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The Dallas Cowboys face daunting tasks on multiple levels as they take the field on Thanksgiving. The first and most immediate of those tasks is Thursday afternoon's contest with the undefeated Carolina Panthers and their MVP-caliber quarterback Cam Newton. With Tony Romo under center for the Cowboys, they have the ability to play with any team, and they’ll need to play to their full potential to come away with a victory.
Let’s take a look at some things that could show up in the Dallas game plan as they attempt to take down the Panthers on Thursday.
Offensive Game Plan
The strength of the Panthers defense is its front seven. Players like Kony Ealy, Kawann Short and Star Lotulelei have been very disruptive players on the defensive line, and they’ll be joined by Charles Johnson as he returns from injury this week.
Behind that defensive line is probably the most dynamic group on the team: their linebackers. Luke Keuchly and Thomas Davis have been playmakers at the second level for the Panthers for a number of years, and they are joined this year by first-round pick Shaq Thompson.
A couple of ways the Cowboys can neutralize the effectiveness of the Panthers' defensive line and linebackers is to use play action in the passing game, as well as misdirection in the running game.
The Panthers linebackers play very aggressively downhill toward the line of scrimmage against the run, which at times can leave them vulnerable to quick play-action passes up the seams and across the middle of the field as they attack the line of scrimmage.
Using rookie wide receiver Lucky Whitehead in jet motion across the formation is a wrinkle that showed up for the first time after the Cowboys' bye week. Using this type of action with a player of Whitehead’s ability, immediately creates conflict in the defense, which is what you have to do against players of the quality that this Carolina team deploys on the defensive front. You can exploit this conflict by using the jet sweep to create misdirection, open up inside rush lanes, or get the ball quickly to the edges to try to outflank the speed of the linebackers.
The best player in the Carolina secondary is cornerback Josh Norman, who typically matches up with the opponents' top wide receiver each week. Norman will follow the top receiver to both sides, but typically will not move inside into the slot. We should expect to see Norman matching up with Dez Bryant through out most of the game.
With a player like Norman following Bryant, it will be important for offensive coordinator Scott Linehan to find ways to help his star receiver get free and get him the ball. Against the Dolphins, we saw Bryant line up in the slot on his 16-yard touchdown reception, which helped him get matched up with a linebacker and safety. The Cowboys should use Bryant in the slot, as well as in bunch formations, and in motion to help him get free releases into routes and make a few plays that can have a major impact on the game.
Defensive Game Plan
The key to the Carolina offense is the quarterback: Cam Newton. His size, athleticism and arm strength present a rare set of problems for opponents attempting to slow down the Panthers’ attack. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula does a very good job of calling the game in a way that maximizes his quarterback’s strengths and allows the team to create explosive plays.
The Panthers running game is a combination of power runs and option plays. To stop this run game, the Cowboys will have to be very assignment-sound in their gaps, trusting their teammates to be where they are supposed to be.
The way option plays hurt a defense is by isolating defenders and trying to catch them doing more than their assigned job. By playing within the scheme in the run game, the Cowboys defense can slow down the rushing attack and force Cam Newton to beat them from the pocket with high efficiency.
The most consistent weapon the Panthers have in the passing game is tight end Greg Olsen. Olsen is not an extremely dynamic athlete like some of the other tight ends the Cowboys have faced this year, but he is very dangerous because of how he runs his routes and how consistently he catches the ball. The Cowboys will play more zone coverages this week than in past weeks to keep more eyes on Newton in the pocket and force him into making consistent throws into tight coverages.
The Panthers offense is not an extremely efficient unit, but it is one that tries to make multiple big plays down the field in the passing game. As a result, Newton doesn’t throw for a high completion percentage and averages just under one interception per game. The Cowboys' defensive backs will need to be ready to corral the balls that get away from Newton.
Prediction
This is probably one of those games that has a score of something like 7-6 after three quarters, as the two defenses battle it out.
Because of that, I’m placing faith in Tony Romo, who is arguably the best fourth-quarter quarterback in the history of the NFL, to pull out the win for the Cowboys as they take the next step on what could be the most improbable of playoff runs.
Cowboys 17, Panthers 13
Read more Dallas Cowboys news on BleacherReport.com
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Let’s take a look at some things that could show up in the Dallas game plan as they attempt to take down the Panthers on Thursday.
Offensive Game Plan
The strength of the Panthers defense is its front seven. Players like Kony Ealy, Kawann Short and Star Lotulelei have been very disruptive players on the defensive line, and they’ll be joined by Charles Johnson as he returns from injury this week.
Behind that defensive line is probably the most dynamic group on the team: their linebackers. Luke Keuchly and Thomas Davis have been playmakers at the second level for the Panthers for a number of years, and they are joined this year by first-round pick Shaq Thompson.
A couple of ways the Cowboys can neutralize the effectiveness of the Panthers' defensive line and linebackers is to use play action in the passing game, as well as misdirection in the running game.
The Panthers linebackers play very aggressively downhill toward the line of scrimmage against the run, which at times can leave them vulnerable to quick play-action passes up the seams and across the middle of the field as they attack the line of scrimmage.
Using rookie wide receiver Lucky Whitehead in jet motion across the formation is a wrinkle that showed up for the first time after the Cowboys' bye week. Using this type of action with a player of Whitehead’s ability, immediately creates conflict in the defense, which is what you have to do against players of the quality that this Carolina team deploys on the defensive front. You can exploit this conflict by using the jet sweep to create misdirection, open up inside rush lanes, or get the ball quickly to the edges to try to outflank the speed of the linebackers.
The best player in the Carolina secondary is cornerback Josh Norman, who typically matches up with the opponents' top wide receiver each week. Norman will follow the top receiver to both sides, but typically will not move inside into the slot. We should expect to see Norman matching up with Dez Bryant through out most of the game.
With a player like Norman following Bryant, it will be important for offensive coordinator Scott Linehan to find ways to help his star receiver get free and get him the ball. Against the Dolphins, we saw Bryant line up in the slot on his 16-yard touchdown reception, which helped him get matched up with a linebacker and safety. The Cowboys should use Bryant in the slot, as well as in bunch formations, and in motion to help him get free releases into routes and make a few plays that can have a major impact on the game.
Defensive Game Plan
The key to the Carolina offense is the quarterback: Cam Newton. His size, athleticism and arm strength present a rare set of problems for opponents attempting to slow down the Panthers’ attack. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula does a very good job of calling the game in a way that maximizes his quarterback’s strengths and allows the team to create explosive plays.
The Panthers running game is a combination of power runs and option plays. To stop this run game, the Cowboys will have to be very assignment-sound in their gaps, trusting their teammates to be where they are supposed to be.
The way option plays hurt a defense is by isolating defenders and trying to catch them doing more than their assigned job. By playing within the scheme in the run game, the Cowboys defense can slow down the rushing attack and force Cam Newton to beat them from the pocket with high efficiency.
The most consistent weapon the Panthers have in the passing game is tight end Greg Olsen. Olsen is not an extremely dynamic athlete like some of the other tight ends the Cowboys have faced this year, but he is very dangerous because of how he runs his routes and how consistently he catches the ball. The Cowboys will play more zone coverages this week than in past weeks to keep more eyes on Newton in the pocket and force him into making consistent throws into tight coverages.
The Panthers offense is not an extremely efficient unit, but it is one that tries to make multiple big plays down the field in the passing game. As a result, Newton doesn’t throw for a high completion percentage and averages just under one interception per game. The Cowboys' defensive backs will need to be ready to corral the balls that get away from Newton.
Prediction
This is probably one of those games that has a score of something like 7-6 after three quarters, as the two defenses battle it out.
Because of that, I’m placing faith in Tony Romo, who is arguably the best fourth-quarter quarterback in the history of the NFL, to pull out the win for the Cowboys as they take the next step on what could be the most improbable of playoff runs.
Cowboys 17, Panthers 13
Read more Dallas Cowboys news on BleacherReport.com
Continue reading...