances to play, and excelling with them, and teams are even using valuable draft picks on them.

Did you know that the NFL's single season passing yardage record holder, Drew Brees, is listed at 6'0, that Michael Vick was the #1 overall pick as a quarterback at 6'0? Two of the NFL's most elite quarterbacks, Tony Romo and Aaron Rodgers, are listed (probably shorter than their listed height) at 6'2. What do Andy Dalton, Christian Ponder, and Robert Griffin III all have in common? Well they are all around 6'2 tall and drafted on day 1 (I still consider 2nd round picks "Day 1" picks), with all but Dalton going in the Top 15, and they are all expected to be franchise quarterbacks. I want to add the Seahawks Russell Wilson to this discussion because I believe the he is a legit franchise signal caller, but I have another piece cooking on him.

So what traits do all these guys have in common that make them successful even though they do not have "prototypical height" to be NFL signal callers? For starters they are all fairly mobile/athletic quarterbacks, and no I do not mean they can all run like Vick. What I mean is that they are all able to move both inside and outside the pocket with ease allowing them to deftly avoid the oncoming rush while finding different lanes to throw in. It's much harder for a pass rusher to find and hit a QB who is constantly moving, even if they are only moving in the pocket. Brees for instance is a master at slightly sliding inside the pocket to find his lanes.

It's not just the pass rushers that have a difficult time defending the smaller more mobile quarterbacks, it is also difficult for the defenders that are dropping back into coverage. One of the cues that coverage guys use to defend against the pass is the QB's eyes, and if that QB is constantly on the move it makes it difficult to track his eyes and see where he wants to go with the ball, especially when his height is factored into the equation.

Like I said before, they may not all be able to run like Vick (and RGIII), but their mobility/athleticism gives all of them a very important skill that I call "escapability". When a QB moves out of the pocket looking for a new throwing lane, and yet nothing is available, a lot of the "old school" pocket passers just go down, head out of bounds, or throw the pass away; but these "new school" shorter passers with "escapability" are able to  easily extend the play. Extending the play sometimes results in the biggest plays these guys have (Romo is an expert at avoiding the big hit, spinning out of it and keeping plays alive), whether its avoiding the rush long enough for one of your receivers to get open down the field or tucking the ball and picking up a few yards.

Eyes Closed & Leaning In For A Kiss....Romantic

Another trait shared by most of these "short" quarterbacks is their accuracy. Look at the 2011 stats for proof, the top 3 NFL QB's in completion percentage are all 6'2 or shorter; Drew Brees(71.2), Aaron Rodgers(68.3), and Tony Romo(66.3). And these are not Colt McCoy completions where they dump the ball off within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage, these guys are also in the top 7 in yards per attempt, so it's not an "empty stat". Their accuracy is a compilation of many different technical aspects which I am not going to get into here, but if you are interested let me know and I will put together another article on it.

Another thing that these guys have in common is both their release point and a quick release. Most of the time their release points are high, but they all have an outstanding ability to adjust it for different circumstances, going from a high release point, to sidearm, to even a shovel style pass. The different release points make it harder for defenders to get their arms/hands in the way of passes, and when you combine that with all of their super quick releases, they may have an advantage over taller quarterbacks. The quick release makes it difficult for the pass rushers to time their jumps or potential blocks, and it hinders the coverage guys because they have less time to react.

All of these physical traits help these shorter quarterbacks overcome their size, and actually make them better than their taller counterparts. But it's not just physical traits that make these guys excel, the evolution of offenses and the game of football have just as big, if not a bigger part to do with it. The second part is how schemes and philosophy's have made quarterback size fairly insignificant.

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What Do The Cowboys Free Agent Signings Bring? Pt 2

By:  Bobby Shores

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The Cowboys had a strange free agent period, instead of going after the "big name" players (even though Brandon Carr is a fairly big name), they instead filled a lot of holes with guys that can contribute in multiple ways and provide some MUCH needed depth which is needed to make it through the long NFL season! I've been holding this (and other) articles to not only "refresh"people's memory on the off-season transactions, but also as a way to get ready for the season! Enjoy reading Part 2 as much as I enjoyed writing it!!

Brandon Carr - CB - The Cowboys signed him to the biggest contract for any free agent defensive back, a 5-year $50.1 million deal and we all know that his primary responsibility will be to lock down the opposition's #1 receiver. Carr is just what Rob Ryan needs as a #1 corner, he plays a physical press-man style coverage that will hamper receivers trying to get off the line and screw up the offense's timing allowing rushers to get to the quarterback

Cowboys CB Brandon Carr

But Carr brings something else to the team, his physical style of play (press man) carries over into practice where he is regularly jamming guys like Dez Bryant and Miles Austin at the line. Both of these guys have struggled in the past getting off the line when people are in their face, now they have to learn how to use their hands properly and get a good release. I really believe that his practice value is just as good as his defense will be in real games, he is forcing our receivers to get better! While a lot of people don't think that he was worth $50.1 million, and he might not be when it comes to on-field production, but $10 million per year was the going rate for the top corners on the market this year, and being a big physical corner that will interrupt the rhythm that is so important to quarterbacks and receivers (especially in west coast style offenses which both Eagles and Redskins run) I believe  he is more than worth it.

If Carr is so valuable, then why did the Chiefs let him go? Well you can only devote so much money to the defensive side of the ball, especially one group like the secondary. Remember that they have huge contract obligations to safety Eric Berry, they also resigned Brandon Flowers at corner who was drafted the same year as Carr. I believe Carr is better but remember as a second round pick, they sometimes get priority over a later round pick, it's just the economics of the NFL. The Chiefs also don't play as physical defense as the Cowboys do, making Carr expendable. 

The other benefit that Carr brings is his durability, as a 5th round pick out of Grand Valley State he has been in the NFL for 64 games (4 years) and has NEVER missed a start. If you have watched the Cowboys much lately then you know how banged up our secondary has been. I honestly can't remember the last time we had our secondary at or near 100% for a game. Carr's durability will help with the continuity, especially as the #1 cornerback.

Dan Connor - ILB - My thoughts on this signing were nothing but positive, and it even spawned a separate article that will be posted in the next few days. The first thing Connor brings to the team is depth at the important inside linebacker position where I think him Sean Lee, and Bruce Carter will all get a lot of snaps.We aren't sure yet what we have in Carter, but I believe that at the worst he is Kevin Burnett, a linebacker that can cover any tight end or running back in the league. His speed is probably his best atrribute while one of the knocks I have on him is that he seems to be a robotic type player and less instinctual than the other guys. This is not necessarily a bad thing as he gets himself into position and will not do a lot of freelancing, meaning he will not have huge "impact" plays but should also not make many "impact" mistakes.

Cowboys Backup QB Kyle Orton

Before signing him the Cowboys had the motor of the defense Lee and 2nd year player Carter, both players that have struggled with injuries during their football careers with Carter only being healthy for about half of his rookie year due to a knee injury suffered in college and Lee having both a knee injury, thigh bruise and broken hand among others. Connor and Lee both excelled playing together at Penn State, and I think they will have great chemistry again.

Connor is a smart instinctive player that can diagnose plays quickly, much like Lee, and while I hear a lot of people claiming that he is a liability against the pass and that we will see the back of his jersey chasing linebackers, I don't see it in my film study, and I think he is more than capable. He is a strong tackler and has good sideline-to-sideline range.

Kyle Orton - QB - This was the most surprising signing of the off season for me, Orton is good enough to
be a starter in this league, but I think he got tired of ALWAYS being the veteran guy and teams ALWAYS trying to replace him (much like Doug Flutie). He comes to Dallas as the clear cut backup, and with Tony Romo's injury history the last few years, there is a good chance he will get a chance to play. I honestly believe that having Orton on the roster gives the Cowboys the best quarterback depth chart in the NFL.

No matter how much Cowboys fans want Orton to be "the guy", it's not going to happen, the only facet of Orton's game that is better than Romo's is his awesome beard. Orton will never (and better never) threaten Romo's grip on the starting job, but what he can do is push Romo to be better. At no time in Romo's 6(?) years starting has he had anybody to push him (sorry A&M fans, Stephen McGee is better suited to be a "yell leader" than a starting NFL QB). And from what I know of Romo, particularly off the field when he is playing pickup basketball and golf, he loves to be pushed and challenged, and I think Orton will do that.

Signing Orton fills two needs, he gives the Cowboys arguably the best backup quarterback in the NFL, and he should bring out the best in Tony Romo. Orton may be the best Denver Broncos quarterback ever, but he  is barely even the best backup in the storied history of the Dallas Cowboys.

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What Do The Cowboys Free Agent Signings Bring? Pt 1

By:  Bobby Shores

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The Cowboys had a strange free agent period, instead of going after the "big name" players (even though Brandon Carr is a fairly big name), they instead filled a lot of holes with guys that can contribute in multiple ways and provide some MUCH needed depth which is needed to make it through the long NFL season! I've been holding this (and other) articles to not only "refresh" people's memory on the off-season transactions, but also as a way to get ready for the season! Enjoy!!

Lawrence Vickers - FB - This was my favorite pickup of the Cowboys, besides being the one of the best fullback's in the NFL, and the Cowboys running an offense that requires a  "true" fullback, he fits the mold perfectly. Vickers also prides himself on knowing what all the positions are supposed to do on any given play, this allows him to anticipate what a lineman is going to do before he does it, meaning that Vickers will be able to react and/or adjust quicker when the play starts.

Cowboys FB Lawrence Vickers

Besides just being a solid blocker, Vickers brings a passion to the game of football that I haven't seen since Ray Lewis. Listening to him talk in interviews, you can tell that this is one of the few guys that would probably play this game for free (which is a good thing as fullbacks don't get paid compared to most positions). That passion should rub off on guys like Bryant, Tony Romo, and some of our young offensive linemen. I believe that Vickers may be that vocal/emotional leader that everybody says the Cowboys need, he has everything that you need:  will play a lot, one of the best at his position in the NFL, respected, plays and practices hard, and is passionate!

Nate Livings & Mackenzie Bernadeau - G - Neither one of these signings are "flashy", but as the Cowboys have remade their entire interior line the last few years trying to get younger these guys are value signings. They got rid of Leonard Davis, Kyle Kosier and Montrae Holland, all stalwarts at the guard position, instead trying to get younger by drafting David Arkin and Bill Nagy to play guard and signing Phil Costa and Kevin Kowalski to battle for Center. This approach did not work very well last year and it was obvious that they needed to get bigger and more experienced.

While it looks like Livings is penciled in at left guard and Bernadeau (I hate typing that name!) is penciled in at right guard, I believe that the Cowboys will give their younger players every opportunity to win the starting jobs, which is where these 2 signings really help. They provide depth and some much needed veteran influence for the entire line, and their smart and hard working personality should rub off. It even looked like Bernadeau was going to get a chance to play some center before having hip surgery, which speaks to what these guys were really brought in for, ability to play all interior positions.

Brodney Pool - S - Safety has been the worst position for the Cowboys since Darren Woodson retired back in 2004 the safety position has been more like the "danger" position. Their has been a revolving door back there as the Cowboys have tried every combination and done everything but draft a safety before the 4th round (I think, may want to check on that one).

Last year the biggest problem that the secondary had was bad communication, nobody ever knew where they were supposed to be and Abe Elam was supposed to have been the guy that would get everybody lined up as he was familiar with Ryan's defense, playing for both Ryan brothers in past years. In my view Pool is a solid but not spectacular or "impact" player and plays smart. A lot of people seem to think that he will not even make the final 53, but I believe that his knowledge of the complex Rob Ryan defense and his ability against the pass (doesn't get lots of turnovers, but breaks up a lot of passes) makes him a must have for the Cowboys this year.

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What Changes Do The Cowboys Need? OC, Discipline, & Accountability

By:  Bobby Shores

Image Courtesy of DallasNews.com

Dallas Cowboys Head Coach Jason Garrett has a long history with the Dallas Cowboys. From his dad being a longtime scout for the team, to his 8 years as a backup (2nd & 3rd stringer) to Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman, to his 2007 hiring that has led to his current role, it has been an interesting ride with America's Team. Prior to his coaching exploits, Garrett had achieved "folk hero" status in Dallas as Aikman's backup when he led the team to a 1994 Thanksgiving Day come from behind win over a young Brett Favre led Green Bay Packers by throwing for 311 yards and 2 touchdowns. He then bounced around the league holding a clipboard for a few years before being hired (prior to the head coach being hired) by Jerry Jones as the Cowboys offensive coordinator, with all of 2 years coaching experience....coaching quarterbacks for the Dolphins.

Fast forward....Wade Phillips was fired as head coach of the Cowboys in 2010 after a 1-7 start; Jason Garrett was named "interim" head coach and finished the season 5-3, which was good enough to make him the 8th head coach in the history of the Dallas Cowboys. It was widely believed that the quick turnaround orchestrated by Garrett was due to the immediate organizational and tempo changes. So how come those changes are not carrying over into his first full season?

Let's Fix The Cowboys Offense First...Simpler Than You May Think

The Cowboys offense has been....well....erratic since Garrett took over, finishing 2nd, 18th, 14th, 7th, and this year they are currently ranked 13th in what I perceive to be the most important straight up offensive category, points scored. To put that in perspective, teams like the 'Niners, Jets, and Ravens are all averaging more points per game, and those teams are routinely ridiculed as being the most "offensively challenged" in the NFL.

So why was Garrett's best year statistically his first year, has he just gotten worse, or was there something else involved? In my opinion it was because Garrett did not handle all the playcalling duties during the 2007 season. That year, current Miami Dolphins coach Tony Sparano was the Cowboys offensive line coach/assistant head coach/running game coordinator who was heavily involved with the in-game direction of the offense. As soon as Sparano left for Miami following the 2007 season and Garrett has had sole responsibility of the the offense, they have struggled, particularly in scoring....

Editors Note: Take a look at the "Scoreability" statistics from my friends at Cold Hard Football Facts (CHFF), it is basically how well a team turns yards into points and is a great way to tell how efficient an offense is, or how inefficient an offense is as the Cowboys found out in 2009, having the second most yards in the NFL does not matter if you can't turn those yards into points....

I believe he needs playcalling help, particularly he seems to lack creativity in the red zone and other big moments. He reminds me of that really smart kid in high school, the one who is really book smart but has no common sense, he always knew what the book said to do but when things got hectic or out of control and he needed to improvise or "think outside the box" he froze. Which is precisely what happened to Garrett on Sunday against the Cardinals. I don't need to go over the details unless you have been living under a rock.

So what do they do? Hire Garrett's former mentor Norv Turner, not only is he an exceptional quarterbacks coach who I believe can get Tony Romo over the hump he has been stuck on for years, his offenses are always near the top of the league. Yes, I know that Turner is currently employed as the head coach of the San Diego Chargers, but unless they go on an incredible run while Tim Tebow succumbs to satan's temptations, he will be fired and most likely have to go down to being an offensive coordinator for a couple of years.

This marriage works out well for both sides, Turner gets to come back home where he had his greatest success as the offensive coordinator of the 90's Cowboys dynasty (and where Jerry Jones nearly hired him over Phillips), where he coached Garrett, and since they already run Turner's offense here there would be little transition. Garrett will be able to focus more on being a head coach (organizational & discipline issues) and less about having to be the head coach AND offensive coordinator. We know that the Cowboys already have a lot of talent on the offensive side of the ball which would be very attractive to Turner.

One other benefit that having Turner on the staff gives the Jerry Jones is if Garrett does not work out then he will have 2 guys in Rob Ryan and Norv Turner that would seemingly be able to make the jump to the #1 spot.

Other Cowboys Problems That Need Fixing

One of the biggest knocks on the Cowboys during the Phillips era was discipline and accountability. During his 3 full years the Cowboys ranked 28th, 32nd, and 29th in penalties, with many of them coming in key situations that directly resulted in lost games. From the Alex Barron holding penalty that cost the Cowboys a win in the first game against the Redskins last year, to the repeated game changing celebration penalties by Roy Williams, Sam Hurd, and Marc Columbo. Now that Garrett has taken full control of this team, and has a reputation of a disciplinarian guy who demands perfection, you would expect the penalties to have decreased quite a bit, right? Guess again, 13 weeks into the season the Cowboys rank 26th, not much of an improvement....

#1 Cowboys fan & her car  Sabrina Elie

Again these penalties are killing drives, taking points off the board, and extending opponents drives and putting points on the board for them. Garrett seems to be a very intelligent, organized, Type-A personality kind of guy that demands a lot from his employees, I just think that it is getting lost with him trying to run the entire offense. If he hires Norv Turner he can still be involved in the game planning, strategy, playcalling, and execution of the offense, but will now have some help from an experienced OC with proven success and the same system.

When it comes to accountability, Garrett needs to have some for himself, it was so obvious that even Helen Keller knew he botched the clock management at the end of the Cardinals game, but instead of admitting that he screwed up he just continues to play the "it was not the wrong decision it just didn't work" card. No leader can demand accountability from his employees without being accountable for himself.


Hiring Turner is a win-win for not only Garrett and the Cowboys, but for all the frustrated fans that see the errors and predictability of this team before it happens, he just needs some help so that he can focus on the big picture. Garrett needs to put his ego to the side and do what is best for the organization

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Who are These New Look Cowboys (Offense)?

By:  Bobby Shores

The 2011 Dallas Cowboys are a team full of unexpected new contributors, you have high profile draft picks, low profile draft picks, guys that were found on the free agent scrap heap, and one guy that was found on a reality TV show.  And this is just talking about the offensive side of the ball, these contributors are a reason why the wildly inconsistent Cowboys seem to be becoming consistent at the right time to make a late season run into the playoffs.

DeMarco Murray/Montrae Holland/Tony Fiammetta/Running Game - These three guys are the main driving force behind the recent success of the Cowboys and their offense. While most people are giving nearly all the credit to the emergence of rookie running back DeMarco Murray and the highest 3-game rushing total in Cowboys History, if you look closer Murray's rise to success coincides with Holland and Fiammetta becoming fixtures in the starting lineup. 

The recent success of Tony Romo is also directly related to the emergence of the running game as teams now have to account for ground attack instead of playing the pass nearly 100% of  the time. I think we can all agree that Romo is at his best when he does not have to carry the entire offense on his shoulders, when that happens he tries to do too much and that is when he make mistakes.

Montrae Holland - Holland was acquired by the Cowboys in a 2008 trade with the Denver Broncos and has struggled to keep his weight in check, causing him to bounce from reliable multi-position backup, to starter, to backup, to released, to finally being brought back after his back healed up and he lost weight (both are directly related). Before Holland was brought back the Cowboys were working with a very young and small offensive line (3 rookies, yes I know that Center Phil Costa is not a rookie but he might as well be) that I predicted would be a problem early this season, but Holland arrived and instantly made Doug Free and Phil Costa better. 

Not only is he winning the battles in his "area" (Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett also seems to have changed the blocking scheme from 1-on-1 power blocking to more zone blocking) he is also getting out in space and getting in defenders way at the second level. His play has been so impressive that on his first game back Jerry Jones declared that Holland should get the game ball and not DeMarco Murray (who had just rushed for a franchise record 253 yards), and I tend to agree.

DeMarco Murray - the 3rd round draft pick out of Oklahoma, has been the driving force behind the resurgence of the running game. While you have to give a lot of credit to the offensive line and Tony Fiammetta, Murray has started running hard and not going down on first contact ensuring that he gets every yard possible out of every run. In my opinion, much of his success in the last few games has come with a fundamental change in his game, early in the season I saw him receive the hand-off and duck his head through first contact, but now he is keeping his head up allowing him to make that first guy miss when he steps in the hole allowing him to get to the second level.

Tony Fiammetta - Another guy that the Cowboys found on the scrap heap after he was picked from the Panthers, his playing time is also directly related to the emergence of the running game. Fiammetta is better on the edges than than taking linebackers head on in the gaps, and is a throwback fullback of sorts because he seems to be very athletic instead of bulky, with that you would expect him to be a threat out of the backfield, but he is happy clearing the holes for the threats.

Laurent Robinson - Falcons, Rams, Chargers, Cowboys(twice) all before age 26....doesn't sound like the resume of the best wide receiver on the 6th best passing team in the NFL does it? Well Laurent Robinson is currently the wide receiver playing the best for the Cowboys right now, in fact his play has made Miles Austin somewhat....expendable. In fact, I cannot believe that some wannabe sports writer/scout ever once considered that this passing attack needed Randy Moss....what an idiot!! 

Robinson was a journeyman free agent who was always considered talented, but injury prone. He has become a fixture in the Cowboys offense this season accumulating a solid 27 catches for 441 yards and 4 touchdowns. But Robinson's biggest impact has not been his stats, it has been the smaller things he is doing right, like knowing the plays, where to line up and what route to run while doing it at full speed and not loafing (I am talking to you Dez Bryant and Kevin Ogletree). His route running is also precise and crisp; running the routes the same way every time which gives quarterback Tony Romo the comfort of knowing that he can throw to a spot and his receiver will be there. 

It looks like Robinson has become the wide receiver version of Jason Witten for Romo, and in just 7 games this season has become a more reliable and dependable option than Miles Austin, if it weren't for the contract (Economics of the NFL) Robinson would continue to be the #2, even when Austin returns. 

Tyron Smith - Coming out of USC as the 9th overall pick in the draft, Smith was fairly inexperienced after only starting for 1 year, and not even the best tackle on his team (see Matt Kalil). I was very hard on him and did not expect him to make as great an impact as he has. But through a little more than half of the 2011 season Smith has been the best tackle, if not the best lineman on the Cowboys team. 

While he needs some work on leveraging his man off the snap when run blocking, which will come when he puts on some more weight and adds strength, he has been more than adequate in that area. His best attribute is his pass blocking, his first kick at the snap of the ball and his quick feet allow him to be in the right position to direct even the best pass rushers where he wants them to go. His one pass protection fault is when a rusher uses the same move over and over (speed rush to the outside) he starts sitting in his stance expecting it, and then the rusher can use a spin move to the inside or a bull rush and catch him off balance and out of position leading to a negative play. 

With a full season under his belt, including a full off-season in an NFL Weight Room and training camp, I fully expect him to make the transition to left tackle sooner than later, which will move Doug Free back to right tackle, forming arguably the best tackle tandem in the NFL. These problems will work themselves out as Smith gets experience, but until then, the Cowboys and their fans have to be very happy with their 1st round selection.

With these unexpected stars emerging on the Cowboys offense, we can expect big things for the rest of the season, and even further. Check back next week for the "New Look Defense".

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Don't Blame it on Tony Romo!

By:  Christian Hardy

After both Cowboys’ losses this season, Tony Romo was the one who took the blame. What happened to the performances by Tom Brady in week three, and Ryan Ftizpatrick (in a completely different way) in week four. It’s quite apparent that there is a huge difference in these three guys, but why is Romo the one who is criticized the most? Why is he the one who takes the blame for every Dallas Cowboys loss? Certainly it can’t be all the quarterbacks fault. Or can it?

On Romo’s first interception, Romo didn’t see Bobby Carpenter playing shallow and then drop back into coverage, on what was a terrible play action call. Disregarding the bad decision by Romo, the former Cowboy Bobby Carpenter returned the interception past nine (yes, nine) Cowboys on the way to the endzone.


On the second interception, the pocket was completely collapsing (Tyron Smith’s back was nearly bumping into Romo) and right as Romo threw the ball he was bumped by a Lions’ defender. It was another bad decision, but this one is on more on the offensive line. Even Laurent Robinson knew it wasn’t Romo’s fault as he took the blame for it after the game. For the second time in the game, an interception ended up in the endzone. This time, though, it was Chris Houston.


The third interception was even less Romo's fault than the others. On this play he is going for the big play (deep to Witten on the seam route) instead of the smart play (checking it down); but that’s what a quarterback is forced to do when he has no running game to help him out. Romo was pressured heavily again on this throw, even being hit as he threw which took a tremendous amount of power off of his throw and it fell short, just short enough for Stephen Tulloch to get his hands on it for the interception. 


With better protection from his offensive line, Romo is golden on two of those three interceptions, and with a small amount of tackling from any offensive player the points don't go up on the board. The last thing we as fans should want to do is take the imagination and creativity out of Romo's game, as that is how the Cowboys put points on the board. Even if you try to say, “Well, Romo always throws interceptions in the fourth quarter,” you would be wrong, Romo has the second best TD/INTratio in the fourth quarter since he set foot in the league as a starter.

While Romo may have contributed to the epic collapse in the second half, where did the defense disappear to? Take a look at Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford's stats for the two halves:


 -1st Half - 9 for 24 (37.5% completion percentage) 0 touchdowns & 1 interception.


 -2nd Half -12-19 (63.2% completion percentage) & 2 touchdowns. 


How ridiculous is that? When the offense and Romo need the defense the most, they allow Stafford to throw all over them like it's 2010. I mean Stafford might look like the hero here, but he has a sub-par game with a 71.9 passer rating (Romo had a passer rating of 86.4 in this game). Even in the 4^th quarter, Rob Ryan still couldn’t figure out that it is going to take more than one corner to cover Calvin Johnson (they couldn’t even do it with 12men on the field). 

What about you Cowboys fans saying that the Cowboys should get rid of Romo? I want to ask you, how many quarterbacks in the NFL are there that you would rather have than Tony Romo who has led us to the playoffs three times in four years? Last time I checked, that’s a good thing. Look, Romo isn’t perfect but he is a great quarterback, you’re just going to have to live with the fact that Tony Romo is the Dallas Cowboys right now; and the team goes as he goes.


Click it here for complete career stats breakdown  


Since 2006, no quarterback has a better passer rating than Tony Romo who has an abstract 100.0 rating in his career. He also has the third most touchdowns in the fourth quarter, as well as third most in yards. Remember, when he finally got playing time in 2006 he only played about half of the season, so those stats can be skewed a bit in terms of yardage and touchdowns, but that is still remarkable. He has also only thrown 17 interceptions in that time frame in the fourth quarter. In fact, he is a better quarterback in the fourth quarter and overtime than he is in the first three quarters. In quarters 1-3 since 2008 he has a 7.7 yards per attempt average (10^th in the league), but in the 4^th quarter and overtime he has an average of 8.6 yards per attempt (1^st in the league). And his TD-INT ratio, well, it’s impressive. Since 2008 in quarters 1-3 he averages 4.8 touchdowns for every interception (12^th), but in the 4^th quarter and overtime he averages 6.3 (2^nd). 


How impressive is that?


His interception percentage also drops from 2.6 to 2.1 in the fourth quarter and overtime. Stats aren’t everything but, they mean a lot. Romo already has 20 career games with 3 TD passes. I know you are asking, “What has Romo done is his career all time?” And boy do I have some surprises for you. For starters, Romo has the 4^th best quarterback rating of all time and the sixth best completion percentage of all time. He also has the 4^th best career yards per attempts ever, only behind three quarterbacks who all retired before the merger of 1960.

But what really stands out to me? Is it the fact that Romo has thrown more TDs than every quarterback other than Drew Brees and Peyton Manning? Nope. It’s that he is actually a really smart quarterback (explaining his score of 37 on the Wonderlic, representing all of those guys from Eastern Illinois). You see, Romo has an ESPN quarterback rating of 55.9 in his big games (includes Sunday, Monday, holiday, and playoff games), all 17 of them. What gives Romo a good passer rating and not a great QBR is the fact that he likes to let his receivers do the work for him. His receivers have the third highest yards after catch in third and fourth down situations when the Cowboys are down by eight or less, as well as the highest YAC percentage of passing yards in the same situation (ESPN Stats & Info). That is very impressive: it tells me that he knows what to do with the ball, but at the same time he knows when to find the open man.

The real question for fans of America’s Team is: Are you ever going to put faith in the franchise quarterback again, and when are you going to realize that this guy is the future, because he is the future, at least for now. Neither Head Coach Jason Garrett or Owner/GM/CEO Jerry Jones, is going to want Romo to get benched and neither should we. Seventy five percent of teams in this league would rather have Romo as their starting quarterback rather than the guy they have taking snaps for them now. But when are the media and fans going to stop putting all the blame for every loss on Romo’s back and start realizing that this is a team effort? 


That’s the question you all need to ask yourselves. Tony Romo is the pivotal point in this offense but the Dallas Cowboys do not live or die by just him, there are still 45 other guys active on game days. Is he a huge factor in every game? Sure, but that doesn’t mean you put the blame for every slight blunder on the shoulders of Romo.

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Fine NFL, You want to cut 2 Preseason games, then do this!

I am going to attempt to justify keeping the standard 16 Regular Season Games + 4 Preseason Games format that the league currently uses.  I already addressed this briefly in a previous article, but I feel the need elaborate on it some more. One thing we know for sure though is that the NFL, its team owners and the players union (or association or whatever it is called now) care about one thing and one thing only, MONEY!  I do not blame them for being as greedy as they are, but I feel that if they shorten the preseason, even if they lengthen the regular season, the quality of the product consumed by the fans will be diminished.  The NFL needs the preseason to sort out which players are capable of playing under the lights and pressure during the regular season, to find out which guys are just scout team superstars and which ones can contribute on Sundays.  Since it appears fairly obvious that the NFL is going to have to cut the preseason down by half (4 games down to 2) I have found a way for them to do this and at the same time increase the quality of the product on Sunday's,  create more jobs at all levels of the organization, and most importantly (to the league, owners, and players) increase the revenue.

As previously stated, the main reason why the NFL needs the preseason is to see which players can perform in game situations and potentially contribute if called up on Sundays.  If you are an NFL player that was not drafted in the top rounds of the NFL draft, the only way that you get to show that you can play in the league is during the preseason.  During the regular season, if you are on the 8 man practice squad, and not part of the 53 man active roster you only get a chance to shine running the opposing teams offense and defense during practice while going against 1st and 2nd stringers that typically run half speed in practice, and on game days the practice squad does not even suit up, they spend the games watching in street clothes on the sideline, or if it's an away game they usually watch them at home like you and me.  Even if you do make the 53 active man roster you may only have a chance to show what you can do on a few special teams plays during the game, if you are not a starter or part of the regular rotation.  Your only true chance to shine may be because someone gets injured.  I think that there are a lot of guys that can play in the league, and play well, they just never get a chance to show it because of limited opportunities.  As a fan I enjoy the preseason games for 2 reasons: #1 because it's football, and #2 because I like trying to see if I can pick out a player that I might want to keep on tabs for fantasy football or mainly to see if I can spot the next guy that will make an impact in the league.  So how does the NFL solve these problems?  How do they cut the number of preseason games, improve the quality of the product on Sundays (and Thursdays and Mondays), while increasing revenue and keeping the regular season at 16 games?  Here is how....

#1 - They sell their NFL Network Thursday night slate of games to one of the networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, or ESPN).  From what I have read the league could easily create an extra $350 million in revenue by doing this.  This would not only increase profits, but allow for extra broadcast space for idea #2.

#2 - They purchase the UFL, the struggling football league that for the past couple of years has been trying to be a haven for guys who are either a few years removed from contributing to an NFL team, guys that are not even good enough to make the practice squad, or guys that may have been overlooked.  This would essentially be the NFL's version of minor league (I know they have their own free farm system called the NCAA but you cannot "call" players up from college on a need basis).  By purchasing this league the NFL could relegate their practice squad or scout team players to the UFL where they would be on 1 of 5 UFL teams (and they can add or subtract as they see fit) and teams can call up the players they sent down there whenever they want to, and put them back down there whenever they want.  And if the Dolphins wanted to pull a player that the Cardinals sent down to the minor league than the Dolphins would have to keep them on their active roster the rest of the season, and if the Dolphins place a "tender" on the player than the Dolphins have to give up certain draft picks, cash, etc.  The main benefit of this "minor league" to the players would be:  speed up the development of players by getting them live reps at full speed, create more jobs for players, and it would keep players in game shape by getting them live action.

The league would broadcast the UFL games on NFL Network so fans like myself could scout players that potentially could help out a team, and coaches would be able to see how the players react in game type situations at full speed.  These games would be played during the regular NFL season, and while details still need to be worked out, I imagine a system where a player spends half their time with their respective team and the other half with the minor league team.  The minor league teams would basically run simple vanilla offenses and defenses so that we are not giving the minor leaguers to much conflicting information, but the systems would allow them to call audibles and adjust coverages.   The ad revenue and stadium revenue would be split equally among the NFL teams, and this would create more jobs for NFL players, referees (almost like training), coaches, stadium personnel, network jobs (NFL Network broadcasting them and ESPN and other sports entities that would report and evaluate it), etc.  I do not see a downside to this, and I believe it would be very profitable. 

Now I know what you are thinking, "the NFL already tried this with NFL Europe and it failed".  This would be nothing like that, this would be American football, in American cities, where we know football is popular.  Fans would watch these games, maybe not on as regular a basis as the games that count, but they would always be looking for the next Tony Romo playing on the Florida Tuskers.  It would be a fan and family friendly venue that would be much more affordable then NFL games currently are.  I mean we already know that the most popular player in an NFL town is the backup QB.  Now think of the debate this would cause if a team like the Seahawks are struggling with either Matt Hasselbeck or Charlie Whitehurst at QB, but their 2nd round draft pick Jake Locker is setting the minor league football world on fire!  All of a sudden you would have every fan of every team with a poorly performing QB watching the minor league games that Locker is playing in, and writing their teams website and local newspaper, calling into talk radio, shouting at the top of their lungs that "X" team needs to steal Jake Locker right now and replace their current QB.  And hypothetically Jake Locker would be exclusive property of the Seahawks for 1-2 years possibly, or even 1/2 of the season, and if another team wanted to pick him up then they would have to give up two 1st round picks as compensation (or something of value to an NFL team).  Man the possibilities of this are endless!!

I am going to cut this off right here, I think I will follow up on this at a later date with a more detailed plan of how this could and should work.  To be honest the more I think about this, the better I feel that this idea really is.  The development of players would be increased 10X, the amount of jobs that would be created at all levels are enormous, the interest and debate this would cause amongst football fans, talk show hosts, newspaper writers, bloggers, tweeters, etc is ENDLESS!!  And the reason why the NFL should consider it, is because the additional revenue this would create for all sides is limited only by their creativity. The downside to this?  I just thought of it, and now they would have to give me a cut of it.....