Mr Cowboy
08-31-2004, 07:02 PM
Secondary is primary concern
04:19 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 31, 2004
IRVING – After the third preseason game – and the final meaningful one – there are a few things coach Bill Parcells knows about his team.
He knows that 40-year-old Vinny Testaverde still has an NFL arm, which he showcased in the first half of Monday's 20-17 victory over the Titans.
He knows that receiver Keyshawn Johnson and rookie running back Julius Jones have the potential to energize a plodding offense.
And most of all, he knows that his secondary just made Tramon Douglas look like the second coming of Minnesota's Randy Moss.
Parcells is fond of saying his team is a work in progress. But after Monday's performance by the secondary, the word "progress" seems like a stretch.
As the Cowboys prepare to make a quick turnaround for Thursday's glorified scrimmage with the Chiefs, it's time to look beneath the radar.
Here are a few things that may have escaped your attention during Monday's game:
Little things lead to big night for Keyshawn: One of the biggest reasons the Cowboys brought in Keyshawn Johnson was to make tough third-down catches. And that's what he did against the Titans on Monday.
Testaverde connected with Johnson for nine yards on a third-and-9 on the team's second possession.
He then hit Johnson for 23 yards on a third-and-25 play on the same drive. The play set up kicker Billy Cundiff's 40-yard field goal.
On several third-and-short plays, Johnson raced down the field and basically posted up defensive backs like he was playing basketball.
Even though Johnson is relatively thin, he spreads his arms and legs out to make it virtually impossible for a defensive back to make a play from behind. It's a play that Terry Glenn and former Joey Galloway were not able to make last season.
Johnson finished with eight catches for 81 yards.
Parcells steamed about penalties: It would be one thing if all the Cowboys' penalties were coming from rookies. But veterans such as defensive tackle La'Roi Glover and left tackle Flozell Adams are also making costly errors.
For the second week in a row, Glover drew an offside penalty. And Adams had a false start.
"I saw a guy flinch," Glover said. "But it doesn't matter. I have to stop doing that."
The Cowboys had 11 penalties for 108 yards from young and old players alike.
Second-year tight end Jason Witten had a big night with seven catches for 109 yards, but a cranky Parcells still found something to complain about.
"He's another penalty-per-game guy," Parcells said. "So he's got to work on that."
The Cowboys have now committed 29 penalties in three preseason games.
Glover uses technique to overpower Titans guard: The Titans paid the price for trying to block La'Roi Glover one on one in the first quarter. Glover said he used his "bull-and-jerk" pass rush on right guard Benji Olson.
Glover said he went straight at Olson off the line and then tossed him aside when Olson lost his balance.
Olson looked like a rag doll as Glover raced past him to put pressure on Titans quarterback Steve McNair on the second possession. The Titans eventually started giving Olson help on Glover, which allowed nose tackle Leo Carson to make some plays.
Carson appears to be shaking off some of the rust from a sore right knee.
"I think we were all a little uptight on that first drive," Glover said. "But we relaxed and started playing after that."
Glover said he was concerned that the defense has given up scores on the opening drive in all three preseason games.
"There's no explanation for it," Glover said. "And I guarantee you we'll get burned if we keep doing that."
Jones not allowed to get hurt: Parcells has talked about how he doesn't like players tapping on their helmets to leave the game. And rookie running back Julius Jones found that out firsthand in the second half.
"It's a lesson learned," Jones said.
With 57 seconds left in the third quarter, Jones appeared to injure his left ankle. ReShard Lee played the rest of the way.
After the game, Jones wouldn't discuss his injury.
"You'll have to talk to Coach Parcells," he said.
Players are under strict orders not to discuss injuries. When players were asked about injuries during training camp, they immediately looked to see if Parcells was anywhere near them before saying anything.
Dive play works out nicely on final TD: With 27 seconds left in the third quarter, ReShard Lee followed center Tyson Walter, left guard Matt Lehr and left tackle Kurt Vollers into the end zone.
The play looked more like a rugby scrum than a football play. After the game, Lehr said he and Walter cleared out the nose tackle. Lehr then peeled off his block and got a shot on the middle linebacker. Meanwhile, Lee got in the middle of the scrum and let its momentum deposit him in the end zone.
"It was a dive play to the left," Lehr said. "We just got them going the other way."
Barnes has big night on special teams: Fullback Darian Barnes may have played his way onto the final roster Monday night. Barnes saw plenty of time on offense in the first half, but his two tackles – one on the opening kickoff and one on a punt return – had coaches and players rushing to congratulate him.
With 6:43 left in the third quarter, Barnes put the biggest hit of the night on Michael Waddell during a punt return.
"He tried to crouch down and absorb the blow," Barnes said. "But I was coming too fast. I knew it was going to be a big collision."
Free-agent rookie Lousaka Polite didn't see any action on offense during the game and last year's fullback, Jamar Martin, played mostly in the second half.
A bad sign ...
Running back Aveion Cason, linebacker Markus Steele and rookie linebacker Ryan Fowler spent most of Monday on the bench. In what could be considered a dress rehearsal for opening night against the Vikings, that can't be a good sign for them.
The only hope for a player such as Fowler is that Parcells didn't play him because he wants to sneak him onto the practice squad.
Cowboys punter uses Aussie rules: When a drive stalled in Titans territory early in the third quarter, former Australian rules football player Mat McBriar used his unique end-over-end style to ensure the ball didn't bounce into the end zone.
McBriar and kicking coach Steve Hoffman talk before each game to decide whether the conditions are right for the kick. Bill Parcells recently claimed that McBriar can actually put backspin on the ball, but Hoffman said that's impossible.
Tucker sees more time at right tackle: Second-year player Torrin Tucker played right tackle until late in the third quarter. Tucker, who worked at left tackle in practice last week, split the first two preseason games with rookie Jacob Rogers.
E-mail mmosley@dallasnews.com
04:19 PM CDT on Tuesday, August 31, 2004
IRVING – After the third preseason game – and the final meaningful one – there are a few things coach Bill Parcells knows about his team.
He knows that 40-year-old Vinny Testaverde still has an NFL arm, which he showcased in the first half of Monday's 20-17 victory over the Titans.
He knows that receiver Keyshawn Johnson and rookie running back Julius Jones have the potential to energize a plodding offense.
And most of all, he knows that his secondary just made Tramon Douglas look like the second coming of Minnesota's Randy Moss.
Parcells is fond of saying his team is a work in progress. But after Monday's performance by the secondary, the word "progress" seems like a stretch.
As the Cowboys prepare to make a quick turnaround for Thursday's glorified scrimmage with the Chiefs, it's time to look beneath the radar.
Here are a few things that may have escaped your attention during Monday's game:
Little things lead to big night for Keyshawn: One of the biggest reasons the Cowboys brought in Keyshawn Johnson was to make tough third-down catches. And that's what he did against the Titans on Monday.
Testaverde connected with Johnson for nine yards on a third-and-9 on the team's second possession.
He then hit Johnson for 23 yards on a third-and-25 play on the same drive. The play set up kicker Billy Cundiff's 40-yard field goal.
On several third-and-short plays, Johnson raced down the field and basically posted up defensive backs like he was playing basketball.
Even though Johnson is relatively thin, he spreads his arms and legs out to make it virtually impossible for a defensive back to make a play from behind. It's a play that Terry Glenn and former Joey Galloway were not able to make last season.
Johnson finished with eight catches for 81 yards.
Parcells steamed about penalties: It would be one thing if all the Cowboys' penalties were coming from rookies. But veterans such as defensive tackle La'Roi Glover and left tackle Flozell Adams are also making costly errors.
For the second week in a row, Glover drew an offside penalty. And Adams had a false start.
"I saw a guy flinch," Glover said. "But it doesn't matter. I have to stop doing that."
The Cowboys had 11 penalties for 108 yards from young and old players alike.
Second-year tight end Jason Witten had a big night with seven catches for 109 yards, but a cranky Parcells still found something to complain about.
"He's another penalty-per-game guy," Parcells said. "So he's got to work on that."
The Cowboys have now committed 29 penalties in three preseason games.
Glover uses technique to overpower Titans guard: The Titans paid the price for trying to block La'Roi Glover one on one in the first quarter. Glover said he used his "bull-and-jerk" pass rush on right guard Benji Olson.
Glover said he went straight at Olson off the line and then tossed him aside when Olson lost his balance.
Olson looked like a rag doll as Glover raced past him to put pressure on Titans quarterback Steve McNair on the second possession. The Titans eventually started giving Olson help on Glover, which allowed nose tackle Leo Carson to make some plays.
Carson appears to be shaking off some of the rust from a sore right knee.
"I think we were all a little uptight on that first drive," Glover said. "But we relaxed and started playing after that."
Glover said he was concerned that the defense has given up scores on the opening drive in all three preseason games.
"There's no explanation for it," Glover said. "And I guarantee you we'll get burned if we keep doing that."
Jones not allowed to get hurt: Parcells has talked about how he doesn't like players tapping on their helmets to leave the game. And rookie running back Julius Jones found that out firsthand in the second half.
"It's a lesson learned," Jones said.
With 57 seconds left in the third quarter, Jones appeared to injure his left ankle. ReShard Lee played the rest of the way.
After the game, Jones wouldn't discuss his injury.
"You'll have to talk to Coach Parcells," he said.
Players are under strict orders not to discuss injuries. When players were asked about injuries during training camp, they immediately looked to see if Parcells was anywhere near them before saying anything.
Dive play works out nicely on final TD: With 27 seconds left in the third quarter, ReShard Lee followed center Tyson Walter, left guard Matt Lehr and left tackle Kurt Vollers into the end zone.
The play looked more like a rugby scrum than a football play. After the game, Lehr said he and Walter cleared out the nose tackle. Lehr then peeled off his block and got a shot on the middle linebacker. Meanwhile, Lee got in the middle of the scrum and let its momentum deposit him in the end zone.
"It was a dive play to the left," Lehr said. "We just got them going the other way."
Barnes has big night on special teams: Fullback Darian Barnes may have played his way onto the final roster Monday night. Barnes saw plenty of time on offense in the first half, but his two tackles – one on the opening kickoff and one on a punt return – had coaches and players rushing to congratulate him.
With 6:43 left in the third quarter, Barnes put the biggest hit of the night on Michael Waddell during a punt return.
"He tried to crouch down and absorb the blow," Barnes said. "But I was coming too fast. I knew it was going to be a big collision."
Free-agent rookie Lousaka Polite didn't see any action on offense during the game and last year's fullback, Jamar Martin, played mostly in the second half.
A bad sign ...
Running back Aveion Cason, linebacker Markus Steele and rookie linebacker Ryan Fowler spent most of Monday on the bench. In what could be considered a dress rehearsal for opening night against the Vikings, that can't be a good sign for them.
The only hope for a player such as Fowler is that Parcells didn't play him because he wants to sneak him onto the practice squad.
Cowboys punter uses Aussie rules: When a drive stalled in Titans territory early in the third quarter, former Australian rules football player Mat McBriar used his unique end-over-end style to ensure the ball didn't bounce into the end zone.
McBriar and kicking coach Steve Hoffman talk before each game to decide whether the conditions are right for the kick. Bill Parcells recently claimed that McBriar can actually put backspin on the ball, but Hoffman said that's impossible.
Tucker sees more time at right tackle: Second-year player Torrin Tucker played right tackle until late in the third quarter. Tucker, who worked at left tackle in practice last week, split the first two preseason games with rookie Jacob Rogers.
E-mail mmosley@dallasnews.com