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By Blake Fomby
Dallas Sports Examiner
The time between the NFL Draft and the opening day of training camp can be best described by football fans as three months of pure agonizing hell. It is the worst time of the year. Football is a drug; too much time without it will leave you shaking and sweating. But I bring good news. The first practice of training camp for the Cowboys is three weeks away. Okay, so maybe 21 days isn’t exactly tomorrow, but if we can handle several months of off-season, what’s another three weeks? Once camp opens, there is always something going on until the regular season begins about a month and a half later. That is when it starts getting fun again; when there are new headlines every day. Right now, there is little going on that hasn’t been scrutinized to death.
That will change in three weeks, and we’re all ready for it. The anticipation of how the new additions will perform is growing. Of course, the two people that everyone will love to focus on are Tony Romo and Roy Williams. The constant questioning of “What will Romo do without T.O.?” and “Are Romo and Roy on the same page?” will likely dominate the headlines. But there is so much more to look at that won’t get near as much attention. One such thing is the running back situation. The Cowboys are fortunate to have a very solid combination of Marion Barber, and fellow 2008 draft picks Felix Jones and Tashard Choice. Each has proved themselves in the times they have been on the field. Barber has done so for a few years; Felix opened eyes for the first few weeks before suffering an injury and missing the remainder of the season; Choice made an impact when he finally got the chance in the last month. If all three can remain healthy, and are used to their strengths, there is no reason the Cowboys can’t be one of the top running offenses in the league. I am no football coach, but I can easily shell out my opinion as to the order the running backs should be used during games. If I had my say I would start with Choice, follow with Jones, and land the finishing kick with Barber, with a little of each spread throughout.
Tashard Choice is more of a Barber-like back. He doesn’t beat you with speed; he is a tough runner who is more likely to run through the opponent than around him. He made a name for himself in a particularly painful loss to the Steelers on December 7th. He racked up 88 yards on the ground and 78 more receiving against a staunch Pittsburgh defense. He showed it wasn’t a fluke by collecting 143 more total yards in a win over the Giants the next week -- including 91 yards rushing on only 9 carries -- and 115 yards against another stout defense in the Ravens the next. Felix Jones has already shown what he can do with his speed. In six games in his career, before his 2008 season was cut short far too soon, he didn’t have many carries -- only 30. But with those, he dazzled. He had 266 yards to show for it; just under 9 yards per carry. The Cowboys would put Felix on the field when the opposing defense was trying to catch its breath, and he would be 20 yards down the field before the defense could turn around. His first career NFL carry was in week one in Cleveland. The result? 11 yards for a touchdown. He also excelled on special teams, with terrific kick returning, including a 98 yard touchdown in the home opener win against the Eagles on the national stage of Monday Night Football that announced his arrival in the league. The Cowboys used him perfectly when he was healthy: give him situational carries and let him improve the team’s starting field position. We already know what Marion Barber can do when he is at his best. His bruising running style is well-known. But it is questioned whether or not he has the durability to be the full-time main man in the backfield. However, it really doesn’t matter when there are two other capable players ready to help share the load. I would love to see the carries spread out a little like this: Barber, 15-20; Choice, 10-15; Jones, 5-10. Again, I’m not the coach, but I can pretend. If used correctly, this trio can put up numbers like the Brandon Jacobs-Derrick Ward-Ahmad Bradshaw combo produced for the Giants last season.
The fact is, there is no reason why the Cowboys shouldn’t be more run-oriented this season. Dallas was 8th in the NFL in passes attempted and only 25th in carries, with a difference of 146 attempts, the 9th worst balanced team. Having more of a balanced offense can make a big difference. Only seven teams carried the ball more than it passed last season. In order from the most run-oriented teams onward, those seven teams were: the Ravens, Falcons, Panthers, Vikings, Titans, Raiders, and Giants. Only Oakland failed to make the playoffs. Even with the Raiders’ bad 5-11 record, those teams combined for a 74-38 record and four division winners. The most balanced offensive team in the league was none other than the hated New York Giants, which carried the ball eleven more times than passes attempted. It resulted in a 12-4 record and the NFC East crown. Yes, the Giants may not have been as successful in the playoffs, going one and out after facing a hot Eagles team, but the fact remains that it was a very good team.
Now that Tony Romo no longer has a certain wide receiver -- who shall remain nameless -- to throw to, it opens the door for the Cowboys to use more of the run game. Let’s face it, as good as Romo can be, sometimes he has a knack for making horrible mistakes when he tries to do a little too much. Being a more balanced offensive team would limit Romo’s chances to make those mistakes, and fewer mistakes is a really good thing. We can hate the Giants all we want, but that team has clearly been doing something right. The Cowboys have the opportunity to do something right as well.
http://www.examiner.com/x-14770-Dallas-Sports-Examiner~y2009m7d8-Cowboys-should-take-Giant-approach
Dallas Sports Examiner
The time between the NFL Draft and the opening day of training camp can be best described by football fans as three months of pure agonizing hell. It is the worst time of the year. Football is a drug; too much time without it will leave you shaking and sweating. But I bring good news. The first practice of training camp for the Cowboys is three weeks away. Okay, so maybe 21 days isn’t exactly tomorrow, but if we can handle several months of off-season, what’s another three weeks? Once camp opens, there is always something going on until the regular season begins about a month and a half later. That is when it starts getting fun again; when there are new headlines every day. Right now, there is little going on that hasn’t been scrutinized to death.
That will change in three weeks, and we’re all ready for it. The anticipation of how the new additions will perform is growing. Of course, the two people that everyone will love to focus on are Tony Romo and Roy Williams. The constant questioning of “What will Romo do without T.O.?” and “Are Romo and Roy on the same page?” will likely dominate the headlines. But there is so much more to look at that won’t get near as much attention. One such thing is the running back situation. The Cowboys are fortunate to have a very solid combination of Marion Barber, and fellow 2008 draft picks Felix Jones and Tashard Choice. Each has proved themselves in the times they have been on the field. Barber has done so for a few years; Felix opened eyes for the first few weeks before suffering an injury and missing the remainder of the season; Choice made an impact when he finally got the chance in the last month. If all three can remain healthy, and are used to their strengths, there is no reason the Cowboys can’t be one of the top running offenses in the league. I am no football coach, but I can easily shell out my opinion as to the order the running backs should be used during games. If I had my say I would start with Choice, follow with Jones, and land the finishing kick with Barber, with a little of each spread throughout.
Tashard Choice is more of a Barber-like back. He doesn’t beat you with speed; he is a tough runner who is more likely to run through the opponent than around him. He made a name for himself in a particularly painful loss to the Steelers on December 7th. He racked up 88 yards on the ground and 78 more receiving against a staunch Pittsburgh defense. He showed it wasn’t a fluke by collecting 143 more total yards in a win over the Giants the next week -- including 91 yards rushing on only 9 carries -- and 115 yards against another stout defense in the Ravens the next. Felix Jones has already shown what he can do with his speed. In six games in his career, before his 2008 season was cut short far too soon, he didn’t have many carries -- only 30. But with those, he dazzled. He had 266 yards to show for it; just under 9 yards per carry. The Cowboys would put Felix on the field when the opposing defense was trying to catch its breath, and he would be 20 yards down the field before the defense could turn around. His first career NFL carry was in week one in Cleveland. The result? 11 yards for a touchdown. He also excelled on special teams, with terrific kick returning, including a 98 yard touchdown in the home opener win against the Eagles on the national stage of Monday Night Football that announced his arrival in the league. The Cowboys used him perfectly when he was healthy: give him situational carries and let him improve the team’s starting field position. We already know what Marion Barber can do when he is at his best. His bruising running style is well-known. But it is questioned whether or not he has the durability to be the full-time main man in the backfield. However, it really doesn’t matter when there are two other capable players ready to help share the load. I would love to see the carries spread out a little like this: Barber, 15-20; Choice, 10-15; Jones, 5-10. Again, I’m not the coach, but I can pretend. If used correctly, this trio can put up numbers like the Brandon Jacobs-Derrick Ward-Ahmad Bradshaw combo produced for the Giants last season.
The fact is, there is no reason why the Cowboys shouldn’t be more run-oriented this season. Dallas was 8th in the NFL in passes attempted and only 25th in carries, with a difference of 146 attempts, the 9th worst balanced team. Having more of a balanced offense can make a big difference. Only seven teams carried the ball more than it passed last season. In order from the most run-oriented teams onward, those seven teams were: the Ravens, Falcons, Panthers, Vikings, Titans, Raiders, and Giants. Only Oakland failed to make the playoffs. Even with the Raiders’ bad 5-11 record, those teams combined for a 74-38 record and four division winners. The most balanced offensive team in the league was none other than the hated New York Giants, which carried the ball eleven more times than passes attempted. It resulted in a 12-4 record and the NFC East crown. Yes, the Giants may not have been as successful in the playoffs, going one and out after facing a hot Eagles team, but the fact remains that it was a very good team.
Now that Tony Romo no longer has a certain wide receiver -- who shall remain nameless -- to throw to, it opens the door for the Cowboys to use more of the run game. Let’s face it, as good as Romo can be, sometimes he has a knack for making horrible mistakes when he tries to do a little too much. Being a more balanced offensive team would limit Romo’s chances to make those mistakes, and fewer mistakes is a really good thing. We can hate the Giants all we want, but that team has clearly been doing something right. The Cowboys have the opportunity to do something right as well.
http://www.examiner.com/x-14770-Dallas-Sports-Examiner~y2009m7d8-Cowboys-should-take-Giant-approach
