Preseason Week 1 - My thoughts on the game...

[theogt]

In fact, if he can show this performance two or three more times, he may take the number 2 WR position.

Totally possible. I think the 3 WR set with Austin out and Crayton in the slot will be very effective.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

When your line is getting knocked back (the backups), your inside linebackers are going to get blocked by bigger guys. I thought Burnett and Carpenter played well when you consider this aspect. Those two guys didn't have a chance on the goalline after the d-line was knocked backwards. Carpenter had 6 tackes and one assist and he ran well in pursuit and played hard. Burnett had three tackles and two assists and made a nice play on third down in the opening series to force a punt on the screen pass.

You have to remember, these guys didn't play in the base defense with the first team.

This was the best game I have ever seen Miles Austin play. He had 5 catches for 64 yards. If he could play like that against a good corner like Cason (Austin got him good twice), he could really help Dallas. After this performance, I think he is the guy Romo was talking to Galloway about. In fact, if he can show this performance two or three more times, he may take the number 2 WR position. I wish he would and soon. Crayton made both his big plays out of the slot where he makes his money. Crayton (big mouth excluded) is really good inside, and Austin could enable him to play in there all the time if he can keep this up.

If you want to worry about anything, worry about the poor punt coverage. They kept making the same mistakes over and over.

Good points. I mentioned this in another thread. The dline was getting single blocked and pushed back time and again. Guards were getting free shots at the second level.

 

[DallasInDC]

he wasnt any worse than any of the other backups IMO...all of the backup defense looked pretty medicore to me...
David

Yes, but none of those other mediocre backups are first rd picks. I don't care how many times he switched positions, Carpenter plays like an UDFA which in my book is considered a bust. we should have shopped him to Miami instead of ayodele maybe that would have increased the value of the pick to a second or third since it would have been a first and second rd pick in the trade.

 

[dbair1967]

For the life of me, what has happened to McBriar. His first year he was a star in the making, now he's kicking just like he did last year - way too short giving the returner all kinds of time to return the punt.

he still averaged almost 44 yds a punt...he isnt the problem, the bad coverage is...there was nobody around the returners

David

 

[theebs]

Good points. I mentioned this in another thread. The dline was getting single blocked and pushed back time and again. Guards were getting free shots at the second level.

that is true somewhat, but If you watched carpenter he was getting blocked by the fullback tolbert, for awhile there it looked like he was wearing his jersey.

the backup defensive rotation just looked sloppy. The guys are probably tired from two a days, meetings and traveling.

I am assuming the home game against houston in two weeks will bring a tighter more normal looking game for us.

 

[Bizwah]

he still averaged almost 44 yds a punt...he isnt the problem, the bad coverage is...there was nobody around the returners

David

No...he's right about McBriar.

He punted long...no problems there....but they were all line drives.

The Charger announcers even talked about it. They kept saying, "Long line drive...this should be a big return".

He needs to get more height.

 

[ThreeSportStar80]

I think Miles Austin is a weapon now... The guy is huge and fast, he gave Cason the business tonight.

 

[28 Joker]

Felix Jones was as advertised. Dallas has a weapon in the mold of Marshall Faulk. I saw this guy play many times at Arkansas, and he is special. Some fans said that he couldn't run between the tackles, but his 5 yard carry right up the gut showed his power as he pushed the pile forward. Felix had a 5.2 YPC average, and I will have to check his total yardage (run and pass). It was at least 60 yards. Felix had two spectacular plays and one play where he should have kept inside, instead of bouncing outside. Felix did a great job blocking (2 were really good) and so did Choice. I do worry about Felix getting hurt on kickoffs. He is really good at it (a two time Alll-American), but it can be a dangerous job. That is why you don't see many super-star running backs doing it.

Mike Jenkins made two very good plays (one in press man on 3rd down) and showed his great closing speed and long arms, and Pacman was a little rusty coming off the bench. However, the coaches were not too concerned, because they pulled him. He looked really smooth in press coverage on one play in particular. I still say Pacman starts the first game. I look for him to answer the bell and bounce back against Denver after those two tough plays. He's is learning a new defense and techniques, and it has been a while since he played in a game. Chambers put a double move on him on the first one. Scandrick looked really good and showed great closing speed but led with his head on the play he was dinged on. He was lucky on that play, and I'm sure the coaches will speak to him about it. Oglesby played well but Ball seemed to struggle on some plays. However, I thought the PI call on him was questionable. Being out didn't help him.

Roy Williams made a nice play to open the game. I want to see him make plays against the run when he has to use lateral movement. He can bring it north and south, I want to see him run laterally and make plays in the running game, just make solid plays and stops. He doesn't have to kill people.

Tank picked up a sack.

Ware, Ellis, and Canty had really good pressure on one play.

Hurd had a nice diving catch.

Spears made a nice play getting penetration.

Henry made a great play on the goalline on.

James and Burnett made a strong goalline stop.

However, these two plays were negated by a bad third and goal for a touchdown. The line lost.

All in all, Dallas' first teams looked really good, and they escaped with no injuries. The turnovers hurt and 4 punt returns for 82 yards hurt.

 

[28 Joker]

Good points. I mentioned this in another thread. The dline was getting single blocked and pushed back time and again. Guards were getting free shots at the second level.

I agree with you. Those guys up front fighting for jobs better show improvement in the second game, because the coaches will expect it. They were getting completely blown up on the goalline, too.

 

[DaBoys4Life]

- First team offense and defense looked very good. Nuff said there.

- Zach looked crisp and alert, with surprising sturdiness despite his size and age. He could be a real treat to watch this season.

- Felix Jones > Julius Jones. Yeah, it's early, but Felix just looks in a different league compared to Julius. Choice showed some moves, but missed picking up some blitzes. I think in time we could have the most talented backfield in the league.

- Mike Jenkins looked on the money. In fact, he looked better than Pacman. Scandrick looked good too. For a small guy, he's a hitter.

- Neither Tony Curtis nor Martellus Bennett can passblock. They had me calling for Anthony Fasano in the chat. This was just a terrible decision, in my opinion.

- Carpenter is still too timid, and Burnett is still weak against the run. It was really a mixed bag from Carpenter. He flashed at times, but sucked at others. Very frustrating.

- Lekerkerkker has no chance of making the roster.

- Pacman looks a little rusty. But even when he gave up plays he was in very tight coverage. His run defense was pretty bad.

- Special teams is abysmal. This is a serious problem for this team that must be addressed or we'll pay for it.

- Miles Austin looked amazing tonight. He got open and caught just about everything thrown his way. He looks like the real deal and I'd honestly prefer to see him take Hurd's spot as the #3 sooner rather than later (it's inevitable). Hurd dropped a pass that hit him right in the hands. Other than that, he was nowhere to be seen.

- Doug Free was solid at left tackle, both in pass protection and run blocking. He makes me not feel bad about signing Flozell til he's 38.

- Spencer looks very instinctive. He's reacting to the play much quicker and works really well against the run. He made an opposite side tackle that looked almost Ware-like.

- Erik Walden looked better than expected. With the 3 on his jersey I often mistook him for Spencer, which is a compliment. Justin Rogers didn't impress at all.

- The refs hated us.

man no homo but I love your opinion however you be to homerific on things how is our backfield more talented than LT + random scrub or AP + random scrub or Dmac+ Fargas....like cmon lets be realistic for half a second my dude.... but yo thanx 4 the breakdown I enjoyed it...... JJ 3,000 + rushing yards than Felix let Felix do something in the NFL then say him > JJ untill then... JJ > Felix.

 

[28 Joker]

Totally possible. I think the 3 WR set with Austin out and Crayton in the slot will be very effective.

theogt,

That was a very strong performance. You saw it. If Austin can keep that up, he is going to help Romo and Dallas big time. I want to see him do it again next week. I hope Garrett lets him work with Romo next week. I want to see him up against Champ Bailey, and I want # 19's number called.

If he keeps that up, Dallas looks ready to go at WR. There will not be a trade. I'm excited about his play tonight. He is going into his third year, and he could explode onto the seen. He has to be the guy Romo was talking about. He looked great on the post route and made a good catch. Felix made a good block on that play, too. He ran the out and made a grab. He made too great plays. On one, he jumped high and beat Cason (4th and 2) and made a tough or clutch catch down the field. Then, he had the 21 yarder where he reached in and used his strength and strong hands to catch the ball. That was an impressive strong play. I'm excited about this young player now. I was starting to give up on him, but I'm just a fan. The coaches know what is going on. If he cathes the ball consistently, he can do it. He has the tools. He just needs reps.

If he keeps this up, my trade (with the Saints) is giving up too much.

I forgot Jenkin's great slashing play to but up a screen.

 

[es22]

Felix Jones > Julius Jones. Yeah, it's early, but Felix just looks in a different league compared to Julius. Choice showed some moves, but missed picking up some blitzes. I think in time we could have the most talented backfield in the league.


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At least Felix looked impressive unlike Julius coming out of college. I cant wait to see Red utilize Felix this year.

 

[AsthmaField]

Nice thoughts, theo. I pretty much saw it the way you did.

I admit, I haven't liked Austin very much in the past... but he played very well Saturday. If he keeps playing that way, I'll eat some major crow... and be happy doing it.

Felix looked outstanding and Choice was very good as well. Jones will give us somebody that will scare the crap out of opposing defenses. Give him the ball in the open field a few times per game and you'll get a ton of big plays.

Last year, you could see the air go out of the offense every time Marion Barber left the game. This year, you won't be seeing that. Teams are going to absolutely hate having to defend Barber then Jones, then Barber again.

The thing that I noticed about Felix was that his hands look so natural. I absolutely can't believe that a knock on him coming out of college was that he didn't have good hands. Total BS. He's going to catch a lot of balls this year and it's going to just kill defenses trying to defend him.

Special teams need to be fixed and fixed in a hurry. That is going to kill our defense (short field) if we don't have the kinks worked out.

Kevin Burnett is a nickel LB for us. He's not stout enough to take on OG's in the running game. Give him some space to work in though and he's very good in coverage. He's also extremely quick. IMO we need to send him at the QB on a few blitzes this year (in the nickel).

In Wade Phillips defense the "mo" backer that Burnett plays is supposed to be kept clean to be able to run to the ball. If the D-Line does it's job, Kevin should be able to play to his strength's on any down. However, with the 2nd and third stringer's playing in front of him, the guard's were getting out on the LB's, and that will never be a strength for Kevin (or Zach). The starting DL will do a much better job of occupying blockers, so the "mo" LB position should be fine with either Zach or Burnett.

Carpenter? I no longer have much hope for him in Phillips defense at all.

Both Jenkins and Scandrick looked very good. You can see their athleticism the second you start watching them play. It is easy to see why the team really liked Jenkins. Boy does he know how to play defensive back. He was just born with the knack for coverage.

Someone said how much better Jenkins looked that Cason, and I agree. Cason will be a good player... but you could really tell a difference between those two in coverage.

Our two first round picks were homeruns with Jones and Jenkins.

Bennett was the opposite, IMO. He just didn't impress me, but it is still early. He did look very athletic on the pass down the seam that got knocked loose, and that bodes well for the future... but he didn't listen to the coaches and put it away fast enough. He did get hit very quickly though... so I'm going to give him a mental pass and hope he plays up to his athleticism in the near future.

Overall, if you don't look at the scoreboard there is plenty to be extremely excited about. It was very important to Dallas that they hit on Felix and Jenkins. Saturday showed that they did exactly that.

Nothing that we could have gotten out of Saturday's game could have been any better news than that both first team offense and defense dominated the first teams of a super bowl contender like San Diego, and that both first round picks looked like future stars. Nothing.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

My thoughts:

Our first teamers kicked SD butt on both sides of the ball. And SD is a good team.

Felix and Jenkins looked great. Felix I expected to do so... But Jenkins really surprised me. Wow, in just a few plays he flashed big time ability.

Pacman was bad. Put away the annointing oil for now, marquee TO practice clashes notwithstanding.

Scandrick looks like a player. Walden showed some quickness and hustle.

Carpenter and Burnett should be ashamed of themselves. I'm worried about our ILBs should a starter get hurt.

Backup OL was bad. McQuistan has gone backwards somehow.

Special teams was bad, but many of those players were the same ones who didn't do anything from scrimmage, like Burnett, Bennett, Carpenter, etc. We need more starters on ST, and we need to try any aggressive, hungry young LBs we can find. (Give Walden, Robertson, Curious George, future waiver-wire pickups, or whoever else a try.)

In the end, though, this was the first preseason game, and it doesn't mean jack.

Nobody got hurt, and that's the most important consideration of all. One down, three more to go.

 

[PosterChild]

- First team offense and defense looked very good. Nuff said there.

- Zach looked crisp and alert, with surprising sturdiness despite his size and age. He could be a real treat to watch this season.

- Felix Jones > Julius Jones. Yeah, it's early, but Felix just looks in a different league compared to Julius. Choice showed some moves, but missed picking up some blitzes. I think in time we could have the most talented backfield in the league.

- Mike Jenkins looked on the money. In fact, he looked better than Pacman. Scandrick looked good too. For a small guy, he's a hitter.

- Neither Tony Curtis nor Martellus Bennett can passblock. They had me calling for Anthony Fasano in the chat. This was just a terrible decision, in my opinion.

- Carpenter is still too timid, and Burnett is still weak against the run. It was really a mixed bag from Carpenter. He flashed at times, but sucked at others. Very frustrating.

- Lekerkerkker has no chance of making the roster.

- Pacman looks a little rusty. But even when he gave up plays he was in very tight coverage. His run defense was pretty bad.

- Special teams is abysmal. This is a serious problem for this team that must be addressed or we'll pay for it.

- Miles Austin looked amazing tonight. He got open and caught just about everything thrown his way. He looks like the real deal and I'd honestly prefer to see him take Hurd's spot as the #3 sooner rather than later (it's inevitable). Hurd dropped a pass that hit him right in the hands. Other than that, he was nowhere to be seen.

- Doug Free was solid at left tackle, both in pass protection and run blocking. He makes me not feel bad about signing Flozell til he's 38.

- Spencer looks very instinctive. He's reacting to the play much quicker and works really well against the run. He made an opposite side tackle that looked almost Ware-like.

- Erik Walden looked better than expected. With the 3 on his jersey I often mistook him for Spencer, which is a compliment. Justin Rogers didn't impress at all.

- The refs hated us.

Don't know if anyone else noticed Scandrick looked the best approaching the wedge--such as it was- on the one KR opp he had. You could clearly see his superior speed and quicks.

I'd like to see him and Austin handle those duties this yr; I'm strongly opposed to Felix taking any reps as he's just too valuable to the offense.