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The last of the preseason is over. The real thing in just about 10 days.
The Dallas Cowboys finished a winless preseason with a lackluster loss to the Denver Broncos, 27-3. The Cowboys rested their starters, as did the Broncos, so the game was a battle of backups from the very beginning. On this particular night, the Broncos backups were better than the Cowboys.
The Cowboys offense sputtered early and often, a combination of penalties, shaky offensive line play and some less-than-stellar work by backup quarterback Brandon Weeden. Weeden ended the game 6 of 12 for 75 yards and one interception. He narrowly avoided a second interception and just didn't look sharp. After a really nice initial outing for Weeden in the preseason, his play has been spotty since.
Adding to their offensive woes was the lack of a running game. The Cowboys offensive line couldn't open any real holes for Phillip Tanner, who must have been disappointed in his final showcase to make any NFL team. The only player on offense who really helped himself at all in this game was wide receiver LaRon Byrd, who caught three passes for 48 yards.
On defense, the Cowboys held up pretty well for a half, only allowing 10 points. Defensive tackle Davon Coleman continued to be a disruptive force in the middle, getting a tackle for loss and blowing up a couple of other run plays with penetration. Kenneth Boatright made some plays in the second half, including grabbing a sack. Ken Bishop was solid in the middle, and Zach Minter showed up later in the game, making a few stuffs on third and shorts, and getting a tackle for loss.
Dustin Vaughan did his best to make something happen once he took over, but he spent most of the game avoiding the Broncos pass rush.
Overall, there just weren't many positives for the Dallas Cowboys. Brandon Weeden wasn't sharp, the offensive line wasn't very very good, the defense actually did okay in terms of not giving up too many points, but they were still suspect in generating pass rush and gave up some runs.
At least the preseason is over, bring on the 49ers!
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