Hello guys (and gals),
I'm back from the game and what a game it was. I don't know how it played on T.V. but being at the game was most excellent. There were a ton of Cowboys fans in attendance all wearing their colors which made it even better when we won at the end. Everybody I talked to before the game had one main subject, Tony Romo. According to my informal interviews in the parking lot, Romo is now the face of the franchise and the anointed savior, despite Coach Parcells' efforts to keep a lid on Romo-mania.
As for the game itself, our defense wasn't playing well, mainly the secondary. And this time, it wasn't the safeties. Anthony Henry got beat deep a couple of times, Aaron Glenn got beat once, and I think one of the TD's was against Terence Newman - but I could be wrong, I'll need to look at the game replay.
The Cowboys line was playing very disciplined in the pass rush, they were very conscious about letting Vick get out of the pocket. On several occasions I saw them hold up and not take an inside path to the QB in order to keep their contain. They also did a great job of staying home when Vick would bootleg. The Cowboys also threw a wrinkle into their nickel defense; they had Bobby Carpenter lining up as a DT. That's right, a tackle! I guess the idea was to use his agility to keep an eye on Vick in the pocket.
The Cowboys were able to stop the run game pretty well, especially for a team like Atlanta that leads the league in rushing. But who knew their WR's would give us all that trouble. They weren't dropping balls out there tonight. I noticed that our defense has yet to figure out how to stop a FB in the flats. After one of those plays Parcells was chewing out the linebackers on the sideline.
On the Falcons attempt at the 4th and 1 in the 4th quarter, I believe it was Anthony Henry who made a big play on the pass and knocked it out of the receiver's hands. Whoever it was, that was a stellar play and maybe saved the game. I think Vick missed a wide-open Crumpler on that play.
The last drive in the 4th quarter was a thing of beauty. That's the kind of drive that champions make. Marion Barber came in and did some tough running as usual, and Romo made a beautiful pass to Terry Glenn to get the think kick-started. They ate up most of the clock and they poked it in for a TD. Just outstanding.
The game was definitely a physical one as there were some huge hits. I know Miles Austin got laid-out on a kickoff return. There was also a lot of trash-talking going on; players from both sides were in each other's faces after plays were finished. DeAngelo Hall was actually on our side of the ball mouthing off while we were getting in the huddle! I couldn't believe no penalty was called.
I liked what Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn brought to the game, and Tony Romo played well. MB3 was the shiznit again; you just can't stop him around the goal line. Jason Witten came up with some big catches in the clutch. And how about DeMarcus Ware, jumping up in the air and catching Vick's pass, and then returning it for a TD while stiff-arming Vick into the turf.
I'm sure there's a lot that I missed, so I will be doing a film review tomorrow and will have a much better idea of what exactly happened. But here's what I do know, Dallas went on the road and got a victory against a team that was desperate for a win. We didn't get the outstanding defensive play we were hoping for, especially from the secondary, but the offense put up enough points for the win. We control our destiny in the division with Philly coming into town next week. It was an exciting game, one we needed to win, and I got to see it all live.
Tomorrow I'll post more about the atmosphere around the game plus the film review, but there won't be any pictures, there was a minor snafu with the camera.