Where We Were And How We Got Here

I was interested on seeing where our cowboys were on this exact date over the history of this blog and the how it has shaped this team into where it is today. So I looked into the archives to see our transition.

Red-Hot Red Zone Play has Dallas in the Black

By Rafael Vela

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2005/10/01/red-hot-red-zone-play-has-dallas-in-the-black/

The 2005 Cowboys are looking positively retro. After three games, they have a startingly good and telling statistic:

Red zone production: 11 trips, 9 touchdowns, 2 field goals, 81% TD efficiency.

Those numbers look like the '95 Cowboys. The offense is scoring a touchdown four out of every five trips into the red zone. Last week, it was a perfect five of five. What's more, the offense has needed every bit of that efficiency to eke out late wins against San Diego and San Francisco.

 

Cliffnotes:

Drew Bledsoe is effective and efficient

Keyshawn Johnson reminds everyone of Michael Irvin

October 1, 2006

Cowboys trash Titans, 45-14

By Dan Halprin

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2006/10/1/162449/539

The Dallas Cowboys did what a good team playing on the road against a bad team should do, destroy them. After a slow start, where the Titans picked off Drew Bledsoe and turned it in to a FG, the Cowboys went on to rout the Tennessee Titans 45-14. After a 14-6 halftime lead that could have been more, the Cowboys ran away with it in the second half. Terry Glenn scored the first two Dallas TD's and ended the game with 5 catches for 54 yards. Terrell Owens chipped in with 5 catches for 88 yards. The running game came through in a big way for Dallas, Julius Jones had 22 carries for 122 yards and a TD while Marion Barber ran 9 times for 55 yards and a TD. Even seldom-used Tyson Thompson got 5 carries for 18 yards and one TD.

The most memerable spots of this game:

Mike Vanderjagt missed a chip-shot FG, and had several short kickoffs

Albert Haynesworth drove his cleat into the head of Andre Gurode

And the most telling line from this game:

Overall, a very good win for Dallas on the road. Heck, it was so good that Tony Romo even got to play a couple of series

October 1, 2007

Cowboys pass the quarter-mile marker in fine form

By Dave Halprin

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2007/10/1/11276/8506

Across the league teams are evaluating where they’re at, and fans are judging whether the season looks bright, whether it still holds any promise, or – if you’re one of the unfortunate ones – what you need in next year’s draft. Since we’re Dallas fans we get to say the future is bright indeed, maybe even super-nova bright with the way the team is performing. A perfect 4-0 record is as good as it gets and the Cowboys went out and took what they believed to be rightly theirs.

The Cowboys have an offensive juggernaut on their hands. Over the first four games Dallas has scored 45, 37, 34 and 35 points. Jason Garrett came in and left the running game in place but revamped the passing offense by installing the vertical-passing scheme that he learned from the masters of the timing offense. Playmakers like Terrell Owens and Jason Witten have provided consistent aerial targets and players like Patrick Crayton and Sam Hurd have made their contributions, too.

A perfect 4-0 record

And looking back and being proud and happy with the play of who we refer to as GOATS today: Anthony Henry, Jacque Reeves and Tank Johnson.

It sure feels good to be a Dallas Cowboys fan right now.

October 1, 2008

Chad Johnson predicts big day against Cowboy secondary

By Tuna Helper

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2008/10/1/626235/chad-predicts-big-day-agai

Ocho Cinco, or as he's called in fantasy football circles, "Ocho Stinko," is trying to get the townsfolk riled up.

You're gonna put on a show, huh?

"I don't have a choice. I don't have a choice," he said. "Somebody tell Pacman or Adam or whatever the hell he wants to be called -- he is going to get it. Anthony Henry, he's going to get it."

And the other story is a debate that still rages on to this very day.

FOXSports.com's Alex Marvez has an interesting thought. What if a team that finishes with a good record -- possibly 10 wins yet finishes in third-place in the NFC East -- misses the playoffs and some mediocore team from the NFC West gets in? Wouldn't that be a travesty? (Yeah. If it's the Cowboys. But I don't think it will be).

IRVING, Texas - As the NFL trade deadline approaches, someone desperately needs to make a deal.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

We're not talking players here. We're talking franchises.

Swap an NFC East club with another from the NFC West. It doesn't matter which ones.

Because as it stands now, an NFC East team will get shafted while a lesser NFC West team heads to the postseason based on the league's playoff format.

The NFC West doesn't have any members with a winning record. The three squads that played Sunday — Arizona, St. Louis and San Francisco — lost by a combined margin of 118-66. The Cardinals fell to the Redskins last Sunday; Philadelphia and the New York Giants already have trounced the winless Rams.

This is mere weeks before the Roy Williams trade and just a week before the crushing Arizona loss and Romo injury.

October 1, 2009

Cowboys by the Numbers: Defense, Week Three

By Rafael Vela

http://www.bloggingtheboys.com/2009/10/1/1065015/cowboys-by-the-numbers-defense

A week three recap:

Pass Rushers

• 4 -- 26 times
• 5 -- 4 times
• 6 -- 5 times
• 7 -- 1 time

Maybe there is something to four man pressure.  Wade blitzed a lot more in the first half, sending 5 or more on 6 of the 15 first half pass plays, or 40% of the time. In the second half, only three of the 20 rushes brought more than four men.  All three sacks came on four man calls.  Credit to Wade for not going crazy and letting his rushers simply improve their work.

Wade's first year doubling as a HC and DC is made apparent in his blitzing scheme which was made possible by the great run defense on Deangelo Williams and pass defense on Steve Smith

A 5.4 YPA is what you expect from your top corner.  Newman had safety help over the top, but I would give anybody help with Steve Smith.  Newman got results.  Jenkins' line is solid, but not great.  Poor first half tackling hurt his line, as it did for Newman.  They were a combined 3/7 for 28 yards after the half, a nice, tidy 4.0 YPA.  This, and much better coverage from the linebackers on TE Donte Rosario, was a big reason the Cowboys started that half with four consecutive three-and-outs.

Some of the names have changed but throughout the entire 5 year span you see the transition begin. With the end of the Bledsoe/Keyshawn era to the beginning of the Romo/TO era and moving forward to where we are today. The final moves of Bill Parcells, both good and bad, and the free agency choices of JJ and Wade helped a team with a great core build upon itself. Through the ups and downs of playoffs losses, blowouts both good and bad to our first playoff victory in over a decade are years of tough decisions in the making.