Ringside Seats to a Dogfight

Our bye week can’t get here soon enough. Injuries are piling up. Good thing we have an insurance with Price replacing Crayton but I’m quite nervous having Tucker play for Adams for an extended period of time. Despite all that, the Cowboys have huge opportunity leading up to the bye to gain the cushion Rafael mentioned. Seems like old times again as the NFC East is the best division in the league with all teams having winning records.

Bummer that we now play all three teams at their home stadium. I don’t think that bodes well for Dallas.

I still say the deadskins aren’t for real. They DO NOT have an offense with Brunell throwing short passes or miracle bombs to Santana Moss. That luck is going to end for them. Eventually. Eli didn’t show anything today against the ‘boys and plaxico doesn’t have enough speed to scare anyone. So I’m not impressed by the giants either.

It’s up to McNabb getting healthy and and westbrook and TO carrying their team back. I say the Cowboy’s road to the East title goes through Philly. If they can win 5 out of the last 9 games and make the Philly away game into a victory (the 10th remaining game), then they will win. Yes, I think we take the east at 10-6. ie., I don’t think the deadskins and the giants finish 9-7 or worse and I don’ think philly will win 11 games if they lose both of their games to the boys.

go cowboys!

It’s imperative that we win the next 3 games to stand a chance for the division crown.

Next week – Seahawks. A win is very much possible, but the run defense needs to bring the “A” game

2 weeks from now – Cardinals. Besides an underachieving record, they still can put points on the board and seem to keep getting better every week.

Philly(after bye) – Must win to take the crown. Hopefully McNabb doesn’t show up in this game

We can win on the Road………we should be 3-0 against our division rivals….but hey 4-2 ain’t bad…..only the Bucs have a better record in the NFC. I ain’t sure they are for real yet either.

We got a road trip to a pretty good Seattle team and as good a rb as is in the league. We need to win next week! Offense never did get on track this week……..hopefully Julius is back next week and we can shred the Seattle D! Guess we see whats up with Price next week with Crayton out……..too bad the kid was having a pretty good season so far.

Old Greg Ellis and Laroi Glover are still leaders on our defense. I loved seeing Ellis sack Eli and drag him backward! Too bad the old man didn’t have the legs for a TD! Oh well………Demarcus Ware is on his way to Defensive Rookie of the Year if he keeps up his sack pace! We are finally putting pressure on the QB, and it hould only get better.

We won a tough divison rival against an improving opponent without two of our best in Julius and Dat………..that is what good teams do………find ways to win even when they have injuries and are not playing there best……which we obviously were not. I have to say it was Bledsoe’s worst outing……..he looked like the Bills QB of a year ago despite the yards……….some bad passes…….particularly that one to KJ on the sideline…….almost got picked. Well………we still win it. Defense was good, and made plays. Too bad Roy didn’t make that pick it could have been 6……..nice to see Henry playing well.

Week 6 and we lead the division and beat the Eagles and Giants in back to back weeks. Not bad for a young team with a lot of rookies on both sides of the ball. You just sort of get a good feeling about this team. They hang in there and I like that. OT wins are big confidence builders……and demoralizers for the NYG…….keep it up Boys I like what I see so far!

If F. Adams can’t play who is the back up OT for Rob P. and Torin T. ? Does LA go to tackle and have a back up OG fill LA’s spot?

Is Vollers working anywhere?

you know what rmac, good question, we have depth at reciever and back, and even secondary and linebackers (somewhat), but how much depth do we have on our O-line? if we cant protect bledsoe, the rest of the season is gonna be long, old vinnie days all over again…I think Adams is a sprain, and will be back…I hope we have depth…

Where has dallas running game gone? We did very few things right last year, but at least for the last 7 games, we ran the ball. Teams played us with 8 in the box, but it didn’t matter. JJ still gashed them for 100+.

Think about it. Our O-line is decidedly better.
We have campbell back. We have rivera at guard. Pettititi is better than anyone who played RT last year. We have depth at center. We have depth at running back. Finally, and most perplexing, we have a strong passing game that should keep teams off balance.

We have a lot to be optimistic about. The only things I see stopping this team is lack of a ball control running game (and of course injuries).

Any theories? I don’t really buy the idea that JJ has lost his step.

well Thompson, Barber, and Thomas all had lowly average per carries…….this week. So it just ain’t JJ that was getting stopped early.

Not sure……is it the old Parcells will run it and teams are gaming for that? Oh well as long as Bledsoe is airing it out at least we got a passing attack!

I hear you Jon. I love our passing attack too. I never expected it would be so successful. But the running game is something we are going to need. I don’t want to sound like a broken clock (i.e. Parcells) but a strong running game looks like the last link in what could be a really special season.

I’m not sure of the answer either. I don’t think we can blame the play calling on Parcells because we are passing the ball over 50% of the time.
I hope it’s just a matter of getting more repetition After all, this team was designed to run the ball, but so far, wer’e not very good at doing that.

Maybe Rafael can give us the answer.

traditionally offensive lines run block better than pass block…….so again our seemingly talented line is partially to blame……..I did not realize the Giants Defense was as good as it was.

Well we are 4-2 and still have a lot of room for improvement when it comes to carrying the rock. If and when we do get the Juice back in our rushing attack, look out. Maybe we can get it going against Seattle I seem to remember Julius lighting them up last year in a wild shootout. Hope we can win this one going away.

One of the things that I am very happy about is the overall play of our front seven on defense. The clutch performance of Anthony Henry and the improved play of TNew. Bradie James actually playing like a linebacker these last two weeks. DeMarcus Ware looking like a number 11 draft pick! The youth movement on both sides getting plemnty of snaps. Marion Barber actually showing he can pass block! It would be nice if he developed into a good option behind Julius and a passing attack back that could be relied upon and give JJ a break. Bledsoe had his worst game…….2 fumbles and an INT………and we hung in there and won the football game. The team did not quit on either side of the ball despite a rather pedestrian offense on the ground and in the air.

I would like to see Julius get on track for another monster performance. But I would rather have Ws………teams are always going to play the Cowboys as run first team, and as long as we got Drew upright slinging it back there……….we should be fine.

Crayton’s injury is disappointing. However, I do want to see Price in action and find out if he is worth resigning next year. He is only a 6 year pro unlike Terry and Keyshawn he could be a Cowboy for a long time to come if he is a legit deep threat for Bledsoe. Copper is another guy that could and should also step up. We need another return guy not sure who that might be……..maybe TNEW finally gets some touches back there……….he was pretty good at it in college.

You make good points. We have lots or reasons to be optimistic. For the most part, it seems that the pre-season question marks have all been answered in our favor. And most exciting is that the rookies seem to be progressing faster than schedule. This defense is going to be hell on wheels for a long time to come.

I know Seattle is going to be tough, but it’s hard not to look ahead and envision a 6-2 record heading into the bye week. How great would that be? Can you imagine Dallas at 6-2 and havng 2 weeks to prepare for a Monday night matchup with the Eagles? I don’t think we could have foreseen that scenario at the end of last season.

I’ve felt along if we could just keep our head above water during the first half of the season, we would be ok. Considering all of the young players on this roster, we stand a very good chance of greatly improving during the back half of the season.

Please let Flozell be ok.

One thing our D is something serious. Our Offence is not as good as people would like to think. The offence tried its best to give this game away. Our D has only had one bad game this year that was against SF. A-train doesn’t need to play anymore. I expect TT to get more carries. I think he didn’t get many this game because BP wanted to see what the other two can do. Crayton will be a big lost he caught three first downs I believe on three third and longs. Its a good thing we have Price but I didn’t think he would be coming in for Crayton( I thought it would be for Glenn). Ware four sacks in a row.

When is Julius Jones coming back? Jones himself said that he is day-to-day. Anthony Thomas looked slow and Jones had his best game last year against Seattle so were going to need him!!!!!!!!!

Anthony Thomas is what he is………just be thankful he ain’t our starting RB.

AW,

I think we didn’t see Tyson Thompson because his weakness is blitz pickup. And the Giants are a blitz heavy team. Parcells needed backs who could recognize and block and Thomas and Barber did just that.

“…traditionally offensive lines run block better than pass block…….so again our seemingly talented line is partially to blame……”
———————
The O-line is O-verrated. Big slow guys like Pettiti and Adams pass block a lot better than they run block, because they don’t have the acceleration to move people backward, but it takes pass rushers a long time to get around them. Johnson is usually giving away a lot of size and strength to nose tackles, and Rivera and Allen, who are supposed to be great, are just not opening up many decent running holes.

I think Julius is still far and away the Cowboys’ best running back, he just hasn’t had any room to run. Thompson has the speed to get outside, but most of the run plays called seem to be slow-developing inside plays.

Fortunately Dallas has a great quarterback, and lots of receiving options. Unfortunately the last-minute defensive collapse sent yesterday’s game into overtime and cost us Crayton for the rest of the year.

I have been concerned all year about our running game. I put our problems on the Oline. They are doing a very good job in pass protection, but they have been very poor in run blocking. How many short yardage situations have we converted this year? By running? Not many because of consistent breakdowns along the Oline.

What was the ypc average yesterday? Less than 3. Against the Eagles? Less than 4. The other games? Not very good. Why? There was no where to run on most of the carries. Yes, Atrain is slow, but even Emmitt in his prime would have had trouble running behind this line as it has played so far this year.

Whats worse is that I don’t see it improving materially. Who are you going to bring in? Tucker? Peterman? Who are you going to bench? “Secretariat” Allen? No real answers there.

But at least they have been good in pass protection and Dallas has been able to move the ball through the air. Lets hope that Flozell is ok (it didnt look bad from watching the replay a few times) and the pass protection can continue. Maybe, by some chance, Larry, Marco, and friends can remember how to run block.

Through six games, we’ve learned some things about this team.

We’re good:

• We keep our D fresh (1st in Time of Possession).
• We get to the quarterback (2nd in sacks/game).
• We rarely allow long drives (2nd in first downs allowed/game).
• We go on plenty of long drives (4th in first downs/game).
• We rack up yardage (7th in offensive yards/game).
• Our D takes the ball away (10th in takaways).

And we’re bad:

• We can’t run (30th in yards/rush).
• Our D bails teams out (27th in penalties/game by the D).
• We let teams run (24th in yards/rush allowed).
• Our O loses the ball at times (18th in giveaways).

So the result is that we let teams score more than they should (12th in points allowed/game). And we score less than we should (13th in points scored/game. And we win more often than not.

But, hey, if we fix any of those “bad” things, this team could be really good!

Lex
Hold on we went to overtime because of the offence not because of the D. The offence has been up and down this year. We don’t have a running game right now.

Once again the O-line did an excellent job of protecting Bledsoe and giving him time. This is a pretty good front four the Giants have,so kudos to the O-line.

The Dallas offense did their best in the early going to put the Giants in position to score by committing four turnovers. Luckily,the Dallas D was able to hold them to two FG’s.

Once again,Roy Williams blew it. With their last chance and a 4th and 17,the Giants were able to get the ball to Shockey for the first down and on the next play scored the tying TD.

The ‘Boys were able to stop the Giants on the two previous possesions late in the 4th QTR. They just couldn’t do it a third time. It was a very hot day and you gotta give the Giants credit. They came through when they had to.

Wonder why the Giants couldn’t stop the ’Boys on the game winning drive in OT? It was a very hot day and you gotta give the Cowboys credit. They came through when they had to.

These past two weeks were very important wins for the Cowboys. Now,hopefully they can carry the momentum to Seattle and beat a tough Seahawks team. Go ’Boys!

Rafael Vela
Who do you think blitz more Philly or NY? I know we had a big lead last week but TT played the whole half. I think its more to do with BP wanting to see what the other two can do but I could be wrong. But we will see next week if JJ can’t go.

Daryl
Once again our D has a great game and someone has to say Roy blows it. Teams are going to put points up on us period. The D is not up and down like the offence.

I am very concerned by the conservative offensive play inside the redzone, plus some of the play calling during the game. For example, on a third and three, Bledsoe threw a deep fade route to Glenn which was fairly well thrown, but Glenn was covered well by the defender. Why the hell was he making that throw!? I mean, you need three yards, so by all means attempt to get the first down, move the sticks. I believe that kind of throw should be made only if the receiver has sufficient separation from the defender.

Also, it seems that Parcells is too satisfied with running the ball when inside the redzone, but they really didn’t have a consistent running game throughout the game. He should have stuck with one back – Tyler Thompson I believe – and allow him to get a feel for the flow of the game. But when they moving downfield using a mixture of pass and run then abruptly clam up with running the ball in a defense that seems to be stacking 8 in the box, I just don’t understand it. You cannot allow a team to hang around. They need to develop a killer instinct and put these teams out of contention.

If they had lost this game, it would been a huge loss. They couldn’t afford to lose another game at home against a division rival. Whew!

I know a lot of you guys don’t put much stock into stats, but right now (in terms of yards) Dallas offense is ranked 6th and defense is ranked 8th. The D has steadily moved up in the past couple of weeks.

I know I do not have to say this, but I will…the D is really starting to look pretty nasty right now!!!!!

Before we say “Roy blew it,” we should remember that Roy saved a touchdown on the previous Giant possession by knocking the ball loose on the 1 yard line and then recovering it.

With Roy, you take the good with the bad, and I’ll talk it all day long.

RobH,

I agree with you about the O-line. But I seem to remember running the ball pretty well during the last 7 games last season, and our O-line is better now than then, isn’t it?

Rivera, Pettititi, depth at running back, and a balanced passing attack.

How are we not at least as good as last year? Who is underperforming?

Hey Guys,
I remember i kept saying we need to use our first pick what ever pick that is anyway,for the o-line we need depth in that area and bad.Every other position i can find players that look promising and find depth just about every other position except the o-line!I can’s stress enough that with out the big guys(o-line)nothing happens on offense everbody always looks for a name player in the draft(a flash in the pan)as some would say cause most when they end up in the NFL cant translate there game pros.All i know is that the boys better strengthen that line that is so horrid whether it’s free agency,but preferably the draft,but that needs to be fixed and its obvious that is not gonna happen this year.The best case scenario for for the boys this season is that they develop some sort of chemistry and begin to gell “Good Luck to that o-line”

The D-Line is also important, so I don’t have a problem with anything we did in the draft.

After last year, it’s nice to be 2nd in the NFL in sacks per game.

How bout them Cowboys!!!!!!!! I am from northern Canada and I am travelling many Miles to see the game in Seattle this week. I can’t wait!! Anyways it’s about that time a year to see who is for real and who isn’t. Hopefully our Boys are for real. It is also the time of year that rookies cant have the excuses of being rookies anymore. I would like to see Spears step it up a notch. He runs down the quarterback very well but I can’t wait for the moment when he pops out of know where and crushes the quarterback because when he hits…. he hits hard!!!! Hopefully Julius is back so we see if Seattle found a way to stop draw and delays.
Anyway it’s always a pleasure reading what you guys have to say so keep up the good work and I’ll talk when I get back from Seattle.
GO COWBOYS!!!

Can any of you guys out there kick the ball? Someone post Parcells e-mail so he can get a resime. Anyone will do. 50 year old smokers are welcome.

Seriously, Cortez blows… I remember him playing with the 9ers. Didn’t he kick for the French in ww2?

Do we draft one or try and work out a deal?

We have a play-off type D now. We have put together two wins in a row now its time to put together two good offence performances together. As we go every week is going to be a big game. Our run D is going to be tested this coming week.

I believe part of the running problem start with the center. If you look at Al Johnson he is by far the smallest member of that offensive line. I know that centers are usually smaller, but if you compare him with Gurode he is much smaller. Watching him play it seems like he gets blown up alot at the point of attack. Once you have that penetration in the middle everything else goes to hell. I don’t know if playing Gurode is the answer, but it might be better than what is happening now. I believe last year we had a few other centers rotating in there which might have helped the running game. The other centers were also bigger/stronger than Johnson. Remeber one other thing when Julius Jones was running so well last year it was near the end of the year. He was coming in fresh after being injured and playing against opponents who had already played half the year. Maybe he is just the type of back who gets better as the year goes on, which would be alright with me.

RDO
One Johnson took most of the snaps last year. Two you can’t get better as the season goes on if you only play half of it. The line is suppose to be better than last year but its not opening running lanes. I think its three parts to blame one is the oline, two JJ hasn’t run well (can he run inside without it being that draw?) and three the play calling where is that draw at????

I’ve noticed that our O-line has committed some really stupid fouls at some of the most critical times. All too often they have occurred on a scoring play that was called back because of it. The real puzzle is the fact that they are being committed by veteran players who should know better!

Another factor that I saw yesterday was how porous the O-line seemed to be (e.g. the blocked FG, middle rushing sacks, D-line in the backfield dropping the runner for losses, etc.). I know it was hot on the field and probably there was a bit of mental tiredness after the tremendous game against the Iggles. However, the Aints D-line seemed to really be up for this game which would also account for some of the seeming letdown by the ‘Boys’ O-line.

Comments anyone?

madcowboy,
sorry if i didnt explain right,i meant to say for this next draft.The draft we had on defense was amazing.I was refering to upgrading from what we have now,and if anybody wants to talk about aging players dont talk about meshaun johnson or terry glen,why doesn’t anybody talk about the aging anchors of the line Flozzel and Allen,and recent sighning of rivera who are in my mind past there prime but decent today.This is a serious situation and needs to be addressed if this is gonna be any kind of conscistent prohilific offense that everone wants,or those all pro numbers that everybody want out of juice.Im telling he’s juice but he’s gonna start running out of juice of that o-line isn’t fixed cause i know he doesn’t have that much juice and dont think anyone does with this o-line that fluctuates more than gas prices

I saw Al Johnson on several occassions get blown way, way back off the line of scrimmage. I have a feeling we may have a backup quality talent starting at Center. Gurode is bigger, stronger and meaner, but not as aware as Johnson and makes more mistakes.

RDO-I have also noticed that Johnson gets pushed back into the play causing backs to trip over his feet. He doesn’t seem to play with leverage. He’s 6’5" which means he won’t be getting under many people. He plays “high” in his stance. Gurode is only 1 inch shorter but seems to come off the ball lower on both pass and run plays. His additional 20lbs doesn’t hurt either. I think centers that are cut lower are better at recovering their stance after the snap. Most tall QB’s don’t like to have to squat down a little further because it limits their presnap reads and fatigues their legs more. I like the shorter, stout center. Look at Stepnoski and Donaldson

Jesse
Flozzel is not old he is just not playing well. Rivera has been playing his best ball the last couple of years and is coming off a probowl year not an Allen probowl year but a real probowl year. But this line needs to play better but the rookie is looking good.

Flow tore his ACL, out for the year.

Probably not looking to bring anybody in.

Tucker most likely the starter.

Parcel’s just said Flozell has an ACL and is gone for the season. He is getting one more opinion.

He sounds more favorable regarding Crayton. It could be only a month or so before he returns. Nothing conclusive as of his interview today.

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!flo is gone!!!!!! were stuck with that torrin tucker that sack of potatoes!!!!!

damn this sucks

Hey everone,
Get ready cause Drew Bledsoe looks to be right on track and pace to set the all time sack record

Did anyone feel as I did that the holding call on the touchdown to Witten was a bad one. It didn’t look as though our center held at all. The defender ran through him and fell to the ground as a consequence. Lame.

Bad news from the press conference today — Flozell is out for the year with an ACL injury…. Yikes.

Obviously, the defense played a great game, and it wouldn’t have gone to overtime if the offense had cashed in a few more chances, or hadn’t coughed it up so many times. Even so, a playoff quality (Superbowl quality?) defense shouldn’t give up 50+ yards on two plays, after getting to rest for two-thirds of the game.

Yeah,
I was outraged and threw my drink across the room! when that penalty was called!!!!

I reran that on my tivo and thought it was a good call. I’ll have to watch it again though.

I saw it only once admittedly, but it didn’t look like a call you make in that circumstance. The grabbing of his jersey was inside the pads, and I don’t believe that is what brought down the defender. His own momentum had a lot to do with that. Beautiful call by the Cowboys. Witten was wide open.

I think our inconsistency with the running game is that we’re doing this running back by comittee thing. Parcells needs to pick a RB and stay with him- not run him into the ground, but this one play in, one play out crap is not gonna work.

They never get a chance to get into the rythme of the game.

There were a lot of “if’s and maybe’s” coming into the season, but if we knew anything, we knew this team could run the ball. After all, they proved it last season. So what happened?

It’s true that JJ was fresh last year, maybe that’s it. But it’s hard to believe that fresh legs alone can account for 820 yards over 7 games, which is what he racked up. Those numbers are insane.

I think the coaches are equally frustrated. They went into this season thinking that if you give a good running team a better lineman (i.e. Rivera), and you add a balanced passing attack, you are going to continue to be a good running team.

Thank goodness we’re better than expected in other areas.

Like everyone else, I think the O-line is underperforming, at least when it comes to the run. We get zero push on most plays.

Rich,

The running back by comittee may have been the problem yesterday, but JJ has the second most carries of any back.

Flo is out? Uggghhh…

can’t say much more about the defense…they could turn into a monster unit if not already…nice to have some corners and a pass rush eh?…been awhile…I think the number one question with the team is the O line…they need to find the right combo and go with em as much as possible so they can gell…they have plenty good enough FBs…another game or so and BP should stop mixing in his backs…I’m for TT as #2…that dude is flat out scary…finally I am really excited about Crayton…shades of Irvin no question…and hate to see this injury and hope to avoid anymore…just like the O line there is alot to be said for being in there and getting the reps…on offense success breeds more success…

With Flozell out now we need to see what kind of backup plan Big Bill will have. The two most obvious choices would be to simply start Tucker or try to bring Vollers back in. I don’t particularly like either of these plans but I find it hard at this time of the yaer to do much of anything else. Does anyone know if there are any free agent tackles out there that are worth something. This is going to be a very tough patch up job for Parcells. Remember he has been sending a lot of the tight end help over to petiti’s side of the ball. If tucker can’t start in front of petiti that means he will need more help on his side. They will probably have to play even more two tight end sets with campbell on tuckers side since he is a better blocker than witten. I’m trying to figure out what can be done? Any ideas out there?

dallascowboys.com has not reported anything about Flozell.

How do we know he’s out with an ACL? Please tell me it’s a cruel, cruel joke.

The Eagles play at home againt the Chargers this week- GO CHARGERS!!

The Giants play at home against Denver this week. Not easy.

Here’s hoping the Eagles and Giants go down hard this week. I think we can start making designs on home-field in the play-offs RIGHT NOW. We’ve got to get these next two matches against Seattle and the Cards.

We’ll have to play denver and the Chiefs later on, not to mention ALL our NFC foes on their home-fields. At least we’ll be playing better by then, I think- especially on defense.

Also, remember that Flozell is a LT. He protects Drew’s blindside. We need someone who can keep our QB from being next on the injury list.

ps…the defense reminds me alittle of the 92-3-4 team…young, fast, wild and always on the verge of bursting into a frenzy it seemed…I hope to see more sacks and pics…of course who wouldnt!

-Yes, EVEN BETTER on defense- scary thought for the rest of the league….

Without a solid running game, and without knowing who our LT is, I think I’ll wiat before making plans for home field advantage.

But, I do share your enthusiam about our defense. They are going to be dominant!!! And maybe, they already are.

Lex
Philly came in with the number one offence they didn’t leave that way NY came in number one scoring offence and they didn’t leave that way. What more do you want? If this offence would have put the game away like they should have then would you be talking about the D giving up 50 yards?

The offense just needs to be smarter in the play calling. I thought they did an excellent job against Philadelphia, but most often they get too conservative when they have a team back on their heels. Actually, play action passes on first down more often would help in opening up the running game, as many teams continue to have 8 men in the box, challenging the Cowboys to pass. Do it! Most teams they have played have not been successful at stopping them.

However, with Flozell Adams out for the season, this will require some adjustments. I hope his replacement can do a good job.

Madcowboy
I’m not sold on JJ being the answer at running back yet, not because he hasn’t done anything this year. Its because watching him last year he didn’t get tough yards and all his big runs came from the delayed draw play. And he didn’t play well against good teams. Are for some reason that draw play is missing this year…..

What worries me is when a team realize this is not a running team we are passing team. Our running game is sad. I reminds me of what it was two years ago. but it might have been better then.

News is in!! Flozell is out for the year with a torn ACL. Here comes Tucker and a sore drew bledsoe.

Flozell gone for season Jets report that their center Kevin Mawae is out
deal: one of dallas’ centers for a jet left tackle?

there is no way Troy Hambrick was better than what we got now. He might remind us of Anthony Thomas……..but Troy was our starter not our 3 or 4th option. We have two rookies at the halfback postion……….one an undrafted FA………we have a good 2nd year 2nd round pick in JJ who was hurt and sat out.

We put up over 175 yards rushing against the eagles. It is no surprise that Coughlins Giants were tough against the run, it was a bit of a surprise we could not pass any better than we did against their secondary…….nonetheless we got a win. The running game can still improve……..much harder to improve a passing game in the middle of the season……..than it is to have JJ break out………..or the rookies continue to develop……..imagine if our WRs were what our running backs are……one 2nd year guy and 2 rookies and one 5 year vet who is on the decline?

Flozells injury does not help. Time for Tucker to step up and play well. Maybe we move the rookie Rob Petitti back over to the Left side……he has been a LT his whole life and let Tucker play RT? Just a thought…….not sure if it is something Bill would really want to do or not considering how well Petitti played so far……….we have the Larry Allen option and we have better Guards on our roster than Tackles………but look around the league their ain’t a whole lot of good Tackles around to go get………..i think we will be going with what we got……..hopefully the Guard or Tackle can step it up and play.

Peerless Price needs to come earn his money too. I sort of figured BP had in mind for bringing him in more after the half way point anyway. I guess he will get more practice during the week with Bledsoe and maybe he and Drew will fall back in like Terry and Drew have. Crayton was really showing something……..fighting for first downs………and having some great hands like Rafael noted at camp.

We won Sunday with Julius and Dat on the sideline………we need to continue to find ways to win………everybody has injuries………we finally got better depth than in the last 8 years……..hopefully we can plug the hole left by FLO and keep rolling.

SUPER BOWL HERE WE COME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crayton’s MRI did NOT show any broken bones.

HE MAY RETURN this year. Just read this on the Cowboy’s site.

Jon
Troy Hambrick sucks but he did have 189 yards in a game and had maybe two other 100 plus yard games that year. What is my point you ask, any back can put up a good game once in a while the difference is how they run. Hambrick wouldnt or couldn’t finish runs off. JJ hasn’t ran it well against a good team yet or ran it in the middle without it being a draw. He got 800 plus yards last year in 7 games most of those yards came in three games. So in 9 games he hasn’t looked like a top runner. Like I said before its a three part problem with the running game. But I think Jackson in SL would have been a better fit for this offence.

anybody know if Vollers is still available? he’s a good insurance policy. no matter how we shuffle the current line-up, we’ll need a new body in there as a back-up.

and for me, I’d not be overly thrilled with LA outside on the bubble and peterman at guard. That’s two players at unproven positions.

thoughts?

Contingency Plan at Left Tackle.

Man this really hurts. Now I’m just trying to figure out what BP has for options. How are we going to keep our line strong and able to protect Drew Bledso?

Jon, you make a good point in putting Larry Allen at LT. That would allow us to fill in Left Guard with a bevy of options. Tucker (I don’t like this), Peterman, or resigning Kurt Vollers, Pettiti.

Or any of these guys could play Left Tacks while Allen stays at Guard. Here’s my take.

Option Torin Tucker – Spare Me. Torin Tucker plays like he’s Chris Tucker, a true joke. Let’s stop kidding ourselves by putting in this oaf. It’s been a while since watching him plaly, but yesterday he quickly reminded me of his ability when letting a linebacker blow right by his side while guarding the Defensive Tackle.

Option Peterman – Potential upside, potential danger. Peterman, while young and full of potential problems is also young and full of potential talent. This is why I think we should entertain this idea for a little bit and see how it may work out. An argument against this however is the offensive line was already being spread thin in trying to give extra help to the rookie Pettiti. So putting in Peterman who is practically a rookie himself would definitely spread the line to the point that Bledsoe will be seeing stars, and not just the stars on the Dallas helmets. But I really like the upside in this and we need to keep developing our players. The offensive line should be no exception. My ultimate hope is that our offensive line will one day be as deep and powerful as our defensive line. So if Peterman improves this year with experience then next year we can rotate Flozell more often with Peterman.

Option Kurt Vollers – The Conservative Approach

This guy plays better than Torrin Chris the Joke Tucker, but that’s about the best thing I can say about him. I like his size, but after 13 games last year, he was benched. That’s not a very good sign. But he would probably still do a better job than What the Fuck Tucker and probably would make his ample share of mistakes, but not as many as Peterman likely would.

Option Ben Noll – The Other Conservative Approach

I’m not sure if he can even play Left Tackle, but if he could, he may be better than Vollers. After all, it was Noll who replaced him last year.

All of these options are definite hypotheticals and I don’t know shinola from shinola. I’m just airing out these ideas due to curiousity on what the hell is going to happen to a line that was already very critical to determining the success of our Run offense and DEFINITELY the Passing Offense.

btw., if I’m another NFC East team, I’d be licking my chops. I’d be counting out the boys now (no starting rb, no 3rd receiver, no LT, no punt returner and Terry Glenn is past due to have his injury).

What’s to fear about this offense now? They’ve shown little threat on the ground and will show less going forwards. And now without a LT, they’ll not be able have Bledsoe wait in the pocket, untouched while WRs get open.

If I put-up 14 pts, I should beat the cowboys.

aw:
You are forgetting one big thing when you say we should have taken Steven Jackson, we traded out of the first round and got the Buffalo pick. Would you rather have JJ and the buffalo pick or Steven Jackson? I think you have to go with the two players over one. At the time however I was unhappy that we let Jackson go.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tucker Starting at LT next week at Seattle.

After all, BP cut Vollers and kept Tucker.

 Tucker has had more playing time this year during games than either Noll or Peterman.

AND Seattle isn’t a huge Sack team.

Hello Torrin!!!!

problem child:
When you talk about using peterman do you mean putting him at left tackle or left guard. I think putting him at Tackle could be very dangerous. He was having problems at the guard position which was his natural position in college, if you move him to a new position that could be even more of a problem. Now if you meant putting him at allens spot and then moving allen out to the tackle position that might be better. I think allen could adjust better to a new position over peterman.

AW,

I admire the way you put yourself on the line by standing behind what you believe.

Truth is if JJ has a couple of big games, guys are going to be tripping over their couches to post a reply to you.

On that note…. Bledsoe? You gotta say he has been much better than I think anyone expected and you were pretty hard on him preseason.

RWilliams? I can’t believe that there are still guys in here who want to drag him through the mud. (NOT YOU AW) Anyone remember him knocking the piss out of Jacobs and getting the fumble after the ball spilled out??? Give it up people. RWilliams ain’t going nowhere and we are lucky to have him.

RDO
I didn’t say we should have picked him I’m saying I think he fits our offence better then JJ does right now. He can make all the runs. And I’m not saying JJ isn’t good or can’t be good.

AlanTdot
You are right I thought Bledsoe was done and I said it more than once. I was wrong about Bledsoe but I don’t think the bills were wrong for what they did because he has sucked the last two years. He is reminding be of Vinny when BP got him with the Jets. BP knows how to bring the best out of QBs.

Left tackle:

A few notes – Dallas cannot sign Vollers. They gave him an injury settlement when he was released. League rules say that you have to wait for the period of time that he would have been out before he can resign. A bit strange, but thats the way it is. So no Vollers.

Parcells said that there were no trade discussions going on. Its getting very late to get a deal done. Not a likely source for a LT.

Ross Verba is not signed. He is an experienced guy that is surprisingly not on a roster. He has been a headache to some organizations, appearantly, so that might be impacting his desireability. But from here, he seems like a legit option.

Moving Petitti to LT seems like a reasonable idea. He played there in college. Tucker has more experience at RT. Larry Allen has experience at RT (filling in for Erik Williams). I can’t remember if Allen played left tackle at one point. Either way, it would be a trade off between Tucker (at tackle) versus Peterman/Noll/Gurode (at guard and LA at tackle).

Don’t know why, but I have a feeling that none of these options will be what Parcells does. For whatever reason, I have a feeling that Pettiti stays at RT and LA at LG. Tucker starts at LT and Noll becomes the backup.

Heavan help Bledsoe.

aw:
There are a number of backs who would fit our offense better, LT, Alexander, Holmes that’s not the point. At the time you had to take into account the business at hand. That business was getting a running back, and building our defense back up. Remember the way we created our dynasty of the 90’s was by trading herschel. He practically was our whole offense. Who knew we would have drafted emmitt, but we did know we needed more players, not just one. So Jackson may look like a better fit but he has to be graded against the two players we drafted which are JJ and Spears.

RDO
Holmes no. Let me change the way I say so you can understand Jackson, LT or Alexander is the type of back that fits this offence better than JJ. The trade is cool because all the backs in the draft that year were about the same as far as their grade. And again I didn’t say we should have drafted Jackson I just saying he is a better fit. JJ could still fit if they change some things. Right now this offence needs a power runner.

Rob Verba looks like a good potential pickup. Good point RobH. I think the reason why he hasn’t been picked up this far into the season is because he was asking for over $5 million dollars, a heck of a lot more money than most teams can afford under salary cap. It would be a wonder if Dallas can afford that. If we could though, that would be awesome.

Verba is only a degree or two away from some key people in Dallas. He was teammates with Marco Rivera at Green Bay for a number of years. Both started in the ’97 Superbowl together, the year the Packs beat Parcells. Verba then played for the Brows starting in 2001 where Dallas assistant coach Todd Bowles served as a secondary coach.

Possibly Rivera and Bowles can help give a better educated analysis to Parcells as to whether Verba’s worth being acuired.

What if we put Pettiti at Left Tackle and picked up a Right Tackle? Are there any right tackles who are better than Torrin Tucker still available. That’s not asking for a lot, is it?

Problem Child,

Verba is a RT. If memory serves correct, Dallas has about $2.0 to 2.5 mil in cap space for this year still available.

Larry Allen did play LT for a season or so. He went to the pro bowl as a LT. But that was in the 90s………..

BTW,

I think that performance by Marion Barber should make everyone feel better about JJ being hurt. I think JJ is still the best RB on the team, but MBIII is waaay better than ATrain, and Audi has some learning to do yet. ST is a great place for him.

 Maybe Audi can become a slash player and we line him up in the slot ……

RobH,

Verba is a Left Tackle. In fact he’s the first ever to start at Left Tackle as a rookie in a Superbowl. He did it with the Packers in ‘97. Although he’s mostly accomplished at Left Tackle, he has played some at Left Guard as well. He’s never played any consistent amount of time, if any at all, at Right Tackle.

Thanks for the info on the cap room Dallas still has available. I think with more than a third of the season over with and Verba not getting picked up yet, it’s good reason to say we could possibly get another bargain like we did with Peerless and Gay Train.

His initial asking price was $5 million so if we were to prorate that, it would be roughly around $3 mill. Add into the fact that no one has serioiusly pursued him, then his market value at this point in time is considerably lower than that.

I really like this idea, but I’m sure Parcells, Marco River (verba’s ex-teammate) and all of the other cowby staff members will have stronger insight as to whether Verba’s a gooid guy for the club or not.

In all fairness to Tucker, in his approximate two quarters of playing time, he never made a penalty. That seems like a career high for Tucko. That was also his first time in the NFL ever playing Left Tackle.

To all you Tucker haters, does it make any difference at all to you that BP made a decision to keep him over a number of other players. I’m not in love with him either but let’s give BP a little credit. He wouldn’t have kept Tucker if he didn’t see potential. I bet BP knows a little more about football than anyone posting on this board.

as far as kickers go Cundiff was only reliable from 40 in outside 45 he was hit or miss………..Cortez had one blocked………and missed from what 48 or 49……….all kickers suck…….but when it mattered he hit a game winner.

If not for that bull crap holding call on Johnson, Witten’s TD holds up and we win going away!!!

We played like crap in the red zone…….had too many turnovers…..and still managed to shut down the highest powered offense in the NFL……..and win the game.

Not much not too like. Too bad we lost Flo and Crayton……..but injuries are a part of the game. I want to see Julius out there against Seattle………and Ware have the same kind of game he did in the preseason against Hasselback and company!!!

We all know that Tucker will be our LT from now on. Like everyone else, I’m really nervous about that situation but anyone else they bring in will not be ready to play right away. BP was asked if he was comfortable with Torrin at left tackle, he said he would let everyone know in 2-3 weeks. If the Cowboys use max protection for Bledsoe, that would leave only a 2 man pattern. As for Crayton, he suffered torn ligaments on his ankle but they said that he can return in six weeks after minor surgery.

Lost in all the hoopla over the cowboys win is
the fact that Antonio Bryant, with Braylon Edwards
out 4-6 weeks, took his game to the next level with
an “amazing” 4 for 34yds receiving performance for the
Browns…………

I think you will see Petitti or Larry Allen at LT. I think BP trust Petitti at LT more than Tucker. Or you could see him move Allen over to the LT spot something he experimented with in camp and hinted at and then put one of the other talented Guards out there in Larry’s spot.

I think a lot of it will depend on how he feels about moving Petitti over or leaving on the Right side where he wants him permanently. Tough Decision. At least Crayton’s injury sounds like a 4-6 weeker and not season ending. He was clutch in fighting YAC. I like his toughness and his hands.

We teed off pretty good on Seattles first team in preseason and Ware had one of those special first half. Hopefully he brings it all four quarters along with Roy, TNew, Henry, Glover, Ellis, Spears, Canty and company! This defense is starting to gel and get confidence. Glover and Spears are fresh in the fourth quarter with rotation rotation rotations……….Spears, Canty and Ratliff are contributing……….Ware is still learning and a has 4 sacks one in each of the last 4 games and a great tackle for a loss on Tiki in the backfield from the opposite side of the field! Shanle, and James are stepping up. These guys are doing great and should only get better each week!

Flo hurts but you won’t hear him or the rest of this team making excuses for a tackle. We need to find a way to get it done. Plug in a guy and roll!!!!! Jacob Rogers would have been a nice luxury about now if he had stayed healthy but hey he ain’t so we go with what we got. Maybe Tucker responds or maybe we use Allen and a Guard or move Petitti who knows………but Petitti played pretty good against Strahan despite giving up a sack. He continues to develop each week and sure don’t look like a 6th rounder………nor does Canty look like a 4th.

The Cowboys are no longer going to be off the Radar……not that playing against them ever was…….teams love to beat the BOYS…..but they sure are not looking like a doormat and you are starting to see the defensive strengths of a Parcells coached team and his 3-4 switch taking shape successfully! A Henry is worth every penny we paid him, and might be the best FA pickup of the year or tied with Drew Bledsoe……..believe they let this guy walk and they got Losman and Holcomb up there now………..

I don’t see any team in the NFC we cannot beat. We keep it up and we are going to be the favorite for home field and an NFC Championship. I see the Bengals and the Colts duking it out in the AFC unless the Pats slip in their and run the table on the road……..but I just think they are too beat up……they still probably could win the AFC East……..and get in……so they will be dangerous as always in the playoffs……….Denver is a surprise………that Defense didn’t scare anybody but there they are a bunch of ex Cowboys playing in less oxygen and getting it done. Amazing. Tatum Bell looks like the real deal, and Plummer is finally playing well upto his potential.

I still can see the AFC as slightly more talented………but you gotta say the Cowboys can hang with the Colts, Bengals, Pats, and we have seen the Eagles and Chargers. We got a shot at this thing this year………and is anybody going to want these Cowboys come January………….with the defense only improved……..hopefully a finely tuned rotation at Running Back is found and an offense that can AIR Bledsoe it or send in the ground attack with Jones, Barber, Thompson and yeah even the old vet A Train? You know a good running game and a 150+ plus game for JJ will do wonders for our confidence of the O LINE too.

Man I am ready for Seattle already! Lets go Boys!!!

Y’all remember in 2003 when the Cowboys kept catching lucky breaks?

I thought about that in preseason when the news about Gates missing the opener came out. I wondered if maybe it was a good omen for the season. Well, it’s happened again:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/football/nfl/10/17/seahawks.hamlin.ap/index.html

The Seahawks’ starting safety and fifth leading tackler appears to be out indefinitely after a barfight.

just found out he’s their starting free safety.

Jon,

Parcells has already ruled out moving Allen or Pettiti to LT for now. I’m thinking will see what Tucker looks like for a game, and move Noll from the practice squad.

Apparently they were going to do a 2nd MRI on Adams tonight, because he didn’t seem to be experiencing symptoms of an ACL tear today. Anyone happen to hear the results of the second test?

I thought he said at his 2pm press conf that was an option…….and that he had not ruled out looking at FAs…….but he said he did not know what they were doing on that end…….

I guess I heard it differently Jon. We’ll see. I was thinking Allen to RT and Petitti to LT and the Tucker to G. But as Parcells says, we’re probably all wrong.

Parcells said he was trying to get some guys in for a look as well in his news conf.

I think shuffling the guys we have on the line is a mistake. They have been out of sorts all year due to the constant shuffling in preseason and just now should start to gel. Moving Pettiti would only hinder his development and the unit as a whole.

Let me weigh in on RB talk. I haven’t seen the spark from JJ yet this year. I’ve seen it from TT, he wants to play. JJ seems a beat slow and timid. Where is his fire??? I’m saying he’s had great holes but he’s got to make something happen and inspire the O-line to get it done.

Whoops, “I’m not saying he’s had great holes…”

I’ve been away from the comp all weekend…what a weird game, huh?
Anyway, really scared and upset to lose adams, that’s a signifigant loss for us at this point in my opinion…I’d have to agree that I’m a bit uneasy with the shuffling that will be taking place to fill the gaps in the line…but what else can the boys do??? Crayton…yeah, I think that’s a pretty big loss too but from what I hear it’s only a month and we have a bye week coming in two weeks so it may not be all that bad…by the way…was I one of the ones saying that the Price move was stupid…oh, yeh, that was me…if you are wondering, yes I’m eating my crow…

I read that the earliest Kurt Vollers could be re-signed is November 28.
Ross Verba may just want to be retired. He was on the 1997 Super Bowl winning Packers. Or maybe playing for Dallas will sound better than playing for Cleveland.
Former Panther and Seahawk Chris Terry also was mentioned as a good lineman who had ‘off the field’ problems, and he’s known to be somewhere ‘off the field’ now.
It’s not clear what kind of condition any of these guys would have maintained.
Tucker played in all but the first play of two long scoring drives Sunday, so he’s probably the only choice for Seattle, which could be the best team the Cowboys have played.
Plus, the Seahawks could have the soap opera style motivation, from their wounded teammate Hamlin in the hospital.
I can just imagine Holmgren giving them the ‘win it for the Ham’ speech.

A week ago the Cowboys were able to shut down the #1 offense of the Eagles. This past weekend, they stymied the #1 scoring offense, now next Sunday the Cowboys defense will be tested again with the latest #1 offense of Seattle. Talk about tough luck. I’m sure the defense is up to the task, although the Seahawks have far and away a better running game than anyone the Cowboys have seen this year. If we ever needed a ball control running game, this weekend is the time to unveil it.

seattle is #1 but they just finished playing houston who can’t stop a fly. also seattle is without 2 of its starting WRs. Really, they’ve little offensive explosiveness after alexander. of course, alexander is a lot of explosion right there. I think we handle them ok. It won’t be a high scoring game on either side (now that Bledsoe is unlikely to have a lot of time to throw). I’m just hoping JJ is back and that Peerless Price can do something at the 3rd WR. I’d be pretty bummed if they waisted $1.8m on a veteran who can’t even earn his spot after an injury forces him to play.

ok, i’ll be positive for a change.

here’s why crayton’s injury isn’t so bad for us. Price will become active and will get his timing right with Bledsoe. As long as we don’t lose a game because of his being on the field, we’ll benefit down the stretch from having 4 options at WR.

and Newman will return punts. Parcells will see that he’s not risking too much injury and Newman will do very well and will show-off his explosive speed.

loosing flo is bad, but flo was no wonder-tackle out there. if we bring in a veteran to learn the system over the next two weeks (which we reasonable do need to do), we have good competition between the 3 tackles for the 2 starting spots (assuming BIll considers moving Petiti to left — otherwise Petiti stays at left w/o competition)

and without JJ we get Barber more active and make him into a better player (rather than the bust 4th rd pick he’s been so far). He together with Tyson Thompson will spell JJ through-out the remainder of the year – without too much drop in talent. Having 1 great RB and 2 good RBs to back him up will be a luxury.

Now… if we can only not lose ground int he NFC east during the next 4 weeks… and stay in strong contention for the playoffs… then my crap-positive-analysis above is mostly true.

“I think we handle them ok”
I hope you’re right.
Hutchinson and Jones are supposed to be a pretty good left side of offensive line, but I’ve always had my doubts about Hassellbeck, especially after that terrible wild card game against the Rams last year.
Also, I hope your right about being able to get that veteran offensive tackle for the Cowboys, but I think Tucker will be the guy on Sunday.

Regarding the O-line, I predict we’ll just plug in Tucker at LT and see how he responds. We’ll probably also sign somone this week to look at 2-3 weeks out. Shuffling the line must be almost a last option. Shuffling means 3-4 changes vs 1. If BP didn’t think Tucker had the potential to step up, he would have cut him in training camp. There’s no point keeping anyone on the roster who you don’t think is capable of stepping in and BP KNEW there would be an injury somewhere along the 16 game schedule. I won’t sleep well thinking about this change but Bledsoe will be having nightmares thinking about it. Hopefully, we’ll all be pleasantly surprised.

One of the things that may have contributed to poor running this week is that TT took most of the snaps in practice but because he had 3 mental errors in Saturday’s practice Parcells did not play him on Sunday. So essentially the other two backs were forced to play without the reps.

cash,

i think he said it was an option but not his first choice…….or something to that effect. if Petitti is going to be an RT i would leave him over there……..moving allen however would be less disruptive if he is in fact better than tucker with gurode or somebody else at Guard

are the Colts in a league of their own? They spot the greatest show on turf 17 points, and then bring the smackdown.

They never panicked and never got away from Edgerrin James and just kept piling on the points. Funny you might have thought the 17 points would have scared em considering their offense has been less than stellar this year. Of course the Rams ain’t exactly a great defense, but still the Colts look head and shoulders over the Steelers and Patriots. Not sure how good Denver is, but nobody would want to play on their home field in January……..

still looking around the NFC and a later test of Denver at home we are still as good as any in the NFC and might even be in that elite class if our defense can continue to improve and the running game gets on track. Imagine if the miracle we gave to the Redskins and a little bit better execution in Oakland and we were 6-0……..the hype and media would be loving that……..but Dallas has never been one to go undefeated all that long……….welcome to the NFC East! In the league of parity from the salary cap, and the importance of defense, special teams, and coaching, you gotta say you like what the Cowboys are doing and what it should mean for the future. We really do not have a lot of cap issues going forward other than getting Roy and Witten to long term contracts. We are still well under the cap and could add a Tackle is a suitable candidate appears.

For the record I am against the Verba signing. The guy has no training camp and is likely to walk in and suffer an injury if he has to play. I would hate to pay a mercenary and then get pennies on the dollars. I think Bill can find a practice squad guy or the Vollers option in Nov if need be. FLO’s injury is unfortunate but it ain’t the end of the season. Tucker could have a turnaround, and the rest of the O line is yet to have a great game except for Philly………give em a hundred yard rusher……..Julius are you listening……..and we might just have something. He ran pretty good late last year without the benefit of Petitti and Rivera…….plug in a LT and keep rolling boys!

The Seahawks don’t scare me. The defense will show their offense for what it is. Our offense will have a few new looks with Price and that will be enough. The Cowboys need a tight performance after the mess that had against the Giants. The Cowboys must win the game in Seattle to continue their lead in the NFC East. A win here will ensure a spectacular first half of the season.

I read somewhere above that people are afraid of the 3NFC road games. The Washington game is something I’m looking forward to. The Cowboys are a much better team and they know it. They are looking forward to the opportunity to show it. The Giants aren’t as good as the pundits claim. They fold against better teams. The Cowboys should beat them. The Eagles, well, they’ll have something to prove after their debacle at Texas Stadium. Cowboys are tough after a bye however. That will be a great Monday night game. I’m very happy if the Cowboys win 2 of 3 of their NFC road games. They should take the division if they can do that. The Eagles have just too many NFC East and AFC West games to go. Look at their schedule the next two weeks. The Broncos in Denver. Thank God we play them at home.

I’m in agreement with above, the Adams injury is unfortunate but not the end of the world. The Denver game will come at a huge time in the 2nd half, very critical.

Who cares about the Colts? When the Cowboys play them in January, they’ll beat them.

AW

All I’m saying is,seems like everytime a team MUST convert or score,
Roy Williams seems to be the Goat. See Redskins game and Giants game.