itsaboat
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Normally, I start with the QB play but in this case I'm going with Watt. I consider him the best player in the NFL. He has the nastiest bull rush:
I've seen. The power he generates along with his long arms give offensive lineman a lot of problems. If that wasn't enough, he also has a great swim move to go with the power stuff. Suffice it to say I wanted to see what Dallas' game plan was.
Surprisingly, there were only a handful of plays when Dallas put multiple lineman on him at the snap.
Guess where Watt is:
More often than not, the offensive lineman opposite of Watt had the responsibility. The offensive lineman adjacent to Watt's blocker usually kept an eye on him in case he needed help. Leary and Martin had more success than Smith or Free because they can better handle his strength. Smith in particular had a difficult time with Watt.
His pass rushing skill can be used against him in the run game. Here is an example:
As you can see, Watt beats Leary with a nice swim move but Dallas had a run play called. It was opposite of where Watt lined up but as soon as Murray sees the gap Watt vacated, he cuts back for a nice gain.
At the end of the game Watt had 0 sacks, 1 qb hit, and 2 pressures. He made some plays but overall Dallas did a good job limiting his impact. It played a big role in the outcome of the game.
OFFENSE
Romo continues to look more comfortable out there. For the most part, I thought he made good reads. The glaring mistake was the interception.
(nice hustle from Dunbar for the tackle)
It was a silly one because Houston was in a fairly simple defense. Bryant runs a post that breaks at the 10 yard line. Romo stares down Bryant. The safety has his eyes on Romo, sees the route developing, then jumps pass for the interception. A defender does come free at the last second to get a hit on him but that's no excuse for the throw.
As you all know, he did have a few of "nice" plays.
Romo is a nice guy
He doesn't get to play against Houston and Watt often so he made sure to introduce him to the patented Romo spin move.
The Bryant TD
Romo noticed how Houston lined up, gave Bryant a signal, and the outcome was a fairly easy TD. The play call was definitely a run from the way everyone blocked and Murray's reaction. It's hard to believe that Houston let a UDFA rookie line up 1 on 1 with Bryant. Again, that's the benefit of a successful run game. You can't defend both effectively on the goal line. They conceded the throw and Romo took advantage of it.
Speaking of Bryant... "the catch"
Romo had a free defender bearing down on him. He knew Bryant was 1 on 1 with Joseph so all he needed to do was make sure there was some "air" on the pass so the WR had a chance. What a catch. It's one of the best plays I've seen.
I like Williams but I HATE that he's a body catcher. I'm sure he works on his hands but when a play needs to be made he goes back to using his body. You see it in the TD play.
Closeup of the TD catch:
Close up of the dropped pass near the goal line
A WR can still make catches that way, as shown above in the TD, but it's not a good habit. It reduces his catch radius and it also forces him to wait a split second for the ball, as apposed to snatching the ball out of the air, which can give a defender enough time to make a play. I really want to see him break that habit but I don't know if he ever will completely.
Dallas used Harris a little bit like an extra TE on some run plays. He is a good blocker for a WR. Really, all the WRs have stepped up their blocking this season.
Hanna (20) continues to get more snaps than Escobar (4) because he has become a pretty good blocker. Garrett says they have packages for Escobar but in reality they need their 2nd TE to block and Hanna is the better of the two.
Murray needs to start putting both hands on the ball even if it will cost him a few yards.
The offensive line did a pretty good job protecting Romo. As I said earlier, the tackles had some problems against Watt but they were able to defend the other edge rushers well. The only sack given up was to a blitzing LB. Murray had a nice pick up but there wasn't anyone open and the LB was able to shed Murray to force Romo to concede the sack. Leary and Martin had a few plays taking on Watt 1 on 1 and they held their ground... for the most part. Frederick made sure to keep an eye on Watt on those pass plays. Martin also helped Free the few times he lined over the RT.
The run blocking was successful though Houston was able to limit the big runs. They also have a zone running scheme so they have a lot of experience defending it. Murray "only" averaged 4.4 ypc.
DEFENSE
Marinelli's game plan for Houston was similar to the one in Tennessee. Play a lot of man defense and force the QB to make throws. To his credit, Fitzpatrick did into very tight coverage. Johnson had at least three catches that had a CB draped all over him.
I noticed a lot of blitzes early in the game. I think Dallas blitzed about 50% of the plays until Houston scored their first TD in the 3rd quarter. After, Marinelli only called 3 blitzes the rest of the game.
Tyrone Crawford continues to be the most disruptive member of our defensive line. I saw him shed a double team to bring down the RB on a couple of occasions. PFF credits him with 1 pressure. I say it's 2 because on the other play Crawford gets to the QB but the Guard blatantly held him. The refs caught the hold and flagged him.
Mincey is probably our best pass rushing DE right now. He battled against Brown, one of the best LTs in football, all game but didn't have a lot of success. He was finally able to break through when it mattered most.
Mincey getting pressure:
He gets a push on Brown and rips through to force Fitzpatrick to throw the ball early. We had good coverage on the play so it gave Mincey time to work. This was at the end of Houston's first and only drive in OT.
Also take note of the personnel. Mincey, Crawford, Melton, and Spencer were the 4 lineman Dallas went with when they needed a stop. That's our best pass rushing lineup right now.
Overall the defensive line didn't get a lot of pressure. We still rely on blitzes to create pressure.
I was surprised Bishop was on the inactives list. Foster is one of the best RBs in football so I thought we had to have him on the active roster. Well, Foster had a huge game in part to the play of our defensive tackles. It wasn't all their fault but the only DT that came close to holding their ground was Crawford. Again, some of it has to do with scheme. Marinelli wants his defensive line to play the run on their way to the QB. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that well in practice. Teams continue to average 5+ ypc.
One guy that helps in the run game is Rolando McClain.
Here's an example:
Ro sees the play developing and attacks the gap. With his size and strength he stands up the pulling Guard. It affects the ball carrier because he's knocked off balance and is forced to stretch it out. This gives Durant enough time to shed his block and get the tackle for a minimal gain.
Ro's hit on Fitzpatrick
Ro is just a good, instinctive player. On top of that, he's become a leader on defense. You can tell when you watch him communicate with other players.
Durant was very active. He was all over the place making plays especially against the run.
I thought the corners played well the entire game. They made sure Fitzpatrick had to make accurate throws. Scandrick was gifted that interception but he still had to make the play.
The safety play was a little sloppy. Church, usually a sure tackler, missed one in the open field which resulted in a TD.
Wilcox had an inconsistent game. He made a couple of nice plays being aggressive and attacking two different screen plays. He also missed a couple of tackles against Foster which resulted in about 6 additional yards the first time and another 10 on the second.
CLOSING
Houston has a good team. Their defense is strong. Romo said it was their toughest challenge this season so far. Can't imagine how good they will be when Clowney gets back. If we are being honest, Dallas' biggest obstacle that game were themselves. They had two turnovers (fumble and interception) and had a costly penalty in the red zone. Harris also fumbled on a punt return. Luckily, we were able to battle back and get the win. We won't be able to get away with that kind of play against Seattle.
P.S. These posts take A LOT of time to put together so forgive me if there are mistakes!
I've seen. The power he generates along with his long arms give offensive lineman a lot of problems. If that wasn't enough, he also has a great swim move to go with the power stuff. Suffice it to say I wanted to see what Dallas' game plan was.
Surprisingly, there were only a handful of plays when Dallas put multiple lineman on him at the snap.
Guess where Watt is:
More often than not, the offensive lineman opposite of Watt had the responsibility. The offensive lineman adjacent to Watt's blocker usually kept an eye on him in case he needed help. Leary and Martin had more success than Smith or Free because they can better handle his strength. Smith in particular had a difficult time with Watt.
His pass rushing skill can be used against him in the run game. Here is an example:
As you can see, Watt beats Leary with a nice swim move but Dallas had a run play called. It was opposite of where Watt lined up but as soon as Murray sees the gap Watt vacated, he cuts back for a nice gain.
At the end of the game Watt had 0 sacks, 1 qb hit, and 2 pressures. He made some plays but overall Dallas did a good job limiting his impact. It played a big role in the outcome of the game.
OFFENSE
Romo continues to look more comfortable out there. For the most part, I thought he made good reads. The glaring mistake was the interception.
(nice hustle from Dunbar for the tackle)
It was a silly one because Houston was in a fairly simple defense. Bryant runs a post that breaks at the 10 yard line. Romo stares down Bryant. The safety has his eyes on Romo, sees the route developing, then jumps pass for the interception. A defender does come free at the last second to get a hit on him but that's no excuse for the throw.
As you all know, he did have a few of "nice" plays.
Romo is a nice guy
He doesn't get to play against Houston and Watt often so he made sure to introduce him to the patented Romo spin move.
The Bryant TD
Romo noticed how Houston lined up, gave Bryant a signal, and the outcome was a fairly easy TD. The play call was definitely a run from the way everyone blocked and Murray's reaction. It's hard to believe that Houston let a UDFA rookie line up 1 on 1 with Bryant. Again, that's the benefit of a successful run game. You can't defend both effectively on the goal line. They conceded the throw and Romo took advantage of it.
Speaking of Bryant... "the catch"
Romo had a free defender bearing down on him. He knew Bryant was 1 on 1 with Joseph so all he needed to do was make sure there was some "air" on the pass so the WR had a chance. What a catch. It's one of the best plays I've seen.
I like Williams but I HATE that he's a body catcher. I'm sure he works on his hands but when a play needs to be made he goes back to using his body. You see it in the TD play.
Closeup of the TD catch:
Close up of the dropped pass near the goal line
A WR can still make catches that way, as shown above in the TD, but it's not a good habit. It reduces his catch radius and it also forces him to wait a split second for the ball, as apposed to snatching the ball out of the air, which can give a defender enough time to make a play. I really want to see him break that habit but I don't know if he ever will completely.
Dallas used Harris a little bit like an extra TE on some run plays. He is a good blocker for a WR. Really, all the WRs have stepped up their blocking this season.
Hanna (20) continues to get more snaps than Escobar (4) because he has become a pretty good blocker. Garrett says they have packages for Escobar but in reality they need their 2nd TE to block and Hanna is the better of the two.
Murray needs to start putting both hands on the ball even if it will cost him a few yards.
The offensive line did a pretty good job protecting Romo. As I said earlier, the tackles had some problems against Watt but they were able to defend the other edge rushers well. The only sack given up was to a blitzing LB. Murray had a nice pick up but there wasn't anyone open and the LB was able to shed Murray to force Romo to concede the sack. Leary and Martin had a few plays taking on Watt 1 on 1 and they held their ground... for the most part. Frederick made sure to keep an eye on Watt on those pass plays. Martin also helped Free the few times he lined over the RT.
The run blocking was successful though Houston was able to limit the big runs. They also have a zone running scheme so they have a lot of experience defending it. Murray "only" averaged 4.4 ypc.
DEFENSE
Marinelli's game plan for Houston was similar to the one in Tennessee. Play a lot of man defense and force the QB to make throws. To his credit, Fitzpatrick did into very tight coverage. Johnson had at least three catches that had a CB draped all over him.
I noticed a lot of blitzes early in the game. I think Dallas blitzed about 50% of the plays until Houston scored their first TD in the 3rd quarter. After, Marinelli only called 3 blitzes the rest of the game.
Tyrone Crawford continues to be the most disruptive member of our defensive line. I saw him shed a double team to bring down the RB on a couple of occasions. PFF credits him with 1 pressure. I say it's 2 because on the other play Crawford gets to the QB but the Guard blatantly held him. The refs caught the hold and flagged him.
Mincey is probably our best pass rushing DE right now. He battled against Brown, one of the best LTs in football, all game but didn't have a lot of success. He was finally able to break through when it mattered most.
Mincey getting pressure:
He gets a push on Brown and rips through to force Fitzpatrick to throw the ball early. We had good coverage on the play so it gave Mincey time to work. This was at the end of Houston's first and only drive in OT.
Also take note of the personnel. Mincey, Crawford, Melton, and Spencer were the 4 lineman Dallas went with when they needed a stop. That's our best pass rushing lineup right now.
Overall the defensive line didn't get a lot of pressure. We still rely on blitzes to create pressure.
I was surprised Bishop was on the inactives list. Foster is one of the best RBs in football so I thought we had to have him on the active roster. Well, Foster had a huge game in part to the play of our defensive tackles. It wasn't all their fault but the only DT that came close to holding their ground was Crawford. Again, some of it has to do with scheme. Marinelli wants his defensive line to play the run on their way to the QB. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that well in practice. Teams continue to average 5+ ypc.
One guy that helps in the run game is Rolando McClain.
Here's an example:
Ro sees the play developing and attacks the gap. With his size and strength he stands up the pulling Guard. It affects the ball carrier because he's knocked off balance and is forced to stretch it out. This gives Durant enough time to shed his block and get the tackle for a minimal gain.
Ro's hit on Fitzpatrick
Ro is just a good, instinctive player. On top of that, he's become a leader on defense. You can tell when you watch him communicate with other players.
Durant was very active. He was all over the place making plays especially against the run.
I thought the corners played well the entire game. They made sure Fitzpatrick had to make accurate throws. Scandrick was gifted that interception but he still had to make the play.
The safety play was a little sloppy. Church, usually a sure tackler, missed one in the open field which resulted in a TD.
Wilcox had an inconsistent game. He made a couple of nice plays being aggressive and attacking two different screen plays. He also missed a couple of tackles against Foster which resulted in about 6 additional yards the first time and another 10 on the second.
CLOSING
Houston has a good team. Their defense is strong. Romo said it was their toughest challenge this season so far. Can't imagine how good they will be when Clowney gets back. If we are being honest, Dallas' biggest obstacle that game were themselves. They had two turnovers (fumble and interception) and had a costly penalty in the red zone. Harris also fumbled on a punt return. Luckily, we were able to battle back and get the win. We won't be able to get away with that kind of play against Seattle.
P.S. These posts take A LOT of time to put together so forgive me if there are mistakes!
