CCBoy
09-06-2012, 02:57 AM
Cowboys 24, Giants 17: You Had Questions, Dallas Has Answers
Posted by Rafael at Thursday, September 06, 2012
http://www.cowboysnation.com/2012/09/cowboys-24-giants-17-you-had-questions.html
The Summer of the Hamstring did little to answer some major questions among the Cowboys faithful.
•How good are the free agent guards?
•Who is Dallas third receiver?
•Will Miles Austin be a perennial tease, subject to more hamstring injuries?
•How good is Bruce Carter? Is he Sean Lee II, or Bobby Carpenter's clone?
•Is Morris Claiborne worth the 2nd round pick he cost?
•Can DeMarco Murray be the bell-cow running back?
•Can the Cowboys make do with the centers on their roster?
For one night at least, the answers are all in the affirmative. Consider:
Mackenzy Bernardeau allowed a sack on Dallas second offensive play from scrimmage, but he and fellow guard Nate Livings, along with backup center Ryan Cook built a solid interior pocket for Tony Romo. The Giants ends pressured Romo, but from the second series forward, the Giants could not generate a consistent interior push. This gave Romo room to float in the pocket and extend plays.
The solid protection allowed Romo to rebound from a 2nd quarter interception. He led Dallas to 24 points on the team's last five possessions of the game. After a sluggish start, that saw New York with a 3-0 lead late in the 2nd quarter, Garrett and Romo found a play calling rhythm, one that carried over from the preseason. The Cowboys threw quick passes on first downs, setting up short down-and-distances for DeMarco Murray runs. The Giants were not able to harass Romo with four-man rushes and resorted to more blitzing than normal. Romo beat them repeatedly, and got big runs in the middle quarters from Murray on draws and quick traps.
As the game wore on, and Dallas built a lead, the line was able to create more 1st down space for Murray. The offensive line has had limited reps this year because of the accumulated hamstring pulls, but they grew stronger as the game progressed, while New York's vaunted line clearly tired. Murray finished with 121 yards on 20 carries, capping his night with a 48-yard run that recalled Emmitt Smith's famous '92 touchdown run against Atlanta. Murray started right, broke a tackle, spun left, broke free from another would-be tackler, then found room up the right sideline...
Posted by Rafael at Thursday, September 06, 2012
http://www.cowboysnation.com/2012/09/cowboys-24-giants-17-you-had-questions.html
The Summer of the Hamstring did little to answer some major questions among the Cowboys faithful.
•How good are the free agent guards?
•Who is Dallas third receiver?
•Will Miles Austin be a perennial tease, subject to more hamstring injuries?
•How good is Bruce Carter? Is he Sean Lee II, or Bobby Carpenter's clone?
•Is Morris Claiborne worth the 2nd round pick he cost?
•Can DeMarco Murray be the bell-cow running back?
•Can the Cowboys make do with the centers on their roster?
For one night at least, the answers are all in the affirmative. Consider:
Mackenzy Bernardeau allowed a sack on Dallas second offensive play from scrimmage, but he and fellow guard Nate Livings, along with backup center Ryan Cook built a solid interior pocket for Tony Romo. The Giants ends pressured Romo, but from the second series forward, the Giants could not generate a consistent interior push. This gave Romo room to float in the pocket and extend plays.
The solid protection allowed Romo to rebound from a 2nd quarter interception. He led Dallas to 24 points on the team's last five possessions of the game. After a sluggish start, that saw New York with a 3-0 lead late in the 2nd quarter, Garrett and Romo found a play calling rhythm, one that carried over from the preseason. The Cowboys threw quick passes on first downs, setting up short down-and-distances for DeMarco Murray runs. The Giants were not able to harass Romo with four-man rushes and resorted to more blitzing than normal. Romo beat them repeatedly, and got big runs in the middle quarters from Murray on draws and quick traps.
As the game wore on, and Dallas built a lead, the line was able to create more 1st down space for Murray. The offensive line has had limited reps this year because of the accumulated hamstring pulls, but they grew stronger as the game progressed, while New York's vaunted line clearly tired. Murray finished with 121 yards on 20 carries, capping his night with a 48-yard run that recalled Emmitt Smith's famous '92 touchdown run against Atlanta. Murray started right, broke a tackle, spun left, broke free from another would-be tackler, then found room up the right sideline...