SB Nation - Kyle Kosier

The Cowboys Win the Second Quarter

Rafael Vela — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:24 -0000

Kevin Ogletree is the latest find from The Playmaker Maker, Ray Sherman. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

We're at halftime of the '09 season and the Cowboys enter the intermission on the high, winning their fourth straight game, rising to 6-2 overall.

The jump was no fluke, as these tables demonstrate:

Offense

Games 1-4	Games 5-8
24 points per game	30 ppg.
401 yards per game	408 yards per game
164 rush ypg.	115 rush ypg.
237 passing ypg.	294 passing ypg.
6 turnovers	5 turnovers

Defense

Games 1-4	Games 5-8
19.5 ppg.	18.5 ppg.
371 ypg.	302 ypg.
115 rush ypg.	91 rush ypg.
256 pass ypg.	211 pass ypg.
6 sacks	15 sacks
4 turnovers	7 turnovers

Steady improvement across the board. The offense was producing yards in bunches and has continued, though the mix has shifted from the run to the pass. You can see the Miles Austin effect in the passing yards per game, which have jumped almost 60 yards per contest since Austin became a starter.

The defense has been much tougher to run against and to pass against, though the turnarounds on that side of the ball came much earlier. No team has run effectively against the Dallas front since the season opener in Tampa. The low point for the pass defense came the following week when Eli Manning ripped them apart. The secondary has steadily improved since then.

The weakness has been inability to close out games, though they made the necessary stops against the Eagles Sunday night. The Chiefs drove for a late, tying touchdown, and the Falcons and Seahawks each put garbage-time TDs on the board. If this unit wants to improve in the third quarter, the 60 minute men we just saw will have to replace the 55 minute men on a more consistent basis.

What a Difference Some Health Makes

One year ago, the Cowboys were coming off another tough, 4-point win and were at a very respectable 5-3. That's the only real similarity between the '08 bunch and this one.

On last year's offense, Kyle Kosier, Felix Jones and Sam Hurd were already gone for the year. Tony Romo was rehabbing his broken pinkie for the second of four weeks. Flozell Adams was playing with one good arm and one good hand. Miles Austin was rehabbing a bum knee for the second time since Oxnard; new Cowboy Roy Williams was learning the playbook and how to fit in with that Terrell Owens fellow. His QB was Brad Johnson.

On defense, safety Roy Williams had just been placed on I.R. Adam Jones was suspended. Terence Newman was rehabbing from hernia surgery and Anthony Henry was on his 19th nervous groin strain. Zach Thomas was playing one inside linebacker spot and looking like a human pinball at 227 lbs.

The injuries this year have been far less severe and of much shorter duration. Marion Barber and Felix Jones have missed games but are back in the lineup. Roy Williams rib injury proved the happy accident that forced Austin into the starting lineup. On defense, Gerald Sensabaugh missed some time with a broken thumb, but has played remarkably well since returning with that thumb in a splint.

There's only one games worth of difference between last year's Cowboys and this year's bunch, but it seems like so much more.

Mid-Season Game Balls

I'm going to crib Aaron's idea and note the coaches who have distinguished themselves thus far this year:

Todd Grantham -- It's not Jay Ratliff and a bunch of guys anymore. Igor Olshansky and Marcus Spears are pushing their men backwards and resetting the line of scrimmage on wide runs. Stephen Bowen has stepped up his pass rush, as has Jason Hatcher. Junior Siavii was a big question mark but he's giving Dallas the active dozen or so snaps they need to rest Ratliff.

Reggie Herring -- Anthony Spencer is still looking for sacks but he's extremely active against the run, covers well, and is doing a fair Carl Banks impersonation in his second year as a starter. Herring has gotten Victor Butler to perform. He has three sacks in very limited time and could match Greg Ellis' '08 sack totals with a modest uptick in production.

Dave Campo -- His guys looked great in the Alamodome, then all stumbled against the Bucs and Giants in weeks one and two. Nobody is ripping him now. Mike Jenkins was the first to snap out of the post-Giants funk and has three interceptions at right corner. He looks like an emerging star. Terence Newman has a newfound desire to hit people and is no longer giving up the deep throws we saw the first month. Orlando Scandrick found his game last weekend and had another good game this week. The Seahawks and Eagles each completed a seam on him but Scandrick had skin-tight coverage on both plays. This is the guy we saw last year.

First Half Assistant Coach of the Year

Ray Sherman -- The Cowboys keep giving this guy low picks and undrafted free agents and Sherman never complains. He just develops his kids and they're making him look great right now. Austin has made plays for a full month now and his bomb against a tough Eagles secondary suggests he's won't disappear. Kevin Ogletree showed an Austin-esque ability to rack up YACs against Philly. Look at his two flanker screens from yesterday and you see a guy who attacks corners and safeties like a halfback. He's got some power and can slither and spin. Patrick Crayton and Sam Hurd pick their spots, but at least one of them makes a big play each week.

Sherman has three UFAs, a 7th rounder and a 1st rounder in his arsenal. They're all producing. A nod of recognition and gratitude goes Ray Sherman's way. If Michael Irvin was The Playmaker, Sherman could be called The Playmaker Maker.

Special Mention to the Front Office

The Cowboys didn't spend much in the offseason, but their investments have paid huge dividends. Bart Scott and Ray Lewis were the big ticket ILB free agents. Dallas was linked to Lewis for a while, but what Cowboys fan wouldn't want Keith Brooking right now? The Ravens wish they had his contract, instead of Lewis' long-term monstrosity.

The Cowboys passed over big-name, greybeard safeties Brian Dawkins and Darren Sharper and brought in Gerald Sensabaugh. Dawkins and Sharper have given their new teams huge boosts,but it will be interesting to see if they can maintain their level of play for 16 games. Sensabaugh has filled the need at strong safety, combining solid coverage with aggressive run support.

Dallas' biggest move involved scaring the Jets off Miles Austin. New York had an offer sheet prepared but didn't follow through after the Cowboys made it clear that they would match any offer. Think the Jets would prefer Austin today, or Braylon Edwards?

The team paid small money and has seen big results from Austin, Brooking and Sensabaugh. Their plan to eliminate the malcontents and the stupid has done nothing but good thus far. A tip of the cap to Tom Ciskowski, Stephen Jones and that Jerry Jones guy.

Now, get back to work!

David Hawthorne: Pretty Boy-seeking Missile

John Morgan — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:14:04 -0000

More photos » by LM Otero - AP

Jordan Babineaux showed great spacing by consistently hitting his man before the first down marker. Felix Jones was able to spin through for the first.

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Today I finish up with last weekend's game notes. I rewatched the second quarter last night and I had an absolute blast. Here are my notes and highlights.

We left off with Seattle pulling close on one of those Greg Knapp third-down deep passes that drive folks crazy. A block in the back penalty would pin Dallas at their eight to start the next drive. Things looked up. Seattle needed its defense to hold field position and get Matt Hasselbeck the ball back.

Miles Austin responded with a beautiful catch on the right sideline. He was double covered and reached out nearly out of bounds to grab the ball. It's worth noting that Austin looked every bit the real deal, exploding out of the blocks and running tight routes.

That got Dallas out of jail. On the next play, Dallas pulled out its left side and directed fullback Deon Anderson at right end Darryl Tapp. Tapp has to win this, but doesn't and that allows Felix Jones a clean release through the hole -- Flozell Adams and Kyle Kosier blocking into the second level. Adams destroyed Aaron Curry and Jones was picked his way towards the third level. Jordan Babineaux hit him before the marker but Jones twisted for the first. It could have been worse. It should have been worse.

Brandon Mebane pressured up the middle and Leroy Hill was in position and aware of the pass on a high floater that overshot Martellus Bennett.

Dallas again targeted the Seahawks right side and doubled to stampede through Colin Cole. Deon Grant was controlling the right end and made contact with Jones at the line, but Jones spun right through Grant's tackle and reminded me again why I've stumped so vehemently for him to be positioned at free safety. Ken Lucas made a saving tackle that forced third down after a gain of nine.

Marion Barber converted the first. He was the up back.

Seattle overloads the right and Curry comes free around right end forcing Tony Romo up into the pocket. Seattle struggled with getting edge rush but failing to establish interior pressure, but this time Red Bryant plows through the right guard and forces and incomplete pass. Babineaux can be seen covering Jason Witten streaking up the right hash mark. However Seattle did it, the Seahawks shut down Witten.

Well, mostly. Patrick Kerney was taken down and that tripped Bryant and eliminated much of Seattle's rush. Cory Redding got a parting shot, but the pass was accurate and Witten received for 18.

David Hawthorne is an excellent blitzer, a stand out blitzer from the mike position. Seattle dropped its right end and overloaded the offensive right, but it wasn't a team effort that felled Romo. The goal was to free Hawthorne. Curry and Redding attempted to engage and force the Cowboy interior offensive line left. That plan was for Hawthorne to rush unabated between right guard and right tackle. Instead, Marc Colombo was squatting in Hawthorne's rush lane and Heater had to power through the giant right tackle to sack Romo. He did. That is a big league sack and Heater a major addition to Seattle's pass rush.

Romo scrambled for ten to put Dallas back into a manageable third down. Nick Reed was pwned.

The drive concluded when Lawrence Jackson pressured Romo and forced an incomplete attempt to Patrick Crayton. The resulting missed field goal put Seattle in business at their 38. Grand opening. Grand closing.

The Cowboys' Offensive Line: The 'This-Ain't-Their-First-Rodeo' Factor

Mike Fisher — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:00:30 -0000

More photos » by LM Otero - AP

Romo and the Cowboys' 1,627 pounds of etched-in-granite.

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Timing. Chemistry. The "This-Ain't-Our-First-Rodeo'' Factor.

Understanding of the importance of all this when it comes to offensive-line play tends to get avalanched as an NFL season trudges on. ... buried under everything from the excitement of a new toy (Miles Austin's record-setting hat-trick!) to how a team is doing when its quarterback start wearing his ballcap front-side-to-the-front (Tony Romo, undefeated!).

But then along comes the Seattle Seahawks, a 38-17 thrashing of that beleaguered bunch, and a distinct contrast in success levels when you compare their offensive line to your offensive line.

The jump-out number from Seattle: They are seven games into their season and they have been forced to dress out five different left tackles. In their last 23 games, they have utilized 14 different quintet combos as starters.

Now compare-and-contrast: Dallas' offensive line, left to right, is almost etched into 1,625 pounds of granite: Flozell Adams, Kyle Kosier, Andre Gurode, Leonard Davis and Marc Colombo. With the exception of a Kosier injury a year ago, those fellas have been side-to-side-to-side-to-side-to-side for two years.

They don't move out of the lineup ... but they do move the people in front of them.

That fivesome has turned the lights out on some of the NFL's greatest defensive-front standouts (Carolina's Julius Peppers, Atlanta's John Abraham, Seattle's Patrick Kearney) in bodyguarding Dallas' stars to four wins in the team's last five games. Most of the credit for the Cowboys' 5-2 record naturally goes to Romo and Austin and the people who habitually follow the final gun by being led to Pam Oliver.

But just as timing matters when it comes to quarterbacks and receivers (you see Romo's perfectly-synched coordination with every other pass-catcher and you begin to assume that it is Roy Williams who is doing something wrong), timing matters in the offensive line. At 411 yards per game, Dallas is the NFL's second-best grass-eaters ... and this offensive line is the constant there.

Chemistry matters, too. As every good Cowboys fan knows, Colombo, Davis and reserve Cory Procter are in a heavy-metal band called "Free Reign.'' Offensive linemen are often a tight group - tight enough to go bowling or fishing together - but I assume it takes a special bond for these guys to lie to each other about their musical gifts.

Kidding!

And the "This-Ain't-Our-First-Rodeo''Factor? This is Flozell's 12^th year, the ninth season for Gurode and Davis, the eighth season for Colombo and Kosier. They are grinders and they are survivors. ... and I'll give two examples to prove it:

One, you know the financial problems many athletes subject themselves to because of crazy spending? I do not believe that will ever happen to Flozell Adams. Friends of his testify that on a recent visit to Las Vegas, Flozell ended the trip having lost $50. On the entire plane ride home, a mumbling-to-himself Adams just couldn't let it go ... 50 bucks - gone!

Flozell Adams' latest contract, from February 2008, paid him a $15-million signing bonus ... but still ... 50 bucks - gone!

Not exactly flashy.

Two, a Marc Colombo story that I think illustrates what these five guys are all about: On a recent Cowboys day off, Colombo opted to spend the day with his lovely wife Jessica. They are members of the Four Seasons Golf Resort in Las Colinas, so that was their destination. Marc Colombo for some golf? A fancy lunch? Maybe a spa and pedicure?

You know better than that. What Marc Colombo did on his off-day at the Four Seasons Golf Resort typifies the style of this Cowboys offensive line that is heavy on timing, chemistry and understanding of how to get as far as it has.

He found the gym. And spent the day in the weight room.

Sam Hurd Streaks for Six

John Morgan — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:15:13 -0000

More photos » by John Froschauer - AP

Colin Cole has been as advertised: A still life in pads.

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The following covers from when I left off to when Sam Hurd put Dallas up by six.

Seattle started the drive with Cory Redding at left defensive tackle. Redding was blown back by a double team, but single-blocked Brandon Mebane sliced behind the blockers bulldozing Redding to wrap Marion Barber after three. Before Mebane's saving tackle, this play was eerily reminiscent of Seattle's struggles in San Francisco.

Seattle sent a safety blitz on the next play. Jordan Babineaux was game until he squared against Marion Barber. Babineaux pulled up and attempted to evade Barber and Barber did little more than stand to complete the block. Barber was nearly butt to thigh with Romo and Babs should have powered into Barber and jolted him back. If you can't be sure you can go around a blocker, power through him and hope. It could have worked. It should have worked with a running start.

Seattle blitzed again on third and two. It blitzed, but checked to five when Deon Grant dropped his rush and picked up man cover. Seattle was locked in man across the field and that made for any easy matchup for Miles Austin. He beat off Ken Lucas' press and put a shoulder into him to get inside. Romo hit him in stride and Seattle allowed another third down conversion.

Why Seattle blitzed on third and two is beyond me. It seemed like Marshall moment when it happened and it seems like a Marshall moment now.

Having failed by blitzing, Seattle attempted the opposite on the next play. It dropped eight into coverage. It dropped eight out of a 4-2, meaning the eighth man was none other than Brandon Mebane. As luck would have it, Mebane matched against Jason Witten. Witten worked a double move, maybe built in, maybe a savvy improvisation. Mebane didn't bite though. When Witten faked curl, Mebane didn't close, but broke back and positioned himself to tackle. That saved an otherwise sure defensive holding penalty. Witten shuffle-stepped and sprinted past the line but never did fully shake Mebane. Romo targeted him in quadruple coverage and Witten leapt high but dropped it. Perhaps the prospect of being sandwiched between a linebacker, two defensive backs and Brandon Mebane just wasn't worth the first.

Austin converted that. Seattle badly misread the end around and only persistent and alert play from Lucas saved them from worse damage. It was a classic case of broken contain. David Hawthorne owns the most responsibility. When Dallas motioned run right, Hawthorne was all over it, and when the action sped left, Hawthorne had no hope of recovery. A final detail worth noting: Seattle was in a 4-2 nickel. Reading the end around but knowing he had little chance to intercept, Josh Wilson didn't stop or ineffectually drift towards the play. No, Wilson saw Austin and bolted towards the end zone. He positioned himself to be a last line of defense should Austin break free. It's a wonder he wasn't needed.

Hawthorne broke contain again on the next play. He drifted left and got behind a lead blocker allowing Barber to cut right and towards the open field. Then Jordan Babineaux had his first safety moment. He sprinted across the first down marker and fought hard to stop Barber before he converted the first.

I could round out this review with another knock on Hawthorne, but Hawthorne breaking cover against Hurd was assumed after Hurd flattened a slow developing crossing pattern. I still don't know what Seattle is doing with its zones or its line, and both are beginning to frustrate me.

This plays fails for obvious reasons. Seattle is down one rushing the quarterback. Patrick Kerney is struggling to get there. Mebane is doing his part. Darryl Tapp is working his butt off on the blindside. Colin Cole is stuck in the blocks. He never moves more than a yard past the line of scrimmage. Center Andre Gurode is able to stifle him so easily that left guard Kyle Kosier can stand and watch Hurd receive.

Hawthorne is covering the middle zone and picks up Hurd as he crosses the field. Aaron Curry is covering Jason Witten on the left. If we're talking zones, Hurd becomes Curry's assignment after Hurd passes Hawthorne to the left, but should Curry drop cover on Witten? He is an unwinnable position. Curry follows Witten through his break but reacts to Romo's eyes and attempts to intercept Hurd before he receives.

Romo probably could have pump-faked and found Witten. Instead he targets the beaten man and hooks up with Hurd for the score. The zones break down, and maybe zones are losing their place in the modern NFL. But the zones break down because the pass rush breaks down. A crossing pattern is a deep route. It develops slowly and is often found by quarterbacks flushed from the pocket. Romo isn't flushed, he steps right up and throws it over Cole's outstretched arms.

The pass rush was swarming all around, but dead in the middle. Tapp, Kerney and Mebane smashed the pocket, but their pressure came from outside. Cole alone was trusted to collapse the middle, and if he could have, Romo would have had no pocket to step into. Instead Cole just stood there. Cole just stood there, watching the play the develop.

Drive Summary: Cowboys @ Chiefs

Raul Villaronga — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:42:54 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

Cowboys receiver Miles Austin celebrates after catching the game-winning touchdown to put the Cowboys ahead of the Chiefs 26-20 in overtime. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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Sloppy play has once again dominated the discussion about the Cowboy’s performance. And once again, the mental mistakes andlack of execution made this team look horrible. There were a total of 15 penalties, however two were not taken, both of which occurred on the Chiefs' eighth drive, which netted them 3 points:

On 2nd and 3 from the Dallas 49, Igor Olshansky was called for offsides (an epidemic on this drive), but the Chiefs took the gain on the play for a first down.

On 2nd and 6 from the Dallas 37, Jay Ratliff was called for, you guessed it, offsides. However, Kansas City was called for holding and the penalties offset. Ironically, the holding was on the lineman who was trying to keep Ratliff out of the backfield because, well, he was offsides.

Here’s a summary of the penalties and mistakes:

7 Offensive penalties:

Ineligible Downfield: 1
False Start: 3
Offensive Holding: 2
Illegal Formation: 1

6 Defensive penalties

Defensive Holding: 1
Offsides: 3
Pass Interference: 1
Unnecessary Roughness: 1

Here's an itemization of each penalty:

OFFENSE

Series 1

2nd and 14 from DAL 49: Andre Gurode, Ineligible downfield
This turned a 3rd and 7 into a 2nd and 19. Dallas was forced to punt
RESULT: Drive Stopper

Series 2

2nd and 5 from KC 36: Marc Colombo, False Start
First down on the subsequent play.
RESULT: No Harm
1st and 10 from KC 23: Kyle Kosier, Offensive Holding
Barber ran to the 7 yard line but it was brought back. Folk missed the subsequent field goal.
RESULT: Drive Stopper

Series 3

2nd and 6 from DAL 22: Andre Gurode does not snap the ball on the count, disrupting the play timing andcausing Leonard Davis to collide with Tony Romo and force a fumble. Kansas City recovers on the Dallas 16 and goes on to score touchdown.
RESULT: Turnover (TD for opponent)

Series 4

1st and 10 from DAL 32: Miles Austin, Illegal Formation
1st and 20 from DAL 22: Flozell Adams, False Start
Back-to-back penalties put Dallas in a 1st and 20 hole that they do not get out of.
RESULT: Drive Killer

Series 5

No penalties or errors (FG)

Series 6

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 7

No penalties or errors (TD)

Series 8

1st and 9 from KC 9: Flozell Adams, False Start
Dallas only gained another 4 yards from the 14 and got a field goal.
RESULT: Drive Killer

Series 9

No penalties or errors (TD)

Series 10

No penalties or errors (kneel down for OT)

Series 11

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 12

2nd and 5 from KC 50: Flozell Adams, Offensive Holding
Romo hit Austin for the TD in overtime to win it
RESULT: No Harm

Summary of Offensive Possessions:

Possessions:	11 (This excludes kneel down at end of 4th quarter)
Error-Free	5	2 Punts, 2 Touchdowns, 1 Field Goal (17 points)
Penalties/Errors	6	4 Drive Stoppers (1 FG), 1 Turnover, 1 Touchdown (9 points for DAL, 7 points for KC)

DEFENSE

Series 1

2nd and 6 from KC 16: Terence Newman, Defensive Holding
Gave KC a first down, but they punted after the next series of downs.
RESULT: No Harm

Series 2

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 3

OK, this isn’t on the defense but it occurred after the 2nd defensive series. Patrick Crayton muffs a punt and give the ball to the Chiefs on the Dallas 23.
RESULT: Turnover (FG)

Series 4

No penalties or errors (TD attributed to offensive turnover)

Series 5

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 6

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 7

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 8

1st and 10 from KC 44: Anthony Spencer, Offsides
2nd and 3 from DAL 49: Igor Olshansky, Offsides (declined)
2nd and 6 from DAL 37: Jay Ratliff, Offsides (offsetting due to holding)
1st and 10 from DAL 27: DeMarcus Ware, Offsides

A gaggle of ghastly good-grief gaffes. Need I say more...
RESULT: FG

Series 9

2nd and 7 from KC 23: Bradie James, Pass Interference
Pass was incomplete and would have brought up a 3rd and 7, instead of a first down. Chiefs ended up punting.
RESULT: No Harm

Series 10

3rd and 26 from KC 11: Alan Ball, Unnecessary Roughness
OK, this is picky because I don’t think this should have been a penalty. Ball definitely hit Bobby Wade in the check with his shoulder, but his shoulder pad did slide up and contact the face mask. But there was no head shot, or snapping of the receiver’s head. Granted, it wasn’t as horrific as the phantom penalty that Tom Brady milked from the referee last week, but, as they say on the FOUR-LETTER, "Come on, Man!". Anyway, Ratliff blocked the field goal attempt later.
RESULT: No Harm

Series 11

No penalties or errors (TD). However I would like to throw a mental error to the horrific defensive calls in this drive. Having defenders play off when you know there’s a short pass coming is something we’ve all railed against.

Series 12

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Series 13

No penalties or errors (Punt)

Summary of Defensive Possessions:

Possessions:	13
Error-Free	7	6 Punts 1 Touchdown (7 points for KC)
Penalties/Errors	5	2 Field Goals (6 points for KC)

Feeling Danger at Strong Safety

Rafael Vela — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 01:00:26 -0000

More photos » by Chris Schneider - AP

The Cowboys may lean heavily on Ken Hamlin the next month. (AP Photo/Chris Schneider)

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NFL teams can absorb injuries when they are spead out. Coordinators cringe when the injuries blow a single position off the depth charts. That happened to last year's Cowboys team at several positions.

Think left guard. Kyle Kosier goes down. Montrae Holland is supposed to spell him but takes three quarters of the season to get fully prepared. Then, he injures an ankle four quarters into his time in the lineup. Wide receiver had the same issue. Miles Austin and Sam Hurd lost a lot of time to injury. Then Dallas acquired Roy WIlliams, who suffered plantar fasciitis just two games after Tony Romo returned to the lineup.

The bogey position on the defense was strong safety. Roy Williams went down early. His backup Pat Watkins tried playing with an injured neck and finally had to be pulled. Dallas had to claim Keith Davis off waivers from Miami and play him for significant time. Then, he went down against Baltimore, meaning the Cowboys had to play much of that critical game with street free agent Tra Battle, their fourth option. Given Davis' marginal status, one can reasonably claim Dallas didn't have an NFL caliber strong safety on the field last year.

The team cut ties with Davis and Williams and then acquired Gerald Sensabaugh through free agency and Michael Hamlin in the draft. Four games into this still-young season, Cowboys strong safeties again resemble Spinal Tap drummers.

Hamlin broke a wrist on a special teams play in the 49ers preseason game and has been absent every since. Sensabaugh broke a thumb early in the Denver loss and had surgery early this week. The Cowboys are gain working with a third teamer, this time the last-stand Watkins, and the early impressions are not pretty.

Watkins took a lot of grief from Bill Parcells his head-first tackling technique. The Tuna warned Watkins that he was risking serious injury by diving low at runners and receivers. Pat is still taking those risks. He missed a couple of tackles near the line by diving at Knowshon Moreno's ankles. Moreno easily stopped over Watkins and continued up the field.

In the open field, Watkins' tackling technique can be described as grab-the-shoulder-pads, fall-backwards, and hope-the-two-of-you -and-short of the first down marker. He may be the softest defender I've ever seen. He's just as tentative forcing play and tackling now as he was when he played with a disc problem last year.

Josh McDaniel didn't attack Watkins too much but he did isolate tight end Tony Scheffler on Watkins three times by lining Scheffler as a wide receiver. Denver completed two of those passes for two first downs. When Denver threw to Scheffler a fourth time Mike Jenkins had coverage responsibility.

Dallas can probably get past Kansas City with Watkins at strong safety. Sean Ryan is a Pat Watkins-caliber tight end, who has bounced around the bottom quarter of several NFL rosters. The matchups will get considerably tougher after the break. Seattle has John Carlson, and Cowboys fans will recall how he toasted Keith Davis to a crispy brown last Thanksgiving. Atlanta will then bring Tony Gonzalez to Cowboys Stadium. Do I need to explain him? The following week, Philadelphia will match Brent Celek against whomever the Cowboys play at the strong. He's not great, but if your safety isn't up to the matchup, he will make you pay. The Eagles started their second half comeback in last year's NFC Championship game on Celek's catches.

What you see are three speed tight ends who can be focal points of passing attacks, with head coaches who know how to use them. The Cowboys corners have had two strong games and have played the way they did in the preseason. The opposition will ignore then and go at the safeties and linebackers if the matchups present themselves there. These games should be competitive and one mismatch could be what throws a game against the Cowboys.

I don't think Wade Phillips puts his season and his job at Pat Watkins' disposal. If Sensabaugh can't make a quick return, I would not be surprised to see Ken Hamlin slide into the box while Alan Ball sits in centerfield. The Cowboys played a lot of 11 vs. 10 last year. I don't think they'll tolerate this again.

BTB Game Balls: Giants @ Cowboys

Aaron Novinger — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 18:30:17 -0000

More photos » by LM Otero - AP

Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber did all he could to grab himself a BTB game ball for his Week Two performance.

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NFL Week Two is officially over. It's time to hand out the BTB game balls for the Cowboys' game against the Giants. Win or lose, each week I will virtually hand off a game ball to one player from each unit: offense, defense, special teams, and the coaching staff.

Offense

Marion Barber - His numbers were impressive: 18 carries for 124 yards and a touchdown. Even more impressive was what he meant to the offense. His vision was amazing. When there was a hole in the middle of the Giants' defensive front, he hit it hard. When the Giants would plug up the middle, he would break outside to take advantage of their lack of containment. His 26-yard reception just before halftime set up Nick Folk's 47-yard field goal.

Barber was the go-to guy Sunday night. Let's hope they let his strained quad heal, so they can get him back at 100%.

Honorable Mention: the Kosier/Cricket/Gurode combo, Felix Jones

Defense

Jay Ratliff - There's really no blocking this guy one-on-one. He's a beast in the middle with a great burst off the snap. Although he did give up some ground to double-teams by center, Shaun O' Hara, and one of the Giants' guards, he would employ an effective spin move to get himself back in the play.

Ratliff only had three tackles, but he clogged things up enough to help the Dallas D hold Brandon Jacobs to just 58 yards on 16 carries - 31 of which came on a play to the outside where DeMarcus Ware lost containment and Terence Newman put a nice hit on Keith Brooking. Without that play...well, you do the math.

Honorable Mention: Anthony Spencer, DeMarcus Ware

Special Teams

Nick Folk - Along with going 4-of-4 on extra points, Folk's 47-yarder just before the half was dead center. He is the kind of kicker that doesn't seem to get rattled. Had he been given a chance to win the game, he would have most likely done just that.

Frankly, this should go to the leader of the special team's units; but, there is a coaching game ball reserved for him.

Honorable Mention: Bobby Carpenter, Deon Anderson

Coaching

Joe DeCamillis - Solid. Sure, McBriar averaged a net of 43.5 yards on his punts, and Buehler kicked half of his six kickoffs in the end zone, notching one touchback. Those guys, along with Folk, do help. But check out what Coach Joe D's coverage units did against the Giants.

On kick returns, New York averaged just 22 yards with a long of 29. On three punt returns, they turned in a measly 13 yards with a long of nine.

I also applaud his decisions on the kickoff return units. Even though Felix fumbled, he stuck with him on the next return. And his creativity on the Miles Austin 29-yard return just before the half was also impressive. He had Sam Hurd and Marvin White loop all the way back from the left side of the field to the right, which timed out well enough to provide lead blocks for Austin.

Honorable Mention: Jason Garrett, Hudson Houck

Who gets your game balls?

Our Scrubs Are Worse Than Yours: The 49ers Out-Reserve the Cowboys 20-13

Rafael Vela — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 03:06:14 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

Kevin Ogletree showed that he could beat starting NFL corners. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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The Cowboys played another slowball game tonight, partly by design. The offense missed starting WR Roy Williams and backup Sam Hurd. The Cowboys nonetheless showed the ability to move the ball in methodical fashion, dividing 18 first half carries between Marion Barber (13 carries) and Felix Jones (five more) en route to a 10-3 halftime lead.

Dallas could have had more points but took three points off the scoreboard with a penalty. The first team offense dominated time of possession and nearly doubled the 49ers yardage output. Some fine tuning remains, but the fundaments are promising. The top line offered superb protection to Tony Romo, who often had several seconds to scan the field for targets. The backup wideouts performed adequately. Miles Austin made a couple of impressive catches. Kevin Ogletree, the oncoming rookie from Virginia, worked easily with the starters, running crisp routes and beating 49ers starter Nate Clements.

The 49ers reserves outplayed their Cowboys counterparts, as third stringer Nate Davis led a late, 91-yard TD drive to give San Francisco a 20-13 victory, the winning score coming with 33 seconds left. Here are some snap notes from the contest.

Play of the Game

Every NFL team has a stock number of runs in its arsenal. Dives, off tackles, counters, sweeps,etc. They are run out of every offensive package. Good teams are good at disgusing their base runs and therefore making the ordinary look novel. When they can do this to a defense, the results can exceed expectations.

Tonight the Cowboys ran a 2nd quarter wrinkle on power right, a counter play that is a staple of their running game. The Cowboys had run power run and left a few times early in the game, but in the 2nd quarter Jason Garrett sprang it on the 'Niners D from a two tight end set.

On 1st and 10 from the San Fran 30, Dallas deployed in a one-back, two TE set, with Martellus Bennett in the traditional TE spot outside RT Marc Colombo, with Jason Witten on a wing outside Bennett. Before the snap, Witten flexed into the backfield and lined up as an offset-I fullback behind and between LT Flozell Adams and LG Kyle Kosier. At the snap, both Kosier and Witten pulled right and led Marion Barber around right end.

This is a twist on the classic Green Bay Packers sweep from the '60s. In those days, guards Fuzzy Thurston and Jerry Kramer would pull to the strong side, where the linemen and tight end would block down on the linemen on that side. One would hook the outside linebacker while the other would kick out the inside backer. You can almost hear Vince Lombardi exclaiming, "you get a seal here and a seal here and you run the play in-the-alley!"

Dallas ran it the way Lombardi drew it up. C Andre Gurode sealed off WILB Patrick Willis; RG Leonard Davis took out the nose tackle, and RT Colombo and TE Bennett double teamed the strong side DE. Kosier slammed the crashing OLB inside. Witten locked on to SILB Takeo Spikes and rode him towards the sideline. The textbook blocking slashed a huge seam in the 'Niners front and Marion Barber romped fourteen yards upfield.

Somewhere, the old Rock of Granite was smiling.

Notes

-- Dallas first team offense has been very effective at ball control the last two weeks. The Cowboys amassed 41 minutes of possession time against Tennessee and had over nineteen minutes in the first half tonight. Is this a teaser for the season?

I doubt it. Jason Garrett likes to throw the ball down the field. He's kept much, in fact all of his deep game under wraps. That's typical. Three years ago, Bill Parcells didn't install any of his blitz packages until the team had broken camp. It's still a vanilla world. I'll take Dallas' ability to move consistently while playing simply as a positive.

-- Kevin Ogletree take a bow. He worked as the split end when Dallas went three wide and caught two quick passes for 36 yards. He was well open on a third but Tony Romo overthrew him.

-- Last year, when Dallas played the 49ers, the Receiver Who Cannot be Named lit up CB Nate Clements, who tried covering him without safety help. Tonight, Patrick Crayton and Kevin Ogletree had 50 yards on him in just over 15 minutes of play and just missed a couple more. Is Clements losing some of his mojo or is Ogletree a find on par with that 81 guy? The answer is probably somewhere in the middle.

-- David Buehler showed the value of a long leg tonight. When kicks are fielded two to three yards behind the goal-line, good coverage holds them inside the 2. The "bad" coverage play saw the ball returned to the 30. This was the average starting spot last year.

-- What's a top rusher worth? Early in the 1st Demarcus Ware blitzed off the weakside. The 49ers kept a back in to assist the left tackle with Ware. Keith Brooking, who had the back in coverage, sprinted untouched on a delayed blitz and got a hard shot on the quarterback.

-- Good recognition. The Niners ran a couple of plays from their "wildcat" package at the 1st Dallas defense and did nothing. Marcus Spears crashed down the LOS on one play and dropped Frank Gore for no gain. It was good to see that none of the trickery fooled the front seven.

-- Dallas should be prepared for the screen pass. The 49ers ran them about ten times tonight.

Needs Work

-- Felix Jones missed a block and let a blitzer get into Tony Romo's face. Romo tried loading up on a deep throw to an open Ogletree, who got behind Clements on a go route. Romo could not follow through and his duck was picked off by Dre Bly.

-- The second and third team DL need work. I don't see anybody after the top six of Ratliff, Spears, Olshansky, Hatcher, Bowen and Siavii who stood out. The 49ers backups pushed the third teamers around.

-- We may have watched footbal natural selection at work tonight. NIck Folk ended Dallas opening drive with a 49 yard field goal. A holding penalty on Cory Proctor negated the score. Dallas signed veteran Duke Preston to challenge Proctor this week. This penalty doesn't help Proctor's cause.

-- Isaiah Stanback may be suffering a similar fate. He played hard on the coverage teams and made a decent return of a kickoff, but fumbled after catching an eight-yard out in the 4th. How much sand remains in his hourglass?

-- That goes triple for Courtney Brown, who kept a late 49ers drive alive when he committed an interference penalty directly in front of Wade Phillips, who make his displeasure unknown in a loud and emphatic fashion.

Injury Roster

-- LB Jason Williams limped off the field early in the 4th quarter with an ankle injury. X-ray results unknown.

-- Backup S/CB Alan Ball was smacked in the head by a teammate after making a tackle on a kickoff. His neck was examined by the team doctor and Ball walked off unassisted after lying on the turf for a couple of minutes. He's presently described as having a "neck strain." More as I hear it.

-- Rookie S Michael Hamlin had his wrist x-rayed. Results are unknown.

Cowboys vs. Titans Recap: Small Deposits Could Bring Big Dividends

Rafael Vela — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:39:29 -0000

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The Cowboys won most of these one-on-one duels against the Titans. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

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The Titans are big. They're physical. They're good.

It didn't matter.

The Cowboys made their share of fundamental mistakes Friday night. They missed tackles, which led to a big kickoff return and Tennessee's lone long run of the night. Mike Jenkins didn't jam Justin Gage effectively, denying Ken Hamlin the time to rotate over and defend the Titan's lone score.

On the other hand, Dallas' starters won a majority of the man-on-man duels, along the line of scrimmage and in the secondary. Here are several individual wins which accumulated into a big, 20-point win.

Short Yardage Success

Welcome back, Kyle Kosier. Maybe it's his magic personality. Maybe his beard scares the opposition. Whatever the reason, the interior line plays better when he's around. Leonard Davis and Andre Gurode played below their Pro Bowl '07 run-blocking standards last year. With Kosier back, they handled the Titans very good DT rotation. Want proof? Five times in the first half, Dallas ran in 3rd-and-2, 4th-and-1 and in goal-line situations. The calls succeeded every time.

Dallas did run some trickery on one, faking a Julius Crosslin dive and running a naked pitch to Marion Barber. The other four were simple wins. Both TD runs were impressive. Marion Barber ran unimpeded behind a pulling Koser for the first score, after Gurode and Davis smothered their men. Felix Jones scored the second against equally thin resistance, because Jason Witten and the surprising Crosslin sealed the right edge of Tennessee's defense.

The Cowboys have been poor in these running situations the past few years. We should be wary of overreacting to one game, but Tennessee offers a quality front. I'm guardedly optimistic.

Stuffing the Titans' Run

Remember Chris Johnson's big night? No? That's because he didn't have one. Dallas' starting defense looked stout against Tennessee's ballyhooed line. Igor Olshansky was a rock at right DE. Michael Roos could not move him off the line. Olshansky and Demarcus Ware should make the left side very hard to challenge this year. Jay Ratliff overpowered Tennessee's center. On his lone running down with the first team, Junior Siavii stacked a double team and created mid-line chaos on a two-yard Titans run. It's only one play, but its better than a bad play.

Behind them, new ILB Keith Brooking showed the ability to get off blocks that Zach Thomas lacked last year. He's the most fluid and instinctive player at that position since Dat Nguyen.

Magnificent Isolation

Dallas kept the game plan simple. Jason Garrett called just one long pass to a receiver Friday, a go route for Roy Williams which Tony Romo floated out of bounds. Nevertheless, the Dallas skill position players made big plays. Patrick Crayton shook free from the Titans slot corner for a big 3rd-down conversion. He beat an attempted Michael Griffin tackle on an end around, turning a potential one yard gain into an eight yarder. Felix Jones made the most explosive basic just before half, when he caught a two-yard delay, made three men miss, then romped 47 yards.

The Cowboys have lots of guys who can win these matchups. Witten beat both Titans safeties. Roy WIlliams ran mostly hooks and quick outs, but he caught his passes against Cortland Finnegan. When Romo threw him a smoke route at the line, Roy W. broke Finnegan's tackle and gained eight. These are the types of simple victories that make a coordinator look brilliant.

Execution wins football games. Trickery is nice, and deep passes are nice. Those are the big payouts on the ledger sheets. But they're lone plays in a 140-150 play game. Consistently running a sweep eight yards instead of three; consistently taking a swing pass for ten yards instead of two; consistently converting on the goal-line, consistently stopping opposing runners at two or three yards instead of seven eight, these are the small deposits which accrue over three hours into wins.

This is the small-risk/big-play ball Dallas played Friday night. More of this please.

Dallas Cowboys 2009 Training Camp: Practice #2

Dave Halprin — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 16:55:47 -0000

More photos » by Eric Gay - AP

Joe DeCamillis is trying to shape up a special teams unit that was anything but special last year.

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This morning's practice was a full-pads practice. Stephen Hodge was still working on the side because of injury, and a big white guy was also over there but he didn't have a jersey on so I couldn't tell who it was. (UPDATE: Todd Archer sent me an email telling me the "big white guy" was Tim Anderson. Thanks Todd!)

The Cowboys seem to be placing an emphasis on special teams as they opened practice again by working on that area. First, they broke into groups; the gunners were working on techniques to get past the blockers, another group worked on punt return blocking from the middle and the third worked on blocking the gunners. It looked like they were emphasizing proper technique and balance. They moved to some actual punting with Mat McBriar, he had some good punts that were high but not very long along with a few that were not up to his standards. He looked to be kicking free and easy; his injury appears to be fully recovered. Catching punts were Terence Newman, Patrick Crayton and newcomer Willie Reid. Covering punts as gunners were Courtney Brown, DeAngelo Smith, Pat Watkins and Alan Ball.

After that session they broke into positional warm-ups then came together for team stretching. They broke off to work on FG's after that with both Nick Folk and David Buehler taking turns. They really didn't go for distance, but the sound of the ball coming off Buehler's foot was striking, the boom was just a little louder than Folk's.

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They broke off into positional drills with the offense going through some running plays and the defense practicing technique drills in their groups. During these drills on offense, the second team o-line was Pat McQuistan, Ryan Gibbons, Cory Procter, Montrae Holland and Doug Free. The defensive backs were working on close-coverage man-to-man techniques with the "offensive" player doing start-stop patterns and the DB was supposed to stay with him as he slowed down and sped up again. The WRs were working on different short pattern drills including catching with another guy's hand in the face.

Next came a round of 9-on-9 - no WRs or CBs. Tony Romo opened with a middle run to MB3 through a nice hole but Gerald Sensabaugh caused him to fumble. Felix Jones went left and followed a nice pull block by Leonard Davis. Tashard Choice ran a draw play through a huge hole in the middle. Jon Kitna gave Choice the ball but Stephen Bowen stuffed the play. Felix had a nice run up the middle and then Alonzo Coleman had a nice run on a delay. Stephen McGee took over and gave it to Coleman for a short run, then Keon Lattimore was stuffed by Victor Butler, and Justin Rogers stuffed a delay. Romo came back and gave it to MB3 who followed Bigg, Marc Colombo and Jason Witten for a nice gain, then MB3 had a good run after cutting off a block of Kyle Kosier, but on the next run Igor Olshansky shut it down. Kitna followed but the first run was doomed by Bowen and Bobby Carpenter, then Kitna dropped the snap on the next play. Felix had an OK run in traffic and was eventually stopped by Jerome Carter and they finished on a nice run by Choice behind the blocks of Doug Free and Montrae Holland.

The whole team reconvened for a session of 11-on-11. Romo handed off to MB3 who had a nice run up the middle, next was a counter roll-out with a short pass to Witten in the flats but Sensabaugh was not fooled and made the stop. Marcus Spears got good pressure on Romo who dumped it to MB3 but Keith Brooking was there for the tackle. They tried a pitch to Felix but Brandon Williams had good contain and Steve Octavien made the tackle. Romo hit Witten on an out after feeling the pressure, then he connected on a long pass to Miles Austin who found a hole in the zone coverage.

Kitna came on and gave it to Choice who made a nifty run through traffic, then he tried a pass but felt the pressure from Marcus Dixon and Michael Hawkins broke up the pass. They tried a run play but Holland, on a pull, collided with Kitna in the backfield from bad timing. Another little reverse roll-out pass connected with John Phillips, and Kitna finished by hitting Kevin Ogletree on a hitch with Orlando Scandrick making the tackle. McGee dumped a pass to Lattimore and then handed it to Lattimore who made a short gain in traffic.

Romo was back in, but Witten had a false start and was replaced by Bennett. MB3 had a nice run after Flozell Adams popped Brandon Williams on the edge, followed by Mike Jenkins making a nice break-up on a pass intended for Roy Williams, Ocatvien had gotten good pressure on Romo. Felix tried a run but Bowen was there to stop him, then they tried another counter roll-out but Dixon stayed at home and blew up the play. Kitna came on and pitched to Choice who had a nice run, on the next play Justin Rogers and Victor Butler met at the QB but they threw the pass anyway, but Hawkins had good coverage. DeMarcus Ware busted up a run in the backfield that was meant for Choice. Rudy Carpenter tried a handoff but Jay Ratliff busted through and caused a fumble on the exchange. Carpenter then tried to hit Mike Jefferson on an out but he ended up out-of-bounds.

After a short break, they came back for another session of 11-on-11. Romo threw a shot pass to Bennett but Sensabaugh closed it out quickly with a tackle. MB3 had a short run before Bradie James stopped him. Bennett had a nice 15-yard catch over the middle, Sam Hurd made a nice catch with Jenkins draped all over him, then Felix ran a pitch play following blocks of Bigg and Colombo. They tried Felix again in the middle but there was no room. Kitna started with an incompletion intended for Isaiah Stanback. He then dropped a shotgun snap halting the play, then John Phillips and Kitna almost collided after Phillips was in motion throwing off the timing of a pass play. Kitna finished with an OK draw to Lattimore. McGee hit Ogletree with a perfect pass but Ogletree dropped it. McQuistan had a false start and he was immediately replaced. (The Cowboys aren't tolerating the false starts in this camp). Under pressure, McGee had to dump a pass to Lattimore.

Romo was back in and ran a successful screen to MB3 who followed a block from Kosier. They tried a dump off to MB3 next but Jason Williams broke it up. Roy made a short catch in front of Scandrick, they tried a draw from the shotgun but Matt Stewart stuffed it. Romo hit Felix short over the middle but Victor Butler popped the ball out from behind for a fumble. Romo finished with a pass in the flats to Lattimore. Kitna hit Bennett on a pass, then tried an off-tackle with Choice but Ware and Ratliff both penetrated into the backfield. Ware followed that up by sacking Kitna. Kitna finished by overthrowing Willie Reid on a deep crossing pattern. Rudy Carpenter then tossed a sweep to Lattimore who made a beautiful cut towards the middle for good yards, then they tried a dump pass but Jason Williams was all over it.

That was it, another practice this afternoon.