Start Felix Jones
by VAfan on Sep 11, 2009 2:08 PM CDT
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One thing will be interesting to see this year is how the Cowboys deploy Felix Jones. Clearly they underutilized him last season, which may have led to his hammy pull (after which he messed up his toe and missed the season).
This year, the Cowboys plan on starting MBIII again, spelling him with Felix after the defense is used to MBIII's (lesser) speed.
I think this is a mistake. If Barber were truly a guy who beat up teams, ala Brandon Jacobs, I could more easily see the value of saving the speed guy until the defense was tired. But I don't think MBIII is that guy. Sure, he runs very hard, and bangs guys. But if they are fresh, he isn't so big that he's going to win most of those early head butts. (He's 6 ft. 222. FJ is 6 ft., 218.) When they are tired, he's a load to tackle, but not so much when they are fresh. I think the "proof" is in the much lower YPC totals he posted as a starter v. as a finisher. (4.8 in 2007 v. 3.7 in 2008). (Sure, some of this should be chalked up to Kyle Kosier's injury.)
Felix Jones, on the other hand, is to me the best RB the Cowboys have, and by a pretty good margin. On any given play, he has the chance to take it to the house. He had the longest run from scrimmage last season on only 30 carries, and consistently had long runs despite only a few chances per game. He has the longest pass play this pre-season, a little dump off he turned into a 42-yard romp by blowing by 3 guys who thought they had him boxed in.
By starting Jones, the Cowboys are more likely to give him the most carries, which he should have. He's going to win the YPC race, I think pretty easily, no matter how many carries you give him. And it's not as if he's can't be durable enough. He's 6 feet, 218, just 4 lbs less than MBIII at the same height. Chris Johnson, who is 5'11" 200, got 250 carries last year for the Titans.
Jones is also likely to force defenses to adjust to start games more than MBIII will. I think teams think they can stop Barber early with their standard defense. He doesn't have the speed to burn them long, and hasn't proven he can run, run, run down the field early in games. So they don't have to stack the box. Deeper safeties will help cut off the Cowboys' passing game, both to WRs and to the talented TEs.
Putting Jones in the game to start forces more of a problem. You almost have to stack the box to keep him penned in, b/c if he gets into space he'll kill you. But this will open up better deep passing opptys, esp. off play action. And, the Cowboys will more likely gain yardage when they do run b/c Jones is scary good when he gets to the edge, but that means the area between the tackles should also be open as defenses have to cover the field side-to-side. Don't think Felix Jones can't run between the tackles. He can, and against a spread D with safeties up, it won't take a huge hole for him to threaten some home runs that way as well.
I would use MBIII on short yardage, near the end zone, when we have a lead, and as a closer when defenses are too tired to handle his style of running. Those are the places where MBIII excels. I don't see him as that far above average as a starting tailback in the beginning of games.
If you ignored the contracts, which the Cowboys should do, I think starting Jones is the best plan. MBIII played best when he backed up Julius Jones. It's time to return him to that role. He'll stay fresh and healthy that way too.
Of course, that leaves Tashard Choice, who is good enough to start himself, as he proved last year against Pitt and Baltimore. Problem for him is he's not better than Felix Jones. And he's not the same banger as MBIII is. What he can do, though, is keep both of those guys as fresh as possible, so maybe we can win some December games for a change. I would use Choice extensively whenever we have a significant lead. I would also use him to spell both Jones and MBIII if they are looking at all tired or have sustained any type of injury. I would also phase him in more as the season wears on and Jones' and MBIII's carries accumulate.
When you think of historic Cowboys running backs, the guy I would liken Felix Jones most to is Tony Dorsett. I'm not sure we've had that kind of speed at RB since Dorsett. Of course, Dorsett was a lot smaller than Felix, at 5'11" 192. Yet he was more than able to run between the tackles.
Love to read your comments.
VAfan
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Felix Jones
Great shout as they say here in the UK. If Jones was the starter and Barber pounds out in the 4th Quarter it will be a classic 1-2,with Choice backing up.
Go Cowboys!
I think its definitely an interesting point
but what we forget is that for the early part of 08, before Barber hurt his ribs, he was playing really well for us, showing a lot of that same agression we were used to.
I’m not opposed to starting felix, but I am opposed to completely limiting Barber to the short yardage, goal line, closer role. We saw in 2007 that he is such a sparkplug for this O – when hes out there (like Felix), this offense just seems to roll, in part I think cause Romo has so much faith in him as an outlet option.
These guys should be split 50-50. Felix looks to be too explosive a player to limit his carries, but likewise, Barber is a very good back in his own way. I think the way we split Julius and Barber in 2007 isn’t unreasonable (I think they came very close to a 50-50 split that year…or maybe barber had more carries)
I'm not suggesting limiting the Barbarian
I just think he’s the better guy to come into the game after the start. He does bring that spark, which you didn’t see that much last year, esp. early in games.
Barber exceeded 5 YPC in only 3 games last year. @ Cleveland, @ GB, and @ St. L. He was close the second Washington game — which is also one of the few games where he made an obvious difference by closing out the game — with a 4.8 YPC average. Otherwise, he was in the 3’s and even less than 3 YPC in 3 games.
By giving up TO, the Cowboys gave DCs less to worry about from a deep threat standpoint. They should compensate by putting Felix Jones into the game more. Not only will it help their running game early, but it will open up the passing game more too.
This I've trouble understanding...
… I continue to hear it and still…
By giving up TO, the Cowboys gave DCs less to worry about from a deep threat standpoint.
I can see the point of having a consistent deep threat, but do you really need one to be successful? The Testaverde led Cowboys is a pretty good example, after Terry Glenn went down, the Cowboys deep threat waaaaaaaasss (DRUMROLL) Quincy Morgaaaaan! Still, Testaverde finished with close to 4000 yards while throwing to Keyshawn, Witten and company. They also lacked a consistent running game as they had an unhealthy year from Julius Jones and Eddie George taking most of the carries…
The Cowboys Offense is all around better and they should be successful.
Me thinks that you have Felix in your fantasy team…
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
I don't play fantasy games in any league
Because I like to root for teams, not specific players.
And who said we had to have a deep receiving threat to be successful? I didn’t.
But I do think it’s worth using more fully the player on the Cowboys who opposing DCs could become most worried about. That is Felix Jones. If you think about how the Eagles have been a different team with Brian Westbrook in the lineup, you get the idea. He’s just dangerous.
MBIII may move the ball down the field effectively, but he’s not “dangerous.”
I look at this situation like the Fred Taylor / Maurice Jones-Drew situation in Jax, was Drew the more dangerous back? True. And such a thing didn’t take anything from Taylor, who is and was a really good back.
They also combined to form one of the most powerful tandems.
I think that you’re underrating Barber, he’s more than what you’re making him be, he’s not only a really good, physical RB, he’s also a really good pass catcher, route runner and good pass protector.
My breakdown (overall RB touches, pass and run):
Barber – 40-45%
Jones – 40-45%
Choice – 10-20%
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
You try to get the ball in your best player's hands as often as possible.
There may be certain stouter defenses like the Eagles or ’Skins where Barber should get the majority of the carries because his hard running style will be better suited to gaining tough yards between the tackles. I totally get that.
But most of the time, Felix and Barber should at least get an even amount of carries with Barber ceding the majority of the carries to Felix depending on how effective he proves to be as his workload increases.
I agree with your title -- get the ball in your best player's hands as often as possible
If you look at our offense, the most dangerous player we have (aside from Romo) is Felix Jones. We’ve got to use him.
Jason Garrett might be the one guy who can most effectively stop him — by not putting him into the game!
Sure, there’s a role for MBIII. But it should be seen as a role, a very significant role, not as an every-down back.
Barber's still capable of taking over games.
He proved that in last season’s Sunday Nighter against the ‘Skins; who ranked 8th in rushing defense and 6th in scoring defense. Against the ’Skins and Eagles in particular, I think those will be the types of defenses where you actually want Barber to do most of the heavy lifting and get Felix most of his touches with swing passes and toss plays. I’m as certain as you that Felix can handle running between the tackles but since you have Barber there are just certain types of defenses where every yard will have to be earned and you will want him to sledgehammer them early and often to soften them up.
Barber took over late in that game, not early
I think one of Barber’s best finishes was against Washington in the second game last year where he touched the ball on every play on the drive that closed out a 14-10 game.
But I don’t necessarily think he’s the best choice against tough defenses. I think the speed and elusiveness of Felix Jones will often work better against tough D’s. I think Choice proved that last year by running better than Barber likely would have against Pitt and Baltimore.
And last night, Chris Johnson had two nice long runs in the game against Pitt on cut backs that MBIII would not have had the speed to exploit. FJ would.
I just think the combo of FJ to start and MBIII to finish is a far better choice than the reverse.
You're preaching to the choir on Felix starting.
I still think there will be the odd game here and there where the opportunity for the long gain just won’t be there. A year ago, Washington gave up only one run longer than 40-plus yards and the Eagles allowed no runs of 40-plus yards. To me, games against either of those team qualify as a situation where if you only give Felix 12 or so carries, he has just as good a chance of breaking something as if you give him 20 carries. So why not give Barber the bulk of those early carries that will surely only go for minimal gains instead of wearing Felix out?
I think this is what they plan
either by match-up or who gets the hot hand er-foot. Whatever.
Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig loves it.
How the mighty have fallen...
I’m sorry, but I just can’t see Felix getting out of such a situation, he has real nice balance and great vision, but Barber’s better in both (IMHO).
BTW, looking at the video, I hadn’t paid any attention to Romo… After the 4th second and when it seemed that Barber would get caught in the end zone he started an “ah, dammit” little fit and then he saw that Barber was still standing and threw a perfect block to no. 36… That’s the Barbarian for us and the team.
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
Yeah, but Barber put himself in that situation.
Also let’s be honest; it isn’t always pretty when Barber tries to do these Barry Sanders impersonations. At least half the time Barber loses yardage when he pulls stunts like that. As for Felix, his burst and first step is so explosive he won’t be caught in nearly as many of those situations as Barber.
Good call on Romo getting huffy. I guess that was pretty good attempt at a block for a QB.
Let’s really be honest, it was witten and koiser getting steamrolled that put barber in that position.
Barber plays with so much heart and desire
by DavidLaFleur on Sep 11, 2009 4:35 PM CDT up reply actions
Point taken.
But you can’t tell me you’ve never seen Barber try to turn a run to the outside and keep drifting and drifting only to be stopped for a loss.
I just can't get enough of how the bodies fly around Barber
It’s absolutely hilarious as a Cowboy fan watching some of those things Barber does.
I wouldn't be suprised to see both them out there on the 1st play.
Would that make them both starters? Does it really matter?
I think it matters a lot.
If MBIII starts all the games, he will be seen as the guy who should get the most touches nearly every game. I think that would be a big mistake. I think Felix Jones should be our featured all-purpose back, with MBII and Tashard Choice filling more specialized roles.
If you give Felix Jones more of the touches, the Cowboys will score more points, have a higher YPC average in their running game, and improve their chances of winning more football games.
If you wanted my breakdown percentage wise, it would be:
FJ — 50%
MBIII — 35%
TC — 15%
From game to game this would vary, b/c I’d want MBIII and Choice to get more carries if we gain a solid early lead. But I’d want my best running back out there much more of the time than he has been until we’re ahead.
I agree Felix is our, or should be our " feature back", however
I just don’t know that having him be the focal point in the back field, keeps him from being the focal point of the game plan. We are pass orientated offense its very possible for Barber to get more carries and Felix to get more touches. I think, the break down of who get what and when is going to change through out the year.
I couldcareless who starts...
I just want too see felix get alot more touches because of his game breaking ability….
using all 3
assuming no egos: start TC; use MBIII as the finisher and FJ as the change-up to both.
each get their touches with MBIII and FJ getting the bulk.
Odd deployment but a way to utilize all 3.
No.
That’s terrible. We don’t need to use all 3. Barber and Jones compliment each other perfectly, they are our backs. Choice is the backup and a damn good one.
Don’t forget that one of the reasons he was so good in December last year is because he was fresh. We need to keep him fresh because we will need him late in the season.
by DoomsdayD75 on Sep 12, 2009 12:24 PM CDT up reply actions
using all 3
Holding TC until December is not the answer either; RBs get stale sitting on the bench for months at a time; the Giants were able to utilize all 3 of their backs pretty effectively last year; we should as well so the entire stable of RBs are fresh for December and (hopefully) Jan and Feb as well.
Shouldn't Choice have been stale by the time he finally got his chance last season then?
Bradshaw had five games where he got no carries and three more with less than five. In fact he got half his carries in games that were early blow-outs or meaningless; the season finale against the Vikings. So he really wasn’t as involved as he might seem in the Giants gameplan.
rooks don't get stale
point taken on Bradshaw; however if TC gets carries in 11 games, even with minimal carries, then our RB stable will be fresher in December
I don't see how a RB can get stale
Really doesn’t make any sense…Look at guys like Samkon Gado a few years ago, there is no such thing, when it’s November and December and a guy has minimal carries he’s fresh as ever, that hardly hinders a guy.
And again, as much as we’d like to, were not going to get 3 backs involved, name one team that has gotten 3 RB’s involved in the weekly gameplan ever? When you do find a team, it will be one who passes ALOT less then we do ie Baltimore Ravens. Were going to pass the ball quite a bit this year as usual, we won’t have enough carries to go around for 3 backs.
Best bet is to just let Choice do what he was doing. He was drafted as an insurance back and STer, he knows that already. When an injury occurs(and it’s likely someone gets knicked up at least) he can fill in with 15 carries or touches at any point without a drop off. But asking to get him involved all the time just won’t happen.
Bradshaw was an afterthought and standing on the sidelines until Jacobs got hurt, I don’t mind giving Choice a few carries a game or a series, but I wouldn’t be holding my breath for it to happen.
by LonghornsLegend on Sep 12, 2009 4:21 PM CDT up reply actions
gado is just a guy
gado was a fa who’s on his 3rd team in 3 years who has averaged 3.7 ypc; TC was a 4th rd pick who felt he should have gone in the 2nd or 3rd round;
play him in the rotation to some degree; not as much asFJ or MBIII but play him; he’s good and can be a difference maker;
Here's another reason to go with FJ early
Last year, our running game often sputtered early, causing us to get away from it and go to the pass. If we increase the chance of early success, by using the guy who can best spread the field with his speed and elusiveness, we are more likely to stay with the run, set up play-action passing, keep Romo out of harms way, rest our defense, and other good things.
I just think the best way to get FJ, MBIII, and Choice all approaching 5 YPC, which is what the Giants got out of Jacobs, Ward, and Bradshaw last year, is to start FJ, and use MBIII and Choice to supplement his running.
We saw last year that starting MBIII cost him more than 1 YPC from when he was used behind Julius Jones. Why do we want to return to that system, even if FJ is given a few more carries per game?
Felix Jones is the better back. He’s way faster, much more elusive, has better vision, and can take every run to the house. He’s got the potential to be one of the 5 best backs in football. MBIII is a fabulous complementary player to that. But he’s never going to be better than that as an overall RB. As much as I love him, he’s not.
VAfan
I hate to keep bringing this up but I want to hear your thoughts on it. You said that durability shouldn’t be an issue with Felix, but I have to ask what evidence you have to support that? To me his time with Dallas would point in the other direction.
I may have missed your exact numbers, but what were you thinking carries wise? To me I don’t think starting and durability really correlate, it just depends on carries obviously. If starting Felix means 20 carries a game, then I’m not so sure, at least this early. But starting Felix and still throwing in some Barber and Choice, then I’m on board.
I do agree that Barber should be used more in the second half of games, where the his style and the big o-line punish defenses, especially after a first half of chasing Felix all over the field.
31 till I die
by FelixFanclub on Sep 25, 2009 9:32 AM CDT up reply actions
I am a fan of just letting tashard choice wait on the bench until about week 10.
He was successful when defenses as a whole across the league were getting tired. I want a totally fresh, totally 100% back going after that.
Nothing better than spelling a back for about 3/4 of a game when you can just ride a horse when your others were tired.
My vote is for felix starting and then using barber on 3rd downs (where he is a more effective blocker and more reliable pass catcher). If you look at New England, does kevin faulk need to break every 3rd and medium-long for a touchdown? no.
barber becomes more effective in the 4th quarter, which is where he will get most of his carries. it will all even out.
What would Ware and Suggs look like together? Bring on the uncapped year.
Your post is spot on and
I’ve been saying this for weeks too.
I’d do the exact same % breakdown, I think I even had those numbers about a month ago in some discussion.
Barring injury we will be proven right. Barber’s good, and his style is great to watch as a fan, but Felix has the look of a Dorsett-type superstar.
Felix has the potential to be a star, and as the season goes on, if he’s as good as we think, he’ll FORCE the coaches to play him more and sit Barber.
By the way-that Patriots play? Felix escapes, turns the corner and goes 90 yards for a TD!
START FELIX!!!!!
DO IT!!!
JUST DO IT!!!
"Well, we didn't block real good but we made up for it by not tackling."
- John McKay, the first coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
First Post!!!
Umm, first, let me point out a sentence from the third paragraph that bugged me a bit…
Sure, he runs very hard, and bangs guys.
Whoa, if MBIII bangs guys, then we should definitely start Felix. Not that there’s anything wrong with that…
But seriously, I hate to jump the gun and start Felix based on the small sample size we have of him playing in the NFL. I agree he should get way more touches, no doubt. But Marion has a track record.
And he’s totally on my fantasy team.
Go Cowboys!
BTW_ I did select Felix Jones in the last round of my fantasy league.....wooo hooo
DeAngelo Williams
Matt Forte
Clinton Portis
Felix Jones
Yeah, I got a pretty good stable of ponies.
And another thing...Felix is the best player and should be on the field 70% of the time
I have long advocated that Barber and Jones both see time together out there…There is no need for a FB.
Wow
that is a pretty good group of running backs, I would stay away from Portis this Sunday, I have him on my bench and starting Felix Jones in his place.
How the hell did Felix last until the last round? That will be the steal of your league, highway robbery I tell you
No, I would start Forte
Green Bay is moving to the 3-4 and the transition won’t look smooth for the first quarter of the season.
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
I was assuming
that his league is like mine with 2 RBs and a WR/RB swing option, with Williams and Forte being an obvious start
Everyone thinks this, but the coaching staff knows best. Most of you are basing your choice on what Felix did in limited touches in a limited amount of games in one season. Marion Barber is the typical RB you want starting, he roughes it takes hits directly and runs over them, and gets you 3rd&shorts.
Felix Jones is the homerun hitter, that guy who’s going make a lot of big plays, but if he was starting and taking all those touches, I think he wouldn’t be as dynamic.
You may be right
but RB is a pretty easy position to see and judge even for us amateurs.
We’re lucky to have this ‘problem.’
If I were the coach, I wouldn’t “start” him now, but he’d get an equal amount of carries as Barber.
Keeps Barber fresh too, so it’s a win-win.
But as the season went on, in the back of my mind I’d be waitinf for Jones to show me he’s ready to become the main ball-carrier.
It’s exactly what Barber did to JuJones, after all.
One thing-at the end of games, if we’re ahead-I put in Barber.
Behind? Felix Jones.
by Realist Larry on Sep 12, 2009 12:22 PM CDT up reply actions
It should be a 50-50 split
and I don’t care who starts the game or ends the game. I would love to see Barber leading a long, clock killing drive with a 4 point lead in the 4th. I also wouldn’t mind seeing Jones come in late and pull a back breaking 60 yard run.
The point is they are both great backs and should be used early and often in both the running and passing game.
No one has responded to my point about how Jones changes the defense
As a coach, I’d get Jones more touches b/c I think he’ll get me more yards per carry and per catch consistently, which will yield more first downs, more scoring chances, etc.
But I also like Felix in to start games because he makes it harder for the defense to pack it in. Barber can be stopped as a runner early by a packed in defense. But if you pack it in too tight with Jones in the backfield, a sweep could get you burned. And then if you stay spread to protect the edges, the middle becomes easier to penetrate.
If you can get more yards running early in games, it will also force the safeties up, which will benefit our passing game. It will be harder to double the wideouts, and play-action will allow Witten and Bennett to beat guys down the seam.
The Cowboys, even in their 13-3 year, did not do well on opening possessions. And they certainly didn’t do well last year. I think the coaches should do what they can to improve our odds of scoring early in games.
That's because you're also downgrading Barber...
Due to the same reasons that you’re explaining in favor of Felix, I can also find reasons to give Barber as much time or more.
He can be stopped? Of course, but we’ve seen time and time again how stopping him is a collective effort on the Defense part. In the case of Felix, even with such small evidence, I’ve seen him going down on one-on-one contact too much. They’re not the same kind of back, Barber is waaaaay more fluent in slipping or outmuscling would be tacklers.
And therefore, Barber also helps the Offense, the Defense also has to account for him being there.
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
If defenses do that, we start the play-action and some short passes
Hit Witten over the middle, throw some screens, etc.
Got to take what the other team gives you. Still run it to keep them honest, but throw it 70% until they back off.
That’s why you need a balanced attack in the NFL.
I’m not sure I agree Felix would do any better against stacked D’s early in the game than Barber. Everyone’s fresh, playing on emotion-academically you’re right that theoretically Jones could break a long one against a stacked D. But it’s not proven yet.
That sounds like the people who tout Miles Austin as a dep threat. A guy w/ 18 career catches is not an anything-threat, and Felix has yet to prove he can really do this week after week in the regular season. We have to hope he’s not just another RBush but better.
by Realist Larry on Sep 12, 2009 2:22 PM CDT up reply actions
Felix has already proven he's a superior threat to chicken legs Bush as a runner.
Don’t believe me. Bush has 7 runs of over 20-yards in 418 career carries so far. Felix=3 such runs in 30 carries a season ago; while Bush didn’t have a single run over 20 yards in his rookie season. *Although that 70-yard catch-and-run Bush burned the Cowboys with was basically a run. Still, Bush is NOTHING between the tackles. I really don’t see the comparison at this point.
Hey I'm with you!
I’m the one who’s been calling for FJones to ‘start’ and be the main threat for a few weeks now!
Realistically, the coaches have to wait and see how the season unfolds however, and Felix still has to prove he cam maintain that production
by Realist Larry on Sep 12, 2009 10:21 PM CDT up reply actions
Great point about Bush, that is no comparison at all
But people are souring too fast on Barber because Felix is so good…
Am I the only one who remembers the play vs the Cardinals last year where Barber caught a 70 yd TD pass at the end of the game that nearly won the game for us?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IryvfDFPCM4
I seem to remember him being the only one playing with heart at the time. He’s done perfectly fine starting when healthy, our offense stalls early on way too many times and it’s not his fault. Just because he’s not Brandon Jacobs doesn’t mean he cannot start.
CJ starts because Lendale sucks and can’t do 70% of the things Barber can, Barber is still an exceptional blocker, pass catcher, and has a nose for the 1st down and end zone. We are at no disadvantage with him as a starter.
Personally why does anyone care as long as Felix gets 20 touches a game? You can be just as effective pounding a D early then running around them late as you can running around everyone early to tire them out, then pounding them late to keep the chains moving. The key is keeping both guys fresh and moving the chains.
Felix is only 22, he’ll have plenty of years to start here, and as long as he touches the ball 20 or more times you won’t hear me complain any, Barber should still be the starter as long as we see plenty of Felix. We honestly don’t know how he would handle starting quite yet just because he’s extremely explosive, and if Barber does start drives Felix will still enter quite a bit.
by LonghornsLegend on Sep 12, 2009 4:13 PM CDT reply actions
I keep putting 'start' in quotes.
i don’t care who’s out there the first series.
I think Jones should get the majority of the carries rather than Barber.
by Realist Larry on Sep 12, 2009 10:22 PM CDT up reply actions
Ok here's the bottom line
Barber is awesome
Felix is aweseom
Choice is awesome
I don’t care who starts as long as Felix gets a large helping of touches
any questions?
A good argument.
You support your main points well, and I tend to agree with your premise. I can definitely also understand the other side, the argument for MBIII. Either way—pound ’em then astound ’em, or astound ’em then pound ’em—works for me.
"We'll see." --Bill Parcells
Why does everyone think because Felix Jones had such a high YPC that he’ll do it everytime? The guy’s not superman, no matter how good he is. Felix Jone won’t be successful running 3 straight downs, going physically at a defense and attacking them. He’s not that guy, Jason Garrett sets up plays for him to get in an open space for he’ll be explosive and make people miss.
Marion Barber is that power running guy that’ll run straight over people. I don’t see that in Jones, that’s why Barber should be the starter and will continue to. Jones is a great RB, just a different type
Felix is as fast as Dorsett in his prime, no question
Idon’t think it really matters who starts because both he and MB3 will receive pretty much equal touches
In Romo we Trust
I`d start Choice
bring in Felix on 3rd down passing and Barber on 3rd and short, Barber in goal line situations, then I`d put Choice and Felix in together and set Felix in motion as a wideout and Barber and Felix in together and again set Felix in motion…talk about keeping your defense off balance. In the end I would like to see the touches spread evenly oh btw Barber gets the bulk of the work in the 4th quarter.
After the 1st game
Barber deserves to keep having most of the carries. Most of the damage came in the 1st half, where Barber looked like our team best back.
How the mighty have fallen… Indeed.
Viva México! Go Cowboys!
Here's hoping that was sarcasm...LOL!
I don’t think it matters who starts the first series either. MBIII will tighten the defense so you can bring in Felix to burn them on the edges and Felix will spread them out so MBIII can punish them in the middle!
Balance this out, add in some good timing and you have the formula for success! I believe thats what the plan is anyway. I think we are making it too hard and overthinking things here.
As a Razorback Fan, I love to see Felix touch the ball, but you have to mix up RB looks and styles to be successful in the NFL. We have the weapons to do this and the coaching staff understands that. Percentage of touches is going to change from game-to-game depending on score, quarter, defensive setup, etc. I won’t guess percentages, but everyone knows who the punisher is and everybody knows who the big play threat is going to be.
Be patient and enjoy the game as it unfolds… Go Cowboys!!!
"It's not by chance that I bleed Razorback Red, it's what God intended for us all!"
Felix did very well as a starter last night
The running game got off to a strong start last night against the Panthers with Felix Jones in there. His first play was a simple swing pass/screen that went for 20. And he continued to torch the Panthers whenever he was in there. 8 carries for 94 yards. Overall, with another Crayton reverse, we put up 212 on the ground. That’s pretty awesome.
Two issues. Durability. He twinged his knee on his last long run and basically sat out the rest of the game. He’s our best HR threat, so we have to keep him healthy. Pass protection. He whiffed on a block that led to one Romo sack, and killed another drive with a leg whip penalty after whiffing on another block. I think he’ll get better with more time back there, but he needs to get it done.
I like the idea of Jones in the game to start. We marched the ball right down the field, even though a sack and a rare miss by Folk kept us from scoring. Mistakes killed most of our other first half drives.
There’s plenty of carries for all 3 of our backs. If we can keep running this well, it will change the character of the team in a good way. We can start dominating time of possession, keep our defense off the field and fresh, cut down on Romo’s throws and mistakes, and eventually open up the deep ball again once teams decide to commit their safeties up.
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