Breaking Down the ‘Boys: Midseason Offensive Grades for Cowboys

[RS12]

QB Tony Romo: B-

Let’s jump right into what figures to be the most controversial grade of them all. Look, I understand Romo hasn’t played the same type of ball we’ve seen in the past. I thought Romo’s best season was last year, and there’s no doubt that 2012 is a downgrade.

Still, the quarterback has gotten absolutely no help from his offensive coordinator and the majority of his teammates. The offensive line, although not as poor as people tend to think, still hasn’t been a strength. There’s no running game to speak of. Dez Bryant hasn’t developed as expected. Even the start to Jason Witten’s 2012 campaign was lackluster.

Through it all, Romo has managed to maintain a 66.4 percent completion rate—higher than last year—and I’ve tracked only 45 of his passes as being off target this year. That’s just over five per game—a bit lower than his career rate. There’s no doubt that Romo can’t continue to throw 1.6 interceptions per game, but let’s not forget that 69.2 percent of his interceptions came in two contests.

Plus, interceptions are a notoriously volatile stat, meaning what we’ve seen from Romo over the first half of the season is hardly representative of how he’ll play in the future. Anyone want to bet that Romo will throw 13 picks in the second half of the season? I didn’t think so.

RB DeMarco Murray: B+

The Cowboys’ offensive line has provided sufficient running lanes for the backs in exactly one game (Baltimore) all season, and Murray played in only half of it. The second-year back racked up 131 yards in Week 1, but don’t forget that 48 of them came on a fluky run on which Murray made a whole lot out of nothing. In averaging 4.4 YPC over his 75 carries, Murray has greatly exceeded what his line provided for him. Actually, 71.2 percent of Murray’s yards this season have come after contact—one of the highest rates in the league. He’s averaging 3.13 YPC after contact, compared to 2.24 for Felix Jones.

RB Felix Jones: D+

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/20...-cowboys.html/