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Cowboys have faith in Marinelli to coach up defensive line after loss of Spencer - Clarence Hill, Star-Telegram
The loss of Spencer is a huge setback for the Cowboys, writes Hill, but the Cowboys have a lot of faith in defensive line coach Rod Marinelli to come up with a solution.
“He has exceeded [my expectations],” Jerry Jones said of Marinelli. “And that would have been hard to do because when I looked at our depth during the off-season right before we went to training camp, there were a couple of holes there. And all I did was picture in Rod Marinelli.”
Marinelli works magic with ravaged D-line - Tim MacMahon, ESPN Dallas
MacMahon writes a nice article about Marinelli, whom he calls "the most overqualified position coach in the NFL," includes a mea culpa for ridiculing Jerry Jones when Jones called the DL a position of strength, and closes with this quote from Hatcher:
“He just understands players,” said Hatcher, who cited Marinelli's advice to envision himself as a basketball player trying to get to the rim during pass rushes as a key to his sack success. “He coaches the man. He ain't about no politics. He ain't about trying to please nobody. He just loves good football. That's what's special about him. He knows how to get you going."
“He's the best defensive line coach in the league, in my opinion.”
George Selvie credits motivator Marinelli for his performance - Carlos Mendez, Star-Telegram
Selvie says he has learned a lot from Marinelli in a short time, and credits him for his recent performance.
“Oh, man. I can’t start on what I’ve learned from him,” he said. “He’s a great coach. He knows the game, and he’s passionate about it. … He teaches us a lot of stuff, and he knows football.”
“He’s a great coach, a great motivator, and having a coach who believes in you is a big deal,” Selvie said.
Tony Romo on improved O-Line: ‘You’re not having to make as many decisions under duress’ - Rainer Sabin, DMN
Romo explains in detail how the extra time afforded him by the new O-line is helping him cut down on mistakes. An excerpt:
"You’re not having to make as many decisions under duress and trying to move the football under those circumstances," he explained. "The best teams in this league that go on and give themselves a chance late in the year have quarterbacks who are able to get through progressions at a normal speed. I think that’s what you’re trying to do."
Cowboys Injury Report: Miles Austin Sits, Status For Sunday Unknown - Blogging The Boys
The Cowboys got back to practice yesterday in preparation for the San Diego Chargers but they did it with a limited number of receivers.
Tony Romo confident in backup receivers - Todd Archer, ESPN Dallas
With Miles Austin possible out against the Chargers, opportunity is knocking for the backup wide receivers. Tony Romo said he has "confidence in the other guys." It wouldn't be the first time a Cowboys receiver steps up into the limelight because of an injury.
Brian Waters gets ready to start for the Dallas Cowboys - Calvin Watkins, ESPN Dallas
Watkins writes that Waters practiced with the first team today, a strong indication he will start against the Chargers instead of Mackenzy Bernadeau at right guard.
"That's the goal, just to make it through a whole game," Waters said after Wednesday's practice. "We'll see how it goes. Mac is going to be ready to go and I think we're all confident that he'll be ready to go if anything happens."
Kiffin Report - Week 3 - St Louis - Bob Sturm
Sturm points out that the Cowboys found 6 sacks without blitzing on 5 of them, and proceeds to break down some of the plays that led to the sacks.
Jerry Jones would like Spencer to return - Todd Archer, ESPN Dallas
Jerry Jones said he would like to see Anthony Spencer playing for the Cowboys again, once the edge rusher successfully recovers from the pending surgery. Provided everything checks out medically, Jones believes Spencer could be an important part of the Cowboys next season.
"He’s very accomplished, got great experience," Jones said. "In a matter of speaking, just coming into his own and will be a great complement, if we can go that way, to (DeMarcus) Ware in the future."
Jones hopes Jason Hatcher is part of the Cowboys' future - Carlos Mendez, Star-Telegram
Hatcher is free agent next year, and while the Cowboys will probably not be able to match the offers Hatcher will get from other teams, they still hope that some way, some how Hatcher will be part of the Cowboys’ future.
"I would have hope we have Hatcher in the future, cause he is playing at a high level," he said. "We have always thought he had excellent size, excellent athletic ability and real skill at rushing the passer. That’s hard to find that in a player. He’s got it, and it’s showing up."
Hatcher Prepared For Any Outcome Of Contract Season - Davis Helman, DMN
Hatcher, also knows the clock is probably ticking on his time in Dallas, and while he is preparing for any possbile scenario, he rermains focused on the job at hand.
“I’m planning on the worst-case scenario – that’s what I’m planning on right now. I’ve talked to my family about it,” he said. “Maybe after eight years, we’ve got to go move somewhere else, so that’s my plan right now. But at the end of the day, I’m just going to go out there and play my butt off for the rest of the season. Whatever happens, happens.”
When told that Jerry Jones hopes Hatcher is part of the Cowboys' future, Hatcher was appreciative of the comment.
“That’s awesome, man. That means a lot to me, man, when it comes to the big dog. I didn’t know that,” he said. “That makes me feel good about it. But it’s whatever happens.”
Garrett believes Cowboys' new scheme can get Drake Nevis playing like he did at LSU - Carlos Mendez, Star-Telegram
The Cowboys hope that a change of defensive scheme will help Nevis rediscover the explosiveness and production he showed in college.
"Oftentimes, these defensive linemen get into systems that really suit them or maybe don’t suit them quite as much," coach Jason Garrett said. "We feel like playing in this scheme, we can get him back to playing the way he played in college: coming off the ball, playing with good leverage and being a destructive force, both in the run game and pass game."
Garrett breaks down newest Cowboys cornerback Chris Greenwood - Tom Orsborn, MySA.com
Greenwood was brought in for a pre-draft visit in 2012, and the Cowboys were impressed enough to bring him again now that the opportunity arose.
"He’s a big, long, tall corner," Garrett said of Greenwood, 6 foot 1, 193 pounds. "We felt like size is an important trait at corner and he certainly has that and athletic ability. We’ve had our eye on him for a while and were looking for an opportunity to sign a big, young corner we can develop."
The Notebook, NFL Week 3: Problems with Chip Kelly's offense - SBNation.com
Former NFL defensive end Stephen White takes a deep dive on the film from Chiefs-Eagles. Here's an excerpt:
"[...] another flaw I started to see in the first game as well, and that is the offense, just like the opposing defense, starts to look weary by the fourth quarter. This is where the limit on active players on gameday hurts the Eagles, in my opinion."
"In college, Kelly could just shuffle a bunch of wide receivers in and out during the game to keep them fresh and keep the offense running at an insanely high tempo. With the NFL's gameday roster limitations, the Eagles only have so many wide receivers for the whole game. In fact, Cooper was getting worn down so much trying to beat Smith's man coverage that it appears on film that he is too exhausted trying to run yet another deep route with about 6:28 to go in the second quarter and doesn't have enough energy to prevent Smith from intercepting a pass. This will be something to keep an eye on for the rest of the season."
Hakeem Nicks thinks Giants can still have best offense in NFL - NJ.com
I could have sworn I saw the exact same headline about the Eagles last year.
Washington Redskins go into Sunday's game 0-3 - WJLA.com
I'm picking Oakland, concussed QB and all.
More from Blogging The Boys:
- Cowboys Offensive Line: How Is It Performing As A Unit?
- Cowboys Injury Report: Miles Austin Sits, Status For Sunday Unknown
- Wins Over Average: Which NFL Quarterbacks Are Winning Games For Their Teams?
- Cowboys Make Roster Moves, Anthony Spencer To IR, Sign New Cornerback
- Video: Dallas Cowboys' Three Stars In Week Three