SB Nation User Blog: JasonAHeath

Tale of the Tape

JasonAHeath — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:04:16 -0000

How do the Cowboys and Eagles match up stats wise?

Lets take a quick look at the numbers.

First, the Offense:

Total Offense as of Week 8

Rank

Cowboys #2 411.1 yards per game

Eagles #15 344.4 yards per game

Passing (Yards per Game)

Cowboys #7 263.6 yards per game

Eagles #13 229.9 yards per game

Rushing (Yards per Game)

Cowboys #6 147.6 yards per game

Eagles #15 114.6 yards per game

Both quarterbacks have shown some inconsistency at the beginning of the season, but seem to be settling down.
Both teams have hot young receivers that are tearing up opposing defenses with long plays.

Now let's move to the defense.

Total Defense as of Week 8

Cowboys #22 giving up 342.1 yards per game

Eagles #10 giving up 296.9 yards per game

Passing (Yards per Game)

Cowboys #22 giving up 237.1 yards per game

Eagles #10 giving up 193.7 yards per game

Rushing (Yards per Game)

Cowboys #13 giving up 105 yards per game

Eagles #12 giving up 103.1 yards per game

The Eagles get the advantage in the on this side of the ball. Again, I am not factoring into the quality of the opponents that either team has played against, just doing some basic data mining on numbers.

X-Factors

Sacks

Cowboys (tied #11) 17

Eagles #2 23

This stat will be one of the biggest game changers.
Field position will be critical in this game, with rushing yards coming at a premium.
I will not be surprised if it comes to a last second field goal either way.

Interceptions

Cowboys #28 4

Eagles #3 14

Very obvious edge here. Hopefully, Romo will continue to get the to the line with plenty of time to make his reads.
I look for JG/Romo to counter the aggressive rush of the Eagles with screens to Felix and alot of quick passes to the hot receiver.

Opponent Scoring

Cowboys #10 TD's against: rushing 3 receiving 12

Eagles #7 TD's against: rushing 4 receiving 11

The Opponent Scoring shows a very similar defensive snapshot of both teams: Great against the run, but giving up plays in the passing game.

With both quarterbacks able to extend the play with their legs, this game could be a shootout.
However, if either team can establish a solid run, or consistently get pressure with their front 4, you can throw these stats out the window.

My thought is that this game is going to be decided by the secondary that makes the fewest errors.
I am personally hoping that Samuels is put against Austin. Miles has shown that if you don't wrap him up quick, he will make you pay, and Samuels has shown problems in that area.

I think this will be one of the wildest games of the year.

Oh, and for the haters who dogged me on this post, I still stand by what I said!

Romo #1 in nation

JasonAHeath — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:12:07 -0000

Romo #1 in nation

Why keep watching?

JasonAHeath — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:09:33 -0000

9 points.

That's the combined score that we lost our two games by.
Both losses came in the closing minutes, and both times, we had a chance to hold on for the win.

But the Cowboys blew it.
Brandon Marshall didn't bull his way thru a crowd of defenders, he ran past the keystone cops.

Eli Manning took advantage of the short fields he was given, and *still* almost didn't make it happen.

I haven't seen so many flukey plays (witten foot interception), boneheaded mistakes (offsides, defense!) and poor officiating (helmet to helmet hit on the QB not called) in I don't know when.

But, even as *horrible* as some of these games have been, we have not been blown out, and in both losses, it was spectacularly bad plays on our part that led to the losses.
We were not dominated by any means.
In fact, remove the Cowboys gaffes, and the Gnats and Denver both get a loss.
But that's how the game goes.

I look at the Gnats, and though they cruised thru 4 other teams very easily, it took the Cowboys spotting them free points and some last minutes heroics to win that game.
Now that all the trash teams are out of the way, let's see how they do in this 6 game grinder that is on their schedule.

I look at our next 6 games, and while not easy, we do at least have a good shot at a 4-2 split.

I think that by the end of November, we will find that the Cowboys are not as bad as they appear, and the Gnats are not as good as they appear.

I still think the last game with Philly will be the "Brawl for it All" in the East.

Last thoughts on the Gnats game

JasonAHeath — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 14:57:57 -0000

You would think with all the talk around the NY media so far this week, that the Gnats just won a superbowl.

and I guess, from their perspective, they did.

I mean, they had huge concerns about their rookie receivers, and now I guess after that one game, Manningham is the second coming of Amani Toomer to them.

Rock on, Peter King is sure to make them #1 in his power rankings now!

And that fearsome defensive front?

Well, the obvious reason they couldn't get to Romo was that the Dallas O-line kept waylaying them with brickbats and leadpipes and roundhose kicks to the face.
And Tuck, Osi and the others are so effective, they don't have to actually get to the QB to cause havoc, simply being in front of a QB will make him throw picks!

And rushing defense?
the Gnats hold opponents to a mere 6.7 ypc.
But the Gnats don't need defense when they have sweet sweet lady luck on their side.

and speaking of rushing, the Gnats are dealing out a punishing 3.5 ypc! Ball control, baby!

and the Red Zone? 4/5 trips got the Gnats ONE TD, but hey, what's to worry, Eli is still elite, baby.

So congrats to a winning the game, Gnats.
Enjoy your paper tiger while you can, as I doubt very many other teams will gift wrap you as many turnovers as the Boys did.

The only thing that matters right now

JasonAHeath — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:37:21 -0000

is getting ready for Carolina on Monday night.

Hopefully, the extra day between games will give Barber some much needed rest and allow the Boys some time to correct the errors on defense, while the offense works on honing their timing and decision making skills.

The season won't be lost in September.

This loss is an opportunity to correct some poor decision making skills.
Preparation can often times help overcome bad luck.
But for a couple of bad decisions on the offenses part and a lucky break on the Giants fluke "ankle" touchdown, the Giants were dominated.

Just beat Carolina, that's all we have to do...

NFL: Video screen ok

JasonAHeath — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:02:52 -0000

NFL: Video screen ok

Guess the media needs a new topic to bag on the Boys about...

Some thoughts from a long time lurker

JasonAHeath — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 19:13:32 -0000

1. I am loving the fact that the biggest Cowboys story in the national media is about a scoreboard!
I really want to thank both the Iggles and Vikes for sucking the media circus away from Valley Ranch.

2. I am watching closely to see how both teams handle the media dogging their every step, and now I read that there will be pro Vick rallies at the Jags game Thursday night. Welcome to the spotlight, Iggles. Enjoy.

3. With the off season tragedy of their training facility collapsing, and coaches and players being hurt, it makes me wonder if the players have formed a stronger bond due to the adversity they faced together.

4. Anyone getting the feeling of its "Us vs the World, and the World says we have no chance"? I love it.

5. I am looking forward to a team that doesn't have "swagger", but a pair of brass knuckles to punch other teams in the mouth with.

Ed Werder is a jerk

JasonAHeath — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 21:50:59 -0000

Ed Werder is a jerk

Ed the head owned