The Defense....or LACK thereof.

Put yourself in Romo's shoes just for the moment. You've just worked down the field, the Giants front line is after you on every play. Your young OL is doing all they can but it's clearly not enough keep them at bay for long. The Giants are putting a safety over top and blanketing Dez downfield. Austin is running his route but you aren't sure just how healthy those hamstrings are. The linebackers are keeping tab on your favorite TE and that leaves FJ out in the flat. With just seconds before the pressure reaches you, Laurent Robinson comes into your vision and you throw a 71 yard pass perfectly into his waiting hands. Minutes later you score. You go back to your sideline, greeted with smiles and pats on the back for a job well done.

Before you know it, the Giants have ALREADY scored. Its seems like you just sat down a minute ago. Damn! WTF happend to our Defense?

Wouldn't YOU be pissed too?

That's the question EVERYONE is asking right now! WTF has happend to the Defense??????

I, for one, FULLY expected to see D Ware mauling Eli Manning. I'm not sure he even touched him the entire game. Yes, I know the man has a stinger that's been bothering him. Plus he's always double or even triple teamed at times. But if that's the case, then where's Spencer and Ratliff??? Ware should be attracting ALL of their attention which should leave lanes open for the rest to exploit. Is the Giants OL that good or was our performance just that bad?

And what about the secondary? Can they play any worse than they did Sunday Night? The only thing that can be said for our secondary last Sunday Night is AWFUL. In BIG BOLD LETTERS: AWFUL. Plain and simple.....AWFUL.

1. Terence Newman. This guy is writing the handbook on how NOT to play DB. His technique is just....well.....TERRIBLE. He NEVER looks back for the ball, he can't run very well and, in the Giants game, on one particular play to the EZ, he simply GAVE UP his coverage. When they showed the replay of the pass from Eli to Hicks I think it was, it shows Newman CLEARLY pulls up and doesn't even attempt to try and disrupt the play. And this is the guy that RR calls a great db???

2. Alan Ball. Another mediocre db who is clueless in coverage. He's always a few steps behind the WR and somehow the opposing qb seems to find him to target on third down.

3. Keith Brooking. At one time Brooking may have been a pretty good LB in Atlanta but in Dallas he is nothing special. He continually gets caught out of position in the flat while trying to cover the Rb's. He has no push and is easily shoved aside on running plays. His age is also a factor.

4. Bradie James. See above for Keith Brooking. They are sometimes mirror images of each other.

5. Orlando Scandrick. A little better than Ball in coverage but that sure isn't saying much. He was given a contract extension earlier which left me shaking my head in amazement. What's he done to EARN it? Scandrick is no better than an average CB who also has trouble in coverage. Every once in awhile he makes a play but is not consistent enough to be considered a decent CB.

6. Sensabaugh is a better than avg Safety but his play this season could be better. Can hit hard and at least shows some intelligence on where he needs to be on each play. He's not going to WOW you very much but does have his moments.

7. Elam. Has made some impact on safety blitzes but also has made a few poor choices on covering the deep ball. He does have value at safety but not quite the impact we would have hoped.

8. Sean Lee. This guy, along with D Ware (when healthy) is a friggin' BEAST on the Defense. He's also a ball hawk because he always seems to find himself near the ball, except on the deep pass. His INT in the Giants game was brilliant! Most LB's would have dropped the ball but even with a DISLOCATED wrist, the guy makes the play. As of right now, LEE is the BEST Defensive player on the Cowboys. He simply makes plays and doesn't let an injury keep him down for long. There's only one problem with him. He can't do everything by himself.

9. Ratliff. Great NT. Shoots the gap often and buries the qb. The guy is a monster when let loose on third downs. Great tackler in the running game. On occasion he gets pushed out of the way but on the whole, he's a keeper.

There are of course a few others but these are the main guys that are usually on the field.

Its also very simple what needs to be done IMHO.

CUT:

Newman

Ball

Scandrick

Keith Brooking

Bradie James

NONE of these players has ANY value in trading that I can see.

THEN you look toward the draft and fill these spots there if possible. Free Agency also should help.

The way it is now, the Cowboys D is simply not very good at stopping the opposing team. And it really doesn't matter who they are or what their record is. We just haven't done a very good job at being a Defense.

And until we DO make these needed changes, we will ALL be like Romo and asking WTF???