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The news that's dominating the national sites and the Dallas Morning News is Greg Hardy. All Hardy, all the time. While not much of significance is being said, there are a few points of interest.
One, Jason Garrett went from unconcerned to concerned enough to speak with Hardy about the sideline behavior.
Cowboys Address Hardy’s Sideline Outburst, But Not Concerned Going Forward | Dallas Cowboys
"We went through that a number of times after the game yesterday and we talked about the value of having passion and emotion and enthusiasm for the game," said Cowboys coach Jason Garrett. "Greg and I talked about how you can channel that better."
"There’s a lot of emotion that goes into this game and that’s what we want. What we need to do is have our players channel that emotion," Garrett added. "We talked to Greg specifically about ‘OK, we get it, we understand what you’re trying to do, but coach Bisaccia is trying to get that special teams unit ready to go play.’"
When asked if the Cowboys would try to re-sign Hardy after the season, Stephen Jones was emphatic.
"Absolutely. Very much a possibility, and he's done everything since he's been with us in a good way," he said. "I know he'll continue to improve because he wants to be respected and he wants to be a guy who is involved in the community. And I think that will come for him."
One other note that is newsworthy, depending on how accurate it is.
#Cowboys were concerned about Greg Hardy last week. He wasn’t on time Thursday, didn’t call & they called around. DNP for practice (illness)
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 26, 2015
That's actually more concerning than what happened on the sideline.
Dez Bryant discussed a few things after the game. Specifically he addressed he and Hardy's sideline discussion.
Dez Bryant responds to questions about shouting match with Greg Hardy | Dallas Morning News
When asked about it after the game by ESPN's Josina Anderson, Bryant said, "There is no issue. That's just football. People want to make nothing into something, especially when we lose. That's just football."
More importantly, he discussed his health.
The All-Pro wide receiver ran around the MetLife Stadium field for about 30 minutes, catching passes from assistant strength and conditioning coach Brett Bech. At one point, Bryant even attempted to make a leaping grab over a retractable sideline stanchion that stood about waist high. Bryant then returned to the field by jumping back over the temporary barrier.
"I felt real good," Bryant said. "I'm just taking it day by day. That's all I can do, and stay strong.Next goal is to get on the field," Bryant said. "I got to continue listening to Mr. Jones and [the training staff]. I think we're doing a hell of a job right now with my foot. I think I'm the only one that's being a little bit impatient about the foot. They're really doing a great job of trying to make sure I'm doing the right things properly. I think once I feel good I'm going to get on the field."
Bryant was then asked if his MRI results have to show he's 100 percent healed before he can return. "I don't honestly think that it has to be all the way 100 percent for me to get back on the field," he said. "That's my choice, we're going to see about it. If I can go, I'm going to go."
One of the other big stories to come out of the game was the day that Darren McFadden had running the ball. He replaced Joseph Randle who was injured early, and exploded. Could McFadden take over the starting duties?
Garrett Says McFadden "Absolutely" Earned More Touches in RB Rotation | Dallas Cowboys
Regardless of Randle’s status, however, it appears McFadden has earned the right to get more reps, if not start.
"He played his best football game, there’s no question about that," Garrett said of McFadden. "But again, running the football is a collaborative effort. It starts with the guys up front. The tight ends, the receivers, the fullback, everybody that is involved in that. Coaches giving them great opportunities everybody is a part of it. He certainly took advantage of the chances he got (Sunday)."
So will that to lead more touches?
"Absolutely," Garrett said. "We will get back to work (Tuesday) and we will give him his opportunities and keep the whole thing competitive for everybody. But he has certainly earned some more touches."
What's the status on Randle?
#Cowboys RB Joseph Randle is dealing with an oblique injury similar to the one he suffered during the pre-season, a source said.
— Rand Getlin (@Rand_Getlin) October 26, 2015
Ok, what about all the big changes made over the bye week? Well, Matt Cassel has been discussed at length, and if he can limit the turnovers, maybe the Cowboys have something.
Cassel adds more pop to Cowboys’ offense | The Star-Telegram
They believe it’s something they can build on — especially the 80-yard game-tying touchdowns drive in the fourth quarter, capped by a 25-yard strike to Devin Street.
“I think Matt did a lot of good things in the game,” Garrett said. “I think for the most part he made a lot of good decisions and a lot of good throws in the game. The obvious mistakes that he made were the interceptions. Those were big plays.
“But gotta love how he competed. I thought he made a lot of great plays, particularly late in the game.”
Cassell had six passes of 20 yards or more against the Giants. The Cowboys had just six in the previous three games combined with Brandon Weeden at quarterback.
Inserting La'el Collins into the starting lineup?
Scout's Eye: Breaking Down The Street P.I. Call, The Pick-Six & More | Dallas Cowboys
Can’t find much fault for the play of La’el Collins and what he was able to do in this start. Early in the game, you could see that Travis Frederick was interested in keeping one eye to his side of the field in pass protection and was there to help him when needed. On the opening drive, Collins was late to adjust to a run-through blitzer, and if he would have made that pickup – I believe you would have seen Matt Cassel connect with Jason Witten for a touchdown. But overall I thought his awareness and protection were good. He was physical in the running game, and there was only one snap where I felt like he could have gotten to the second level and executed a block but was unable to make that happen.
And what about those reports last week that Christine Michael would be the starter? Not exactly.
Lost among the hoopla is what happened to Randy Gregory?
Rookie Randy Gregory sees limited time in return | The Star-Telegram
Rookie defensive end Randy Gregory played only eight of 53 defensive snaps on Sunday against the Giants. The Cowboys monitored Gregory, who was making his return to game action since exiting the season opener with a high-ankle sprain.
“He played and played well,” coach Jason Garrett said. “We want to get him out there more. The defense didn’t have that many plays. And in the situations that he was going to play in, we didn’t have that many situations come up. But he did a good job in the game.”
And if you really want to make yourself smart, make sure you read all of rabblerousr's "By The Numbers" post. You'll get great insight like this:
Cowboys @ Giants: The Day After, By The Numbers - Blogging The Boys
6.4: The average yards per play allowed by the Cowboys' defense in the last three games, the worst figure in the league. The fine gents over as ESPN Stats and Info give us more kindling to add to this fire: Dallas is allowing the NFL's highest opponent completion percentage during that span and are the only defense that has not forced a turnover since Week 3. And this has been the case throughout the Jason Garrett era. Here's a disturbing fact provided by ESPN S&I: On a per-play basis, the Cowboys' defense has been in the bottom half of the league for the past six seasons. Since 2010, only the Falcons have allowed more yards per play (5.84) than the Cowboys (5.81). Additionally, the Cowboys are allowing points on 43 percent of opponents’ drives this season, sixth worst in the NFL, and are forcing a turnover on 5 percent of drives, second worst in the league (to the Jaguars, who come in at 4 percent). Both are on pace to be the Cowboys’ worst rates in the past 15 seasons.