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IRVING – Tony Romo left training camp in Oxnard, Calif., thinking the defense was primed for something special.
“There was just a feeling,” he said.
In the season opener, Romo’s premonition came to pass as the defense recorded five of the Cowboys’ six takeaways in downing the New York Giants, 36-31, Sunday night.
“They’ve been fantastic,” Romo said. “They were hard to go against in training camp. I could tell they were going to create some problems for the other teams. They’re fast. They move really well. They get to spots quicker than some of the defenses we go against.
“It’s exciting.”
What will really be exciting for Dallas is if Monte Kiffin’s crew can also collect turnovers in bunches against the Chiefs (1-0) in Week 2. A win in Kansas City would give the Cowboys a 2-0 record for the first time since 2008.
“The bar is set extremely high for us,” said cornerback Brandon Carr, whose 49-yard interception return with 1:50 left sealed the win over the Giants. “But that’s a good thing because we are capable of doing that hopefully each and every Sunday.
“We harped on (takeaways) in the offseason, and now the proof is in the pudding.”
The Cowboys forced three turnovers in the first quarter against New York, a franchise first. Three more came in the second half, giving Dallas the most in a game since it notched six in blanking Washington 27-0 on Dec. 14, 2003.
Last season, the Cowboys didn’t force their sixth turnover until Week 3. Dallas finished 2012 with just 16 takeaways, a big reason why owner Jerry Jones fired Rob Phillips as defensive coordinator and hired the 73-year-old Kiffin, who has emphasized takeaways from Day One.
“We talk about it a lot,” Kiffin said. “You have to talk about it. You have to practice it.”
Working with Kiffin to get the message across is fiery defensive line coach Rod Marinelli, the defensive coordinator of Chicago last season when it forced an NFL-high 44 takeaways.
“It’s important as a staff to make sure the things you emphasize show up in the game,” coach Jason Garrett said. “When you say, ‘This is something that is valuable,’ and then we go do it and it results in a win, that’s where it hits home, where it gains credibility.”
No player seems to have absorbed the takeaway talk better than safety Barry Church, who forced a fumble in the red zone against the Giants and gave Dallas a 20-10 lead early in the third quarter with a 27-yard fumble return for his first career TD.
“He’s certainly gravitated toward everything we’re teaching in this system and he’s become a leader as a young guy,” Garrett said of Church, who was presented with a pair of boxing gloves as the team’s player of the game.
But it wasn’t all praise the defense received Monday. There were plenty of what Garrett calls “coaching moments” after the defense allowed three Giants to collect more than 100 receiving yards while yielding six pass plays of 20 or more yards, including a 70-yard TD grab by Victor Cruz.
Those are scary numbers, considering games loom against several teams with outstanding passers, including Denver’s Peyton Manning, Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, New Orleans’ Drew Brees, Chicago’s Jay Cutler and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers.
“Whenever you can create five takeaways in and return two of them for touchdowns, you are playing good defense,” Garrett said.
“…Having said that, now you watch the rest of the game. We have to get better in that area (pass defense).”
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“There was just a feeling,” he said.
In the season opener, Romo’s premonition came to pass as the defense recorded five of the Cowboys’ six takeaways in downing the New York Giants, 36-31, Sunday night.
“They’ve been fantastic,” Romo said. “They were hard to go against in training camp. I could tell they were going to create some problems for the other teams. They’re fast. They move really well. They get to spots quicker than some of the defenses we go against.
“It’s exciting.”
What will really be exciting for Dallas is if Monte Kiffin’s crew can also collect turnovers in bunches against the Chiefs (1-0) in Week 2. A win in Kansas City would give the Cowboys a 2-0 record for the first time since 2008.
“The bar is set extremely high for us,” said cornerback Brandon Carr, whose 49-yard interception return with 1:50 left sealed the win over the Giants. “But that’s a good thing because we are capable of doing that hopefully each and every Sunday.
“We harped on (takeaways) in the offseason, and now the proof is in the pudding.”
The Cowboys forced three turnovers in the first quarter against New York, a franchise first. Three more came in the second half, giving Dallas the most in a game since it notched six in blanking Washington 27-0 on Dec. 14, 2003.
Last season, the Cowboys didn’t force their sixth turnover until Week 3. Dallas finished 2012 with just 16 takeaways, a big reason why owner Jerry Jones fired Rob Phillips as defensive coordinator and hired the 73-year-old Kiffin, who has emphasized takeaways from Day One.
“We talk about it a lot,” Kiffin said. “You have to talk about it. You have to practice it.”
Working with Kiffin to get the message across is fiery defensive line coach Rod Marinelli, the defensive coordinator of Chicago last season when it forced an NFL-high 44 takeaways.
“It’s important as a staff to make sure the things you emphasize show up in the game,” coach Jason Garrett said. “When you say, ‘This is something that is valuable,’ and then we go do it and it results in a win, that’s where it hits home, where it gains credibility.”
No player seems to have absorbed the takeaway talk better than safety Barry Church, who forced a fumble in the red zone against the Giants and gave Dallas a 20-10 lead early in the third quarter with a 27-yard fumble return for his first career TD.
“He’s certainly gravitated toward everything we’re teaching in this system and he’s become a leader as a young guy,” Garrett said of Church, who was presented with a pair of boxing gloves as the team’s player of the game.
But it wasn’t all praise the defense received Monday. There were plenty of what Garrett calls “coaching moments” after the defense allowed three Giants to collect more than 100 receiving yards while yielding six pass plays of 20 or more yards, including a 70-yard TD grab by Victor Cruz.
Those are scary numbers, considering games loom against several teams with outstanding passers, including Denver’s Peyton Manning, Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, New Orleans’ Drew Brees, Chicago’s Jay Cutler and Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers.
“Whenever you can create five takeaways in and return two of them for touchdowns, you are playing good defense,” Garrett said.
“…Having said that, now you watch the rest of the game. We have to get better in that area (pass defense).”
Continue reading...