Just let this sink in

[visionary]

I think the O-Line is better this year. But it was darn good last year, especially in pass protection. And in the 2nd half of the last season we were really running the ball well.

As I've mentioned many times before, after the Green Bay game last year the Packers defenders said that watching on tape that Dallas had the *BEST* zone running game in the league. So the 'we had to throw because we couldn't run the ball last year' doesn't really jive.

As far as the defense goes...that's in part what happens when you throw a lot...your defense is going to be on the field more often and they are going to be wore down and not perform as well. And it's hard for the opponent to gain yards if they don't have the ball.

We have had so many times in the past where we just simply had no desire to run the ball from the onset and didn't even give the run a chance. This year it has been a dramatic turnaround in philosophy. And they are so much better for it.




YR

that is at least a big part of it and underscores that we NEED to keep both linehan and marinelli next year
but that is water under the bridge as far as I am concerned
looking ahead to the play offs

 

[pansophy]

We lost the Arizona game because Weeden was our QB and was dreadful.

Parnell is serviceable, but if we have to rely on him next year I think it's going to have an extremely negative effect on the offense.

In the last 2 games, we've ran the ball poorly, but we stuck to the run and it allowed Romo to throw over the top of 8-9 in the box.

And if you look at Romo in his career, he plays best when the RT play is good. Even when the LT wasn't all that great, he can still play well if the RT play is good. But, when the RT play is poor, it's a completely different story. So Free being hurt should always be a concern. I think Parnell won't be embarrassing out there, but he gets beat more often than Free.

YR

I don't think we should say we ran the ball poorly given there were 8-9 in the box, as you said. We made teams commit to stopping the run and as a result made them pay in the passing game.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

We ran the ball well against light fronts. We wouldn't run against 8 men though like we do now.

We were blitzed often from 2008-2012. That was really the book on the Cowboys, keep blitzing them because after a while the O-Line will screw up. I think that's why Haslett keeps doing it and it worked. That and Haslett knows that if they can figure out where Romo is going with the ball with a bunch of different blitzes, they can set Romo up later in the game.

And part of this is really 'chicken and the egg'...you can't run well against 8-9 in the box if you don't give yourself the chance to do so. When we have games where we are throwing the ball 85% of the time in *close* games...that's just an attitude that we are throwing the ball no matter what and the running game isn't getting the chance to make some plays.

Even with new talent in 2013 it took time to come together. That is where the coaching comes in. No amount of Lombardi or Rockne was going to get those scrubs blowing people off the ball..

I agree. Although Free's struggles were in pass pro as most considered him good at run blocking when he struggled in 2011 and 2012.

The attitude clearly changed to me when I heard Jason Garrett talk about how you *must* stick to the run even if you're getting a bunch of those 'ugly runs' where you're maybe getting a yard or two.

I don't think we have been a very good short passing team, but we are a good intermediate and deep passing team. I think you can throw more in a good short passing offense if the run isn't going because you're steadily gaining yardage. But, if you struggle with short passing and are very good with mid-to-deep pass patterns, then you need to stick to the run in order to open that stuff over the top.






YR

 

[Yakuza Rich]

that is at least a big part of it and underscores that we NEED to keep both linehan and marinelli next year
but that is water under the bridge as far as I am concerned
looking ahead to the play offs

I doubt Marinelli is going anywhere. While him and Lovie are friends, so are he and Kiffin who is still a coach on the team (and deserves credit for the defense's turnaround).

Linehan may be a different story. But, making the playoffs will make him a bit more difficult to hire as I would imagine that he's only leaving if he can get a HC position. I have questions about him getting that position in the pros. Maybe in college, but that would mean him having to work as a recruiter which many NFL coaches have no desire to do.

I'm more concerned about keeping Callahan, Elberflus and Dooley.





YR

 

[Yakuza Rich]

I don't think we should say we ran the ball poorly given there were 8-9 in the box, as you said. We made teams commit to stopping the run and as a result made them pay in the passing game.

We didn't run the ball well. You still need to get 3.3 yards per carry in 8 men in the box.

I think we could have thrown the ball a little more against the Eagles on 1st down, but in the end running the ball did would it needed to do....set up the big pass plays and keep our defense off the field.




YR

 

[Stryker44]

Unbelievable.

 

[Tusan_Homichi]

Yes and considering he knows when to go down It seems like a very worthy gamble to see if something develops.

Exactly. You may get the occasional frustrating sack, but you also get those amazing Tony Romo plays that completely change a game.