DCFanatic Pre-Game Report - Cowboys vs Cardinals

[dcfanatic]

November 11, 2006 ---

The Cowboys Should Get Off To A Fast Start
The Cardinals are 1-7 for a reason, they stink. The Cowboys need to come out in this game and immediately take control on both sides of the ball. The Cardinals do have weapons on offense so letting them hang around would be a big mistake. Matt Leinhart is a rookie who has been playing ok, but this defense will force him into some third and long situations. If the Cowboys defense can come up with a few turnovers in the first half then this game could be a blowout. Julius Jones will get his share of carries and hopefully he can get in a big run on the Cowboys first drive. Also look for Tony Romo to make sure T.O. is involved early and often. Once the Cowboys get a lead the Cardinals will go into the 'we are a 1-7 team mode' and they will start getting down on themselves. It's up to the Cowboys to make sure this happens by halftime.

Tony Romo Doesn't Have To Be A Hero This Week
If the Cowboys can't run the football against the Cardinals, who are allowing 4.2 ypc, then something is wrong. This should be a big game for Julius Jones and Marion Barber. I have a feeling that Coach Parcells wants to pound the Cardinals into submission. This will also keep the Cardinals young, but dangerous offense on the sidelines. The one thing the Cowboy's offensive line has been doing well all seaon is run block. Jones is off to his best start as an NFL runner and he is due for a breakout game. I usually don't like a boring game where the Cowboys just keep running the football and wear down the clock, but this team needs a win so bad here that I would be happy to see just that. If the TE's and OL can stop with the penalties then there shouldn't be any long second and third downs for Tony Romo. Wouldn't it be great if Romo was turning around and handing off for most of the fourth quarter as the Cowboys win easily.

Can This Team Stop Making All The Mental Errors?
I honestly don't know, no one does at this time. The one thing I do know is that if they continue the sloppy play on Sunday the Cardinals can win this game. With three very good wide receivers the Cardinals will definitely take some shots down the field. Roy Williams and the rest of the secondary cannot just grab onto the intended receivers time and time again. The pass interference penalties are killers and most of the time it automatically puts the opposing offense into scoring position. It's bad enough the offense cannot get out of their own way most of the time without the defense now doing some things to make it worse. This entire team needs to come into this game mentally tough and play smart football for 60 minutes. If they don't it's going to be another nail biter.

Terrell Owens Seems To Be On A Mission
This guy is usually annoying me to no end, but this week I actually liked his approach. He could not deny the fact that he has dropped a few key passes this year and he decided to accept the blame like a man. This may be the first time in a long time that he took full responsibility for his actions. He even said he was humbled by his big drop in the Skins games last week. Now he has to move forward by making some big plays to help the team win and that begins in Arizona. I could see him play this game with a renewed focus and energy. That should help the team win this week and for the rest of the season. The Cardinals also have a great set of WR's so maybe that could also be an added incentive for him. Any big time WR wants to show and prove when he is facing a team with big time WR's on the other side of the ball. Go get 'em Terrell Owens!

Hey Marc Columbo, Forget That FG Block And Move On Big Guy
Yes, you screwed up big time and cost the team a win last week. But that game is long over and now it's time for you to focus on the Arizona Cardinals. You have been doing a good job at playing Right Tackle and that must continue. Keep shutting down opposing DE's and making holes for Julius Jones. Even though everyone is only thinking about that horrible play from last week I still remember the week before in Carolina where you did a fantastic job at keeping Julius Peppers away from Tony Romo. The point is that you can always go from the Penthouse to the Outhouse in a week, but you can also gof from the Outhouse back to the Penthouse in that same amount of time. Keep your head up Columbo.

Here Are Some Things I Hope To See...
The Cowboys win the game. At this point in time it's all I really want to see because that's all that matters. Winning this game and moving to 5-4 will do wonders for the confidence of a team who had their hearts broken at the end of last week's game. Get it done Cowboys!