The What-If Game

Second can of antacid??? I’m already on my third and I’m thinking of changing over to a Forty from a quart of rum o Sundays, either that or dont tune into these Cowboy games until the last two minutes.I dont think this team is ready to contend in the playoffs for the superbowl but if we dont get to the playoffs, we’re sure battle tested to be ready to take that next step next year with a few changes on the O-line with all these last minute nail biters.

Rafael,
I’ll be sure to buy more Alka Seltzer for the rest of the season. This was really a huge win for the Cowboys. I was one who had serious doubts, because of the recent o-line play, but they certainly came up big today when it was needed most. I hope they can carry that over into Washington.

Well I’m going to bed. I took some tums so hopefully I won’t get heartburn in the middle of the nite.

g’nite all.

Was it just me or was Henry running a little gimpy? I think he’s still not 100% but no reason to save it for anything but the game at hand.

Where can I line up to buy Drew Bledsoe a beer for his game tonight?

Roy Williams agains shows off his great coverage and tackling skills. Beriault might beat him out next year with his ability to wrap up on tackles.

Terry Glenn and Keyshawn are washed up. You just can’t count on them can you. Nothing left in their tank is there. We can’t win with selfish players like KJ that block the way he does.

For once the Kool-Aid was delicious!!! Where’s the right Rev. Michael?

I’m here Sean. Had a late night at church. Just finished watching the game on tape. Hey, I was pulling for the Boys. I was right about the o-line though. They stepped up their game from last week which I said this game depended on. Although I thought the defense would do a better job than they did. Oh well. Pass the kool-aid again. In fact…shots of kool-aid all around! It’s on me. Drink up boys…revenge is on the horizon!

Berman of ESPN made a good job at analyzing this with a simple and short phrase: “That game was a Vermeil type of game, not so much of a Parcells one”. He’s right 938 yards of total Offense in the game is too much…

Great game definitely, thrilling, just what a good game is supposed to be, even with the anti-acid tablets.

Things I found interesting:

- Bledsoe’s rating of 126.1 is his second best of the season, following the 143.4 he got at San Diego. Not much else can be said, he was nearly perfect.

- This is the 1st game in which we can accept that Barber overplayed Jones, but you also have to admit that for one reason Parcells kept getting Jones into the field, I guess that he knows his team and players more than what we do.

- Dallas still needs a true FB and another pass catching TE that’s also a good blocker. Polite’s production in the passing game got him a pass in this game but he’s nearly below average at hammering the way for the RB. Campbell’s miss on that pass would’ve cost the game, Dallas wasn’t lucky for just that Tynes kick, Surtain drop was another play that needed some alka-setzer. Still Campbell should be signed back from FA (as far as I know he’s a UFA), he was strong at blocking for this game and he settled the final score.

- Glenn isn’t a playmaker, right? And Keyshawn shouldn’t be wearing a star next year because he’s too slow, almost like a TE, right? I’m willing to see them both wearing a star next year.

- The OLine still had some troubles with a not so good defensive front, the players Dallas are better overall than those they faced, that’s not a comforting fact. Clean 2nd Half in Penalties made by the OLine, I guess Parcells yelled and corrected some. Rivera had his best game in this season.

- Witten now has 57 catches for 657 yards, he’s headed for a 800 yards season, which is good, considering that Glenn has 979 yards as of now.

- The DLine played really well considering that they had no safety help in most of the game, according to some guys here, Zim should’ve thrown the sink more at Green, he burned Dallas 2 times when Zim went for all the marbles, after that he wasn’t so willing. Ware isn’t having many sacks anymore, but he’s constantly pressuring the QB, Green threw the ball away before he should had forcing some incompletions.

- You could note that neither Aaron Glenn nor Henry were that healthy, they weren’t moving at full.

- Williams, Davis and Pile keep getting some heat back there, you guys need to understand one thing, there’re no shutdown corners anymore and it’s even a harder task to be a shutdown Safety when the opposing QB counts 4 Mississippi and the pressure isn’t even close.

We need to work on our pass rush more- try and find ways to get more pressure.
The KC D line is mediocre- and they still got four sacks. OUCH.
More and more clear that it is the O line that will need work in the offseason.

Roger Staubach on the 2005 Cowboys:

The Cowboy talent level is the highest it has been in years, and it shows on the field. This is an outstanding group of rookies – maybe the best crop since 1975. Remember, our Cowboys team made it all the way to the Super Bowl with 12 rookies, and proved the prognosticators wrong. Well, this team also has 10 rookies and has yet to show me any reason why they canâ€â"¢t make it all the way to Detroit in February.

I tend to agree with him. This team has yet to get hot. If they can do that over the next month then who knows what can happen.

What if …

Yesterday I was wearing a cowboys hat that did not make it pass the 3rd qtr and my shirt ended up longer that Superman’s cape. Seems to me Alka, Tumms, etc, wont be enough, I gave up smoking 3 years ago….desperatley in need of bigger margins of victory or defeat. This is too much.

This team is killing me…

What is the tie-breaker that the Giants have over us?

Chandus,

Couldn’t agree with you more. Specially about the FB situation.

Bluecheese,

I think it is the division record. Remember week 2 against Wash?

Bluecheese:

Tiebreaker #2 – best W/L record within the division. NYG is 4-1, Dallas is 3-2. If Dallas beats Washington and Washington beats the Giants, it goes to W/L records against Common Opponents.

Gotcha. Thanks guys.

where do you find a blocking fullback these days? Perhaps polite can improve on his technique……otherwise you gotta convert a good TE.

While we did not get many sacks…….the FUJITA sack resulted in a fumble……a rumble from Spears and a TD. No complaints about that one. Ware was constantly pressuring Green. You know even LT left the field occassionally and Ware may be feeling the effects of the NFL season. Still watching him push Larry Johnson to the ground with one hand was a thing of beauty and teams are respecting the rush which helps our Defense overall.

We need to SMACK Washington in the FACE and put this game away early and run up 28 points against them. Time for JJ and MB to have that game BP is looking for……..I for one hope they both have 100+ yard days!!!

We gotta keep taking shots to Terry Glenn the guy is a playmaker when we throw at him. 23 yards a catch. A TD on the flea flicker…..and did you see the separation this guy was getting agains the Chiefs highly paid Surtain!!!

I honestly did not think we could win a Shoot OUT with KC but hey…….Drew and company showed us all something. Keep it up BOYS!!!

Raul,

I’m sure you have the game tape there. When I watched the replays of Parker’s 14 yd catch, I think he is out of bounds. If you freeze the instant he has possession, I think his left leg is OOB. What do you see?

If the Giants lose to the Redskins and Dallas beats the Redskins, then the tiebreaker would shake out like this. Dallas and NYG have 14 games on the schedule where they play the same teams. Six of those are Eastern Division teams. Of the other 8 games here is the respective win-loss records (the criteria for the tie-breaker after head-to-head and division records):

Dallas: 4 Wins to 3 losses with the St. Louis Rams remaining.

Giants: 4 Wins to 2 losses with KC Chiefs and Oakland Raiders remaining.

So if Dallas can defeat the Redskins and Rams, and if the Redskins and either the Chiefs or Raiders can beat the Giants, then the tie-breaker would move to the fourth criteria, which is NFC won-loss records. If the above scenario played out they would both finish with 8-4 records against NFC teams.

That means the Division Title would go to the 5th tie-breaker, which is “Strength of Victory”. Unfortunately, unless we pound the Redkins on the scoreboard, and the Redskins take revenge on the Giants for the whipping they took in week 8…then this is where the Cowboys lose the division to the Giants.

The bottom line is that for the Cowboys to realistically win the division they are going to have to either win the last three games outright or the Giants are going to have to lose all of their remaining three games.

I wonder if anything at all will be made about that 9th home game the Giants got this year.

That could possibly have an effect on the way the rest of the playoff picture shakes out.

I don’t think that New Orleans playing in Lousiana in a stadium that wouldn’t be felt like home could have made that much of a difference… But I can bet the game would have been closer, especially with Umenyiora not playing in the level in which he does now.

what are the chances of the boys winning the last 3 games and taking the division? what are the chances of the boys winning the final 3 and making the playoffs? what are the chances of them winning 2 of 3 and making the playoffs. how realistic is it of the boys making the playoffs.

I think that Dallas has a shot at making the Playoffs winning every remaining game, the big test comes when Dallas goes to Carolina, the game depends on how well Tucker and Petitti play against Rucker and Peppers and a thing to take into consideration is that both, Petitti and Tucker, tend to have more problems with the faster and little DE’s than the big and power guys (where Rucker and Peppers are classified).

i agree. some games tucker and petitti play well on good ends and some games they dont. its like a crap shoot with them. carolina has not been consistent as of late and continue to have problems with teams that have a good defense. and am i the only one that thinks barber should be #1 and jones #2? i just see way more intensity and explosiveness and more will.

tipp007
MB should start he is playing better and he can run inside. I think JJ should be the third down back that way he could run those draws.

i agree with you partially aw, as usual. barber should start, he picks up the blitz well and has more size, i dont see jones being a better 3rd down back than barber and we all know how crucial 3rd down is. barber has done better on the run as well as the past the last few games. and i actually think i know why he has played better than jones noticably. i have paid very close attention to both of them last game and it just seems like barber would hit the holes faster than jones would resulting in more yards because the holes didnt have as much time to colapse. right off the line you could notice more quickness and explosiveness into the first tier of the opposing team. and that is making me wonder why they are sayin that jones is faster because it doesnt look like it, well i will say hitting the holes faster, no, but MAYBE once he gets to the 2ndry he probably has break away speed. but i think that jones will slowly lose playing time these last 3 games.

JJ is faster but he just hasn’t played well this year. The only reason I would put him as the 3rd down back is because he did well last year with those draws and a lot of draws are ran on 3rd downs. I would like to see MB get 20 plus carries. MB is a better fit for this line right now. MB showed me something yesterday in the open field, he has some moves.

yeah, maybe we wont see the old jj until next year, hell maybe hes not 100%? hell i dont know but i do see barber bein something special. he seems durable too. he actually kinda reminds me of the old ricky williams or davis

I don’t know if JJ is hurt but he hasn’t played well all year. JJ had three good games his rookie year and that is where most of his yards came from. I just dont think JJ has done enough to get a pass as the starter.

i agree with you. barber has proven himself each game and it really seems he is getting better each week.

The way the playoff picture is shaping up, the Carolina game looms large as perhaps the key game to decide the NFC wildcard spot.

Obviously the Cowboys are going to have to beat the Redskins first(which I firmly believe they will do…revenge will be a prime motive!). It would also be nice to have the Steelers and Bears beat the Vikings and take them out of contention, but the Boys can’t bank on other teams losing, only winning the rest of their games.

The Carolina game will be big because right now Carolina is a game ahead of the Cowboys in the wildcard hunt, with Tampa Bay leading the NFC South. If Dallas can beat Carolina they will not only drop them to the same record as the Cowboys, but will own the head-to-head tie breaker that at teh end of the season could be very important to locking down the last wildcard spot.

I don’t think Carolina is as good as their record seems. They have a good defense, but their offense is pretty much one dimensional. If the Cowboys can double team Steve Smith all game and focus on stopping the running game, they will effectively shut the Panthers offense down. They don’t seem to have much playmaking ability at the #2 WR or TE positions.

The Panthers defense is the only thing that concerns me. The thought of our O Line against Rucker and Peppers is downright scary. Hopefully the Cowboys running attack will be much more potent by that game and the offense can just pound the ball down Pepper’s side of the line the first half of the game, putting him back on his heels, driving him backward, and wearing him out. Maybe with some success grinding that D-Line down it would be safe enough to drop Bledsoe back without having Peppers or Rucker take his head off.

The game against the Panthers will most likely be the biggest game of the year when we look back on this season. If the Cowboys win it they will stride into the playoffs with confidence and league-wide respect. If they don’t, they may be watching the playoffs from home unless they get some help from other teams.

MB vs JJ……MB got more touches yesterday. This ain’t a qb it don’t matter who starts…….just be glad we got two instead of one that can carry the rock…..but they are what they are……a late 2nd round and a late 4th round……..neither is Emmit, Barry, LT, or Reggie Bush for that matter.

I still see the wildcard teams as the Cowboys & Bucs.
 
The Vikes have won 6 in a row, but haven’t beaten a team w/ a winning record in that stretch. Well, they beat the Giants, but w/ 89 total yds & a interception, kickoff, punt return for their only TDs. I see them losing to Pittsburgh & Chicago. Still have to play at Baltimore.
 
Atlanta still has a game at the Bears, Bucs & have Carolina at home.

I see us beating the Skins next week & knocking them out. Lose to Carolina & then beat the Rams. Which will probably send us back to NY in the 1st round of the playoffs(YIKES!)

Dave:

If your scenario plays out, I would much rather face NY again than go into Carolina where we have had a lot of trouble over the years.

Delhomme has been to a Super Bowl. Young Eli has never been to the post season, and defense is the name of the game in the playoffs.

Jon Bartlett,

Despite the fact that you’ve eaten the cheese that is Reggie Bush, he’s nothing more than a Warrick Dunn or Brian Westbrook. They guy doesn’t even weigh but 200 pounds, and will find a much different story in the NFL. LenDale White will be much more suited toting the rock in the NFL.

To put Bush’s name among some of the NFL all time greats already is absurd. Can we at least wait for him to put the numbers up?