LaTunaNostra
09-28-2004, 12:02 AM
Gerry Fraley: Cowboys travel Air Parcells on offense
11:56 PM CDT on Monday, September 27, 2004
LANDOVER, Md. – Nothing has changed, Cowboys coach Bill Parcells insisted.
"Bill wants to run it," Parcells said in the days leading up to Monday night's game against Washington.
"But Bill wants to move the ball, too."
By any means possible. With this team, that means throwing the ball as often as possible.
Air Parcells!
It'll get you there eventually, but the flight will be bumpy.
The Cowboys' transformation into a throw-first team continued in the 21-18 win against Washington at FedEx Field. What the Cowboys accomplished on offense was built solely by the pass.
Cowboys 21, Redskins 18
Week 3 scores
Cowboys Forum
More Cowboys
They had touchdown drives of 80 and 83 yards. Each possession featured a 40-yard pass-related gain.
Quarterback Vinny Testaverde threw a season-low 29 passes but still has 115 attempts for three games. Only Cincinnati's Carson Palmer has thrown more often. He has 117 passes.
Palmer has the strength of youth. Can Testaverde's 40-year-old body make it through a season with more than 600 throws?
He'll have to do that.
For the Cowboys, the offensive option is not appealing.
The Cowboys again did not run well. They gained only 50 yards on 21 runs and had to pass to keep the ball late.
After two fruitless runs, Testaverde threw to tight end Dan Campbell for a vital first down with less than three minutes remaining. It was a risk they had to take.
All-purpose back Richie Anderson is the Cowboys' best runner, but Parcells must protect his aging body.
That leaves the burden with the passing game.
"I'm just trying to move the ball, like every other team in the league," Parcells said beforehand. "Try to move it the best way we can move it. If it's available to us, I've got guys that can execute it pretty well."
Three consecutive passes in the third quarter roused the Cowboys to life.
On a second-and-11 from the Cowboys'
19, Testaverde aired it out on a 48-yard completion to Antonio Bryant. Cornerback Fred Smoot had good coverage. Testaverde's throw and Bryant's catch were better.
That play stunned the Redskins. The Cowboys'
next two plays could not have been executed any better.
Keyshawn Johnson found a gaping opening in the middle for a 23-yard reception
. Tight end Jason Witten ran away from linebacker Antonio Pierce, a mismatch that will favor the Cowboys all season, for a 10-yard scoring catch.
When Washington challenged again, cutting the deficit to 14-10 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Cowboys fell back on the pass again.
Two Testaverde throws to Anderson produced 41 yards. Anderson switched roles and completed the possession with an option scoring pass to Terry Glenn.
An induced penalty was the best moment for the offense in the first half.
Testaverde threw into the end zone for Glenn, who drew an interference call on a stunned Walt Harris. The 41-yard penalty put the ball at the Washington 1, and Eddie George ran it in on the next play.
The scoring run was near George's per-carry average for the game: 1.7 yards.
For the Cowboys, passing is the lesser of two evils. The offense sputtered in the first half and failed to flatten the reeling Redskins.
A series that started from the Cowboys'
49 produced three plays and a punt. Testaverde had two incompletions, the latter under heavy blitz pressure.
On their next try, the Cowboys moved to a second-and-2 at the Washington 36. Ron Warner beat offensive tackle Flozell Adams to the inside and dropped ReShard Lee for a 1-yard loss. Testaverde could not get the ball to Johnson on third down.
Parcells has done it both ways in his career.
With the New York Giants, he ran what amounted to a single-wing grind-it-out offense. His 1990 team, which won the Super Bowl, had 114 more running plays than passes.
It changed with New England. Under Parcells, the Patriots twice had more than 700 pass plays in a season. The 1996 team, which reached the Super Bowl, had 231 more passes than runs.
There is a difference between being determined and being stubborn. A determined coach finds a way. A stubborn coach beats his head against the same wall.
"You can try to a point, but you have to devise other ways to do it and still be effective," Parcells said. "I never go into a game and say 'We're going to be this or that.' I try to look at what I have and use the players ability the best I can. That's what coaching is."
11:56 PM CDT on Monday, September 27, 2004
LANDOVER, Md. – Nothing has changed, Cowboys coach Bill Parcells insisted.
"Bill wants to run it," Parcells said in the days leading up to Monday night's game against Washington.
"But Bill wants to move the ball, too."
By any means possible. With this team, that means throwing the ball as often as possible.
Air Parcells!
It'll get you there eventually, but the flight will be bumpy.
The Cowboys' transformation into a throw-first team continued in the 21-18 win against Washington at FedEx Field. What the Cowboys accomplished on offense was built solely by the pass.
Cowboys 21, Redskins 18
Week 3 scores
Cowboys Forum
More Cowboys
They had touchdown drives of 80 and 83 yards. Each possession featured a 40-yard pass-related gain.
Quarterback Vinny Testaverde threw a season-low 29 passes but still has 115 attempts for three games. Only Cincinnati's Carson Palmer has thrown more often. He has 117 passes.
Palmer has the strength of youth. Can Testaverde's 40-year-old body make it through a season with more than 600 throws?
He'll have to do that.
For the Cowboys, the offensive option is not appealing.
The Cowboys again did not run well. They gained only 50 yards on 21 runs and had to pass to keep the ball late.
After two fruitless runs, Testaverde threw to tight end Dan Campbell for a vital first down with less than three minutes remaining. It was a risk they had to take.
All-purpose back Richie Anderson is the Cowboys' best runner, but Parcells must protect his aging body.
That leaves the burden with the passing game.
"I'm just trying to move the ball, like every other team in the league," Parcells said beforehand. "Try to move it the best way we can move it. If it's available to us, I've got guys that can execute it pretty well."
Three consecutive passes in the third quarter roused the Cowboys to life.
On a second-and-11 from the Cowboys'
19, Testaverde aired it out on a 48-yard completion to Antonio Bryant. Cornerback Fred Smoot had good coverage. Testaverde's throw and Bryant's catch were better.
That play stunned the Redskins. The Cowboys'
next two plays could not have been executed any better.
Keyshawn Johnson found a gaping opening in the middle for a 23-yard reception
. Tight end Jason Witten ran away from linebacker Antonio Pierce, a mismatch that will favor the Cowboys all season, for a 10-yard scoring catch.
When Washington challenged again, cutting the deficit to 14-10 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Cowboys fell back on the pass again.
Two Testaverde throws to Anderson produced 41 yards. Anderson switched roles and completed the possession with an option scoring pass to Terry Glenn.
An induced penalty was the best moment for the offense in the first half.
Testaverde threw into the end zone for Glenn, who drew an interference call on a stunned Walt Harris. The 41-yard penalty put the ball at the Washington 1, and Eddie George ran it in on the next play.
The scoring run was near George's per-carry average for the game: 1.7 yards.
For the Cowboys, passing is the lesser of two evils. The offense sputtered in the first half and failed to flatten the reeling Redskins.
A series that started from the Cowboys'
49 produced three plays and a punt. Testaverde had two incompletions, the latter under heavy blitz pressure.
On their next try, the Cowboys moved to a second-and-2 at the Washington 36. Ron Warner beat offensive tackle Flozell Adams to the inside and dropped ReShard Lee for a 1-yard loss. Testaverde could not get the ball to Johnson on third down.
Parcells has done it both ways in his career.
With the New York Giants, he ran what amounted to a single-wing grind-it-out offense. His 1990 team, which won the Super Bowl, had 114 more running plays than passes.
It changed with New England. Under Parcells, the Patriots twice had more than 700 pass plays in a season. The 1996 team, which reached the Super Bowl, had 231 more passes than runs.
There is a difference between being determined and being stubborn. A determined coach finds a way. A stubborn coach beats his head against the same wall.
"You can try to a point, but you have to devise other ways to do it and still be effective," Parcells said. "I never go into a game and say 'We're going to be this or that.' I try to look at what I have and use the players ability the best I can. That's what coaching is."