What’s the difference between the Cowboys under Wade Phillips and the Cowboys under new head coach Jason Garrett. They’re not turning the ball over as much and they’re running the ball more than they did with Phillips in charge. That successful running game has opened up opportunities for them to throw the football.
“I think they’re running the football a little bit more, they don’t have quite as many turnovers on offense and they’ve increased their turnovers on defense”, Andy Reid said yesterday. “That turnover margin becomes a big stat for them, I think.”
Of course running the football would be a way of keeping Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy and the Eagles explosive offense off the field. Defenses have had major problems stopping the Birds from scoring but ball possession by the opposing offense is an option for Dallas.
I think the Birds expect the Cowboys to attempt to put the ball on the ground and beat up Philly’s smallish defensive front seven.
The Birds are very confident that they can do what’s needed to stop the Dallas ground assault. If they allow the Cowboys to run the effectively it will also make things easiy for quarterback Jon Kitna and the Dallas passing game.
“Well, it’s about making sure you hold up your end of the deal in your area at your positions”, defensive coordinator Sean McDermott said today. “If you’re a run player in that specific defense, then you stop the run. If you’re a pass player, then you dedicate all your energy and thoughts to stopping the pass. Look, it’s easy when teams are one dimensional, but a team like this that is multi-dimensional as they are – run and pass – that’s why they are who they are and that’s why they’ve been successful on offense in Dallas.”
Young speedsters Tashard Choice and Felix Jones have been the guys carrying the ball for Dallas, while veteran pounder Marion Barber has been down with injuries.
I expect them to run the football at the rookie defensive end Brandon Graham, but veteran defensive Juqua Parker is practicing and should return to the lineup.
Funny..anyone think the Jason Garrett may have sabotaged Phillips?
Don’t get me wrong, Phillips was no genius, but wasn’t Garrett calling the plays for the team when Phillips was the coach??
Just a thought.
Hopefully the difference between this years defense and lasts years results against the cowgirls running game will be Bradley and Dixon. We cannot let them gash us for big yards up the middle and still expect to win.
I was surprised that M Barber even was on the Cowboy Roster this year,
I thought the Jones would release him to save $$ for a player who is on the downside of his carrer and especially when they have younger,faster and cheaper plays like F Jones/T Choice on their roster who needed to play more.I also think that they play better as a unit with QB Romo out of the line-up where the play-calling was too pass-heavy (sound familiar) to help build Romo’s status as a top QB (which I never thought he was to help justify his overpaid,over-hyped contract) ..
These 2 things which I think J Jones pushed down on Wade Phillips) was the real underlying issue why the Cowboys failed miserbly at the start of the Season, plus W Phillips is just not a good HC.
Now that they have Kinta who is more likely to manage a game and pass 25 times a game intead of 40 times a game, they will run the ball more and utilize play-action with the big-play capability of Austin & Bryant (who now is done) and intermediate passing to the reliable Whitten which probably have been a better game plan for them from the get-go..
The Cowboys failed miserbly in the off-season where they had 3 big needs to address
Their O/Line, Safety and FB position, they neglected all 3 areas of need theuy the draft or free-agency and have paid the consequence for failing to do so… Good riddance and I am gald they have Jerry Jones as President & GM for he is not very good at drafting or building depth as a full-time football GM would have been..
Phillips sabotaged Phillips. He didn’t motivate, and didn’t provide discipline. Players were motivated by the owner, not the coach.
Garrett is holding players more accountable, making them look at themselves in an effort to get people to step up. It’s working. Dallas is by no means an easy team, but I think we can do it as long as we don’t rely on the big play and exploit the middle, biding our time for the strike. If the D can minimize the penalties, we can force some FG’s where TDs would be. Half of the Texans TD drives last week were stopped cold out of scoring range but for penalties. Those are big if’s but I think the Eagles can pull out the win.
J Jones also sabotaged W Phillips who created this hype about Romo and the Cowboys being a
Championship type of team and allowed the atmosphere kissing the arses of their “star” players to exist.. Believe me, Wade Phillips is no NFL Head Coach by any stretch, but Jerry Jones, being as close and involved with the team and it’s players on a day to day basis allowed for this Country Club atmoshpere to persist and happen over a 2-3 year period so ultimately, it’s Jerry Jones failure in my book.. Not even close… They all thought they were better than they really are..
Assante did not practice today….that is not a great thought..hopefully he is ok by gametime
Any word on Winston Justice & J Parker..
Greenfan, lets not forget… it was ASAM that got smacked around last year with the bubble screens. This may sound crazy but id like to see them do something different to stop that because you KNOW they will try it. What a great way to open up the running game….. spread a WR out and make at least 1 guy have to watch the bubble screen. I think this is the biggest q of the game.
The Eagles do not stop anybody in the red zone. If the Cowboys cross the 20, its almost a guaranteed touchdown. I do not recall the last time an Eagles defensive unit was ranked dead-assed bottom last in the league in such an important stat category. People seem to think this team is a big time contender for the Super Bowl, I just am having trouble seeing it with a such lame defensive unit. How are these guys supposed to get past Drew Brees? He’ll eat Nate Allen’s lunch. The turnovers are the only thing keeping the D afloat.
Anderson…. ive been saying this for months. Bottom line…. can Mike vick win the games?? thats really all we are talking about anymore. Because this D and its coach is crap. and the Oline. Somehowe the special teams has really improved but…… it really comes down to vick. On a side note…. Asam has really stepped up this year, hes’s a bright spot.
I want to see them hit hard early. This D can turn it around… they have the talent. They need to prove that they are not as soft as we know they are.
Stevos gameplan:
On D- They have to stop the run and the bubble screen early. If im dallas…. thats what i try and do. Our corners MUST shut down Austin…. make him work outside. Dont give anything up on crossing routes. They need to get creative with the blitz’s. Send a saftey early.
On O- Id go deep on the first play again. Spread it out. Show them that they can get beat at any moment. Mix in some screens and a shuffle pass in the red zone. Id also love to see cooper get a fade pass.
I hope we get the ball first and score. I expect a 14-0 lead for us quick. Force them to throw.
It gets more and more difficult to keep outscoring teams as it gets later into the season. Defenses tighten it up, the field gets a bit smaller and points are at a premium. I just don’t know if the Eagles have the horses to keep better teams off the scoreboard often enough for Vick to score enough points to win. What won the SB for the Greatest Show on Turf? A key tackle at the goalline. What won the SB for the Colts? Strong D, a running game and a weak opponent. The old school Chargers never won jack just putting up 35 points a game. The Birds D needs to play better or they are not going anywhere, you need to be strong on both sides of the ball to survive late in the year. They have yet to prove to be strong on D.
Wellm the Eagles for the most part have done a good job of shutting down the big runners so I am not worried about the Cowboys running game
Samuels’ injury and the Cowboys passing game is the main concern but Cowboys big receiver and returner is out so I think the Eagles win by at least 10
Its not hard to stop the big runners when a team is down by 14 and has to throw to get back in it. There has been a couple of good games for the d but not enough.
This is not me h8ing… the only thing they need to do is beat the patties. That’s it!!
What about eagles d in r zone, appalling 78 percent deficiency, big problem no?
Funny someone mentioned Sabotage… Wasn’t Jason Garrett the OC calling the plays during Phillips tenure. How is it that now that Wade is gone he runs the ball more. Things that make you say Hmmm?? Anyway, who cares we are going to crush them anyway, redemption time… If you don’t remember they not only took us apart, they talked trash too.
yea u took my comment green
i dont understand its not like wade phillips was saying throw the ball jason
so as OC he’s andy reid
but as head coach he’s bill cowher
CMON MAN
and stop the brownosing of the cowboys
“You Are What Your Record Says You Are”
and after the game i will say
“They Were Who We Thought They Were”
PW…nice Denny Green there lol
“Cowboys Running The Football More Under Jason Garrett”
It’s called coaching scared …Hell he doesn’t want to lose his job either…so take the safe route and run the ball
Running scared? They are running and winning games. Big Oline and Choice/Jones, running is a smart move for them. If the Birds have to load the box to stop the run game, who is going to cover and tackle Miles Austin? Witten ring any bells for anybody? Who is going to cover him? Hopalong Bradley? Ernie “i-only-hit-hard-against-my-teammates” Sims?I don’t think the Birds matchup well against Dallas and I hope they can find a way to win.