Tony Romo's victory over the Panthers fires up the Cowboys Power Rankings.
ESPN:
We go from 17 to 11.
Trick: It wasn't all his fault, but Drew Bledsoe threw some really bad passes.
Treat: It's early, but Tony Romo looked like the real deal.
We go from 19 to 15.
Before we think up new adjectives for Tony Romo, let's remember the lesson of Big Ben. Shockingly fast start, but everything was in place for him -- good defense, good running. Same holds true with Dallas. It's a formula for success for the kid, but it's a different show when he might have to carry an offense.
CBS/Sportsline:
We go from 17 to 12.
That may have been a season-saver when they beat the Panthers. Tony Romo had a heck of a first start, which could bode well for the rest of the season.
FOX Sports:
We go from 17 to 14.
...the truth is in the numbers -- despite a roller coaster ride of a season unlike any other he's been through -- the Cowboys are currently a 4-3 team with solid postseason chances. On Sunday, Tony Romo looked like a seasoned vet in the fourth quarter and the defense looked unbreakable in the second half. A win over Washington on Sunday, and the `Boys are actually in pretty good shape heading into the second half of the season.
Good article from Michael Smith on Tony Romo and his preparation tactics that he learned from Tom Brady.
On Sunday night, the Cowboys found themselves in a difficult position early. Mike Vanderjagt missed a 48-yard field goal on Dallas' second possession. On the next possession, Romo, who had thrown three picks in the second half against New York, was intercepted when he tried to force a pass to Terrell Owens. The Panthers capitalized and led 14-0 after the first quarter.
From his box, Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said to himself, "I've seen this movie before. Just last week. We were absolutely killing ourselves."
Romo, however, remained poised.
In fact, take away the Tom Brady references and this article sounds kind of like
this one.
Sam Hurd gets recognized for his good work.
Cowboys rookie Sam Hurd, who forced and recovered a game-changing fumble on a kickoff against Carolina, is the NFC special teams player of the week.
Trailing 14-13 with 9 minutes, 54 seconds left in the game, Hurd stripped the football away from Carolina's Brad Hoover on a kickoff return and recovered the ball at the Panthers' 14. On the next play, Julius Jones scored to give the Cowboys the lead en route to a 35-14 road victory.
I like this description of Oliver Hoyte's blocking technique.
One of my NFL personnel pals explained to me that Ollie Hoyte attempts to destroy linebackers. He knocks them off stride with his power and then stays square on the blocks.
Lousaka Polite, who might be the nicest guy on this roster, was described to me as a one-shot blocker, which means that he has a difficult time sustaining at the point of attack.
