mmillman
Well-Known Member
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Dallas Cowboys
Quarterbacks: Tony Romo actually threw the ball pretty well for the most part, with the notable exception of the awful decision he made on the interception by Ben Leber. That pass looked like the old Romo, not the franchise quarterback that had led this team to a division title and a playoff win in recent weeks. Though his offensive line could have been better, Romo held on to the ball way too long at times and showed questionable pocket awareness throughout the contest. Couple that with the multiple fumbles and this game will be one that weighs on Romo until training camp begins in late July. Grade: D+
Running Backs: Felix Jones was pretty productive when given room to run, especially when Dallas got him out on the flank or in open space. The problem is he did not get the ball nearly enough as Dallas had to go almost exclusively through the air once they fell behind by more than two scores. Marion Barber ran hard but was generally ineffective Grade: B+
Receivers: Jason Witten had a big day controlling the middle of the field by making an assortment of tough grabs, but was also victimized when trying to block Jared Allen a couple of times, most notably on the Allen sack that caused Romo to fumble deep in Cowboys territory. Miles Austin had a couple of nice plays early, but was missing in action the rest of the day. Roy Williams was a non-factor and is fast becoming one of the worst trades and signings in Cowboys history. Grade: C
Offensive Line: Not the best effort by this unit to say the least, but they played better than the final numbers will indicate. The run blocking, especially on outside runs, was outstanding to start the game and the third quarter. Unfortunately, they weren't able to stick with the run enough and their pass blocking was spotty at best as Romo was often hurried and running for his life. Doug Free did a nice job stepping up for the injured Flozell Adams. Grade: C-
Defensive Line: This group was fairly stout against the run throughout but did not generate enough of a push up the middle with the exception of Jay Ratliff's sack of Brett Favre after beating Vikings right guard Anthony Herrera at the line of scrimmage. The Cowboys needed more. Grade: C
Linebackers: Anthony Spencer had a nice game and was a force throughout, finishing with 10 tackles and a sack. DeMarcus Ware had one sack when he was unblocked but other than that was not nearly the dominator the Cowboys hoped he would be. Bradie James and Keith Brooking did their jobs for the most part, especially in the running game. Grade: B
Defensive Backs: It feels strange to say that a defensive backfield that gave up four passing touchdowns to Favre had a good game but the Cowboys corners, in particular youngsters Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick, were outstanding all game long. Jenkins was victimized on one Sidney Rice touchdown, but the big negative for this group was the first Rice score in which safety Gerald Sensabaugh never turned his head to find the football Grade: B+
Special Teams: Shawn Suisham missed a couple of field goals that could have changed the complexion of the game. David Buehler was excellent with his kickoffs but the kickoff return team was horrible, not even getting the ball past the twenty on most of their many returns. Grade: D
Coaching: Nice plan early on with the outside run game and having Romo get rid of the ball quickly but for some reason they got away from that. As soon as the 'Boys started trying to go with deeper pass drops, the tide began to turn in the wrong direction. Grade: D
I agree with the assessment. Romo didn't play well. They, as usual, didn't use Jones enough. Garrett spends waaaay too much time trying to get the three headed monster involved. One of the three has to go IMO and Jones should get 65% of the touches.
Coaches, as usual, didn't adapt to what the Vikings were doing. It was obvious early that Minnesota was ready for that single back draw that they like to run but for some reason Garrett kept calling the play and putting Romo in must pass situations where the Vikings could tee off on him.
Can Dallas run a screen or a quick slant ever?
Quarterbacks: Tony Romo actually threw the ball pretty well for the most part, with the notable exception of the awful decision he made on the interception by Ben Leber. That pass looked like the old Romo, not the franchise quarterback that had led this team to a division title and a playoff win in recent weeks. Though his offensive line could have been better, Romo held on to the ball way too long at times and showed questionable pocket awareness throughout the contest. Couple that with the multiple fumbles and this game will be one that weighs on Romo until training camp begins in late July. Grade: D+
Running Backs: Felix Jones was pretty productive when given room to run, especially when Dallas got him out on the flank or in open space. The problem is he did not get the ball nearly enough as Dallas had to go almost exclusively through the air once they fell behind by more than two scores. Marion Barber ran hard but was generally ineffective Grade: B+
Receivers: Jason Witten had a big day controlling the middle of the field by making an assortment of tough grabs, but was also victimized when trying to block Jared Allen a couple of times, most notably on the Allen sack that caused Romo to fumble deep in Cowboys territory. Miles Austin had a couple of nice plays early, but was missing in action the rest of the day. Roy Williams was a non-factor and is fast becoming one of the worst trades and signings in Cowboys history. Grade: C
Offensive Line: Not the best effort by this unit to say the least, but they played better than the final numbers will indicate. The run blocking, especially on outside runs, was outstanding to start the game and the third quarter. Unfortunately, they weren't able to stick with the run enough and their pass blocking was spotty at best as Romo was often hurried and running for his life. Doug Free did a nice job stepping up for the injured Flozell Adams. Grade: C-
Defensive Line: This group was fairly stout against the run throughout but did not generate enough of a push up the middle with the exception of Jay Ratliff's sack of Brett Favre after beating Vikings right guard Anthony Herrera at the line of scrimmage. The Cowboys needed more. Grade: C
Linebackers: Anthony Spencer had a nice game and was a force throughout, finishing with 10 tackles and a sack. DeMarcus Ware had one sack when he was unblocked but other than that was not nearly the dominator the Cowboys hoped he would be. Bradie James and Keith Brooking did their jobs for the most part, especially in the running game. Grade: B
Defensive Backs: It feels strange to say that a defensive backfield that gave up four passing touchdowns to Favre had a good game but the Cowboys corners, in particular youngsters Mike Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick, were outstanding all game long. Jenkins was victimized on one Sidney Rice touchdown, but the big negative for this group was the first Rice score in which safety Gerald Sensabaugh never turned his head to find the football Grade: B+
Special Teams: Shawn Suisham missed a couple of field goals that could have changed the complexion of the game. David Buehler was excellent with his kickoffs but the kickoff return team was horrible, not even getting the ball past the twenty on most of their many returns. Grade: D
Coaching: Nice plan early on with the outside run game and having Romo get rid of the ball quickly but for some reason they got away from that. As soon as the 'Boys started trying to go with deeper pass drops, the tide began to turn in the wrong direction. Grade: D
I agree with the assessment. Romo didn't play well. They, as usual, didn't use Jones enough. Garrett spends waaaay too much time trying to get the three headed monster involved. One of the three has to go IMO and Jones should get 65% of the touches.
Coaches, as usual, didn't adapt to what the Vikings were doing. It was obvious early that Minnesota was ready for that single back draw that they like to run but for some reason Garrett kept calling the play and putting Romo in must pass situations where the Vikings could tee off on him.
Can Dallas run a screen or a quick slant ever?
